Famous Cricketers No 63 - A.O.Jones

1902 Nottinghamshire finished third in the Championship, with six wins and three defeats. Arthur Owen had a moderate year with the bat and bowled infrequently, taking only one Championship wicket. He did, however, hold more catches than in any season to date. He had 13 partnerships of 50 runs or more and got off to a storming start against the Australians, making 45 of the 51 runs on the board by the time he was out. T.G.Wass set a new county record for the most wickets in a season, 140. In the home match against Surrey, which was William Gunn’s benefit, Jones and Iremonger had first wicket partnerships of 76 and 105. Nottinghamshire had a first innings lead of 38 but despite A.O.’s sporting declaration, rain ensured a draw. The weather also ensured a draw against Kent at Gravesend. The third day was completely rained off. The first Championship win came next match, at Hove. The first day was rained off. When Sussex batted the openers put on 21 runs in half an hour but the side was all out for 41 in an hour and a quarter. Jones and Iremonger put on 61 by lunch and 82 for the first wicket. Jones played forcing and attractive cricket. He was out at 118 for 5, at which point Fred Tate took three wickets in four balls. By the close of play, Sussex were 57 for 7. Notts only needed eight minutes on the Wednesday to ensure victory. The home match with Leicestershire produced over a thousand runs but no result. Jones and William Gunn batted well in the first innings. Arthur Owen declared in good time but C.J.B.Wood made an unbeaten century and the draw was inevitable. Nottinghamshire made a reasonably good start in the away match with Yorkshire. The home match against Lancashire was much affected by rain. J.A.Dixon made a determined century in the middle order. Archie MacLaren played faultlessly all around the wicket for 174 and made a Lancashire win possible. Nottinghamshire then lost two wickets for 50 runs. Arthur Owen controlled his instinct for quick runs and batted with masterly defence. Since the advent of Iremonger, Arthur Shrewsbury had developed his role an a number four or five batsman. He and Jones put on 88 runs for the third wicket and made the draw a certainty. The return match with Leicestershire provided a result but nothing like as many runs. C.E.de Trafford won the toss and put Nottinghamshire in to bat. Three wickets fell for eleven runs and the home side enjoyed a small first innings lead. Overnight rain eased the wicket and Jones and Iremonger put on 119 for the first wicket. These were the only scores of 50 or more in the match. The home side found themselves batting on a drying wicket against Wass, Hallam and John Gunn, all of whom were on form. In the away match at Derby, Arthur Owen failed with the bat, did not bowl but played his part in a fine victory. He took four catches in the first innings to restrict the home side’s total. Against Gloucestershire at home, Jones passed 50 in both innings. Arthur Shrewsbury made a century in each innings, for the first time in his long and distinguished career. Gilbert Jessop batted superbly in Gloucestershire’s first innings, but they were no match for Wass and Hallam in their second. In the next home match against Kent, the visitors played so well that at the end of the second day they were 275 runs on with seven second innings wickets in hand. Jones and William Gunn were both out with only seven runs scored. Rain interfered with the rest of the match and Nottinghamshire were able to play for a draw. Jones and Gunn put on 101 steady runs for the second wicket. The win over Lancashire was the first for eight years. Jones won the toss and batted first, always the safest thing to do when playing on uncovered pitches. He and Dixon put on 129 for the third wicket. Arthur Owen played some false strokes at the beginning of his innings but hit 13 fours. Mr. Dixon batted with assurance throughout. Nottinghamshire outplayed their opponents in all departments of the game. Only two batsmen passed 40. Wass, John Gunn and Hallam bowled with control, the former taking 12 wickets in the match. Although Arthur Owen was out in the first innings without scoring on quite a few occasions, he never suffered the indignity of being dismissed for a pair. He was out in two matches for scores of 0 and 1. The first of these was for MCC against Yorkshire in the Scarborough Festival. It is significant that he was lbw to Wilfred Rhodes each time. The highest individual score in the match was 48, made by John Tunnicliffe. Len Braund took 12 wickets in the match. Jones fared not much better in the second Scarborough match, being bowled by Hirst and then by Rhodes for only 3 runs. 38