Cricket 1912

M ar . 30, 1912. CRICKET: A WEEKLY EECOED OF THE GAME. 51 who will have the Sussex match (July 8, 9 and 10) as a benefit this year. It is hoped that the fast bowler will be fully restored to health before the season begins. There is a distinct ray of promise in the fact that already 210 new members have been elected this year. A profit of £570— the largest legitimate profit, as Mr. G. H. Oartland put it, made for thirteen years—was the result of the W a r w i c k s h i r e C.C.’ s great season of 1911. About £350 will be spent on improvements to the ground. Middlesex will be played this year, and Kent will renew fixtures in 1913. The Earl of Warwick is the new President, Mr. R. V. Ryder, who has now put in seventeen years of devoted service to the club, was presented with a gold watch and chain at the meeting. The N o r t h u m b e r l a n d C o u n t y C .C . made a profit of £23 on the year’s working. A t their annual meeting last week Earl Grey was elected president, and Mr. S. P. Bell, the old TJppinghamian, captain, a position left vacant by the retirement of Mr. F. W. Gillespie owing to pressure of business. Mr. W . Meldon, who has played for Dublin University, the Transvaal, and Warwickshire, will be qualified for the county this season, also Wingham, who comes from Kent. ©bttmtrtr. Mr. D a v id N o rth T r o t t e r , who died in a private hospital in Dublin on the 17th inst., after a somewhat lingering illness, was born at Forth ill. County Down, on May 24th, 1858, and was therefore in his fifty-fourth year at the time of his death. Both at Rathmines School and Trinity College, Dublin, he made many large scores, aud he was hut seventeen years of age when, in 1876, he played an innings of 109 against the U.S.E.E., who had Lillywhite, Southerton, Fillery, W. G. and G. F. Grace and others to bowl for them. A year later he scored 234 for Dublin University v. Phoenix Park, and in 1881 in another match between the same sides hit an innings of 207 not out, but in the latter game his runs were made against his University. In 1879 Mr. Trotter visited the United States and Canada as a member of the Gentlemen of Ireland’s team, his highest innings being 57 and 48 v. X V . of the Merion C.C., 50 v. X V I. of Whitby and 46 v. the Peninsular C.C. of Detroit. For many years he was a much respected and popular sup­ porter of the Meath Hunt. W ILLIAM STORER. B y William Storer’s death (of dropsy) on March 5th, Derbyshire lost her greatest cricketer, though of course his active connection with the game as a first-class player ceased some years ago. Born^at Butterley Hill, Derby­ shire, on January 25th, 1808 "Storcr first played for his county at the age of nineteen,fin 1887, succeeded James Disney as wicket-keeper three years later, and kept his place in the team as a batsman and useful, though expen­ sive, change bowler for some seasons after he had ceased to be its regular stumper. Cricket was not his only game, as he was a really class player, either at back or centre forward, under the Socker code. He was for many years a member of the M.C.C. ground staff, and his first match of more than county importance was for the club against the Australians at Lord’s in 1893, when his form won high praise. In standing close up to the bowling of Mr. Charles Kortright, then at his fastest, he did what few other wicket-keepers cared to attempt. To go into details as to his career would take more space than we can afford here. The figures which follow must to a great extent be left to speak for themselves. But a few prominent incidents may be noted, such as his four centuries in five consecutive innings during the season of 1896, including two in one match v. Yorkshire, his partnership of 308 (still the Derbyshire record) for the third wicket with the late George Davidson against Lan­ cashire at Manchester in the same season, and the fact that he was the |first Derbyshire batsman to total 1,000 runs in a season for the county. He went to Australia with Mr. A. E. Stoddart’s Second Team in 1897-8 ; but, though he batted well and kept wicket fairly, he hardly did himself full justice there, and on the one occasion when he played in a test match in England (Nottingham, 1899) he was certainly below par. William Storer was not an easy man to handle, and more than one Derbyshire captain had trouble with him. But, in spite of faults of temperament, he had a good heart, and doubtless meant better than he did. STOKER'S BATTING FIGURES: FOR DERBYSHIRE AND IN FIRST-CLASS CRICKET. F or D erbyshire . I n F hist -C lass -C ricket . SeaNot Highest Not Highest son. InnR. outs. Rune. Aver. Score. Inns. outs. Runs. Aver, score. 