Cricket 1905

A p e il 20, 1905. CRICKET: A WEEKLY RECORD OF THE GAME. 77 ROTJND THE MELBOURNE GROUND . The following extracts are taken from an article in the Australasian by “ F elix” :— “ Mention of Alick Bannerman reminds me that his brother Charlie was once fielding at point close up on a treacherous wicket at Lord’s. It was, in fact, that memorable sensational match against the Marylebone Club, which made all Eng­ land ring with the name of Australia. W. G. Grace and A. N. Hornby were in. Seeing Charlie so close up, and knowing the Lancastrian’s tremendous power on the off, W. G. went up to Charlie and said, ‘ Mr. Hornby hits very hard in that spot; if he lets go and gets fair hold, you might be killed.’ ‘ Does he hit h ard?’ replied Charlie. ‘ Well, if he kills me, he kills me, and if he does’nt, he does’nt. He can’t hit much harder than me, and little Kelly has stood up close for me on a fast wicket. I’ll take my chance.” And Charlie, opening his big eyes to the full, looked at W. G. and never budged an inch.’’ “ Still another I miss is the veteran Charlie Lawrence, with whom I have chatted year after year for many a season now. Perhaps nothing in his fine anec­ dotal collection was appreciated more by me than his references to the time when he played with Canon McCormick in Dublin. In one match against the famous A ll-England X I., the Rev. Canon and Charlie bowled them all out for So. The finish was most exciting, and General Sir Frederick Marshall, then a lieutenant, ottered Charlie a suit of clothes if he would secure the last wicket. Lawrence bowled, the bails were sent filing, and the Irish Eighteen won by 6 runs. Charlie took five of the famous eleven for 20 runs. When as a lad at school he played the wag; and walked 12 miles to see a match at Lord’s. “ Nat Cullin saw the first inter-colonial match that was ever played on the Mel­ bourne ground, and had the pleasure of hearing the speech delivered by H. H. Stephenson, captain of the first All- England Eleven that ever visited Aus­ tralia, a speech which had a true pro­ phetic ring iu it, for the famous old English player said, ‘ Gentlemen, though Australians cannot play much now, the time will he sure to come, it may be in the distant future, but sure enough for all that, when the Australians will be able to hold their own against the best team that can ba raised in England.” “ I ’m nearly half-way round, and I meet a man whose name stands honoured to the uttermost in my cricket memories. Gentlemen, that man’s name is Jack Conway. Would you believe it, that he is the only one left of the eighteen Vic­ torians who played in the first match against H. H. Stephenson’s team in 1861-2. They were brought out by Spiers and Pond, and the late Edward Wood, who knew Pond well, told me that the first day’s takings on the Mel­ bourne ground paid the whole expenses of the tour. It seems wonderful, but I think it is true, for my old dead and gone friend was told so by Pond himself, and they were boys together, and called each other ‘ Billy ’ and ‘ Ted ’ when they grew up to manhood. Jack Conway is the man who is entitled to all the credit for organising the first Australian team for England, and it redounds much to his credit that success crowned his efforts in a surprising manner, notwithstanding a strong opposition.” “ I came plump up against that grand old fearless footballer and cricketer, Charlie Carr. Charlie reminds me of the match in Sydney when D. W. Gregory was clean bowled, and the fieldsmen commenced throwing the ball to one another. Gregory did not go away, but commenced running instead, and the fieldsmen were astonished to find that the umpire had given my old and esteemed captain and comrade on many a hard- fought field ‘ not out.’ That case of clean bowling put 2 runs on to Dave’s score, and I am not surprised that Vic­ torian players in that contest refer to that incident, even to this day. I re­ member a match in Sydney when R. G. Barlow, the great Lancastrian, was actually caught and bowled by Spcfforth off a full toss, and given not out. I remem­ ber the Gregory incident well, though I was only a little chap. The ball beat the bat, and went into the hands of the wicket-keeper, who cried, ‘ Well bowled,’ and turning half round, he at once threw the ball out to someone at long-leg. The first Australian captain, however, ran two runs, an appeal was made, and the verdict was ‘ not out.’ The Herald report says: ‘ Powell joined Gregory, and took the last of the over (Boyle’s). Cosstick’s third went into the wicket­ keeper’s hands, and returning fell on the bails, and the fielders, thinking it was out, threw the hall up, and Gregory, having his wits about him, a couple of byes were added to the score.’ It was the wicket-keeper who started throwing the ball about. It was a mysterious incident, and there were two who thought the wicket had not been cleaned bowled—the batsman and the umpire. An extraordinary .point about this match was that it took eight days to play. It began on a Friday, and play was so much interfered with by rain that no more than 111 runs were scored. On the Saturday it was adjourned when the last innings was half over, and it was not resumed till the following Friday.” C RICKET Report Sheets, 10d. per dozen, post free. Order of Uoing-in Cards, 7d. per dozen, post free; Cricket Score Books, 6d. and Is. each; postage 2d. extra.—To beobtained at the Offices of “ Cricket,” 168, Upper Thames Street, London, W.C. SW E R V E IN B O W L IN G * This book consists of articles contri­ buted by Mr. P. A. Vaile to the Field. Of the eighty-three pages, forty-nine are devoted to the discussion of the cause and effect of swerve in bowling. In a style which can be understood by any ordinary cricketer, Mr. Vaile explains his theories as to the reason why the ball swerves, and he sums up his conclusions by saying: ‘ ‘ Swerve is caused by the different paces on opposite sides of the ball, together with the consequent uneven pressure of the air on the opposite halves of the ball.” He considers that to produce swerve it is not necessary to have a wind, and that although a wind is undoubtedly of great assistance, swerve may be obtained in a dead calm. He also states that the popular idea that in order to produce swerve a bowler must have a new ball is a fallacy, and in this we [entirely agree with him. We have known bowlers who could and did always make the ball swerve, whether it was new or worn by a month’s practice, whether there was absolute Cilm or a high wind. There have been bowlers who could not help making the ball swerve if they tried, although few of the men who swerve can say “ I will make this ball swerve, while the next one shall not swerve,” and carry out their intention in such a way as to con­ vince a sceptic. J. B. King and M. A. Noble are recognised as swervers who can swerve when they choose, but it sometimes seems to take a pretty good man to discover the swerve. Mr. Vaile remarks “ Hirst says that directly the seam is off the swerve is off. I say this is not so. I can make a tennis ball, which has no seam, that will assist spin, swerve on a cilin day, and, on a very windy one I can make it swerve about 3 yards in the length of the court, which is about 78 feet. I can make any old ball (cricket or otherwise) swerve, and a cricket ball is not a law unto itself.” We do not doubt that Mr. Vaile could give a practical proof that what he says is absolutely the truth, for there are and have been men who could say the same thing and do it. But they were and are very few and far between. It may be that in the near future every bowler who is worth his salt will have the swerve completely under his com­ mand, and it will not ba Mr. Vaile’s fault if a new race of bowlers is notproduced, f r his explanations of the way iu which tl e swerve is made are precise and clei r. Mr. Vaile devotes part of his space 10 explaining how the off-break with lej,- break delivery is brought about. This break is not a modern invention. There were always bowlers who could make a batsman say with disgust, “ Oh, I thought it was going to break the other way.” This has, of course, nothing to do with Mr. Vaile; his work is only to show how the thing may be done, and his explanation seems plausible enough, and quite simple. * Swerve. Or the Flight of the Ball: Cricket, Lawn Tennis, Golf, by P. A, Vaile. London; J, Tamblyn.