ON THE CRICKET FIELD

Dominion, Volume 20, Issue 75, 22 December 1926, Page 8

ON THE CRICKET FIELD

MARSHALLING FORCES FOR THE SHIELD GAMES

LIKELY CANDIDATES FOR ENGLAND

s (By

“Burwood.”)

Never before in the history of cricket in the Dominion has there been such • quickening of interest in cricket as ’ has been seen. this season. This is ' solely due to the fact that at the end ’ of the year New Zealand is to send a team to England for the first time. Every player is a prospective candidate, and consequently every important match is fraught with more than usual interest. Wellington is particularly fortunate, in so far as followers of the game here i will be privileged to follow a series of big games which will extend for almost a fortnight. ' The Town v. Country match commenced at the Basin Reserve on Friday last, and concluded on Monday. No , sooner had the players in this game left 1 the field than the ground was occupied I on Tuesday and to-day with the trial match between the Wellington eleven and a side representing the New Zea- ' land Minor Associations. This match will be followed bv the meeting of Otago and Wellington for the Plunket Shield on Christmas Day, a battle royal which, if the weather be fine, should extend well into next week.

The Country Talent. A feature of the play in the match ! between the Town and Country forces last week-end was the manner in which the ball triumphed over the bat. The feat of the Country trundlers in dismissing such a powerful batting side as Wellington for 310 runs was one of I rare merit. This can be understood • wheii it is pointed, out that Wellington scored 407 last season against Canterbury and 447 and 374 against Auckland • With the exception of James’ bright contribution for 82. there was not a single batsman on the Town side who could force runs against the steady attack maintained by the Country trundlers. James stamped himself as a batsr man of. class in this innings. His style was sound and free, and .be frequently drove good length balls powerfully past , mid-off and through the covers. He < has clearlv improved greatly as a result of the experience gained on the tour . of Australia with the New Zealand i team last season. This shows the value ; of giving young players the benefit of ; educative trips of this nature.

I Rock of Gibraltar. _ Once again B. J. Kortlang showed 0 what a valuable asset a sound defensive batsman is to a team. With Airey, Hiddleston, Rollings, and McGirr gone by the time 44 runs were on -the slate, the Town side was in a bad way, but Kortlang set out determinedly to repair the fallen fortunes of the side. The Thorndon plaver simply camped on the pitch and let the Country trundlers bowl up against a barn door for a couple of hours. To any ball pitched off the wicket, Kortlang smothers' up with his pads, and Jt is, therefore, impossible to bowl nim with a ! breaking ball. His defence is well- < nigh impregnable, and lie has the patience of Job and Bruce’s cpider rolled into one. Sitting on -his bat, be ! waits patiently for the scorable balls, which he sends speeding away.to the ; boundary with a wide variety of shots, , in which the pull and hoak ere specialties. If Kortlang’s great innings of 149 not out was'.taken away from the Town team’s total of 340 the tally, by i the city representatives would have been a sorry one indeed. In fact, Kortlang made about half the, runs scored by the side. The Town bitting was anything but convincing, as can be judged from the fact that Kortlang, James and Lambert scored. 277 between them, while the lemaining ; eight batsmen could only manage. 49 ’ between, them, as there were 14 exltas. This was a great feather in the cap ‘ of the Country bowlers and fieldsmen. It was only Kortlang’s masterly i defence which prevented a' rout.

A Spin Bowler. ■ That a bowler must be able to spin the ball in order to get good batsmen out on a plumb wicket was again de- •’ monstrated in the Town team’s first in- ! nings. Pace, length, and swingers may ' occasionally catch a batsman napping, but in the end the lion’s , share of the i wickets go to the,.man who can impart finger spin to the ball. And in this connection it must be I. said that Mitchell, the youthful Napier 1 slow' leg-break bowler, made a most auspicious first appearance in big cricket. The merit of his bowling is that he is not afraid to toss the ball 1 well up to the batsmen. In fact, a good many of his deliveries were full i tosses, but he has an ideal temperament, and smiled , good-naturedly as these were rattled' up against the pick’ ets. Up came the tempting delivery again, as much as to (pay, “Here, see ; how far you can hit this one.” To , make a long story short, Mitchell came out with five for 110, while the next , best tally on the side was Bernau’s two for 51. In all, Mitchell sent down ' twenty-three overs, and thus had, a little over 4 runs hit off each over. This was a sterling .performance for a slow bowler. Each man who attempted . to hit him paid the penalty. Badcock i and Brice were gathered in in the coun- ‘ try, and Lambert was caught at deep long-leg. Good slow leg-break bowlers , are: rare in .New Zealand, and Mitchell may be the man Wellington has been patiently waiting for. Bernau, for a few overs, is one of the most dangerous left-hand bowlers in . the Dominion. He did good service in the first innings by getting rid of Avery and Rollings by the time 16 runs were on the slate. It was unfortunate for 1 the' two colts,' who were, making their first appearance in representative cricket, that they had to face such a bowler at his very: best. However, they could console themselves, that old and — experienced players like Hiddleston , and McGirr. also found the bowling too