1887 9 1 51 6-37 29 .... 4 1 16 5-33 7 1888 13 0 79 6-07 13 ... 1889 3 0 32 10-66 14 .. 1890 19 3 207 12-93 51 .. . 1 1 3 — 3* 1891 23 4 360 18-94 51 .. 1892 24 2 442 20*09 53* .. . — — — — — 1893 23 0 560 24*34 108 .. . 14 2 196 16-33 31* 1894 20 4 453 28-31 90 .. . 20 4 297 18-56 78* 1895 20 2 643 26*79 108 .. . 45 3 11 10 26-42 108 1896 25 3 1125 51-13 142* .. . 36 5 1313 42*35 142* 1897 30 2 720 25-71 104* .. . 42 3 1073 27-51 160* 1897-8 (in Australia) 17 1 604 37*75 84 1898 26 3 1148 49-91 109 .. . 42 5 1548 41-83 109 1899 35 6 1170 40*34 216* .. . 50 7 1507 35-04 216* 1900 35 3 1255 39-21 176 .. . 42 3 1383 35-46 176 1901 45 1 1170 26*59 78 .. . 52 1 1444 28-31 107 1902 30 0 647 21*56 61 .. . 43 1 745 17-73 61 1903 32 0 687 21-46 89 .. . 34 0 691 20*32 89 1904 35 4 927 29*90 110 .. . 37 4 949 2S-75 110 1905 14 1 120 9*23 31 .. . 14 1 120 9-23 31 Totals 467 39 11;796 27-56 216* .. . 493 42 12,999 28-82 216* For his county, Storer’s slow leg-breaks accounted for 215 wickets at a cost of 7,243 runs, average 33'68. In first- class matches he had altogether 232 wickets at a cost of 7892 runs, average 34’00. Up to 1896 he did very little bowling, having only taken two wickets for Derbyshire before that season. His total of wickets as a bowler is probably in excess of that secured by any other man who was ever famous as a wicket-keeper ; it is difficult, indeed, to recall an instance of any other stumper taking as many as 100 wickets thus. As regards the figures above, it is well to remember that from 1888 to 1893 inclusive, Derbyshire’s matches were not reckoned as first-class. A t that period, Storer had not attained the skill in batting which he displayed later, and in consequence his county figures, though they include a considerable number of second-class matches, are not as good as his strictly first-class record. His first century for Derbyshire was 108, at Hull, v. Yorkshire in 1893. This, however, does not rank as first- class. In strictly first-class cricket he reached three figures on 17 occasions, 15 times for his county, and twice for the M.C.C. His highest was 216 not out v. Leicester­ shire, at Chesterfield in 1899 ; he made 142 not out against the same county in 1896 ; he reached the century five times against Yorkshire, excluding the occasion alluded to above, four times for his county, once for the M.C.C., and at Derby in 1896 he accomplished the biggest per­ formance of his career in making 100 and 100 not out against the Yorkshiremen; he scored two centuries v. Lancashire, two v. Hants., and two v. the M.C.C., one each against Essex, Notts, and Worcestershire, and one (160 not out) for M.C.C. v. Kent. In the case of a wicket-keeper who did so much bowling as Storer, and who also played in many matches in which someone else took wickets, it is impossible to give with accuracy the catchings and stumpings effected by him as wicket-keeper. But his full total of catches for his county was 347, of stumpings 39 ; while in all first-class matches played in he caught 372, stumped 54. His biggest total (59 caught, 13 stumped) was in 1895 ; he effected 48 dismissals in 1896, 47 in 1897, and 43 in 1898. Against Cheshire at Derby in 1893 he caught seven and stumped one, and against Warwickshire on the same ground in 1896 lie caught five in an innings ; but, considering his great ability as a wicket-keeper, his record is singularly lacking in outstanding performances. ]VfR. H o r a c e M a g e e , who died in Philadelphia on January 4th, was one of the oldest members of the Phila­ delphia C.C., and at one time about 30 years ago was secretary of the club. He was born on November 29, 1846,