Cricket 1907

A pril 11, 1907. CRICKET : A WEEKLY RECORD OF THE GAME. 55 when in an inter-Colonial match Turner did the “ hat trick,” dismissing three such batsmen as Palmer, Horan and Trumble on a good wicket with consecu­ tive balls. This was the match at Mel­ bourne when McDonnell made his 239, an innings which I always shall consider one of the finest I ever witnessed. McDonnell simply lifted ball after ball over the fieldsmen’s heads to the boun­ dary with the utmost ease, and often the ball went over the iron fence which surrounds the Melbourne ground. “ Percy Mae,” as be was called, was a Yictorian, but had then gone to New South Wales, and so played for that colony, whose score, to which he c attributed the 239, was 363. Victoria had 223 to win in the last innings, and the wicket was still perfect, but owing to Turner’s fine bowl­ ing—6 for 42—they were got rid of for 139. Near the writer in the Melbourne grand stand, when Turner did the “ hat trick,” were sitting a party of English touring actors watching the game, one of whom got so excited that he shouted out, “ If he gets another wicket with the fourth ball I shall lie down and scream ! ” “ I hope to goodness he doesn’t ! ” was the comment of another spectator. Australian spectators are far more demonstrative in their appreciation or otherwise of the play, than English. In the February issue I referred to the Melbourne larrikins who used to roar to Boyle to take himself off, whenever, as Victorian captain, he put himself on. And Boyle bowled just as well at 40 as he had ever done. On his fell wiry frame there was not a superfluous ounce of flesh, and he was as active a9 a cat. Un­ doubtedly, however, Boyle was influenced by the “ barracking,” as he used not to bowl half enough in his later years. But I can remember when Shaw’s team of ’86-’87 were p la y iD g in Melbourne, how a certain man kept shouting out to Barlow “ Hit out at them, Barlow ” on an occasion when Barlow and Barnes made a long stand. This was a different case. Barlow, the professed stone-waller, could no more obey the mob and “ hit out at them ” than the leopard can change his spots. Mention of remarks from spectators shouted to players reminds me of the Sydney man who, when Lord Sheffield’s team were playing New South Wales, and W. G. at point stood very close in to Bannerman, called out “ Look out, Alec, or W. G. will have his hand in your pocket! ” And the notorious row during Lord Harris’s tour, when Murdoch was given as “ run out ” and was roared at to “ go back ” cannot be forgotten. The crowd rushed the ground, and Lord Harris was struck with a stick. The ever-plucky old Lancashire captain, A. N. Hornby, strong as a lion, agile as a monkey (his old nickname was “ Monkey ” ), collared the striker, and, though his shirt was nearly torn off his back, stuck to his man and carried the miscreant through all the mob to the Pavilion. Though this happened four years before I visited Australia, it was still fresh in the minds of cricket spectators, and I heard many versions of the fracas. But revenons a nos moutous. The ’93 Aus­ tralian team was strong, as George Giffen then, and since ’86, and until quite recent years, the best all-round man in the Colonies, was once more included, and star batsmen had been brought over ia Graham and Lyons, a first-class bowler in H. Trumble, and good all-round men in Trott and Bruce. Yet in the Test matches they were defeated by an innings in the only match brought to a conclu­ sion, and would almost certainly have lost one, if not both, of the others. As au all-round man Giffen was probably the best ever produced in Aus­ tralia, and the only man to be compared with him is M. A. Noble, of more recent years. Noble I remember playing against in 1884, when he was a boy, on the Moore Park Ground, near the present Sydney Ground. He had several brothers, all of whom were good boy players, and who, but for the lack of opportunity to play, owing to bueioess claims (referred to earlier in this article), would certainly all have been first-class cricketers. But the want of Australian teams at present is bowling of high class, and, until a quartette can be found like that which visited England in 1882, it will be hopeless to expect that Test matches, limited to three days, can be played out. I append the figures of the famous four referred to :— Balls. Mdns. Runs. Wkts. Aver. H. F. Boyle ... 4,834 ... 535 ... 1,682 .. 144 ... 11*68 F. R. Spofforth 6,379 ... 