hot, and did little better than the youngsters. Hiddleston and McGirr both fell lbw. The two left-handers, Newman (Nel- , son) and Gallichan (Manawatu), both bowled verv steadily, though without much success. The Nelson nia*h sent down fourteen overs for 31 runs, and the Manawatu bowler twelve overs for ’ 56 runs, and a wicket. It is long since ‘ a Wellington team has been kept so ; ’ quiet. Ball Still Triumphs. Throughout Saturday, the ball continued to triumph over the bat. The I goodlv crowd of spectators vainly wait- , ed for the fireworks which never came, except when T. C. Lowry, the Country : captain, blossomed out into international form towards the close of his inn- ' ings. Lowry was'cramped by the collapse r of his earlier batsmen, and i.ad to go in himself and take the bloom off the bowling. . . , . Dempster was very restrained in Ins innings for 40, and failed to reveal any of those sparkling cuts and cover shots which he used to employ so fre(luentlv here before leaving for Wanganui. No doubt the fact that he failed in both innings of the Hawke Cup match at Wanganui made him ultra

cautious, but probably the real reason was that the Town bowling was too steady to take undue liberties with; Lowrv delighted the crowd when he opened' out on Henderson, and sent the fast left-hander speeding to the boundary for three clinking fonrers in succession. When just warming to his work, the ex-Cambridge University and Somerset County man mishit one from Badcock to Brice at mid-on,,and was out for a sterling- display- foi 70. Lowrv failed to show the freedom be exhibited here in February, 1923, when he hit up 130 for the M.C.C. team against New Zealand, but, as has already been explained, he played, a fine fighting innings for his ;■ ide, .and, revealed form of a high, order. G. Orr, of Wanganui, who originally hailed from Sydney, again proved that he is a sterling' bat'sma'r. - His 53 was compiled with finished strokes, and he was moving along freely when he plaved one from Brice on to his sticks. Stephenson, the youthful Napier player, shaped well for 22, but discounted his good work by foolishly running Newman but. The Nelson left-hander was shaping quite confidently, and was punching.the bowling when Stephenson lost his head and called his partner for a poke straight to Badcock at cover. The last wicket might have made a determined stand had not this bad error of judgment occurred. «

Spin Bowlers Again. It was again the right-hand mediumpaced spin bowlers who came to the front in this innings.* The sensation of the innings was the success of the ’Varsity colt, A. M. Hollings, who fully justified his place in the representative team by capturing three wickets for. 19 runs off 80 deliveries. He kept a fine length, and flighted and spun the ball well. So difficult was his bowling that the Country batsmen could not get two runs an over from him. Brice' .took three for 34 off 64 balls, and did wisely to bowl much slower than usual. Most fast-medium bowlers .make the mistake of bowling too fast, which does not give th e finger-spin a chance to work. The Town captain tricked the Colt Stephenson by whipping in a faster one, which left the batsman standing. It is this subtle change of pace which gets-wickets. Badcock bowled very steadily in capturing two wickets off 26 overs.. He did good service in getting,.id of two such redoubtable batsmen as Worker and Lowrv

Beard, who was leaking a first appearance in representative- cricket, did not meet with success, lis thirteen overs costing 43 runs.' However, he did as- well as Henderson, who failed to get a wicket after sending down 87 deliveries, off which 35 tuns were scored. McGirr had to .be content with one l.b w. decision off seventeen overs, which, cost 34 runs. Wellington will have to dig up another bowler or two if the Otago score is to be kept down to reasonable proportions.

Physical Fitness, One important lesson the Town v. (Country match taught, and that is that all players before being chosen for the tour to England must be compelled to undergo a thorough medical test for physical fitness. Before two days’ play bad elapsed f wo members of the Country team had to leave the field. Kingston, the Taranaki wicketkeeper, when called upon to field, found the unaccustomed -work of chasing the leather, bending down suddenly, and throwing in from the deep field too much for him. His back, which was injured in a motor smash some four years ago, gave way cn him, and he could take no further part in tne match. This was bad luck for Kingston and for the Country side, as it robbed them of a good batsman. His breakdown, however, only goes to'show that cricketers must be physically fit to stand the severe strain of fielding It was a surprise to" evcrySyk- when Dempster, who had been calling up applause by his brilliant -work in the country, and at third man, was compelled to leave 'the field: In his case, he was a victim to excess of zeal. Dempster is so keen to return the leather that he ’ frequently throws when in an impossible "position, thereby unduly straining muscles and sinews. A player in the deep field should never throw until he • has placed himself in position, and ‘get the driving force for the throw-in from the left' foot; firmly planted on the ground. Dempster threw from all sorts of acrobatic positions, and it was little wonder that he strained the muscles of his right ■ arm -and- had to retire.- It would, be a good, .thing. if captains were to give their teams some advice on fielding before they take the field. Dempster put himself out of action through lack of knowledge that the human frame, will rebel if wrongly used. Moreover, a player by throwing in a wrong attitude may do damage to himself which will have lasting effects.' If players cannot last one day of fielding, how will our players fare in England when called upon to play continuously for several months? The Otago Team.

