Cricket 1912

M at 25, 1912. CEICKET: A WEEKLY EECOED OF THE GAME. 163 Cricket: A WEEKLY RECORD OF THE GAME. 33 and 35, MOOR LANE, LONDON, E.C. SATURDAY, MAY 25, 1912. Communications to the Editor should be addressed to him at 33 & 35 Moor Lane, E.C. Advertisements, Subscriptions, &c., should be sent to the Manager, at the same address. The following are the rates of subscription to C r ic k e t :— Great Britain. Abroad. One Year ............................ 6s. 3d. ... 7s. 6d. The 24 Summer Numbers ... 5s. Od. ... 6s. Od. The 6 Winter Numbers ... ] s. 3d. ... Is. 6d. NOTICE. Messrs. WRIGHT & CO., of 7, Temple Lane, Tudor Street, E .C ., are Advertisement Contractors for C R IC K E T , and will be glad to give their best attention to any Firms desiring to advertise in the paper. Scale of Charges will be sent on application. Ipavtlion (Sosstp. The abstract and brief chronicle of the time. — Hamlet. I n spite of a few collapses, scoring ruled fairly high in the first-class matches of the week ending May 18. The fifteen games produced 11,559 runs at a cost of 456 wickets— average per wicket 25.3. E v e r y b o d y is talking of Macartney just now. The little man has made a wonderful start on his second tour in England. It is early yet to say that he will outdo Trumper’s record of 1902, but less likely things have hap­ pened. Never before has a colonial batsman scored three successive centuries during a tour here. One is more surprised than ever that the selectors should not have thought C.G.M. good enough for a place in the Australian eleven in the first four matches of the last rubber. Even when he did get in, Bardsley was left out. Neither is a man to be omitted lightly, even if he should seem out of form. H e r b are some of the best figures recorded by Aus­ tralian batsmen in the first five matches of various tours :— Year. Batsinan Inns. Not out. Runs. Aver. 1882. W. L. Murdoch 9 3 472 78-66 1882. H. H. Massie 9 2 380 54*28 1803. J. J. L y o n s .............. 9 1 329 41*12 1896. J. Darling ............. . 7 0 342 4S-85 1902. J. Darling ............... 7 1 319 53*16 1905. W. W. Armstrong ... 9 2 634 90-57 1905. M. A. N oble.............. 9 0 465 51-66 1909. W. Bardsley.............. 8 1 530 75 71 1909. W. W. Armstrong ... 7 2 370 74-00 Macartney’s figures— 665 in 8 innings, once not out-—■ it will thus be seen are ahead of all. S y d n e y E m e r y ’ s 30 wickets in the course of his first three matches— 12 v. Northants., 7 v. Essex, and 11 v. Surrey-—is not quite an absolute record for an Australian bowler. Ferris took 31 in the first three matches in 1890. But Ferris was not then a new chum, having been here n ’88. In his first four matches Emery has taken 34. jThis compares with 38 by Laver in 1905 (but Laver’s matches were not consecutive as far as the programme was concerned), 36 by Ferris in ’88, and 35 by Ferris in ’ 90 and Trumble in ’ 99. I f Emery can only acquire a decent length, say some critics, he will make a really great bowler, for he mixes his stuff up well, and has several types of wicket-getting balls. But I am not quite sure that the acquisition of length would do as much for Emery as some think. He undoubtedly owes many of his wickets to the sheer unex­ pectedness of a deadly delivery following several indifferent ones. Thus far he has not been expensive. He will prob­ ably be more so as the tour wears on, but much may be pardoned to the man who gets wickets, even at a high cost, for after all matches are only to bo won by getting the other fellows out. I t sets one thinking hard to remember that if Hordern had been available, or even perhaps if Le Couteur had reached Australia a few weeks earlier, Emery’s cake would have been dough as far as this tour is concerned. Perhaps if Hill and Trumper had come, Macartney would have been left behind, though this is scarcely likely. Tip to May 18 as many as 22 first-class centuries had been registered. To the corresponding Saturday (May 20) of 1911, the number was 17. To May 18 in 1910 it was only 11. To May 19 in 1909 it was 19. No name figures in all four lists, but the illustrious cognomen of Hayward occurs in three of them, and John Sharp and Fred Pearson also appear three times. A m o n g the new men in the South African team the greatest impression up to date has been made by Pegler. In the Weekly Dispatch of last Sunday, by the way, there appeared in neighbouring columns and within a few inches of each other statements by John Tyldesley and E. W. Ballantine to the effect [a) that Pegler is a googly bowler (J.T.T.) ; (6) that Pegler is not a googly bowler (E.W.B.). There can be no doubt which is correct. Tyldesley has probably never seen Pegler y e t ; the other writer was in Australia with the Afrikander team. In 1907 (not 1906, as stated elsewhere) Pegler played regularly with the Granville (Lee) club, averaged over 17 per innings, with a highest score of 60, and took 119 wickets at under 11 runs each. H e r e is the description of him given by that capable judge and picturesque writer, “ Long-Leg ” of the Sporting Life : “ Pegler, thank goodness, has nothing freakish about his run or delivery— else possibly the youth of South Africa might seek to emulate him with disaster to them­ selves. He does not start from somewhere in the vicinity of mid-off, or anything of that sort. He adopts a decided run of moderate length, and he gets the full impetus o f it into his delivery, n is arm swings over high and easily. Prom his height and the free-swinging ease of his action comes that abrupt rise from the ground which is his principal bowling virtue. His bowling has that vital quality called “ devil.” And in addition he varies bis break by putting on top-spin, which causes the ball to fizz from the ground. But while he is able to turn the ball both ways he makes no pretence of being a googler. His off-break is bowled with a totally different action from his leg-break. It is ordinary finger-spin off-break, as distinct from the exag­ gerated leg-break hand action, of which tho true googly is born.” M id d l e s e x will meet Worcestershire on July 29 instead of July 15, and Warwickshire on July 25 instead of July 29. The change is due to the fact that the England and Australia match at Manchester, in which both Frank Foster and Pelham Warner may be playing, starts on the later date. Worcestershire has, of course, acquiesed, though the new arrangement is of no possible benefit to the county through which the silver Severn takes its lordly course. But the counsels of the Worcestershire C.C. have always been governed by good sportsmen. T h e collector of cricket literature who comes into possession of this years’ issue of the Minor Counties’ Cricket Association Handbook may count himself fortunate. The pamphlet is not issued for sale. But the current issue contains a history of Second-Class County Cricket, signed “ .T.E.N.” (which, of course, stands for the name of Dr. J. Earl Norman), that is, for interest and succinctness, one of the best things in its line I have ever seen. For the benefit of those who are not likely otherwise to see it, I shall attempt to induce Dr. Earl Norman to let me republish it in ourTcolumns some day when the pressure of scores diminishes.