James Lillywhite's Cricketers' Annual 1896

CRICKET I S 1895. 11 Leicestershire’s creditable victories over Notts and Surrey at the very commencement of the season led to the belief that the County was going to do great things. Unfortunately, excepting for one other success over Essex at Leyton in the first week of June, their successes ended there. From June 5 onwards their record was one of continuous failure, redeemed only by three drawn games to ten defeats. Woodcock, the fast bowler, who worked such havoc in the earlier matches, had lost a good deal of his pace before the season had half run its course. Tougher, too, owing partly to ill-health, wras not at anything like his best during the latter part of the season, either in batting or bowling, and the out-cricket suffered materially in consequence. In the face of their early successes the result of the season was very disappointing, and it is only fair to claim that they were really a better side then they appeared on paper. Notts had just about the same amount of success as Leicestershire. Athough the eleven took part in two more matches, the only difference in the season w>as the matter of two drawn games. Like Leicestershire, Notts won three and lost ten matches, a very different record to the long list of successes which used to mark Notts cricket some ten or fifteen years ago. The decline of Notts of late years has been steady, sufficiently so to prevent even a feeling of surprise at last summer’s show. Arthur Shrewsbury’swas a welcome reappearance in the later matches. Still, he was not quite the same Arthur Shrewsbury as of old, though he played some useful innings. Gunn, too, was not in the best of health, and w'hen he did play bowlers did not find him so difficult to get out. This wras a double blow to Notts, and one which would have disheartened most Counties. One of the best features in Notts cricket wTas the excellent bowling of Wm. Attewell, who wyas generally successful on the hard wickets, and has rarely bowled better during a long career. The accident to Pike, too, affected the County prejudicially, depriving the eleven as it did of a fine wicket-keeper and very promising batsman. There was certainly much in Notts cricket to call for sympathy. At the same time the executive them­ selves are in a great measure responsible for the present lack of good players. The consistent failure of the Kent eleven during the season is not so easy of explanation. It has been cruel luck for them to lose such a first-class bowler as Walter Hearne,and his loss cannot be over-estimated. Still, even admitting that Martin, Wright, and Alec Hearne have perhaps not the same amount of sting in their bowling, they are a very useful trio all the same. The want of a little variety, which has been long felt, was to a certain extent met by the inclusion of Mr. Bradley, a bowler of good pace, not unlike Mr. Stanley Christopherson in appearance and delivery. He bowled at times with a good deal of success, and is not unlikely to develop into a really useful man. But Kent’s shortcomings were not only confined to the bowlers. The failures with the bat were the more significant considering the brilliant performances on several occasions of Mr. J. R. Mason and Alec Hearne. Had the Rev. W. Rashleigh been able to come into the eleven earlier in the season he might have improved the County’s position to some extent. Still, even his brilliant batting in August did not effect any marked change. Considering the amount of batsmen at the disposal of Kent the general ill-success was to some extent incomprehensible. Whatever the reason, there was an apparent lack of go about the eleven which was not likely to have the effect o f eliciting the very best possible cricket of which each member was capable. In any case very few would be found to argue seriously that Kent’s record last year was a fair representation of the real merit of the County as an all-round side. As yet the Minor Counties’ Competition is something of an experiment. That it will stimulate a new interest in the various districts most affected, even if it has not already had that effect to a considerable degree, there can be little doubt. Durham it was generally thought had a great chance for