Cricket 1908

20 CRICKET : A WEEKLY RECORD OF THE GAME. F eb . 27, 1908. T H E M .C .C . T E A M IN A U S T R A L I A . (Continued from page 13). 8 th Match.—v. A VICTORIAN X I. Played tit South Melbourne on December 21, 23, and 24. Drawn. This match, which was not the return to that played on the Melbourne ground in November, should have commenced on December 20th, but owing to the Test match at Sydney not being finished as soon as was expected a start could not be made until the 21st, the game being restricted to three days in consequence. Neither Vernon, the fast bowler, who had strained a leg whilst cycling, nor Hazlitt, who had injured a finger, assisted the home side, who none the less put a good team in the field. The weather was hot and windy, and the wicket perfect ; at one time during the day the temperature was 99 ’5 in the shade and 156 in the sun. Winning the toss, England commenced batting against Saunders and Armstrong. Crawford, who went in with Hobbs, began luckily, being missed by Collins at square-leg off Armstrong before he had made a run and by McAlister in the slips off Saunders when 3 ; the latter, however, was a hard chance. Fifty went up without loss in 33 minutes, but 13 runs later the first wicket fell, Crawford being caught at mid-on. He made some good hits and played confidently when s e t; he scored his 43 out of 63 in 45 minutes and hit three 6’s 'tw o off Armstrong and one off Smith) and four 4’s, Upon Hayes joining Hobbs a long stand was made. Neither of the Surrey men had hitherto scored heavily, and therefore their success was very welcome. At the end of an hour the total was 76, and 100 went up in 80 minutes. Hayes was missed when 18 by Armstrong at mid-off off Warae, and Hobbs reached 50 in 94 minutes. Six minutes later the total reached 150. Hayes, when 48, was dropped by Horan at long-off off Saunders and thereby was enabled to complete his half-century in 68 minutes. Both men, especially Hayes, were playing freely, and just when it seemed likely that Hobbs would make a hundred he played-on to Armstrong for a faultless innings of 77 made out of 181 in 145 minutes. He played a steady game, but hit well all round, and made eleven 4’s. The second wicket added 118 in 100 minutes. Hutchings made only 4 ere being caught at long-on. The 200 went up in 150 minutes, and Hayes, after helping Gunn to put on 45, was caught at point for a fine, but not faultless display. His 98 runs were made out of 179 in two hours and a-half and contained two 6's and thirteen 4’s, all powerful strokes. At the beginning of his innings he did not appear to sight the ball well, but he soon settled down to vigorous and delightful cricket. Gunn made 24 out of 82 in 80 minutes by quiet cricket before being caught at m id-on: he hit two 4’s and with Hardstaff added 37 for the fifth wicket, which fell at 279. Hardstaff, who pulled well and hit three 4’s and six 3’s, scored 34 out of 44 in three-quarters of an hour by very attractive play. The 300 went up 255 minutes from the start but at 318 Fane was bowled, after the seventh wicket had put on 32, and three runs later play ceased for the day, Rhodes being 12 not out and Barnes 3. During the afternoon the cricket was watched by 12,000 persons, including the Federal State Ministers. On the MOnday the 350 went up in five hours, and six runs later Barnes was l.b.w. With Humphries in, Rhodes completed 50 in 80 minutes and 400 went up in 350 minutes without further loss. Eight runs later, however, when the ninth wicket had realised 47, the wicket­ keeper was caught at slip, Rhodes then being 69. When Fielder went in, last man, some very free cricket was soen, the pair actually adding 95 without being separated in half-an-hour. During the first 22 minutes 67 were made. When Fielder had made 50 the innings was declared closed, Rhodes carrying out his bat for 105 made out of 217 in 146 minutes without a chance. He made some capital strokes all round the wicket and hit a six and ten 4’s, the m ajority of them pulls. Fielder hit two 6’s and five 4’s during the 30 minutes he was in. Although Fielder and Barnes, in view of the forthcom ing Test match at Melbourne, did not bowl their fastest, the Victorian batting was very slow. Mackenzie was bowled by Rhodes at 32, and at the end of an hour the total was only 39. Wame, second out at 58, was caught at long-on for 31 which, apart from a hit for 6, was a featureless display. The association of Tarrant and Ransford was