Cricket 1905

370 CRICKET: A WEEKLY RECORD OF THE GAME. A ug . 31, 1905. busy workers. This year a strong and successful effort has been made to establish a fund to support international cricket. The Associated Cricket Clubs of Philadel­ phia have founded a society of which the members each subscribe five dollars a year in order to further the interests of the game by arranging more international matches. For it is recognised that our future success depends to a large extent on meeting teams from abroad, because naturally the number of our first-class players is limited, and there is not sufficient variety among them for the highest standard to be kept up. A bowler like McDonell, for example, is altogether new to us, and unless we see more of foreign teams we shall always be at a loss whenever a bowler with unfamiliar methods is opposed to us. The visit of the Bermuda cricketers this year was a very interesting change. Itseemedstrange to us to find that some of them had never seen a railway nor a trolley car.” “ You have English professionals as coaches in Philadelphia p ” “ Yes. And exceedingly good fellows they are. We have no very well-known English professionals, for although we have tried frc quently to get one or two of them to come, we cannot offer them sufficient inducement to do so. Naturally when a professional is at the height of his fame he does not wish to leave England. Of course, if our season coincided with your winter it would be a different thing, but as it does not we must do the best we can. Among our most successful coaches are George Bromhead, who has been in Philadelphia for twenty-five years ; Sanders Handford, a brother of the Hampshire bowler, George Lane, George Woolley, George Bishop, George Bennett, J. Paley, Bur- rowes, and Tom Irving. Woolley also coaches the Haverford College team in the winter.” “ Haverford has a special system of coaching for c'ieket P” “ In the winter each student has his hour for cricket practice just as he has for recitation or mathematics, whether he is a good player or not. As soon as spring comes those who evidently do not take to the game are weeded out, and the coach devotes his attention to those who show promise. The system seems to work very well indeed.” Mr. Young captained the Cults’ team which did so well against the M.C.C. team at Philadelphia a few weeks ago. “ The colts,” he said, “ are chosen from young cricketers twenty-two years of age or under, who have never played against any Eogiish team. They did exceedingly well in this match, but of course it was very difficult for the M.C.C. to score with eighteen men in the field. From the view of a Philadelphia cricketer the chief feature of the match was the wicket-keeping of Winter, a boy of fifteen, who is a member of the Frank- ford club; he does not weigh more than a hundred pounds. He stood up to fast and slow bowling alike from half past eleven to half-past six, and accepted the only chance which came to him, while he only allowed a few byes. He is still at school, and this is the first year he has kept wicket, so that there are great hopes for his future. “ Are there many young players who are likely to distinguish themselves in the future p” “ I certainly think so. There are promising bowlers as well as batsmen. But our great difficulty is to make young bowlers understand that a good slow bowler is just as useful as one who bowls fast. The worst of it is that when a youngster bowls slow at the nets he is hit all over the place, and consequently gets discouraged, for he cannot be per­ suaded that many of the hits which look so magnificent at the nets would be easy catches in a match. The result is that he tries to bowl faster, and finding that he is not hit about so much, he gradually gives up the idea of bowling slow.” “ One of the things which we have never learned to appreciate properly in America,” said Mr. Young, “ is that it is perfectly legitimate, and not in the very least dishonourable, for a bowler to run out a batsman who leaves his ground before a ball is bowled. I remember that once in a match between Merion and Philadelphia the bowler was in the middle of his run, when, seeing that the batsman was out of his ground, he threw at the wicket and hit it. But repenting of the act, he said tbat he would not appeal. Naturally the captain of his side had no hesitation in doing so, and, of course, the batsman was rightly given out.” In connection with the practice of throwing at the wicket in order to run out a batsman who has left his ground before the ball has left the bowler’s hand, Mr. Young propounds an interest­ ing problem. “ I want to know what happens,” he said, “ in the following case : A batsman is out of his ground before the ball is bowled, and the bowler throws at the wicket. But in throwing he slips, and the ball only travels a few yards from the wicket—just far enough to enable the batsmen