I am indebted to a valued Dunedin correspondent, an experienced judge of the game, for the following review of the Otago team, which is to appear 1 here on Christmas Day ami following days against Wellington for the Plunket Shield:—“Our team is. on present season form, not particularly strong, but is the best available. The shocking weather experienced ever since the start of the season (with the exception of last Saturday) has given our men no chance to get into form, but it may be that the wicket at the Basin Reserve will bring out the best that is in them. It is unfortunate that McMullan is not available, as he is undoubtedly showing the best form of any bat in Dunedin, with the exception of Blunt. McMullan made up his mind to go holiday-mak-ing this Christmas, .consequently he will not be available for the Auckland match either. S. Duncan is another player who is showing good form, and would have been in the twelve had he been available. "With these two deleted, there was not- much difficulty in choosing the best of the remainder. “Green is Hew to Plunket Shield matches. He comes from Manly (Sydney) and is a good sound wicket-keeper with no frills. Being a member of the Carisbrook eleven, he is used to taking Dickinson’s fast ones. He is no bat.

"Dickinson has not done anything out of the ordinary so far this season, but soft wickets have, of course, not helped him any. Shepherd is not in form. Against Southland and in club games he has been most unimpressive. But in big matches he has a knack of getting better sight.of the ball and making scores. Torrance is bowling as well as ever, though, naturally, after 21 years of representative cricket, he has not the sting of old. He was the only one to trouble Blunt last Saturday when

the latter made 175. Blunt told me afterwards that he was never able to collar Torrance from start to finish.

“Blunt, as you know, is in great nick and has scored two successive centuries. Arthur Alloo has also shown good form with the bat, particularly against Carisbrook a couple of Saturdays ago, when he banged Blunt all over the paddock.

“Blamires’s century against Southland should get his eye in, though he has done little else. He is slow in the field, but useful as a change bowler and skipper. “Zimmerman is the North Otago player who did good work with our touring team last season, being capable of getting his 20’s and 30’s and of relieving .the regular bowlers for a few overs. He is a smart field. “Cecil Alloo is in scoring mood in •South Otago district, and may stick at the wickets and make a moderate score. Cherrv has not shown anything like his old form yet, though he, too, has the knack of coming to light in big company. His century at. Christchurch last season was a fine innings. Galland is going with the team, but it is a toss up whether he plays. He injured his foot two Saturdays ago when taking the catch that disposed of Blunt. Otago hopes to see its live-wire allrounder in the field, for ‘Gal’ is mighty useful as a bat and a bowler, and is a brilliant field and a sound wicketkeeper. In short, the best all-round man—in the broadest sense—in New Zealand. Knight is regarded as the \<ik link. He is twelfth man, and will plav if Galland is unable to do so. He (Knight) has done nothing this year, but has some, fairly good performances to his credit for Otago. “The team should field well, and the bowline', if at all well handled, is not bad. The batting is a doubtful quantity, but, as I have said, a true wicket may bring out latent.ability.”

Good Fish Still in the Sea. We have heard such a great deal about the slow bowlers, Mailey and Grimmett, recently, that the cricketing world has come to regard them as supermen. It is quite clear, however, that there are as good fish in the sea as ever came out of it. South Australia, in the recent match against Victoria, fielded two googly bowlers, the worldrenowned Grimmett, and Williams, a colt. In the severe test afforded by the Victorian strong batting side, the colt beat Grimmett out of sight. Williams secured six wickets for 88 runs, while the Australian eleven man had to be content with two for 110

Comparing the two bowlers, the Adelaide correspondent of the “Sporting Globe” lias the following to say:— “Williams finished with the excellent analysis of 20 overs, one maiden, 88 runs', and six wickets. The crowd had an excellent opportunity of observing the methods of the two slow men, Grimmett and Williams The latter adopts the more usual swing of tlie arm, while the international has that peculiar round arm delivery. Williams deceives with the flight of his boAvling and with the clever use of the googly. He bowls more of them than does Grimmett, and the batsmen are always wondering when it is coining, as he conceals it well. It was in that way that he got Hendry. Grimmett has a worrying length, but he bowled' more loose stuff on Friday than he has in a big match for some time." It is to be hoped that Williams will accompany the team on the New Zealand tour, and give our men some much-needed practice in playing a real ly good spin bowler. The Minor Associations.

