Cricket 1906

J u l y 19, 1906. CRICKET: A WEEKLY RECORD OF THE GAME. 281 the other wicket?, they stood up, waved little flags, score cards, and their hats, while the Eton boys sat silent and glum. But the Etonians had their turn when the match was over, and the genius who borrowed his sister’s light blue sunshade, and waved it on high in front of the pavilion, scored heavily. T here was a pretty scene at Lord’s on Saturday afternoon. Two nice-looking young ladies in the most dainty of muslin dresses, dotted with light blue sprigs or flowers, or whatever they are technically called, were dispensing tea in a carriage to various gentlemen. The scene sud­ denly changed. The gentlemen and the ladies moved away and there entered two youthful Etonians with appetites. Happily, it was not a case with them of “ when they got there the cupboard was bare,” and accordingly ample justice was done to the provisions. T here was another pretty scene on the same day. A small Harrovian had very carefully oonducted a charming and grown-up sister from the mound to the green enclosure during one of the in­ tervals. With an air of proprietorship he was escorting her through the throng, when he encountered another Harrovian of about the same age engaged in similar duties. The two young sinners ex­ changed winks with a solemnity which spoke volumes. T he West Indians still arrange their field in a manner which seems curious to Englishmen, and apparently they do not yet realise that a cover-point who stands between 50 and 60 yards from the wicket cannot possibly save the single, and can seldom cover enough ground to save the four. Sometimes they have an extra­ cover who, while cover stands close in, fields almost behind him at a distance of forty yards or so ; but once or twice at Lord’s on Monday in the M.C.C. match the ball went through both men, although it was not hit hard enough to reach the boundary. On the same day Challenor, sometimes at point and sometimes in a position which is a sort of “ third man close in,” fielded brilliantly. T here were two very interesting matches in the Streatham Week. Surrey Club and Ground made 253 and Streat­ ham, in the last over of the day, had made the same score for eight wickets. A no-ball was then called, and this, of course, won the match for Streatham. Whether a no-ball is hit or not it must at least increase the total by one. But the batsmen, apparently anxious to leave nothing to chance, ran, and one of them was run out. The question is whether, as the match was won the moment “ no ball ” was called, anything that happened afterwards could appear on the score. This is a question upon which the laws say nothing, and “ you takes your choice.” ------ In the other match Streatham made 354 for five wickets against H. D. G. Leveson-Gower’s team, and then de­ clared. The result was somewhat sur­ prising, for the visitors won the match, scoring 405 for six wickets in two hours and twenty minutes. It may be noted that the first two men on each side put up over 200 for the first wicket, each of the four men scoring a hundred, viz., N. Miller, E. Field, M. W. Payne, and C. J. Burnup. A good performance in the way of “ gentle tapping,” to use the late Robert Thoms’ favourite phrase, marked the game between Surrey Club and Ground and the Brixton Wanderers on the latter’s ground last Friday. A notable feature in the innings of the Wanderers, who went in first, was that every batsman was bowled. The Surrey Club commenced to bat at a quarter past four and, as stumps were drawn at seven o’clock, including a quarter of an hour for a tea interval, two hours and a half remained for actual play. In this time 336 were got for the loss of only two batsmen (Stedman and Platt). The former had only made 55 out of 195 scared when he was out, but Platt, the next to go, raised his score to 199 before he was dismissed. His total included thirty-five 4’s and four 3’s, and at one time he made six succes­ sive 4’s from one over of A. Lovell. B raund , who has not, on the whole, been in particularly good luck this year, did a notable performance on Saturday at Worcester. Though successful with the bat as well, it was his bowling in the first innings of Worcestershire which helped Somerset most. He did the “ hat trick,” dismissing Cuffe, Wheldon and Burrows with successive balls. T he recent celebration of its Jubilee by the Club reminds one what good work has been done by the Free Foresters as Cricket Missioners. A passing glance at the records would show what a long and brilliant succession of first-class players have sported the Forester colours since the late Rev. W. K. R. Bedford, then Rector of Sutton-Coldfield, got together an eleven of his friends in the summer of 1856, and played the first matchunderthe title of the Free Foresters. At the Jubilee Dinner, held in the White­ hall Rooms, on the 4th inst., one hun­ dred Free Foresters foregathered under the presidency of Lord Cobham. The Rev. G. Gilbanks who had taken part in the original match was present, and among those who proposed or responded to the different toasts were the Rt. Hon. James Round, the old Oxford wicket­ keeper, G. W. Ricketts, another Oxford blue, the Rev. T. O. Reay, and the Rt. Hon. W. H. Long, President of the Marylebone Club. Edward Rutter, who has been hon. sec. of the Club for the last thirty-six years, had naturally a very enthusiastic reception. T he match between Lockers Park and Ludgrove Schools on Wednesday of last week was brought to a close in a rather sensational fashion. After getting rid of Lockers Park for 104, Ludgrove seemed to have success assured with 83 up and only half their wickets down. T. L. G. Turnbull, however, effectually settled their hopes by taking their last five wickets in one over and with suc­ cessive balls. Five wickets with consecu­ tive balls, one need hardly add, is the rarest of achievements in any class of match. —— A SOUVENIR of Eton and Harrow was issued by the Souvenir Publishing Syndi­ cate, Limited, of 34, Gresham Street, in anticipation of last week’ s match at Lord’s. Copiously illustrated with por­ traits of last year’s teams, as well as of the chief Etonian and Harrovian cricketers past and present, it represents a useful and withal attractive epitome of the great public school contest. A little more care in the letterpress would have improved an otherwise interesting record. It rather offends the eye to see the Harrow captain referred to, and more than once, as E. H. Ora ik. The G.O.M. of cricket, after a nasty crossing from Ireland, where he spent the week-end, adding to his already long list of triumphs on the bowling green, came up quite fresh for the Gentlemen and Players’ Match at the Oral on Monday morning. The English bowlers who crossed the Irish Channel with W. G. last weak won all along the line in the international competition for the News o f tha World 100 guineas cup, beating all the other three ountries— Scotland, Wales and Ireland. T hat the cricket crowd retains a grate­ ful sense of his splendid services to the game during a period of over forty years was forcibly shown by the enthusiastic reception W. G. received when he went out to bat on Tuesday. Yesterday was his fifty-eighth birthday, and the postal telegraph service at the Oral was well occupied with messages of affectionate regard and good wishes from all manners and conditions of men on the anniversary. These, in addition to personal expression of good wishes from the players and spectators at the Oval, must have been particularly gratifying to the recipient. As a mere illustration of cricket vitality it is interesting to iecallthat W. G. made his first appearance for the Gentlemen against the Players, and on the Surrey ground, too, as long ago as 1865. He had played at the Oval, if I remember rightly, for South Wales the previous year. He was then just approaching his sixteenth birthday, and it is interesting to note the reference to him in John Lillywhite’s Companion at the tim e: “ Mr. W. G. Grace promises to be a good b a t; bowls very fairly.” His first big score in a match of any importance was at the end of July, 1866. This was his 224 not out for England v. Surrey at the Oval. A month later on the same classic soil he was again not out, this time with 173 for the Gentlemen v. Players of the South. In all matches between the Gentlemen and the Players he has now had as many as 151 innings.