CONTROL OF CRICKET.

Otago Witness, Issue 2722, 16 May 1906, Page 54

CONTROL OF CRICKET.

MELBOURNE, May 8. The statemeofc is being made here that all the leading New South Wales players, including every man who played in interState cricket last year, have signed an agreement with the Melbourne Cricket Club to play wherever asked and again6t j any English team the club may bring out. ' The Northern and Southern Associations in Tasmania have agreed, without accept- ' ing any financial responsibility, to join the Melbourne Club in asking the Marylebone 1 Club to 6end a team. In the event of i the Marylebone Club declining to send . a team, it is stated that the Melbourne Club I will ask some of the leading players to bring a team. ; May 9. The University and Collingwood Clubs j have decided to throw in their lot with : the Victorian Cricket- Association. May 10. I The Cricket Association haß rescinded ! its previous resolution, which gave the Melbourne Club a representative on the Board of Control. Mr Adamson wrote resigning the presidentship owing to the i ; trouble which had arisen in connection ! with the Melbourne Club. The resignation ! was accepted with regret. Letters were received from the Melbourne, South Melbourne, and Richmond Clubs withdrawing from the association. The withdrawals were accepted. May 11. j A meeting of the League of Cricketers is to be held to discuss the question of district cricket and the present position of the game. Letters have "been received from the Williamstown, Coburg, and Malvern Clubs 6tating that they had decided to support the Melbourne Club, while the Es6endon Club has notified that it had decided to lemain with the association. Matters will be further discussed at the conference with the Melbourne Club on Tuesday. SYDNEY, May 8. It is understood 1 that the executive of the New South Wales Cricket Association has decided, in the event of the Melbourne Club bringing out an' English team, to block the matches in Sydney and disqualify the New South Wales players playing against the Englishmen either in Sydney or elsewhere. The association will give the players who have promised their service to the Melbourne Club a chance to withdraw before taking the extremestep. A meeting of the association will be held 10-morrow to discuss the executive's decision. I May 9. The executive of the Sydney Cricket Association examined two leading players in reference to their alleged agreement with the Melbourne Cricket Club. It is understood they ascertained that certain players had signed such an agreement. More players will be examined. The executive of the Cricket Association yesterday wired to the Victorian Association statins that unless the rfew .

South Wales players who had accepted the offer of the Melbourne Club ' to play against an English team withdrew, they would be immediately disqualified.

At a meeting- of the executive to-day a letter was received from Mackay declining to cancel his agreement.

The Melbourne Club's executive is now awaiting replies from the other New South j Wales inter-State players who have been written to. It is rumoured that some i other players have sent replies similar to that sent by Mackay. A meeting of a, number of prominent players was held last night, but the proceedings have not been divulged. The officials and others connected with the Cricket Association express themselves very strongly regarding the action of the Melbourne Club, in securing agreements • with New South players in January last, while the Victorian Association was negotiating with New South Wales in refer- v ence to the question of 'representation on the Board of Control. One prominent member states ihat if the trustees grant the crick.et ground to the Melbourne Club for matches legal proceedings will be taken against the trusses. s I May 10. The executive of the Cricket Associationinterviewed Noble, Dnff, O'Connor, and Grounds to-day. The last-named denied the receipt of any communication from the Melbourne Club, but the others admitted promising that club to play if required. Noble and Duff refused to withdraw their promises, and O'Connor has been given till Saturday to enable him to consult his friends. Trumper and Cotter are absent with a team in Queensland, and their case has been held over. The executive will strongly recommend the Cricket Association at its meeting on Monday to disqualify the recalcitrants for inter-State and local competition in cricket, i ' May 11. The Cricket Association has applied to the trustees of the ground for certain dates which, if granted, will leave no opportunity for the proposed English team to play, excepting the mid-week matches. The Melbourne Club has also applied for dates similar to those it engaged for the last Marylebone team. A player received a letter from Melbourne yesterday stating that it was rumoured that Jackson had been asked and had consented to bring out a team. May 12. The latest development of the cricket trouble is that the secretary and the actiwgchairman of the> Cricket Ground Trustees de- • dined to allow Mr T. Trickett, the president of the Cricket Association, and also one of the trustees of the ground, access to the hooks of trust. Mr Trickett has laid the .matter before the Minister of Lands, and asked for ! his support and protection in his position as trustee May 14. Noble, the well-known cricketer, speaking on the cricket dispute, voices the opinions of the players. He says that as the Board of Control recently tendered an invitation to the Marylebone Club to send a team to Australia, which the Marylebone Club could not see its way to accept on account of its not being a body representative of the- cricket interests of the States, the players feel justified in accepting the invitation from the Melbourne Cricket Club to compete against any team introduced! by that body. Its action was taken after due consideration, and with the belief that the Melbourne Club should have the support of all in each State infcereeted in the welfare of international cricket. The players believe that it will be acknowledged by the public that it is highly desirable, in the interests of Australian cricket, that a representative English cricket team should be induced to visit Australia during the season. The Cricket Association has confirmed the action of the executive in issuing an ultimatum to players to come to a decision by Wednesday as to whether they will remain loyal to the association. BRISBANE, May 10. The Cricket Association, in reply. to a communication from the South Australian Association, stated that it had joined the Board of Control, and was prepared to abide by the existing constitution.