James Lillywhite's Cricketers' Annual 1896

CRICKET IN 1895. 9 later matches of C. L. Townsend, and in a lesser decree to the excellent all­ round cricket of G. L. Jessop, a glance at the County’s record will prove. W. G.’s batting and young Townsend’s bowling supplied the chief topics for discussion among cricketers during the season. The latter’s slow rouid-arm bowling proved singularly successful against every kind of batting, and on good equally with bad wickets. His success was a constant theme m cricket circles during the latter part of the season, and on his form in July and August no eleven would have been representative of England without him. In the Cambridge blue. W. McG. Hemingway, Gloucestershire introduce 1 last year a free-hitting bat, who ought to be of use to the County in the future. Of the four Counties promoted to the first class for last summer Derbyshire had the best record. They were really a better side than they appeared on paper, for more than one of their seven drawn games would have ended in their favour had they been played out. As it was their victories over Yorkshire and Lancashire—the result, as they were, of really excellent all-round cricket— were quite sufficient to show that they were capable of holding their own with the very best of the fourteen first-class Counties. Davidson’s all-round cricket had a good deal to do with their excellent show. Taking his batting, bowling, and fielding together he was quite one of the best men of the year. Even without him there were Bagshaw, Chatterton, W. Storer, Mr. S. H. Evershed, W. Sugg, and Mr. L. G. Wright—any of them equal to a hundred in a first- class match. Porter’s fast bowling assisted, too, considerably to give Derbyshire the high position it gained. Nor should thewicket-keeping of W. Storer be for- otten. Taking them as batsmen and wicket-keepers together it was a neai thing etween Storer and Lilley (of Warwickshire) as the best professional of the>day. Middlesex, with an equal number of wins, drawn games, and defeats nad a disappointing season. Though he made one fine score against Sussex in the last match of the season Mr. Stoddart was not quite such a terror to bowlers as in previous years, a result probably due in some way to the Australian tour making in all a year of almost unbroken cricket. Sir T. C. O’Brien was the most reliable batsman on the side, which is high praise considering the number of first-class batsmen Middlesex is able to place in the field. Mr. Gregor McGregor was not able to play always, and the eleven suffered severely from the loss of his wicket-keeping in several important matches. The bulk of the bowling was again done by J. T. Hearne, Rawlin, and Phillips, none of whom showed to very striking advantage on the generally hard wickets. Mr. C. M. Wells, whilom of Surrey, took his place in the eleven for most of the August matches. His slow bowling proved very effective, so much so as to emphasise the general regret that he is only able to play during the latter part of the season. With Mr. H. W. Bainbridge, the two Quaifes, and Lilley generally to the fore as run-getters, Warwickshire had a batting side likely to be dangerous at any time. As the wickets were throughout the summer the bowling, however, was of too much the same kind to be effective, except on very rare occasions. The want of a fast bowler was very noticeable, and it was fortunate for the County that the weakness of the out-cricket was more than counter-balanced by the scoring powers of the eleven, as represented chiefly by the four cricketers above-mentioned. On the whole, though the results could hardly be described as thoroughly satisfactory, Warwickshire more than justified its elevation to the front rank, and indeed Derbyshire was the only one of the five promoted Counties which had a better record. The chief factors in the successes of Warwickshire were Mr. Bainbridge, Walter Quaife, and Lilley. As batsmen the first two could do no wrong, or rarely so. As a wicket-keeper Lilley had for some years been regarded as one of the very best in the kingdom, but last year, particularly the latter part of it, showed him to be one of the most reliable batsmen of the day, and on his form of July and August he was worthy of a place in a representative eleven of England.