CRICKET.

Auckland Star, Volume XLVII, Issue 49, 26 February 1916, Page 16

CRICKET.

Adelaide cricket resultstarenot officially reckoned this season; so many good men having gone to lie war. So far as play has gonei Port Adelaide is easily top, with an unbeaten, record..This is unusual; Port generally expects to win the football premiership, but has been only moderate in the summer game. The present position is largely due to Rundell, the inter-State all-rounder. He has been much helped ,by Scott, the fast, bowler from Sydney, who, in. addition to his bowling, is proving a profitableijjats-'. man.

What the faded sport-of cricket-wants; is a few score batsmen like P. Shea, of! Essendon (V.). For his collapsing side against South Melbourne recently Shea,' who has the reputation of never prac- , , tising and of loving "an uphill fight, hit! up a spirited 157-not'out aid. pulled the game out of the mud. In 23cbneecu4mi scoring strokes he made only two singles. Cricket worth watching! ■

A remarkable performance marked tliio conclusion of the sixth series of first 1 grade matches in Wellington, says an exchange. On the first day'the veteran Ken. 'i'ueker, playing for Old ' Boys against Petone, took , nine wickets for 46 runs in Petone's first inninga. A portion of Petone's second innings was also played that afternoon, and Tucker got four wickete for 30 runs. When the innings concluded it was found that ■tieveteran had again taken nine wickets for 46 runs—a remarkable coincidence. The securing by one bowler of 18 wickets in a match is rare indeed. The average cost to Tucker of the wickets was 5.11 runs. It was a splendid performance. One regrets that there seems to have been a slight blemish on it. According to. report, an umpire erred in givitog Brice out lbw; to Tucker; it is stalled that the ball pitched a foot outside *iie leg pin and then broke in. Still, that can be overlooked; it would have been a pity if Tucker had not got njinc wickets in that second innings, at exactly the same cost -as in the first innings, to complete his feat. TnckeT got seven of his wickets by clean bowling batsmen, seven by catches (one of which catches was taken by himself), two stumped, and two lbw. Altogether, that was a remarkable match, for in Oid Boys' first innings Brice also got nine wickets, but in his case the 1 total cost was 23 runs. It was curious that BrieePs wickets cost just half of what each tof Tucker's sets of nine cost.

PUBLIC SCHOOLS CBJDCKET. NOTES AND COMMENTS. The 1916 cricket season under the-aus-pices of the Auckland Public Schools' Cricket Association was opened on Saturday last, matches eventuating 1 , in the three grades at the Domain, and Eden Parks. In all twenty-five from Auckland city jind iub'.ur,bs hive' entered teams to compete in the competitions arranged by the Primary Schools' Association. This is two fewer than last season, Ponsonby, Parnell and Nelson Street schools failing to enter teams, while Northcote makes its initial entry, this season. It is to be regretted that such large schools as the three aforementioned have failed to place elevens in the field'ior the coming season, seeing that each school has in the past figured prominently in schools' cricket. Surely there are at least eleven boys in each of above schools sufficiently keen to represent the school on the cricket field. Several new rules were created at the annual meeting, and at a special general meeting of the Association, and the forthcoming season will prove the value or otherwise of'such. The opening day saw at least one of the new rules operating to the discomfiture of some of the teams. The A grade this season consists of nine teams, the B grade ofeight, and the C grade of eight. Indications point to Devonport and Mt. Eden being the most dangerous teams of the A grade, Napier Street and Grafton in the B grade, and Stanley Bay in the C grade. . Two centuries wero registered (ft the opening day—W. Green (Napier Street) 103 not out, Rogers (Devonport) 101 not out.

Bowlers in most instances failed to strike form, but a marked improvement will be noticeable as the first, round, progresses, some promising trundlers being in evidence. Fielding was on the slack side generally on Saturday last, a noticeable exception being the Avondale team's work in this department, some smart Stopping being indulged in. In-tho A grade Devonporfc had no difficulty in disposing of Newton East, for whom Miller (26 not out) was the "star" performer. Rogers, for the winners, did well with both bat and ball. , Mount IJden were -far superior in all departments to Vermont Street, Cos (47) batting in good style for the •winners, while Gilleapie • did #ell both • in bowling and batting. The Eden boys, if practising consistently, should be near the top of the list at the end of the seaS °Playing for • Mt. Albert against Normal, McLaren (39 runs and six wickets for 8-runs) was-of much service to his team. Normal found,thcdr oppo-

nents'to.V.good, but the losers will pw/b----»bly makt a better showing later. DJhe ronnd hasMbut commenced. '

Bemuerat and Bichmond Boad fw/ght out the cla«»t of games, the latter cVea- ?- tually by one,run. For'the losers 'Afnnro\ performed excellently .with ball and bat,', 41 runs and ten -Wickuts being no mean perfocmsmce. Herdßon and Cleave w\:re the bor.riera for the winners. In the B Napier- Str<»t, thanla to W. Green's iOl not iout, account-id somewhat -easily i(7T Beresi'ord, for whf/n* Chapman ('26) avd SpaiJnon (23) ivH best with the baf

The and West fijjfcure was one of fairly low see .res, a pair at bowlers doing all the dam age, viz., MacManna and Danielle fbr 'Vf/est, and Luke for Epsom.

Graf ton proved much too stro-Ag for Maungawhau, the Bush boys (With 32 and 24 respectively) aisd Meredith (20) batting best for the viptaors. lie Bayfield v. Grey i<ynn contest saw the .bdwlera having tfre better of the argument, loy scores refliriting, and the former by Iβ hma. Jensen four for. 7,; and Bloom field -six for 10, bowled effectively for' Bayfleli I. In the C grade Sta feley Bay, the -winners of the grade in' 1 >15, easily defeated the rtrnners rip. Stanley Bay's mainstays of last y< jar, namely, Jaggs and Scott, v»ere ,the destroying agents, nine and fen; wickets, respectively being their quota, while put on 32 runs. THis team slioujd agai-n prove the winners'of this griide. i ; A-vbndale, after phjyJng B grade in 1915, were grwen a trilil in C grade this iyear, and fligtafiaed their entry by deieating TakjtpuTra, wijich. team, however, ;ia but a sloeletan of that which did so [well, during the seccjnd round of last play. Nortiieote boys -were lacking in experience, bat several of tbiem "Shaped promisMaty with bat and bdTl. Timewell is a Howler of pronrise, as; is CyLeary. For Ndwmairket Hargreaves (45 not out) steadily, as did Buisson and Pafscoe.