699 ... 2,282 ... 188 ... 12*13 G. E.Palmer... 4,771 ... 515 ... 1,731 ... 138 ... 12*54 T. W. Garrett 4,838 ... 489 ... 1,759 ... 128 ... 17*34 The bdst of Australian bowlers at present could not rival even Garrett’s figures. I also give Spofforth’s and Turner’s records in England :— F. R. S pofforth . Balls. Runs. Wkts. Aver. 187S ... ......... 3014 ... 1254 ... 107 ..,. 11*72 1880 ... ......... 968 ... 396 .. 46 .. 8*6 1882 ......... 6379 ... 2282 ... 188 ... 12*13 1884 ... ......... 6344 ... 2642 ... 216 - ,. 12*23 ls80 ... ......... 3726 ... 1528 .., 69 .. 17*16 20431 ... 8102 .. 626 ... 12*95 C. T. B. T urner . Balls. Runs. Wkts. Aver. 1888 ... ......... 10359 ... 3492 ... 314 .. 11-11 1890 ... ......... 8256 ... 2725 ... 215 ... 12*67 1893 ... ......... 5525 ... 2124 ... 149 ... 14-25 24140 ... 8341 .. 678 ... 12-30 When playing over here in ’78 and ’80 Spofforth, in all matches, took 326 wickets the first, and 391 the second tour. Had it not been for his accident in ’86 his figures for that year would have been better, and his gross average improved. But where is the bowler of to-day who can get wickets at anything approaching so low a cost ? Many, of course, will give the increased easiness of the wicket as an excuse. Yet in quite recent years we had a Tom Richardson (himself always reminding one in delivery of Spoffortb, whom doubtless he had seen and copied when a boy) knocking down the stumps like nine­ pins. Wickets and boundaries may be easier, and a bowler of to-day might be slightly more expensive than in Spof­ forth’s best days, but given the energy, pluck, hard work and perseverance the gr3at bowler of to-day or of the future, if he is found, will secure his victims as surely as did the great bowlers of the past. Murdoch’s batting average in England never exceeded 30, though, as I pointed out, his 30 was equal to that of the best English players of the year, a thing which cannot be said of any other Aus­ tralian batsman, not even Trumper in his great year (1902) when visiting England. But in New South Wales, for his Colony, Murdoch’s figures were :— Not Highest Ians. out. Runs, score. Aver. W. L. Murdoch ... 32 ... 3 ... 1548 ... 321 ... 53.37 The 321, of course, was his famous score for New South Wales v. Victoria in 1882, when New South Wales scored 775, defeating Victoria, who totalled 315 and and 322, by an innings and 138 runs. In Harry Moses, New South Wales had another great batsman and most consist­ ent scorer, who, like Kendall (pronounced by Southerton to be as good a slow bowler as Alfred Shaw), could never be induced to come to England. He, in 1888, compiled no less than 297 not out out of a total of 576 against Victoria for his Colony, and though the Victorian totals (267 and 274), thanks to Horan’s batting, were respectable, they were beaten by an innings and 35 runs. Moses was a left-handed batsman, and generally averaged about 40 runs a season. Evans was past his best when he came to England, as he could never be prevailed on to join the earlier teams, but, at his best, no team in Australia could possibly be considered complete without him. Lord Harris, in the red Lillywhite, awarded him very high praise by stating that his accuracy was greater than Alfred Shaw’s. But just as Australian teams leaving the Commonwealth have never been com­ pletely repres intative, so also have Eng­ lish Elevtns not been so. For bowling, Lord Sheffiell’s team of ’91-’92, which included Lohmann, Attewell, Briggs and Peel, not to speak of Grace and Stoddart, was perhaps the best, but for all-round strength Shaw’s teams of ’ 84-’ 85 and ’86-’87 were probably the strongest, whilst when (’87-’88) Shaw’s men and Lord Hawke’s team amalgamated to play Combined Australia, the strongest side that ever represented England (since Parr’s team in 1863-4) stood on Austra­ lian ground. MacLaren (who did better on the Syd­ ney ground than on any ground at home or in the Colonies) had a strong batting side. But, like most of the recent touring teams, whether English or Australian, its weakness was in bowling. What is wanted to-day, therefore, both here and at the Antipodes, is not only the man who can get runs consistently and keep them down by good fielding, but the man who, by using his head, and keeping at it day after day without being dis­ couraged, can get his opponents out and win matches, just as Spotforth and Tur­ ner, and Lohmann and Richardson did of yore. The time is now. The man has yet to come.