John and James Lillywhite's Cricketers' Companion 1882

24 the way to pick up the ball ami return it quickly, also to throw it in uj. a nice height. I make these two boys held just as if they were in a match By having cue on each side of me they get plenty of work, and I can 8ee what they are doing, and how they do it, and am able to give them any little hints that I think may be of advantage to them. Young players fielding in this way may also improve their batting by listening to the advice given to the one who is batting at the net; and many other little things may bo learned there. ' * But practising at the net too much makes players careless: they forget where the fieldsmen stand, they pay no attention to the crease, and very often tire themselves, and, what is worst of all, are apt to lose confi­ dence in games or match-playing, and get into that mechanical dangerous style of play which is, I am very sorry to say, so often to be observed. 1 mean the way in which a player who shows such splendid style at practice, and who really does then bat well,—whose defence is almost perfect, in fact, so that even the host bowlers have difficulty in hitting iiis wicket,—fails to count how many times he may have been caught, while living stumped lias quite escaped his thoughts. I have seen many batsmen of this style, and am sure 1 am not the only one that has done so. 1have looked forward to a treat when it has been his turn to go in in a match, but how sadly I have been disappointed. His style has quite altered. Instead of those splendid drives and cuts you have seen at the net, you see the same player playing hack at a ball pitched well up to him, or rushing out at a short one ; in fact, one could hardly believe that a player’s style could undergo so complete a change. I hope it will not he thought that I want to condemn net practice entirely, for I am far from holding that view. I know it is very useful if x>roperly managed, but I fear at the present time it is thought too much of to he a benefit to good cricket; and I cannot help thinking that playing in games is the best way to teach young players. A good coach should always either play or stand umpire in games. If the latter, lie will have an excellent opportunity of improving both the howlers and batsmen; he can tell the bowlers how to place their field, and when to alter i t ; he can put ideas into the bowler’s head as to altering his pace and pitch, &c., &c. He can also tell the batsman of any little tiling lie may have done wrong, and help him by instant advice to remedy liis mistakes, while at the same time he may be looking to the fieldsmen, and keeping them in their places and at their work. A good man who takes pnde in the eleven he is coaching will always be at work : he will have some advice to offer to nearly everyone who is playing in the game. As I said before, teaching is not an easy task either at cricket or any­ thing else, and that accounts for there being so few men at the present time able to coach young cricketers properly. I confess there are more good players now than ever there were before, but there are so few who will take the trouble to teach others. How few amateurs you will find who take so much trouble or spend so much time in teaching young ones as the Hon. R. G rimston or Mr. R. A. H. M itchell ; and how few men you set* now like J ames L illywhite , of Cheltenham, and poor A lfred D iver . AVhat a treat it was to watch the latter with his R ugdy boys, and what pains he would take to get one out of a bad stroke, and how hard he would work when he was playing in a game with them. 1 have found many hints taken from D iver very useful to me the last few years.