BIG SCORES.

Auckland Star, Volume LXII, Issue 289, 7 December 1931, Page 12

BIG SCORES.

ON FAST WICKETS. DAY FOR THE BATSMEN. CLUB CRICKET CHAMPIONSHIPS. In ideal sunny weather and on wickets tuned up to suit the batsmen by recent light rains, senior club cricket on Saturday afternoon was characterised by scores which gave prominence to the run-getter. The smallest total of the day was Ponsonby'fi 106 against Grafton. I.M.G.A. Took the day's honours with a total or 3°2 against University, whiie Kings Uld Bovs knocked up 281 at Eden's expense, and Parnell scored 254 off the North Shore attack. Universitv and Eden did not_ get a knock, but at the fag end of the aiternoon Graiton lost two for 24 to Ppnsonby, an.' North Shore one for 9 to Parnell. The individual run-making periormaiices did not include a century, but Whitelaw (Parnell) 68, Clark (Y.M.CA) 62 Elliott (Y.M.CA..) 67, Sutherland (1.M.C.A.) ol not out) Clarke (Ponsonby) 60 McMillan (Kind's) 54 and Pearson (Kings), osustained good form. Vivian (Parnell), the New Zealand representative, fell through over-exuberance at 29, but in the making of his runs in hali an hour he set an example of abandon which might have been more generally lollowed, and would have been appreciated by spectators. Among the best bowling penormances of the afternoon were four ior 49 toy Allcott (Grafton), four ior 52 by Lowie (Grafton), six for 115 by Matheson (University), four for 53 by Saunders North Shore),' three for 49 by Coates North Shore), five for 78 by G. L. Weir (Eden) and four for 65 by A. Postles (Eden), PONSONBY TAKE THEIR TIME. No speed" records were broken by Ponsonby in their innings against Grafton at Eden Park. On a wicket that was all in favour of run getting they occupied the best part of four hours in scoring 196. -the total was the smallest registered in the senior competition. At the start of the innings runs came at quite a respectable rate, and the century was hoisted for ninetv minutes' play, but the next ninety took over two hours to collect. Opening the innings with Snedden. who batted nicely Tor -4 before he was bowled by a ball from Cowie, which "hugged" the ground, Qarke ldaved verr patiently to top the individual «cores with a valuable 60. He was just on three hours in getting his runs together, and at no stage did he attempt to force the pace. The first half of his score was made up solely of singles and two or three fours behind the wicket, but he put a little more wood behind his drives midway through the afternoon. He "was lucky in that several snicks off Cowie's bowling reached the boundary, but . in almost ' all of his shots he succeeded in keeping the ball on the, ground. Singleton J>atted brightly and forcefully to contribute 44, his driving being'a feature ,of his innings. Smith was quiet for a time, but brightened up to hit Horspool for three fours in the one over, and finished up with ' 31. With the exception of Taylor (19), who was stumped when he -went well out of" his crease in an attempt to lift Allcott over the line, none of the other batsmen showed any form. The Grafton bowling honours wer» shared by Allcott (four for 49)" and Cowie (four for 51). The former kept a steady length, and the same may be said of Cowie, who lost some of his pace towards the end of the innings. Horspool bagged the other two wickets fou 21. At times the Grafton fielding was brilliant, and several fine saves on the line earned the applause of the spectators. Grafton lost two wickets for 24, so that the issue is very open. POXSOXBY.—First Innings. Snedden, b Cowie" 24 Singleton, b Horspool .- 44 Monteith, c Angus, b Horspool 2 Clarke, c Cowie ; 60 -Smith, e Ellis, b Allcott 31 AVilliams, b Allcott 2 Turner, lbw. b Allcott 0 Taylor, st Rowntree. b Allcott 19 Hore, c Angus, b Cowie ;.. 4 Cleverley, b Cowie 0 " Stewart, not out ' -.... 3 .Extras 7 Total 196 Bowling.—Cowie took four wickets for •"1 runs, Allcott four for 49, Horspool two for 21, Williams none for 17, Kerr none for 22, Burke none for 29. GRAFTON—First Innings. i Kerr, not out 13 Burke, b Snedden .V 2 Wood, hit wicket, b Snedden .-. 1 Extras • '. 6 Total for two wickets" 24 .Y.M.'S EIGHTH-WICKET STAND. Y.M.C.A.. both individually, and as a team, batted well for 322 against 'Varsity on Saturday. Anything over 300.is not to be" despised. Moreover, one expects at least fair scores from the top-wicket men, but on Saturday Sutherland and Clark made a great eighth-wicket stand for 107. The former got 51 and Clark 62. It is true the bowling had tired somewhat, which was understandable, and the fielding had slackened, which is inexcusable, but at the same time 107 are a lot of runs to collect - from a late wicket Clark was especially , confident, and batted with style and force. He did not seem to specialise in any one shot, though he got Them mostly in front of the -wicket. He hit six fours and two sixes. His partner was.quieter, and runs came more slowly.' Still Sutherland showed that he can get runs if he goes for them.

