Lives in Cricket No 46 - George Raikes

41 Raikes the International ‘Keeper’ Hall, and readers who have a taste for problems can work the affair out to their own satisfaction” (note 4) . The lawmakers appear to have saddled themselves with something of a Gordian Knot in trying to legislate on this matter. The Varsity match now loomed, with the Norfolk press continuing to ‘big’ their man “ On the Oxford side G.B.Raikes will again have charge of the uprights. He is without a peer as a goalkeeper now that Moon has retired, at least that is the opinion of Pastime .” As in the previous year, Oxford had the better record in the run up to the big day. They had won eight and drawn one of their warm-up matches, scoring 42 goals and conceding only 18, whilst Cambridge had triumphed nine times, drawn one and lost as many as six games, scoring 46 goals but letting in 36. However the weather was still far from co-operative and, on 12 February, it was announced that the match had had to be postponed indefinitely. It was remarked that both sides were now thoroughly out of practice, the Dark Blues having completed just one game since early December and the Light Blues two (note 5) . The teams finally managed to fit in two final warm-up matches at the very end of February; Cambridge pasted the Old Etonians by 7-1 but Oxford outdid them by putting ten past Oxford City and were again rated as ‘heavy favourites’. This year they did not disappoint and, under the captaincy of E.C.Bliss of Oriel College, cruised to a comfortable 3-0 victory, aided by the fact that an injury to Cambridge’s left-half meant that they were obliged to play the second half with just ten men. Raikes justified the billing that he received in the Pall Mall Gazette just before the game: “G.B.Raikes … is the best goalkeeper in the kingdom. He is safe, both with feet and hands, and displays excellent judgement in getting rid of the ball.” The Eastern Daily Press barely drew breath before continuing to lament the absence of Raikes “who has been described as the best goalkeeper in the kingdom … Those who can remember [his] display between the uprights against the Cantabs at Lakenham have never ceased to regret his inability to represent his native county more frequently. Alas, he now picked up an unspecified ‘bug’; to the exasperation of Norfolcians this prevented him journeying to Beccles to represent Norfolk against Suffolk but did not dwell long enough to prevent Raikes making his international debut in the all-amateur eleven selected to play for England against Wales in a 1-1 draw. The English team received lukewarm reviews and, whilst Raikes was not mentioned by name, nor was he listed among those exempt from criticism. Raikes continued to dismay his fellow Norfolcians: he was obliged to miss the fixture against Notts County to play in an international trial match on 30 March – a not-unforgiveable absence but not a particularly successful one. For the only time in his career as a custodian he received lukewarm reviews in the Eastern Daily Press : “The International Trial Match at Nottingham on Thursday was not favourable to the amateurs. Raikes was said to have been uncertain, and to have shown only moderate form as a goalkeeper. The position of goalkeeper in the English team on Saturday at