Lives in Cricket No 48 - Maurice Leyland

Signing off 128 on, deep midwicket and long leg, managed to restrict Maurice to just six runs in his first hour at the crease. Then, off the last ball before lunch, he was bowled through the gate by Roberts for 12 and Yorkshire were 82 for five. Smailes (61), well supported by skipper Sellers (38) and Alec Coxon (24 not out), did much to lift his side’s score to a modicum of respectability but they were all out for 180, Roberts taking five for 56, and Lancashire clearly had the upper hand. Although Coxon managed to bowl Cyril Washbrook (13) and Jack Ikin (six), Bill Place and Alan Wharton took the total to 100 for two at the close. On Bank Holiday Monday 37,000 people crammed into the ground to see the second day’s play and it was estimated that more than 10,000 were actually turned away. To the people of Manchester, and its surrounding urban sprawl, buckets and spades on Blackpool Beach could not compete with the holiday fun in prospect at that patch of green, across the Irwell and down by the railway line, called Old Trafford. They were not disappointed. Place and Wharton took their partnership into three figures and though Wharton was caught by Sellers off Smailes for 41, Place went on to complete his century and Yorkshire’s score was passed before Place was bowled by Arthur Booth for 107 out of 192. After that the stage was all King’s. Though scarcely text book in approach he managed to battle his way to 122, courtesy of much improvisation, and considerable determination, before being bowled by Coxon with the Lancashire score on 389 for eight. There were just seven more runs added before Yorkshire were asked to go in again, at 5.20pm, needing 216 runs to avoid an innings defeat. Phillipson began as he had in the first innings, his first ball going a yard down the leg side and the second by-passing keeper Edrich straight to first slip, but he managed to achieve an early breakthrough when Hutton lofted an off drive for his skipper Jack Fallows to take a catch at the second attempt. Barber’s involvement in the contest then ended with the score on 26, caught by Phillipson off Pollard but Gibb, on 16 not out, and Watson, unbeaten on five, batted through to closure with the score on 42 for two and defeat staring them in the face. Come day three Yorkshire, eight wickets to fall, were still 174