CRICKET

Evening Post, Volume CXI, Issue 19, 23 January 1926, Page 18

CRICKET

V- •» 'not our.1

:t SENIOR HONOURS PREMIERSHIP ROUND ttN UNSATISFACTORY POSITION. CHAMPIONSHIP TABLE.

: la accordance with the decision of delegates at the last annual meeting Of the Wellington Cricket Association, the Management Committee han decided to play a final round for tho championship, and to confine it to the four leading teams at the end-'of the fifth series of matches (completed last SatVjorday). This action, of course, will not /Strive the other six teams of their j^erickfit each Saturday afternoon, as ijtKey will play one another during the (,W(rreney of the premiership competiIjtijpn. As matters have turned out this Beaaon, the instruction from the an(nual meeting does not appeal to any I extent. Keen play will be witnessed'in ! fik* matches for the premiership, but jS»tj»erwise interest will be wanting. '-'{The lack of interest may be even [ more noticeable later on when the pre'■dership competition ' is completed, 3 vpjrobably on a date much earlier than jjtjiat when the. season should end. The f Jtattei plan, it seems, would have been [to go on with the senior competition ■'in the usual way. This was recomJiimded by.the Senior Championship * \^?<Hnmi±teai' tat, for once, the advice jjfcS this advjaorx&rio has not been ac-jj-jjpted. When the matter'was discussing by delegates at the annual meeting very little attention was paid to r~tko question* of. playing a final round jjiitween the "four leading teams. All ithat seemed to matter was the projj&otion of the Kilbirnie and the Unif^rwrsity Clubs. An assurance was given '-iiat the clubs would be promoted and f&fcat served to satisfy the delegates. '.Had the position of the senior com(rtetition, as existing after last SaturW»y }s results, been foreseen, it is pos'mble that the motion before the meetJSig may have been amended. The sys[ssn proposed and carried out, as the 1 writer pointed out, would give some , teams an advantage over others, and ,'jkkis ia just what has happened. Wel'iington have gained a place ia the final floor-- without having to meet &nt orl'MMJatti.. Midland are in the 3Jtttt or Midland. Midland are in the ■jnr YJM.C.A. The other two team* in Ijre final four (tfutt and V.M.C.A.) "Hve each met two of the three teams will contest the premiership. In-JSttte-ha-vebeen "knocked out" by reason of harder matches than some of the other teams; they have played three of the four finalists. It is also worthy of note tha# V.M.C.A. have had two losses, and while they are in the final four (on averages), Institute and Old Boys with only one loss each have been excluded. Midland have also had two losses. The^whole position leaves much to be desired* - Local Items. ,;.; , Interest was not lacking in • the match between Midland and University at Kelburn Park, and, although Midland secured a rather easy win by gewen wickets, the students were responsible for some bright individual performances. A. M. Hollings impressed everybody with his fine batting in bo&Tihriihgs, and he also did well with ;flfc3aLL Hollings is one of the beSt>Ul-*pttad.erß. **■ Wellington at thjriresent time, and is a tower of -strength to the University eleven. (Jreig is another good batsman, and'i'n-Saturday he helped Hollings. to fut.'-on, over a hundred runs for the fiattl»*«ket. , . -.. J. Hatfiftrogs gave further proof e£ his capabilities aa a- batsman at Kslburn last Saturday, when he registezed 12£i«ns in quick time. Hutching was i&gbod' form, and pasted the leadwr all round the park, JHutehings las the following centuries to his credit in senior cricket: 122 (1905-6), H9 (1905-6), 148 not out v. Varsity (191546), 131 not out v. Thorndon '(192X-2S), 138 not out v. Old Boys (1923-83), 10S not out v. Institute ?(1923-2S), U7 not out v. Hntt (1983----,94), 109 v. Petone (1923-24), 123 t. i a Univeißty (1925-26). The Kilbirnie Beserve was a very popular rendezvous last Saturday. It m there that the Kflbirnie v. Thornden match was played. The cricket was good on both sides, and the home teacp juflt managed to secure the verdict- a'win that win do a lot of good to cricket in the district. It appears that senior cricket at Kilbirnie is a Bet thing for the future. The wicket (is one of the best. The games at the Basin Beserve Wso provided much interest; ia fact, there was much in them to arouss enthusiasm. ■ Wellington and Y.M.-O-A. had a keen tussle, in which the bowlers came off better than the batsmen. In the final stages, when 'oX^JLCA-'s prospects of a four-pom-;ier were poor, there was little of t (the "rock," and in consequence Wellington, were able to gain an extra ! «hamp»aship point shortly before the ! <jcall of time. ! In the Old Boys-Wellington match, <3L Lambert, having his first strike in Jdcal cbab cricket for* a few seasons, BMkde a brilliant double-centnry. He 1 Mozeid all round the wicket in groat .*&&, and never gave a chance until Jhe mifl*ii<; a ball when his total was ',209. This chance was accepted. If *;■»«. one, of the best batting efforts iever seen in Wellington. Before- going to Tntaaakl, Lambort made'quite ' m. anmber of good scores for Old Boys An local cricket. Among these weretea following: 100 v. Marist and 99 #„ Hutt ;jn, 1918-19, 103 v. Bast and 93 y. North in. 1919-20, 96 v. Fetone .ia 1920-21, and 124 v. V.M.C.A., 100 v. Thorndon, and 97 v. Wellington in 1921-22. Tho Wellington selector, K. IT. Tucker, has scored the greatest number of centuries in local club cricket, his total being 19. W. A. Baker is next' with 11, • and F. Midlane third with 11. J. 8. Hiddleston and J. Hatchings follow with 9 each. Alf. Duncan assisted. Lambert on Saturday in establishing a record partnership for the fourth wicket in local ciub cricket. The Old Boys' carpfc»in--^*'as not as aggressive as usnalj probably.,' being., con tent to hold hM .Nrkliet .upland have the match Ttr9W&. Old Boys were without some •Cg.thcriz )m§h*z ba^utep. A icy