Elliott made merrv. Nothing was anv trouble at. all. He seemed to like Matheson, and many times either turned or pulled both him and all the other bowlers round to leg. By far the majority of his rims were scored on the side, by most forcible hitting. At a time, when the bowling was fresh and the field was trying, he crossed the boundary eight times, and notched two sixes. It was an exhilarating innings to watch, but it must be admitted that he was lucky. Many of his boundary shots were in the air. Prater's batting was chanceless, on the other hand, though he got only 41, as compared with 67. He specialised in a wrist shot, which nicked the ball like lightning to the line, through the gully. He was always entirely at his ease. Webb's 4S was in the spirit of Y.M.'s innings. He hit, and hit again, and got two sixes. One of these, however, was a lucky mistake. He turned the ball right over his head for the maximum. XjM. dominated the play unmistakably. Garrard tried many changes, of ; bofh man and howling end, but without avail. The bowling Tired and lost sting. Matheson got six for 115, in 36 overs, which is just- over three runs an over scored. This is not bad bowling. He and Schnauer bore the brunt of the bowling through a long ' innings. 'Varsity's fielding was below standard. It was neither keen nor clean. Many catches were missed, and more singles were allowed to become boundaries. Scores were:— Y.M.C.A.—First Innings. " • Elliott, c Dixon, b Matheson .'" 67 T. Lyon, lbw, b Matheson 22 Cooper, b Matheson 2 Frafer. run out 41 Riddolls, b Matheson 10 Miller, b Matheson 2 Webb. B Matheson 4S Sutherland, not out 'sl ("lark, c parrard. b Schnauer 62 H. Lyon, b Schnauer .' 2 Smith, not out 5 Extras 10 Total 322 Bowling for 'Varsity: Matheson six for 115, Schnauer two for til. Garrard none for 61, Jessup none for 22. Dixon none for 2S. Sutherland none for 21. SENIOR B GRADE. ,- NORTH SHORE V. PARNELL. North Shore. —Pirst innings. 326 (Sale 120. Walters- 51,, G. Drake 15, Long 33. Woolley 40, Wynne IS). Bowling: Siddle two for 43, Vogther two for 49, Aickin two for 78, Bell one fo» SO, Timmers one for 48. -. •• Parnell.—First innings, five wickets for 30-. Bowling: T. Smith two for 7, Matthews three for 21. POXSOXBY V. MOUNT ALBERT. Ponsonby.—First innings: 187 (Douglas 17, Burton 23* War.neford 23. Lendrum 24, Clarke 37. Fillars 37). Bowling for Mount .. Albert: Hart eight for 64, Stevenson one k for 19. ■ Mount. Albert.—Four wickets for 46 ■ (Nolan 17).

KING'S LIVELY BATTING. Almost half the King's Old Boys came to light with good batting performances against Eden on No. 3, wicket; and the total of 281 for the innings was remarkably 'good for a team that had entered the senior grade only this season. For a time it appeared doubtful whether King's could do justice to a wicket that obviously favoured the batsmen, but as the afternoon advanced they began to make merry. At times during the eighth wicket partnership of Johnson and Simpson, runs were coming at the rate of three a minute. It was a reverse for G. L. Weir, who had been bowling with a splendid length, and at one stage had four wickets for 35. Morris, King's steadiest batsman, who was playing in his last match before leaving for England, did not get going; but Caughey and McMillan made amends by a good secondwicket stand. McMillan, who promises to be a consistent run-getter, knocked up 54 by! sound play, following which Pearson, one! of the stylists of the side, rattled on 52. This example was followed later by Johnson and Simpson, when they got together and p,asted Weir ail round the wicket. It was au unusual experience for Weir to see Johnson hit him twice to the boundary and once for two in one over. Simpson simply revelled in the bowling of Langton, and sent a full toss to the long boundary, and lifted a beautiful sixer; but he was courting trouble when he skied one that Langton ran to catch, only to fumble in his eagerness to have revenge. Johnson was dismissed by a catch that bounced on the fingers of Postles when he jumped for it in the slips, and was then held by Wilkinson. Taking it all round it was an interesting game, and Eden have been set a difficult task for next Saturday. Scores were:— KING'S OLD BOYS.—First Innings. T. H. C. Caughey, b Postles 3C S. B. Morris, b G. L. Weir 7 N. McMillan, lbw, b Postles 54 H. P. Pearson, c' Wilkinson, b McKae 52 F. T. Jackson, b G. L. Weir 14 K. H. Wilson, c MeCarthv. bG. L. Weir 2 J. R. Coath, c McCarthy, bG. L. Weir 11 L. Johnson, c Vivian, b Postles 45 J. B. Simpson, b Postles 39 J. Thomson, not out 5 J. W. Palmer, c and bG. L. Weir',! 9 Extras 7 Total 2SI Bowling: G L. Weir took five wickets for ,8 runs. Postles four for 03, McKae one for 50, Newdiek none for 2S, A F Weir none for 26, Langton none for 27. KEEN PLAY AT DEVONPORT. An excellent attendance of spectators saw the opening stage of the North ShoreParnell match at Devonport Domain (It is a significant commentarv on the uncertainty of cricket that, in defiance of the predictions of some doleful prophets before the season opened, North Shore have provided particularly interesting cricket for Devonport enthusiasts all this season, so far as it has gone. Admittedly the team is weak in Batting resources, but <it has a well-balanced attack, and every man is keen in the field.) Attack aforesaid came through a hardworking- experience with every credit on Saturday afternoon. Coates handled hi-: resources with intelligence and skill, making good use of Hugh Webb, Saunders and Player (each of whom bowled "well), while he "set" his field with a sound anticipatory sense. Moreover, it can be said sincerely that Coates himself bowled excellently. The writer has known more than one occasion on which Coates has kept himself on far too long, bowled persistently from the same crease, taken ; far too long a run and concentrated more on speed than on length. Saturday saw each of tnese faults, eradicated. He took a shorter run, bowled much slower — medium pace, no more—but kept a length. As Wilfred Rhodes used to say: "Keep a length and they'll get themselves out." Mention must also be made of the intrinsic cleverness of Saunders' bowling. With true bowler's guile, he, fairly "kidded" Vivian out. New Zealand's best all-rounder was in two minds over a puzzling delivery. He did not get properly hold of it, and sent an easy return to Saunders' waiting and- justifiably- expectant hands. Player kept a good length, but Matthews had an off day. Whitelaw. Vivian and the other earlv Parnell batsmen took some time to plav themselves in, but they found no difficulty in dealing with the left-hander, and Coates should not have kept him 011 quite so long. Greater use of Hughie Webb —in spells of. say. three or four overs — might be a productive policy. Whitelaw played a very sound innings, nothing particularly spectacular, but all the time taking toll of the bowlers' sting and energv. During Shore's 20 minutes of batting several spectators questioned the legitimacy of deliveries from Vivian. On one or two occasions there was just a suggestion of "no-ball" about them, but on the whole they were absolutely fair, It must not be forgotten that the law of cricket covering no-balls applies to each of the bowler's feet. Details:—

