Lives in Cricket No 46 - George Raikes

55 1895: Sneaking into the Eleven at the Last Minute Things looked bleak for Raikes’ chance of a second ‘Blue’ in the early days of the 1895 season. He did not feature in any of the ‘trial matches’ and was not selected for the first three first-class matches – even though the Eastern Daily Press claimed that he was in ‘excellent form’, citing his century for Magdalen against Christ Church. Eventually he was asked to represent Oxford on 30 May when he was required to stand in for C.B.Fry in a home fixture against Kent. Fry’s boots were big ones to fill and, hard though Raikes tried, he fell short, taking only a couple of tailend wickets and scoring one and 35 (note 4) . Raikes was mothballed once more and seems to have given up on his quest to obtain another ‘Blue’. Having missed the matches against MCC and Sussex, he journeyed on to Lincolnshire to play in Norfolk’s debut match in the Minor Counties Championship. As described in chapter two, Raikes received a telegram from Oxford University skipper, Gerry Mordaunt, during the first of the two days’ play at Spalding requesting that he be Playing Cricket At Oxford: A ‘Nearly’ Man The Oxford University Cricket XI that contested the Varsity Match in 1895. The Dark Blues lost by 134 runs.