more runs, however, would have given Old Boys a place among the teams to contest the premiership, as their net average would have been improved sufficiently to place them ahead of V.M.C.A. and Institute

Both Old Boys ancl Institute may bo regarded as extremely unfortunate in not having the opportunity of bidding further for championship honours.

L. Beard (Hutt) has come into the limelight once again as a bowler of class. Last Saturday he made short work of Petone, bagging seven wickets at the remarkably small cost of 13 runs. It was a great performance. Senior Averages. Performances in the last series of senior matches have accounted for changes of positions in the list of averages, although J. S. Hiddleston and H. M. M'Girr are still on top in the batting and bowling departments respectively. M'Girr's bowling figures are exceptional— -37 wickets for 299 runs, average 8.08. Next on the bowling list are L. Beard and H. Watson, also of Hutt. The fact that these three players have each taken over twenty wickets at an average of under 10 runs per wicket illustrates the strength of the Hutt Club so far as bowling is concerned;

The notable advance on the batting [list ia that made by C. S. JJempster, [who now occupies third place. H. E. White has made a - considerable step upward on the bowling list. The batting list comprises players who have averaged 20 or more runs in at least four innings, and the bowling list comprises players who have taken ten or more wickets. The averages are as follow:—

•Not out. Among others who have batted are: H. M. Lambert (P. 8.), 209; B. J. Kortlane (T.), 31 and 9; W. Warne (T.), 34 and 18; E. Chrlstopherson, 0 and 106; M. Henderson (T.M.), average 19.83; H. R. White (Y.M.), average 19.75. ■,

117 nUIl ] I?" rC- Collins (0-B'»- 9 *<* v ™)i i. H \. AjMr (X)' 8 for 22» (28.50)J- Chrlstopheraon (K.), s (or 151 16 77 : Auckland v. Wellington. t>^\ £? tonsh battlM in tJ»e Plnnket Shield contest, Auckland is now looking to its match with Wellington, to be played in Wellington on the 19th, 20th, and 22nd February --not at the end of this month; as stated in Auckland. Discussing the prospects of the Auckland-Welling-ton match, the Auckland "Herald" States:—lt is doubtful if all the three Aucklanders who are at present in Australia with the New Zealand team will be able to make the trip, but it is hoped that one or two of them will be able to play. Eountree and Mills are possible absentees from the Auckland side. It is in this match the real weakness of Auckland in bowling will be revealed. Wellington are the strongest batting side in the Dominion, and every care has been lavished on the wicket at the Basin Beserve to make it aa perfect as possible. Wellington are straining every effort to avenge themselves of the defeat inflicted on them last year. It is now far too late to make any experiments with new bowlers who have not yet made their debut in representative, cricket. In such an important match they would probably prove useless. It is perhaps more important that the present bowling strength, such as it is, should not be tampered with. Player, of course, is a certain selection, and Snedden, too, should prove a useful bowler if well handled. Simpson's performances so far, have been quite satisfactory, and as it is essential that the team should have a fast bowler he should certainly be chosen. He is far ahead of any other contestant for his place, but will hardly be worth a game if his fielding does not improve considerably.

The Wellington team to oppose Auckland is exceptionally strong, and is perhaps one of the best, all-round combinations ever fielded in a Plunket Shield match. Bowling, of course, is its weakness, but even then Wellington are stronger than any other province in. this respect. " Badcock, Brice, and M'Girr are all forces to be reckoned with, while they ■will be assisted by Hiddleston, Henderson, and Collins, all men who at one time or another hare performed well with the ball in inter-provincial matches. Wellington, followers are confident that their team will win the shield thin year, and it, seems at present as if Auckland will be very lucky to escape defeat

- „ Outright iafct W °' yeiitnaton 1 Midland 2 T3LC.A 1 Old Boys 0 Uctitute ...... 0 Pttone 1 TJiiversity ...... 1 KJlbirnie 0 Xborodon 0 11st In. »ln. 3 1 3 3 « 0 1 0 L. 0 1 2 2 1 1 4 4 4 6 D. 0 0 0 0 1 . 1 0 0 0 0 Ch. Its 18 33 11 " 10 10 10 i 4 3 0

