Cricket 1913

52 CRICKET: A WEEKLY RECORD OF THE GAME. F eb . 15, 19i3. the Sydney Churches’ Union ! This may not be an absolutely complete list, but it is enough, I think. K arl Quist, who scored a century on November 30 in Adelaide, is, I believe, the only living player who has represented three-, o f the Australian states— N .S .W ., Western Australia, and South Australia. Percy McDonnell played in succession for Victoria, N .S .W .. and Queens­ land; but his name is in the long roll of the honoured dead, and I can recall no other instance. There are plenty o f men w'ho played for two states (or colonies in the older days), o f course, among them G. J. Bonnor, G. E. Palmer, R. J. Hartigan, G. R. Hazlitt, S. H ill, A. H. Christian, H. A. Evers, Sam Cosstick, F. J. Burton, J. J. Ferris, F . H. Walters, S. J. Redgrave, W. Slight, P. Desmazures, A. C. Facy, T . Kendall, S. P. Jones, E. Jones, T . Hogue, E . A. McDonald, J. A. O ’Connor, W. J. Whitty, and A. McBeth. At Brisbane, 011 December 21, Woolloongabba beat Nundah by a single run— 145 to 144. Scoring, in West Australia has ruled very small this season, partly, no doubt, owing to the bowlers’ wickets experienced ; but one cannot help thinking that too many teams are being run, and that some o f the men playing are scarcely up to senior standard. Anyway, bowlers have dominated the situation ever since the return o f the State team from the East. On December 7 and 14, the totals in the four first-grade matches were 124, 102, 95, 94 for 7, 94, 92, 79, 74 for 5, 72. 70 for 5, 62, 59, 52 for 3. 48, 48, and 40. Making all possible allowance for bad wickets, one cannot help regarding this as very poor. Yet the State has a number of really good batsmen. Here are some o f the bowling analyses in the games referred to :— H. Hodge, 12 for 70, Claremont v. N. Fremantle. — . Miller, n for 64, Midland Junction v. Subiaco- I.eederville. W. Jones, 10 for 40, Subiaeo-Leederville v. Midland Junction. A. H. Christian, 9 for 27, X. Perth v. W. Perth. W. Hughes, 8 for 32, E. Perth v. Fremantle. C. Munro, 7 for 39, N. Fremantle v. Claremont. NEW ZE A LAND . A t the time o f writing only one full match score of the South Melbourne team’s tour has come through. Possibly one or two may turn up before the number goes to press, in which case they will be found on another page. Harry Trott and his men began well, though in thrashing Wairarapa they only did what everyone expected of them. Another Australian team, the N .S .W . Teachers, was on tour in the Dominion in January; but latest advices point to the falling through o f the proposed N .S .W . tour— a great pity, especially as the stumbling-block is a matter o f only ,£65, which the N .S .W .C .A . insisted upon as out-of-pocket expenses allowance for the men, and the N .Z. Cricket Council could not see its way to grant. Warren Bardsley had expressed his desire to go with the team, and both H. V . Hordern and L. O. S. Poidevin were likely starters, so that New' Zealand is missing the chance o f seeing some really good cricket. The interprovincial programme, as outlined in a recent issue, seems to have been deferred for a year, owing to the unwillingness o f Auckland to send a team south. So Wellington have challenged Auckland for the Plunket Shield, and, quite in the old sw'eet way, Canterbury pro- ix>se to go north and try a tussle for it if Wellington cannot pull off the event. Meanwhile there is a danger that Canterbury and Wellington may not meet this season at all, and this is a fixture which certainly should not be allowed to lapse, even for one year. D. C. Collins, the Cambridge Blue, is now' back home in Wellington, and should strengthen the province’s team, as he says he intends keeping up his cricket. He will not continue his rowing, it is understood. I11 Auckland good scores were made during November by E. V. Sale (120*, North Shore v. Grafton), E . Hors- pool (113*, Grafton v. North Shore), G. Cummings (107, Eden v. Parnell), Airey (126*, University y. Ponsonby), and A. Somerville (90, Parnell v. North Shore), Except for the. University man, all these players have represented the province; and Sale is, of course, one o f the best 'bats­ men it has ever had. J. P. Blacklock, who went off badly through ill-health, but is now quite fit again, recently played a very fine innings of 72, quite in his old-time form, for North Wellington v. Petone. Another provincial representative, lY M. Beechey, made 113* for Central Wellington v. Petone a week or two later. For Petone v. Central W. S. Brice scored 56 and 46, and in the earlier match, v. North, he took five for 51. Southall, the lengthy ex- Taranaki man, lias had analyses o f 5 for 48 (North v. Petone) and 6 for (North v. East A ) ; but some people say his delivery is suspicious. Bray, a former Sydneyite, previously referred to in these columns, made 112 for North v. East A ; and McGirr, a son o f William McGirr, who was one o f the province’s best bowlers twenty or thirty years back, played a great game for East A in the same match, scoring 72 after a start so disastrous that four wickets were down for 16, Southall the bowler, and such w’ickets, too, as those of Kenneth Tucker, F . A. Midlane, W. R. Gibbes, and Claude Hickson, four o f the ablest batsmen Wellington has ever boasted, though some o f them are now a little past their best. For East A v. East B, C. V . Grimmett, a promising young bowler who was tried for the province last season, took 6 for 42. In Christchurch J. L. Patterson has distinguished him­ self by a splendid 113, made against time, for Sydenham v. West Christchurch on November 16. His side needed 244 in 130 minutes for a victory on the first innings, and got them, with runs to spare, mainly owing to Patterson, as 110 one else reached 50. Dan Reese was among the bowlers in opposition, and that Reese is still as good as ever he showed a week or two later, when he took 7 for 41 v. St. Albans. Harold Lusk made a fine 126 in the second innings o f West Christ­ church in this same match, driving with great power. Other good scores o f which news has come to hand recently w'ere J. H. Bennett’s 71 for Sydenham v. East Christ­ church, F . Woods’ 69 for the same side, A. T . Donnelly’s 67 for West Christchurch v. Sydenham, and E. Perrin’s 64 and T . Carlton’s 61* for Linwood v. East Christ­ church. Centuries are never so plentiful in New' Zealand as in Australia, so that scores under the three-figure mark are better worthy o f note. Dunedin has had sodden wickets— no new thing in that c ity ; and bowlers have been performing. On Novem­ ber 30 these nice little analyses w'ere recorded :—- H . Eckhoff, 7 for 12, Opoho v. Dunedin. A. Downes, 7 for 25, Grange v. Carisbrook B. R. C. Torrance, 5 for 10, Dunedin v. Opoho. The only decent score of the day was made by Caris- brook A— 117 for two wickets. H. G. Siedeberg 44, C. C. Hopkins (brother o f A. J.) 59*. On the following Saturday Hopkins took his score to 89, W. E. Bannerman made 97, and the innings was declared at 285 for 4. On 1that day, too, Grange, requiring 59 to win v. Carisbrook