brighter, and it was during their partnership of 51 that the 100 went up in an hour and three-quarters. The left-hander, who claimed 38 of the 51, ricked his leg in playing forward to Barnes and ran with difficulty. By very slow cricket at the end of the day Tarrant and Armstrong added 47 without being parted, the score when stumps were drawn being 156 for three wickets, Tarrant (30) and Armstrong (32). Play was witnessed by 5,000 people on the Monday, and the day’s play realised 338 runs for five wickets. On the third, and last, day the play was neither very interesting nor very serious. In view of the approaching Test match the best bowlers were not put on, and a tame draw was always a certainty. Armstrong reached 50 in an hour, a number which Tarrant took 175 minutes to compile. The 200 went up in as many minutes, and in the first hour of the day Armstrong scored 60 and Tarrant 15. The former reached three figures in just over two hours, but a little later was out to a fine catch in the slips ; he hit thirteen 4’s and by admirable and faultless cricket made 117 of the 170 added for the fourth wicket in 135 minutes. Score : 279 for four, Tarrant not out 66. With McAlister in the game again became lifeless, but 300 went up in 255 minutes. The fifth wicket added only 38, but a fine stand was made when Horan joined Tarrant. The latter reached three figures in 260 minutes, and five runs later was missed at long-on by Hobbs off Hayes. The 400 went up in six hours and Horan, after batting 80 minutes, reached 50. At 445, when the partnership had realised 128, Tarrant was caught at long-off for a needlessly- patient innings of 159 made out of 413 in 340 m inutes; he hit fourteen 4’s and offered only the one chance mentioned. Neither Smith nor Wood­ ford stayed long, but Collins helped Horan to put on 29. When the latter was bowled stumps were drawn for the day. Horan made his 75 out of 171 in 155 minutes by attractive cricket. He hit seven 4’s and showed himself to be strong on the leg-side. 2,000 persons were present on the last day, during which 332 runs were made for six wickets. In the entire match 991 runs were scored and 18 wickets fell. Score and analysis :— E ngland . J. N. Crawford, c Horan, b Collins ... 43 Hobbs, b Armstrong... 77 Hayes, c Wame, b Armstrong ...........98 K. L. Hutchings, c Mc­ Kenzie, bArmstrong 4 Gunn (G.), cSaunders, b Tarrant...................24 Hardstaff, c Horan, b Tarrant ...................34 F. L. Fane, b Tarrant 1 [ Rhodes, not out ...10^ Barnes, lbw, b Arm­ strong .................. 15 Humphries, c Mc­ Alister, b Collins ... 15 Fielder, not out ... 50 B 15, lb 6 ...........21 Total (9 wkts.)*503 * Innings declared closed. A V ictorian XI. C. McKenzie, b Rhodes 19 T. S. Wame, c Gunn, b Rhodes...................... 31 F. A. Tarrant, c Craw­ ford, b G u n n ............ 159 V. Ransford, b Barnes 38 W. W. Armstrong, c Hayes, b Rhodes ...117 P. A. McAlister, b F ie ld e r ...................... 11 J. Horan, b Crawford 75 L.Smith, lbw, b Hayes 6 J. H. R. Woodford, st Humphries, b Craw­ ford ........................... 0 F. B. Collins, not out 11 B 1, lb 4, w 4, nb 9 18 Total (9 wkts)...4S8 J. V. Saunders did not bat. E ngland . O. M. R. W. O. M. R. W. Saunders... 27 4 100 0 Smith 10 2 36 0 Armstrong 40 9 104 4 Wame ... 8 0 39 0 Collins ... 33 8 111 2 Tarrant ... 30 6 92 3 A V ictorian X I. O. M R. W. o . M. |{. W. Fielder 25 82 1 Hayes 18 0 66 1 Barnes 27 9 61 1 Hobbs ... 5 0 22 0 Rhodes 40 9 90 3 Hutchings 12 4 44 0 Crawford .. 28 1 89 2 Gunn 8 3 16 1 Fielder bowled four no-balls and Barnes five. Crawford delivered four wides. 9 th M atch .— v. XV III. OF BENDIGO. Played at Bendigo on December 26, 27, &28. Drawn. Not regarding the match very seriously, England, who were captained by Hutchings, took the field without Fane, Barnes, and Fielder, and, of course, Jones, who was still too ill to play. It was arranged that only thirteen of the home side should field at one time. Apart from Harry, a veteran of 50, and G. H. S. Trott the Bendigo XVIII. contained no players of note. Against De Ravin (medium to fast) and Servaas, a left-hander, Hobbs and Crawford made 39 in 20 minutes before the latter was caught at the w icket: he hit four 4’s in his 25. As at South Melbourne, Hayes and Hobbs again scored well, their partnership on this occasion realising 101 in 55 minutes. Fifty went up in 25 minutes and 100 in 55, whilst Hobbs completed a half-century in 65 minutes and Hayes in 52. The latter hit