NORTH SHORE.—First Innings. Whitelaw. lbw. b Coates 68 -Hay, c and b Webb •• • 1» Vivian, c and b Saunders 29 McCoy, c Edmunds, b Saunders 0 Anthony, c Edmunds, b Coates 32 Stehr, b Player 25 Hawke, c Coates, b Player .... 26 Duncan, not out 28 McGeshan. c Ferguson, b Saunders .... o Everson, c Macindoe, fe Coates ...... 5 Cleal. b Saunders , 0 Extras 7 Total 25 * Bowling: Saunders four for 58, Coates three for 40, Player two for 41, Webb one for 59, Matthews none for 40. SHORE. —First Inings. Archer, b Hawke 2 Edmunds, not out • • • • - Bush, not out - Extras :. v ....... i js Total for one wicket 9 GIRLS' ASSOCIATION. " STRONG ". BOWLING FIGURES. Following are the results of matches plaved under the control of the Auckland Girls' Hockev Association on Saturday : ; — Senior Grade.—Technical Old Girls woh by default from Training College B. Arawa defeated Training College A on the first innings. ■ ■ ■ • ■ ' Junior Grade. —Hockey A beat Kia Ora by seven wickets. Hockey A 35 (B. Mason 14) and 12 for three wickets. Bowling: A. Riddolls four for 12. F. Pegler three for 16, Coward one for 0, E. Woodcock one for 1, J. Burkill two for 4. Kai Ora 24 (J. Burkill 13) and' 22. Bowling: P. Dawson seven for 11, Cooper five for 9, B. Mason one for 11, Mann one for O. , OTAHUHU ASSOCIATION. Kempthorne, Prossers (146), defeated Relief Workers' (86). New Zealand Railways No. 2 team defeated No. 1 team, by 10 wickets. Challenge Phosphate • defeated St. Joseph. „ , . -', Passenger Transport Co. defeated Abattoirs by 64 to 29., A FRIENDLY GAME. Plaving at Devonport on Saturday, North Devoiiport scored 147 (C. Farqubarson 66, Harper 2S. Corde 17, Huston 16). Deyouport Conncil replied with 123 for six wickets (Foster 33 not out. Wylie IG. Ohphant 19, Smith 15. Christian 14, Wilson 13). HAWKE CUP. WANGANUI BEATS TAEAXAKI, (By Telegraph.—Press Association.) WANGANUI, Sunday. The Wanganui cricket team defeated Taranaki by 11 inns in the Hawke Cup elimination match, which concluded yesterday. An exciting finish was provided. Wanganui made 265 runs in the 'first innings., and "224 -in the second. Taranaki.; with a first innings' score of 269. required! 221 to win; and had one wicket down when play was. resumed yesterday morning. ..At luncheon, Taranaki had lost two wickets for 116. but the last wicket fell with the total at 210. Giddy batted all day, giving a fine, performance for 70 not out. Other leading scores were:—-Betts 30, W. ■Barker 49 (run out), Xasmith 26. ' : V'. TAIHAPE. In a cricket match on the Taihape Domain on Saturday, Taihape made 276 (Dr. Sinclair 113, Joblih 02 not out. Hake 39); At the call of time United had lost two; wickets for 86 (Chisholm 56 not out). !'.owling for United, Bradley took five for 17. . .