The round-tlie-table. conference which the Wellington Association arranged with the Country players at the Grand Hotel resulted in some extremely helpful suggestions being put' forward for the good of ‘the game in the country districts.

The suggestion made by T. C. Lowry that the minor associations in the Wellington province should be permitted to enter a team l in the Plunket Shield competition, was a most valuable one. Napier, Wanganui, New Plymouth, Palmerston North, Hastings, and Mas* terton are more than villages.. They are good-sized towns, approaching the citv stage, and it stands to reason that there must be many good cricketers in such a large area as the Wellington hinterland comprises. As Mr. Lowry stated, if the Wellington minor associations were permitted to enter a team for the Plunket Shield, it would give country players something to play for, and greatly stimulate public interest in the game.

The Wellington Cricket Association endorsed the proposal, and will forward the request on to the New Zealand Cricket Council. It is not so verv long ago that Hawke’s Bay was a Plunket Shield province. Since that day the populations of the leading towns in the Wellington province have largely increased, ’ and to-day they could marshal a team that would give Wellington, Auckland, Canterbury, and Otago a good match. The New Zealand Cricket Council would be doing a great deal to advance cricket in the Dominion if they; granted the reasonable petition The Plunket Shield.

The team which Mr K. H. Tucker, sole selector, has chosen to represent Wellington against Otago in the first match for the Plunket shield, which is to commence at the Basin Reserve on Saturday next, is a powerful, batting combination, but it leaves a good deal to be desired in the bowling and fielding departments. The surprise of the team is the retention of Henderson as a bowler. Though solely selected for his bowling qualifications, -Henderson failed to get a wicket against the Country’ team on Saturday, and the best he could do in the club match the week before was one for 59. Bernau, of Wanganui, who is also a, left-hander, would have been a much wiser choice, as the Wanganui man is apt in his first few overs to skittle the sticks of the best of batsmen. He proved this ■when he clean bowled J. S. Hiddleston in the second innings of the Town v. Country-match on Saturday. Two years back Bernau did the hat-trick in the Town v. ■ Country match at the BaSiu Reserve, clean bowling Hiddleston, Kortlang, and. White with successive balls on a plumb wicket. The Wanganui man is also an incomparably better batsman than Henderson. He scored a centurv for .Wellington against Auckland in a Plunket Shield maten at the Basin Reserve about three seasons ago, and also reached three figures twice in Hawke Cup matches within tire past two seasons. He represented New Zealand against the M.C.C. team in 1923, scoring' 2 and 34 in the second test at Christchurch and 61 and 3 in the third test at Wellington, besides taking four wickets for 99 at Christchurch, and three for 68 at Wellington in these test matches. Wliv Henderson lias been preferred to Bernau is a complete mystery, which only Mr. Tucker can explain. Worker is also lucky in getting a place in the Wellington team, as he is a batsman pure and simple-, and is bv no means an active fieldsman. 'in the match between Wellington and Otago for the Plunket Shield, at Dunedin, in January last, Otago quite outplayed the local eleven, who could only score 270 and 150 against the bowling of Dickinson (seven for 90 and four for 55), while Otago made 239 and 182 for five wickets. If the weather at the week-end should prove fine Otago, if they win the toss, should run up a solid total, as the Wellington bowling is by no means impressive. Rollings; Brice, and Badcock are the only spin bowlers on the side, and, with the exception of Rollings, none of them can do much unless they are assisted by the

wicket. Wellington cannot expect to go on winning the toss, as they have done every time for the past few seasons in Plunket Shield games. The greatest weakness of the local side will be in the fielding department, as, with flic exception of Rollings, Dempster, Badcock, and Lambert, the eleven are slow-moving, and fast-footed positions cannot be found for Brice, Hiddleston, Kortlang, McGirr, and Worker. If James is called upon to take the gloves it will remain to see how Lowry will shape in the field. The side could do with a slow leg-break bowlesfc of the class of Mitchell, who did so well in the first innings for the Country against the Town on Friday. The Wellington selector does not favour slow leg-break bowlers, but he may be praying for one if Otago wins the toss on Christmas Day, and Shepherd, Blunt, Hlainires, and Galiand --et going on a good wicket. “Burwood” is not greatly impressed with the all-round strength of the Wellington team for the first Plunket Shield match There is too much batting strength, and far too little bowling and fielding ability