very hard, but when he had scored 53 out of 101 in 55 minutes he was caught at cover ; he hit a 6 and five 4's, but was lucky in being missed by point Oft Deravin before he had scored. Hutchings made only 7, and 10 runs later Hobbs fell to a fine catch in the slips, left-hand low down. The latter, who hit six 4’s, made 58 out of 158 in 95 minutes without a mistake. Braund was caught at mid-on at 170, and Gunn at the wicket 16 later, six wickets then being down for 186. One run later rain came down heavily at a quarter past three, and so severe was the downpour that by half-past four the ground was under water. Play was quite out of the S uestion on the second day owing to rain, but on le third afternoon a resumption was made at half- past two, the pitch then being soft but not difficult. There were very few spectators. Rhodes, with the total unchanged, was caught in the slips, and it was due chiefly to Hardstaff that as many as 213 were made. Anderson, a medium-paced bowler, took six wickets for 26 runs ; although helped by the wicket, it was a very fine performance. The fielding of the home side was always keen, and Gould showed good form behind the wicket. The batting of Bendigo calls for no description, as the score-shect tells its own tale. The first four wickets fell at 10, and the longest partnership of the innings was 13 by Peirco and Attwater for the eleventh. The only player to make any stand was the latter, a left-hander, who, going in fifth wicket down, carried out his bat for 26—a plucky but somewhat lucky effort. Crawford and Blythe, assisted by the wicket, bowled with great effect, the innings being over in less than an hour and a-half. At five o ’clock rain again fell, causing the match to be abandoned. Score and analysis:— E ngland . J.N. Crawford,cGould, Hardstaff, c and b b Dc Ravin ........... 25 Anderson.................. 24 Hobbs, c H unt,b Reid r,S Rhodes, c Reid, b Hayes, c Harry, b Anderson.................. 1 A nderson................. 53 R. A. Young, c and b K. L. Hutchings, b Anderson.................. 6 A nderson................. 7 Humphries, c Brown, Braund, c Moore, b b Reid .................. 3 Anderson................... 16 Blythe, not out........... 0 Gunn (G.), c Gould, Byes, etc............ 6 b Reid ................... 14 — Total ...........213 XVIII OF B endigo . T. Green, b Crawford. 5 Pierce, c Crawford, b G.H.S.Trott, b Blythe 5 Blythe ................... 4 Murray, c & b Blythe 0 Hull, c Hutchings, b Keogh, c Gunn, b Rhodes ................... 0 C raw ford................. 0 N. De Ravin, c Hum­ J. Harry, b Crawford 1 phries, b Blythe ... 1 Freeman, c HumGould, b Blythe........... 0 phries, b Blythe ... 5 Anderson, run out ... 0 Attwater, not out ... 26 Iredale, a b sen t........... 0 Moore, b Crawford ... 3 J. Sarvaas, absent ... 0 Hunt, c & b Crawford 0 Byes, &c............... 2 Brown, c Humphries, _ b B ly th e................... 0 Total ........... 55 J. Reid, st Young, b Crawford................... 3 E ngland . O. M. R. W. O. M. R. W. De Ravin ... 11 2 33 1 Reid........... 18 4 53 3 Servaas ... 8 0 45 0 Trott ... 3 0 12 0 Harry ... 7 0 38 0 Anderson. 15*5 6 26 6 B endigo . O. M. R. W. O. M. It. W. Blyihe ... 15 4 31 7 Rhodes ... 2-3 0 7 1 Crawford 12 3 15 6 10 th M a tc h . - v . AUSTRALIA. ( th e second test .) Played at Melbourne on January 1, 2, 3, 4, 6 , and 7. England won by one wicket. There was a good deal of speculation as to the state in which the wicket would be for this match, for the rain during the previous week had been so heavy that five inches had been registered—three and a-half inches being at one period recorded in 20 hours. Fortunately, the weather improved and the w icket rolled out excellently. Jones was still un­ able to assist England, who lost the toss for the first time in ten Test matches. Trumper and Macartney opened the batting against Fielder and Barnes, and a wicket should have fallen quickly, for Trumpcr, when only 4, was missed by Gunn in the slips off Fielder. At 36 the attack was entrusted to Rhodes and Braund, and 50 went up in as many minutes. The pair took the total to 84 in 83 minutes, and then Trumper, who had hit five 4’s, was caught at the wicket for a sound, but not brilliant, innings of 49. Only 9 were added when Macartney, who had cut well, was bowled by Crawford, who at this point had taken two wickets for 14 runs. Macartney gave no chance, but when 26 was nearly run o u t; he hit only one 4. Three figures were reached in 110