Cricket 1905

J u n e 22, 1905. CRICKET: A WEEKLY RECORD OF THE GAME. 211 GEO. G. BDSSEY & CO, 36 & 38 , q u e e n v i c t o r i a s t r e e t , e . g . Manufactory—PECKHAM, S.E. TIMBER MILLS— ELMSWELL, SUFFOLK, a g e n t s a l l o v e r t h e w o r l d , AT THE SIGN OF THE WICKET. By F . S. A s h lb y -C o o p e r . The abandonment of the second Test match at Lord’s on Saturday last owing to rain must have come as a very great disappoint­ ment to all followers of the game, for, had fine weather been experienced, an interesting and full day’s cricket would have been witnessed, and a definite result probably arrived at. It is difficult to imagine rain ever having fallen at a more inopportune moment, for on Saturday the thoughts of all enthusiasts must have been centred on the Mecca of Cricket, commonly yclept Lord’s. Will Mr. E. B. V. Christian, the real laureate of the game, or Mr. Norman Gale kindly write au ode suitable for the occasion? It will, perhaps, always be a debateable point as to which side the draw in last week’s match was favourable. Certainly England’s position, when the rain came down, was a strong one, but only a most fervent supporter of the side would contend that it was one which neces­ sarily meant victory. Had the weather remained fine, and the English innings been concluded, it is quite possible that, in an endeavour to knock off the runs, the Austra­ lians, with so great a wealth of run-getting at their command, would have proved suc­ cessful. MacLaren, by means or innings of 56 and 79, again showed how great a player he is in such contests, whilst i ’rv, by scoring 73 and not out 36, for the first occasion during his career met with much success when participating in a match of the fiist importance. The slow scoring of the Eng­ lishmen on the first day, although hard remarks have been made concerning it in many quarters, was quite excusable. The Australian bowling was always extremely accurate, and the fielding good, whilst the ball did not travel well over the heavy ground. Considering the state of the wicket, a score of 250 might have proved worth at least another hundred runs; its real value, however, could not have become known until the Australians had been in on the following day. In the circumstances, can one blame the English players for their careful display ? Such cricket may not be palatable to “ the man in the street,” but it was undoubtedly the correct course to adopt—a fact which must have been understood by anybody pos­ sessing more than a mere acquaintance with the game. As the Lord’s fixture has not yielded a definite result, the Australians will have to accomplish a herculean task if they are to take back the “ Ashes ” to Australia with them, for England have but to win one of the remaining three matches in order to remain in undisputed possession of them. Yorkshire’s two defeats in a week have greatly strengthened the position of Lan­ cashire, who appear as invulnerable as ever. In being beaten at Derby on Friday last, in their fifty-seventh match with Derbyshire, Yorkshire were merely paying the penalty of possessing several players of unusual ability, for the great match at Lord’s robbed the county of the services of F. S. Jackson, Hirst, Rhodes, and Haigh—of four men who would probably defeat at single wicket any other four picked from the whole country. Yorkshire have gained so many successes during recent years that, purely on senti­ mental grounds, one may feel inclined to regret their defeat at Derby. But there can be no doubt that the result of the match will prove almost a blessing to Derbyshire, who have long struggled bravely to occupy a creditable position in the world of cricket. 'I o Warren the match was a veritable triumph, as a glance at the score sheet will show. It would please the hearts of many enthusiasts, even of those not possessing any Derbyshire ties, if Warren were chosen for at least one of this season’s test matches. His ability as a fast bowler is everywhere acknowledged, and he is so willing and hard-working a cricketer, that a place in the England team should not be regarded as beyond his reach in the immediate future. It may interest Derbyshire players to know that of the 57 matches in which they have met Yorkshire, they have won but 10 to their opponents’ 32, the remaining 15 having been left undecided. The two sides first met in 1877—at Sheffield and Derby—and, prior to Friday last, Derbyshire had proved successful on the Derby ground on four occasions only, viz., in 1878, 1879, 1888, and 1890, and, further­ more, had not beaten Yorkshire for ten years—since winning at Leeds in 1895. The opening day of the eighty-fifth match between Yorkshire and Nottinghamshire was rendered noteworthy by a splendid bowling performance on the part of Wass, who is, on his day, probably the most deadly bowler in the world. His record of seven wickets for 28 runs is one which has seldom been excelled even in this series of matches, although at one time the meeting of the two sides was designated “ The Battle of Bowlers,” owing to the number of great trundlers found in either team. At Nottingham, in 1863, Grundy took 7 for 24 in the two innings, whilst on the same ground two years later J. C. Shaw claimed 8 for 32 in the latter half of the match. At Sheffield, in 1876, Morley took 13 for 45 (including 6 for 12), whilst in 1890—also at Bramall Lane— Attewell earned analyses of 5 for 26 and 5for 14. For Yorkshire Emmett took 9 for 34 at Dewsbury, in 1868, and 8 for 31 at Sheffield three years later. Peel’s analyses were 8 for 12 and 6 for 21— 14 for 33 altogether—at Bramall Lane in 1888, whilst, when Rhodes and Haigh disposed of Notts for 13 at Trent Bridge in 1901, the former took six wickets for 4 runs and the latter four for 8 . There have, of course, been several other startling feats performed with the ball in these matches, but the above are the most noticeable. OBITUARY . M r. JOHN ADAM. Mr. Adam, who was born in Aberdeen, Scotland, in 1875, identified himself with the Manhattan Cricket Club and for a number of years did yeoman service with both bat and ball for the club in the Metropolitan District Cricket League championship series. His highest score in local cricket was an even century against the Brooklyn Club in 1897. Another of his very best displays was for the old Hersey Athletic against the Merion Club in Philadelphia in 1897, when he scored 60. In all the International games played in recent years he was always seen to advantage and won the Rendle Cup for the best batting on the home team against the Kent County X I. in 1902. In 1903 he easily led the batting averages in the New York Cricket Association with an average of 30-91 for fourteen innings, with a high score of 71. On the formation of the Thistle Club, com­ posed entirely of Scotchmen, he at once became a very active member of the club, and game after game the success of the team was due entirely to his own individual efforts. He was captain of the team in 1903 and 1904 and last season led in his club’s batting and bowling averages; he also served in 1904 as vice-president of the New York Cricket Association. His genial disposition made him a host of friends. — American Cricketer,