The Minor Counties Championship 1902

8 It should be borne in mind that the lbw rule was not the only change made over the period 1895 to 1902. Other changes were the number of balls in an over being increased from 5 to 6; the enforcement of the follow-on becoming voluntary not mandatory; and the follow-on deficit being raised from 80 to 100. In addition, two other factors that have a bearing are the relatively small number of matches played each year and the effect of the weather, as the time lost to rain can vary significantly year to year. With the above in mind, examination of the table reveals that, although the percentage of drawn matches in 1902 reduced slightly, it was way above the two years with the smallest percentage of draws ie 1897 with 31.5% and 1895 with 32.5%, and the rise in the number of lbw dismissals was very small. The conclusion can be drawn that the experimental rule caused no appreciable reduction in the number of drawn matches in 1902 and, by that criterion, failed. The average runs scored per wicket were 17.63, compared with 20.01 in 1901. In 1901, there were four matches where a day’s play was lost to rain, whereas in 1902 there were fourteen such matches. The Revised Points Scoring System – For several seasons Audley Miller, the Wiltshire captain, had led a campaign to change the points system for the Championship, with the joint objectives of providing a better measure of the relative strength of the teams participating and offering an incentive to reduce the proportion of drawn matches in the competition. The system in operation up to 1901 – the same that applied to the First-Class County Championship – had offered a single point for a win, minus one point for a loss and no points for a draw; from 1897 the number of points gained had been expressed as a percentage of the number of matches finished. In 1901, Durham had won the competition with 3 wins and 5 draws, whereas Surrey 2 nd XI, widely regarded as a stronger team with 8 wins, 5 draws and 1 loss, ended up in second place. As mentioned earlier, the new system gave 3 points for a win, 1 for a lead on first innings, and a division of points for ties, either in a completed match or on first innings. Unlike the lbw experiment, the revised points system was widely regarded as a success. Leading Performances There were two leading batsmen of the season. The first was J A Gibb of Berkshire who scored 669 runs at 51.46, and the other was A J Silverlock of Monmouthshire with 676 runs at 48.28. Both exceeded the Championship record for runs in a season of 658 held jointly by C R H Gresson of Buckinghamshire in 1899 and W H Kingston of Northamptonshire in 1901. Neither Gibb nor Silverlock played any first-class cricket. John Aldington Gibb was born in Jamaica in 1869. He was the first batsman in the Championship to score a century in both innings, which he did in the match against Oxfordshire at Reading on 1, 2 August. His scores were 103 in the first innings, followed by 122 not out in the second. He has been described as an aggressive left-hand batsman, who liked to score quickly. Some reference books mistakenly state he captained Berkshire from 1900 to 1902, but 1900 was the last season Arthur Croome led the team. Gibb did not take over until 1901, though he was captain for the one match where Croome was absent in 1900 against Glamorgan at Cardiff. Despite his own personal success in the 1902 season, he decided to relinquish the captaincy, influenced by the lack of success of his team which won only one of the sixteen matches played while he led the side. The match against Glamorgan at Cardiff in 1900 had also been lost. He trained as a doctor and is reported as studying at various times at Dublin University, Aberdeen University and London University. He does not feature in the season-by-season team lists for the Dublin University cricket history, but he is known to have played for St Mary’s Hospital, Paddington. After his period with Berkshire, he is known to have played, amongst other teams, for The Mote, Maidstone for a number of years. He died on