Cricket 1905

C R IC K ET , A W E E K LY REOORD OP T H E GAM E. MAR. 30, 1905. __-- . - I f F~. lu L j n S 1: '/? £ COXl * /HW- 1 r « » I \ *3C3* 1 1 1 “ Together joined in Cricket’s manly toil.”— Byron. iro. 6 8 2 . VOL. x x iv . THURSDAY , MAE . 30, 1905. p b i c b ad A CH A T ABOUT M R . W . G. GRACE , J u n . By the death of Mr. W. G. Grace, jun., at the age of thirty-one, after only a few day’s illness, the cricket world has lost an all-round man, who, although he played under many disadvantages, did credit to his family name. When it was announced in 1895 that W. G., jun., had received his blue at Cambridge there was not a cricketer in the world who did not feel delighted that the eldest son of the most famous of all players had gained such a well-deserved honour. On all sides was heard the remark “ Won’t the old man be pleased ! ” for it was generally known that Dr. Grace had set his heart on seeing his son play for the Cambridge eleven against Oxford. There never was a better judge of the game than Dr. Grace, and everybody knew that he had confidence in his son’s ability to do himself justice in first- class matches, but presumably the authorities at Cambridge were under the impression that his opinions were biassed in the case of his son, perhaps reason­ ing that many fathers mistake silver for gold when they speak of the merits of their sons. Be this as it may, W. G., jun., can hardly be said to have had a fair trial at the University, although in his first year of residence, 1894, Cambridge had an exceedingly weak team. It was the irony of fate that when Cambridge played the M.C.C. at Lord’s that year, the week before the ’Varsity match, the son and the father between them had avery large share in the ignominious defeat of the ’Varsity, W. G., sen., making 23 and 196, and taking four wickets in the second innings for 83, while W. G., jun., made 0 and 54, and took six wickets for 79 in the first innings. But the Cambridge team was then made up, so that W. G., jun., missed his blue. In the following year it seemed more than likely that W. G., jun., would again fail to gain a place in the ’Varsity team. He was only tried at intervals, and as often happens in such cases, he did not distinguish himself greatly, although he showed himself to be a capable player who could keep up an end—just the man to go in first in the opinion of many fine judges of the game. But although there was a great difficulty in finding a satisfactory first-wicket partner for Mr. F. Mitchell, the man who was most suited for the position was passed over until, having received his blue just before the great match, W. G., jun., was sent in first with Mitchell against Oxford, and distin­ guished himself greatly in the match by scoring 40 and 28. He did not play very much first-class cricket after he left the University, owing to his professional duties. W. G., jun., had gained some experience in first-class cricket before he went to the University, ‘having played occasionally for Gloucestershire, but he first attracted the attention of cricketers in London when he played for M.C.C. v. Cambridge at Lord’s, in 1894. It must be confessed that his style was then regarded with dismay. It was stiff and forced, and ungainly, although it was beyond doubt effective. A week later in the ’Varsity match, Mr. C. B. Fry, with an equally repelling style, made a hun­ dred for Oxford, but it was impossible to help seeing that there was a vast difference between the two players. Fry was a bom cricketer who had managed to contract a style which nature never intended should belong to him, while W. G., jun., was decidedly not a bom cricketer; he was a product of sound and careful teaching. He had many of his father’s beBt strokes, and his bat was held so straight that it was difficult for a bowler to get past his defence, but there was no freedom in his move­ ments, and he was condemned to be a methodical player for the rest of his life. By practice and careful thought Mr. Fry was able to allow nature to assert itself, with the wonder­ ful results which everyone knows, but W. G., jun., could never have followed his ex­ ample. All the more credit to him for being able to overcome so many difficulties, including a short sight, which compelled him to wear spectacles, and to his father for having taught him to become a really first- class cricketer. It was a triumph of perseverance and determination on both sides. W. G., jun.’s style improved somewhat as time went on, and after his first appearance in the University match the Cricket Field said of him:— “ The young W. G. is gradually becoming more and more like his father in both batting and bowling, not that he ever seems likely to approach his father’s brilliancy. Many of the off-strokes of father and son are made in precisely the same manner, and there is a great similarity in their way of treating leg balls. In the field there would not seem to be much difference at MB. W. 0. GRACE, JUN.