. „ _ x.n.v.n.a. ans. at. J. S- Hlddleston (W.) 6 0 162 342 57.00 J. E. Banks (I.) .. 7 0 260 397 56.71 C. S. Dempster (I.) 7 0 181 375 53.57 R. H. C. Mackenzie (V.) 9 3 107 300 50.00 A. Duncan (O.B.) .51 85» 199 49.75 W. A. Biker (M.) ..6 2 97 184 46.00 H. Foley (I,) 6 1 87 214 42.80 R. A.Weitbropi (f.M.) 9 2 88 284 40 57 D. C. Collins (O.B.) 4 0 88 161 40.25 H. M. M'Girr (H.) . 5 0 60 190 38.00 C. G. Wilson (W.) .. 6 0 '88 228 38.00 E. M. PWUips (T.) ..81 119* 249 35.57 K. H. Tucker , (O.B.) 5 1 46 138 34.75 A. M. Holllngs (V.)" 8 0 55 277 34.62 A. Bonaldson (O.B.) 6 1 51 170 34.00 E. M'Leod (H.) ... 4 0 50 134 33.50 D. Patrick (M.) ... 7 0 102 225 32.14 E. T. Leys (V.) ..8 0 73 251 31.37 C. Armstrong (K.) ..8 2 51 184 30.66 M. A. Dind (H.) ..6 0 64 181 30.16 J. A. Bruce (M.) ..7 0 90 208 29.71 H. Murphy (Y.M.) ..7 1 83 173 28.83 F. T. Badoock (W.) 4 t 71 114 28.50 M. BUby (L) .... 7 4 91 195 27.85 L. Poley (T.) 6 2 56 194 26.00 H, J. Tattersall (H.) 5 0 67 132 26.40 H. Watson (H.) ... 5 0 64 130 26.00 W. Christopherson (K.) 9 0 58 229 25.44 1. M. Fitzmaurico (O.B.) 6 1 72 127 25.40 J. S. B. Bruges (W.) 6 1 45* 126 25.20 H. Nunn (H.) 5 1 78 103 25.75 J. Hutchlngs (M.) .. 6 0 123 149 24.83 W. J. Wagstaffe (W.) 6 0 64 149 24.83 W. S. Brice (P.) ..8 1 33 171 24.43 A. Morris (K.) ... 9 0 55 218 24.22 H. E, Nicholls (P.) ..7 0 55 161 23.00 A. Clcrerley (M.), -.5 2 36* 68 22.66 A. E. Doneghue (M.) 6 0 80 132 22.00 T. B. Nelson (I.) .. 5 1 24 ■ 88 22.00 O. Bell (I.) 6 0 79 131 21.83 W. S. Barclay (O.B.) 7 1 38 128 21.33 J. W. Hatchings (M.) 7 2 48 103 20.60 S. C. Eaton (K.) ..92 45» 143 20.43 G. LanK <X.) 9 1 37 161 20.12 W. G. Hughes (H.) ..40 46 80 20.00 J. W. Condliffe (Y.M.) 7 3 32* ■#» 20.00 W. A. Aldenley (H.) 5 1 28 80 20.00

".'"■ ' ■ BATTING.

Buns. H. M. M'Glir (H.) 299 L. Beard (H.) 234 H. Watson (H.) ...... 209 E. D. Haughey (T.M.) „ 109 H. K. White (T.JI.) ... 358 H. B. Massey (I.) 340 J. D. Mackay (B.) .... 203 J. Hutchtags (M.) 237 W. S. Brice (P.) 498 A. M. Wilson (B.) 205 A. Grant (Y.M.) 213 C. Armstrong (K.) 172 K. H. Tucker (O.B.) .. 195 M. Henderson (T.M.) .. 232 D. Blundell (O.B.) .... 250 B. M. Phillips (T.) .... 210 D. Patrick (M.) 303 W. Chrlstopherson (K.) . 217 A. M. Boilings (B.) 527 ?' R-'Cra'S (W.) 431 A. J Hyder (T.) ;. 400 A. Flnl»yson (P.) 313 G. H. Lusk (O.B.) 318 V. T. Badcock (W.) ...i. 46(i E. Judd (MO ......' 248 J. S. Hiddleston (W.) ... 299 J. A. Malcolm (I.) 3g 9 Wkta. Are. 37 8.88 24 9.93 21 9.95 10 10.90 27 13.18 25 13.60 15 13.53 17 15.94 33 15.09 13 15.76 13 16.31 10 . 17.20 11 17.72 lit ,17.84 14 11.85 11 19.09 17 20.76 10 21.70 24,-. 21.95 20 22.55 17 23.53 15 24.23 13 24.46 19 24.52 10 24.80 11 27.18 11 35.36

BOWLING.