Cricket 1913

112 CRICKET: A WEEKLY RECORD OF THE GAME. A p r i l 19, 1913. The Season’ s Programme. This year we shall be without the customary touring team. One may fairly say “ customary,” for of the last tw en ty seasons only 1895, 1898, and 19x0 have passed w ithout increases in county programmes due to teams from overseas. The Australians were with us in 1893, 1896, 1899, 1902, 1905, 1909, and 1912 ; the South Africans in 1894, 1901,1904,1907, and 1912 ; the Phila­ delphians in 1897, 1903, and 1908 ; the West Indians in 1900 and 1906 ; and the A ll India Team in 1911. There is nothing absolutely new in the first-class programme. Notts and Hampshire have not met since 1843, it is true, and 1843 is a long time ago ; still, they have met before, and there it is. Ken t v. Warwickshire, Essex v. Leicestershire, Gloucestershire v. Northants, Lancashire v. Northants, and Gloucestershire v. Lan­ cashire are all renewals, not new fixtures. The only j possible new fixtures, I believe, are Gloucestershire v. Leicestershire, and Middlesex v. Northants, though Derbyshire and Middlesex, Leicestershire and Somerset, Middlesex and Northants, Notts and Warwickshire, and Notts and Worcestershire have never met in cham­ pionship games. No match played in 1912 drops out, so there will be a programme of 184 games as against 172 then— decreased to 167 b y matches wholly abandoned. We don’t want any more of that sort of thing ! As 92 out of a possible 120 combinations of sides are accounted for here, programmes are most easily shown in brief b y stating what counties each fails to meet. Thus : K e n t (28 matches) do not play Derbyshire. S u s s e x (28) do not play Worcestershire. Y o r k s h ir e (28) do n o t play Derbyshire. H am p s h ir e (26) do not play Lancashire or Northants. L a n c a s h ir e (26) do not play Hants or Somerset. S u r r e y (26) do not play Derbyshire or Somerset. L e ic e s t e r s h ir e (24) do not play Gloucestershire, Middlesex or Somerset. W a r w ic k s h ir e (24) do not play Essex, Notts or Somerset. G l o u c e s t e r s h ir e (22) do not play Derbyshire, Essex, Leicestershire or Middlesex. N o r t h a m p t o n s h ir e (22) do not play Hants, Mid­ dlesex, Notts or Worcestershire. E s s e x (20) do not play Gloucestershire, Notts, Somerset, Warwickshire or Worcestershire. M id d l e s e x (20) do not play Derbyshire, Gloucester­ shire, Leicestershire, Northants or Somerset. N o t t in g h a m s h ir e (20) do not p la y Essex, Northants, Somerset, Warwickshire or Worcestershire. W o r c e s t e r s h ir e (20) do not play Derbyshire, Essex, Northants, Notts or Sussex. . D e r b y s h ir e (18) do not p la y Gloucestershire, Kent, M id d lesex, Surrey, Worcestershire or Yorkshire. S o m e r s e t (16) do not play Essex, Lancashire, Leices­ tershire, Middlesex, Notts, Surrey or Warwickshire. As usual, there are more changes in the Second D ivi­ sion. One feels glad that theunbeaten sides of 1912, Norfolk and Staffordshire, will meet. Here are the prin- I cipal changes, only Berkshire, Buckinghamshire, Devon­ shire, and Wiltshire having exactly the same programmes as in 1912. B e d f o r d s h ir e drop their matches with C am b s; C a m b r id g e s h ir e d ro p th eirs w ith B ed s, H e rts an d L in coln sh ire, b u t p la y D u rh am a n d N o rth u m b e rla n d ; C h e s h ir e p la y M onm outh in stea d o f S ta ffs ; C o r n w a l l p la y D o rse t in stea d o f K e n t II. ; D o r s e t m e e t C o rnw all and d rop K e n t II. ; D u r h a m p la y C am b s, b esid es th eir o p p o n en ts o f la st y e a r ; G la m o r g a n m e e t K e n t II., b u t n o t S ta ffs ; H e r t f o r d s h i r e d rop C am b s ; K e n t II. p la y G lam o rg an a n d L in co ln sh ire in ste a d o f C o rn w a ll and D o r s e t ; L i n c o l n s h i r e m eet K e n t II. a n d S u ffo lk , b u t n o t C am b s ; M o n m o u th s h ir e p la y C h esh ire in ste a d of S t a f f s ; N o r f o l k p la y S ta ffs, b u t d ro p S u f fo lk ; N o r t h u m b e r l a n d a d d C am b s to th e ir p ro g ram m e : S t a f f o r d s h ir e d rop C heshire, G lam o rg a n and M on ­ m outh , b u t p la y N o rfo lk a n d S u rr e y II. ; S u f f o l k m eet B e d s and L in co ln sh ire in ste a d of N o rfo lk an d S u rrey II. ; and S u r r e y II. p la y S ta ffs in ste a d of S u f­ folk . O n ly D u rh am , L in co ln sh ire, N o rth u m b e rja n d , an d S taffo rd sh ire exceed , a s a t p re sen t a rran ged , th e q u a lify ­ in g n um b er of e ig h t m atch es. From the 1912 umpire list for the County Cham­ pionship matches Flowers, Guttridge, Jesse Hide, Westborough, and Wood drop o u t ; B u tt and W. Phillips come in. The full list now is : A. J. Atfield (nominated b y Gloucestershire), H. Bagshaw (Derby­ shire), R. G. Barlow (Lancashire), J. Blake, T . Brown (Bedfordshire), H. R. Bu tt (Sussex), J. Carlin (Notts), G. P. Harrison (Yorkshire), J. Moss (Notts), F . Parris (Sussex), W. Phillips (Lancashire), W. Richards (War­ wickshire), C. E. Richardson (Leicestershire), F . G. Roberts (Gloucestershire), A. E . Street (Surrey), A. E. Trott (Middlesex), W . Vining, G. Webb (Kent), W. A. J. West (Northants), and A. A. White (Sussex). For second-class county matches the list was reduced to twenty, and it was decided to ask Mr. Lacey to appoint disengaged first-class umpires in the events of the supply being insufficient. Those chosen are : B. Brown, W . Caldow, S. Doughty, J. Gregory, W . H. Harden, M. Myers (North), T. Attewell, A. C. McArthur, G. Marshall, G. Perkins, G. Rye, J. P. Whiteside, and S. W rigley (Midlands), C. E. Brown, A. E. Hoar, T. Holton, C. Hughes, G. Hutchings, F. Johnson and E . Merrifield (South). COUNTY CHAMPIONSH IP MATCHES. M a y 8, 9 a n d 10. Oval, Surrey v. Northamptonshire. Leicester, Leicestershire v. Essex. M a y 10 ( S a t u r d a y ) , 12 a n d 13. Lord’s, Middlesex v. Hampshire (Alec Hearne’s Benefit). M a y 12, 13 a n d 14. Hove, Sussex v. Kent. Leyton, Essex v. Derbyshire. Dudley, Worcestershire v. Warwickshire. Manchester, Lancashire v. Yorkshire. Nottingham, Notts v. Surrey. Taunton, Somerset v. Gloucestershire. Northampton, Northamptonshire v. Leicestershire. M a y 15 , 16 a n d 17. Southampton, Hampshire v . Derbyshire. Manchester, Lancashire v. Notts. Birmingham, Warwickshire v. Leicestershire. Bristol, Gloucestershire v. Yorkshire. Northampton, Northamptonshire v. Surrey.