The Minor Counties Championship 1903

47 MATCH NUMBER 24 : DORSET V STAFFORDSHIRE At The County Ground, Poole Park, Poole on Wednesday 15, Thursday 16 July 1903 Result: Match drawn – Dorset won on first innings Points: Dorset 1 Toss: Dorset Umpires: R Barber and A G Eldridge Debutants: Dorset 3 (W A H Chessall, H P Ellis, A F Fellowes); Staffordshire 1 (G Hodgkinson) First day score: Dorset 174; Staffordshire 107 Dorset + Rev P T P Knott b Grose 0 Hunt, H run out 25 (2) b Hodgkinson 5 P Crimmins c Brown b Fereday 42 (3) c Poole b Eagland 24 * W Andrew b Hodgkinson 12 (1) not out 42 A K Gibson c Grose b Hodgkinson 38 (4) not out 8 Battrick, G c Stratton b Grose 6 A F Fellowes b Grose 4 H P Ellis b Grose 0 C P Turle c Poole b Grose 7 J F A Barnard c Burns b Grose 23 W A H Chessall not out 7 Extras b 5, w 3, nb 2 10 b 1, lb 5, w 3, nb 4 13 Total 174 (2 wickets declared) 92 Fall of wickets 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 First innings 0 71 71 83 102 113 113 130 161 174 Second innings 8 72 - - - - - - - - Grose 22.2 2 63 6 - 2 (1) 6 4 11 0 1 - Briggs 5 0 12 0 - - Fereday 24 6 52 1 - - (3) 8 1 14 0 - - Crane 2 1 1 0 - - Hodgkinson 19 6 36 2 3 - (2) 9 3 21 1 1 3 Eagland (4) 6 0 22 1 - 1 Stratton (5) 3 0 11 0 - - Extras - - 10 1 - - - - 13 0 - - Total 72.2 15 174 10 3 2 32 8 92 2 2x 4 3 Staffordshire P Briggs b Crimmins 22 Brown, W c Knott b Hunt 3 * H D Stratton b Fellowes 37 A Hollowood b Battrick 13 Fereday, J B c Knott b Fellowes 5 H Eagland b Battrick 0 G W Crane b Battrick 2 (3) not out 12 J N Burns c Knott b Battrick 0 (1) c Ellis b Battrick 13 + J Poole not out 10 (2) not out 20 T A Grose b Battrick 1 G Hodgkinson lbw b Fellowes 9 Extras lb 2, w 1, nb 2 5 b 3, nb 2 5 Total 107 (1 wicket) 50 Fall of wickets 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 First innings 15 49 74 79 84 86 86 89 94 107 Second innings 29 - - - - - - - - - Hunt 16 5 20 1 - - Andrew 7 0 30 0 - - (2) 2 0 15 0 - - Crimmins 7 1 11 1 - - (4) 1 1 0 0 - - Battrick 11 3 22 5 - 2 (1) 6 1 24 1 - 2 Barnard 3 1 8 0 - - Fellowes 6.1 3 11 3 1 - Chessall (3) 2 0 6 0 - - Extras - - 5 0 - - - - 5 0 - - Total 50.1 13 107 10 1 2 11 2 50 1 0 2 Notes: This rain-restricted return game, which was the inaugural championship match played at the new County Ground, was drawn, the Dorset declaration leaving Staffordshire a victory target of 160 runs in three-quarters of an hour. Rain limited play on the second day to around 2 hours. Staffordshire had won the match between the two sides at Stoke the previous month. 500 spectators were reported to be present on the first day. The point gained by Dorset was the only one during the season. [An alternative version of this score based on Dorset sources gives, in the Staffordshire second innings, Burns caught by Barnard not Ellis.] [Missing: In Dorset second innings who bowled missing wide.] Sources: Staffordshire Scorebook; Dorset County Chronicle 23 July; Poole Herald 23 July; Staffordshire Advertiser 18 July; Staffordshire Sentinel 15,16,18 July; Birmingham Daily Post 16,17 July.