Cricket 1911

A pr il 22, l 'J l l . CRICKET : A W EEK LY RECORD OF T IIE GAME. 81 A t a meeting of the Canterbury Cricket Association on February 7th the question of what should be done to mark in a fitting manner Canterbury’s victory in the Plunket Shield match at Auckland was discussed, and it was decided to recommend the Committee to hold a ‘ ‘ closing social ” at the end of the season, when the Shield could be formally handed over to Canterbury. T h e y are making merry in Canterbury over the winning of the Plunket Shield. This is a sample of the merriment:— Who killed Cock Auckland ? “ We,” said Canterbury ; ‘ 1 And that’s why we’re merry ; We killed Cock Auckland.” An Auckland writer answers this with : ‘ ‘ The Auckland cock is not dead y e t; his comb has only been cut.” M r . F . C. R a p h a e l, the secretary o f the N ew Zealand Cricket C ouncil, lias received tlie follow ing comm unication from the secretary o f the M .C .C .:— “ In further reply to your letter o f July 21, asking if it w ou ld be possible for the next team to Australia to extend their tour to N ew Zealand, I am instructed to inform y ou that the matter was carefully gone into at m y C omm ittee m eeting yesterday, and they m uch regret that they would be unable to m eet your wishes in this respect.” Crick­ eters generally, I think, w ill regret that the suggested extension o f the tour cannot be m ade, for the gam e in New Zealand has made great strides during the last few years and even a flying visit to the D om inion from the English team w ould undoubtedly have been productive o f good. A r e m a r k a b l e instance of ‘ ‘ masterly inactivity ” was recorded in connection with the match between East Christchurch and Linwood, at Lancaster Park, on February 18th, B. Willsteed, who went in first for the former side, batting an hour and then being dismissed without a run. C eylon Am icu s draws attention to the recent run-getting o f a you n g Sports Club batsman nam ed F. J. Seidle, who “ played another o f his vigorous innings on Saturday last when he pasted the Colts’ bow lers to the tune of 95 runs, com piled in an hour’s time. E arly in February this batsman scored a brilliant 102 for the Sports Club against the Treasury on Galle Face and his runs were made in 45 m inutes. H e has been a consistent batsman for m ore seasons than one and even in bow ling he has done som e clever w ork for the Sports Club. H is hitting is so clean and his style so attractive that it is a pleasure to w atch him m aking his runs. Last year Seidle scored 205 runs for his Club with an average o f 25'62 and tis highest score was 84. This year he bow led very w ell for the Sports Club against the C.C.C. in January. In 1909, when the Colts played the Sports Club, Seidle scored 65 while he also scored a century (110 not out) that year. H e was second in the club averages w ith 26’57.” N e it h e r o f the Greswell brothers is likely to be seen in the Somerset ranks this season, though it is possible that W . T., the crack, m ay be in E ngland lor the 1912 campaign. The elder brother, M r. E . A . Greswell, w ho has turned out for the county on a few occasions, has just join ed the Indian Forests Departm ent, and w ill not be at hom e again, in the ordinary course, for another three years. E . A . represented R epton in 1902 (two or three matches only), 1903 and 1904, batting and bow ling well. In 1903 he played a fine innings o f 158 against Malvern, and in 1904 averaged 30 with a highest score of only 67, a record which speaks o f remarkable consistency. Am ong his contemporaries in the team were R . A . Y oung, J. N. Craw* ford, N . Y . C. Turner and A . F . M orcom . F rom these four, w ith the two Greswells, the younger Turner (E. H . T .), H . S A ltliam , I. P. F. Campbell, A. T. Sharp, E . W . Page (Stafford­ shire), R . Sale, G ilbert Curgenven, E . Olivier and J. L. S. Y idler, a very hot Old Reptonian eleven, representative o f the last ten years o f the school’s cricket, could be picked. P icked— but alas ! not got together. F o r the Greswells have gone east, and John Craw ford south, and Curgenven also is a rover. M r. E . W . B a l l a n t in e , w h o was interview ed by C r ic k e t last year, w ill arrive in England again, by the O rontes, at the end o f this m onth. During the past decade he has made the follow ing to u rs:— 1902. Through South Africa with Australians. 1905-6. Through South Africa with M.C.C.’s team. 1907. Through England with South Africans. 1909. Through England with Australians. 1909-10. Through South Africa with M.C.C.’s team. 1910-1. Through Australia with South ftfricans. Photo by] [0'Byrne, Johannesburg. Mr. E. W . BALLANTINE. This must surely be a unique record, and the experience and know ledge o f cricket gained must be invaluable to a journalist, obtained, as it has been, at first hand. M r. Ballantine expects to be in Australia again next season— with the M .C .C .’s team. W e are only able to give this w eek an instalment o f the Currie Cup C om petition at Durban in M a rch ; but, though the announcem ent m ay spoil the serial interest, so to speak, in som e slight degree, w e are in a position to add that when the last mail left Durban Natal had only to beat Griqualand West in order to becom e holders o f the trophy, which has never before been w on by the Garden C olony. “ There’s m any a slip ’twixt the cup and the lip,” and “ cricket is a funny gam e ”