Club Cricket Contest Close And Interesting

Press, Volume XCV, Issue 28250, 11 April 1957, Page 15

Club Cricket Contest Close And Interesting

'T'HE victory of the St. Albans team in the Canterbury Cricket Association s senior championship was as clear-cut as could be expected in a competition in which each team was capable of thoroughly extending every other one. St. Albans led for the first five rounds, surrendered first place to Lancaster Park for two rounds, but regained the lead in the eighth round and after the tenth and final round had a lead of 12 points. Perhaps the most satisfactory feature of the contest was the effort made by Old Collegians, which has never won a championship. After six rounds, it was third to last, but finished second, its best effort since the war.

St. Albans had a strong allround side. The batting of P. G. Z Harris, S. C. Guillen, and M. B. Poore was outstanding, but there were players right down the order capable of making runs when they were most needed. Harris, equalling W. A. Hadlee’s post-war aggregate, had a most satisfactory season as captain. Guillen was in tremendous form, averaging 55, compared with 35 for West Christchurch the previous season.

out of form in the second half of the season, there was no real support for Jones. Riccarton again played attractively, but suffered a sharp reverse in the dissolution of the 1955-56 opening partnership of L. J. Newman and W. E. Muncaster. In the previous season they had scored 1163 runs between them, Newman averaging 30, Muncaster 43. Loss of Form

The St. Albans bowling was extraordinarily dependent on spin: of the regular players only K. J. McNicholl was a pace bowler, and he did well quite consistently. But Poore, T. B. Burtt, D. Stark, and Harris all bowled

This season, Newman totalled 90 in rune innings and was dropped. Muncaster’s aggregate feH by 234 to 411, his average by 16 and there was not the batting substance to overcome this reverse. J. Kiddey had one tremendous innings, the captain R. H. Scott tried hard to hold the side together, but the batting was brittle.

W. Bell, again taking more than 50 wickets—3o of them in the last five innings—was the only bowler capable of running through an opposing side but Kiddey made a great advance to capture 40 wickets at 19 runs each. It was a pity G. W. McKenzie had to miss four matches, for he still looked among the most capable batsmen in the team. In seventh place was West Christchurch, third in the previous competition. The loss of Guillen to St. Albans was a serious one, and after a good start G. N. Gearry failed more often that usual. He increased

With success, particularly Poore, whose 40 wickets cost only 12 runs each, a tremendous advance on last season, when he played only five games. Bad Start Old Collegians started badly, but new batsmen to the side, D. W. Crowe and R. T. Hunt, were the first to lead a renaissance. A. R. Mac Gibbon was an outstanding all-rounder, as usual, but the most dramatic success was that of P. C. Sheppard, who last season averaged 17, and who was in the second grade team for the first three matches this summer. His final figures of 468 rims, average 52. meant much to his side.

The bowling depended very largely on Mac Gibbon, but Crowe fiddled some useful batsmen out, G L. Perry bowled steadily, B. A. Carpenter showed great improvement towards the end, and T. D Gibson again bowled with great energy and heart. With young J. H. Dawson available for all of next season, Old Collegians needs only to start well to have every chance of achieving its first championship success—and it would be a- particularly popular one. This season’s improvement of five places and z 4 competition points was outstanding. Lancaster Park finished third, but it was.a struggle to get there. Yet the ream might well have beaten St. Albans in the vital ninth-round game. Lancaster Park had M. E. Chapple batting most effectively throughout the season. He improved on his last season’s aggregate by 108 and increased his average by 10. But R. T. Dowker and A. G. Duckmanton were the only batsmen to offer substantial support, and the side always seemed to carry a dreadfully long tail.

his aggregate by 40 to 450, but his average dropped by 19, to 32. G. T. Dowling made a notable advance in his batting, and J. B. Park bowled with perseverance, but, in general, the bowling was markedly lacking in penetration. Sydenham again finished last, but there were some hopeful signs for the future—the bowling of D. L. Gallop, which holds distinct promise, and the batting of B. Bayley. With J. W. Guy in the team next season, Sydenham should make an overdue advance.

All-Rounders

Chapple and Duckmanton also dominated the bowling, for B. Irving, who the previous season, his first in seniors, had taken 51 wickets, this time captured only Dine at much higher cost. Of the medium-pace bowlers, R. H. Prouting showed most promise. Old Boys, the winner in 1955-56. finished fourth. There was again a lack of variety in the bowling, although D. J. Reid enjoyed outstanding success. C. G. Snook played a very useful if sometimes inconspicuous part, as an allrounder, but the batting generally fell away badly. B. A. Bolton averaged 22, compared with 40 the previous season, J. W. D’Arcy 20 compared with 41, B. M. J. Dineen 13 compared with 32, W. A. Hadlee 27 compared with 39. East Christchurch descended three places to finish fifth, scoring only six points in the last four rounds—including five from the defeat of St. Albans in the oneday game. Although he made three good scores in his last three matches, I. B. Cromb averaged 29, against 42 the previous summer, and others also lost form. J. Capstick, at the end of the season, began to fulfil his high promise, but I. McK. Sinclair's batting and bowling were both below his best It was always an unpredictable side, but T. Jones always bowled steadily. S. M. Betty had 45 wickets the previous summer, only 18 this time, a drop which affected the side seriously, for with Sinclair