to make a run. The umpire calls ‘ no ball ’ in accordance with Law 35, part of which says, ‘ but if the Bowler throws at that wicket and any run result, it shall be scored “ no­ ball.” Now, according to Law 16, ‘ The Striker may hit a no-ball,’ and therefore the striker, who is now at the bowler’s end, walks up to the ball and hits it to the boundary. Is the striker justified, and how many runs are scored ? ” “ I should like to add,” said Mr. Young, “ that in Philadelphia we are as much exercised as you seem to be in England about the question whether the umpire should not, under the following condi ijns, be entitled to give a batsman out. In a recent match in our Halifax Cup competition a ball from the bowler hit the wicket, but although the bail left the stumps by two or three inches it settled in its place again. On account of this the fielding side lost the match. Surely this is not in accordance with justice.” W. A. B ettesw obth . R ICHARD DAFFS “ Nottinghamshire Marl.”— Particulars apply, Badcliffe-on-Trent, Notts. [A d vt .] SUSSEX AND THE COUNTY CHAMPIONSHIP. By A lfred D. Taylor in the Sussex Evening Times. In view of tne interest evinced in the latter stages of the struggle I have prepared a table of the Sussex results, as far as the Champion­ ship is concerned. It should be mentioned that the championship was instituted in 1873. SUSSEX AND THE COUNTY CHAMPIONSHIP. Year. Played. Won. Lost. Drawn. Position. 1873... ........ 10 ..,. 2 ... 6 ... 2 ... 7th 1874....... ....... 8 .. . 1 . . 5 ... 2 .... last 1875....... ....... 6 ... 4 .. . 1 .... 1 ... 2nd 1876... ......... 8 ..,. 3 ... 4 ... 1 .. 6th 1877... ......... 8 . .. 0 . .. 7 ... 1 . . last 1878... ......... 8 .. . 1 . ,. 7 ... 0 . . last 1879... ......... 4 . .. 1 .. 1 ... 2 .. 6th 1880... ......... 6 . .. 0 . .. 4 ... 2 ... last 1881... ......... 10 . .. 1 . ,. 8 ... 1 .. . last 1882... ......... 10 ... 2 ... 7 ... 1 .. . last 1883... ... .. 10 ... 3 ... 6 ... 1 .. 6th 1881... ......... 12 ... 6 ... 5 ... 1 .. 6th 1885... ......... 12 ... 2 ... 8 2 . last 1886... ......... 12 ... 4 ... 6 "! 2 6th 1887... ......... 12 ... 2 .... 8 ... 2 ... 6th 1888... ......... 12 . .. 1 . .. 9 ... 2 ... last 1889... ......... 12 . .. 1 . .. 10 ... 1 .. . last 1890... ......... 12 . .. 1 . .. 11 ... 0 .. . last 1891... ......... 14 ... 4 ... 7 ... 3 ... 7th 1892... ......... 16 . .. 1 . .. 12 ... 3 ... last 1893... ......... 16 ... 4 .... 7 ... 5 ... 7th 1894... ......... 16 ... 3 ..,. 11 ... 2 .. 8th 1895... ......... 18 ... 5 .. . 9 ... 4 .. . 11th 1896... ......... 18 ... 2 .... 9 ... 7 ... last 1897... ......... 20 ... 5 ..,. 6 ... 9 ... 6th 1898... ......... 20 ... 3 .... 9 ... 8 ... 11th 1899... ......... 22 .... 8 ... 4 ... 10 ... 5th 1900... ......... 24 ... 4 .... 2 ... 18 ... 3rd 1901... ......... 24 ... 8 ... 4 ... 12 ... 4th 1902... ........ 24 ... 7 ... 3 ... 14 ... 2nd 1903... ......... 23 ... 7 . 2 ... 14 .. 2nd 1904... ......... 24 ... 5 .!*. 4 ... 15 ... 6th From the foregoing it will be perceived that Sussex have never held premier position since the institution of the Championship, though the team occupied second place in 1875, 1902 and 1903. In 1877 and 1880 Sussex did not win a single game, while in 1878 and 1890 they decided every match played. On the other hand the County only lost one engagement in 1876 and 1879 ; while in 1900, when 24 matches were played, and in 1903, when 23 games were contested (the match with Kent at Tonbridge being aban­ doned without a ball being bowled) the teim only lost two matches. On twelve occasions Sussex have claimed the wooden spoon. The most matches won by Sussex in a season in Championship- games is eight, which they accomplished in 1899 and 1901. The greatest number of matches won in all games, as I was the first to point out, is nine, which the team effected in 1884 and 1901. These figures have been left far behind this year. BRIXTON WANDERERS (2) v. HAMPTON WICK (2).-—Played at Hampton Wick on Aug. 26. H am pton W ic k . b P. Daws, c Perks, Mitchell ............... 3 W.Farquharson, c&b Mitchell ............... 22 R. F. Bull, c sub., b Mitchell ............... 1 D. White, c Laine, b Russell ............... 10 D. G. Williams, b Mitchell ............... It E.T.Spearing, not out 58 * Innings declared closed. B r ix t o n W an d e r e r s . 8. E. M. Lawrence, b . Russell ..............9 L.D. Grayson, run out 55 G.DeGavey, bHavbert 0 H. J. B. King, lbw, b Mitchell ............... 1 A. E. llulland, not out 3 B 7, lb 2 ......... 9 Total (9 wkts)* 182 A. G. Whyte, st Law­ rence, b White A.Harbert. c Spearing, b Hulland ......... A. V. Russell, lbw, b Daws...................... O.W. Phillips, c Daws, b White ............... W.A. Mitchell, b Kin,: A. J. Laine, b White.. G. A. Ring, c White, b Daws...................... F. G. Perks, not out... W. G. Benge, b King L. Lewis and B. A. C Total (8 wkts) .. [lanvill did not bat. 0 13 1 7 51