CRICKET BY "NOT OU" ALL TOO BRIEF

Evening Post, Volume CXV, Issue 71, 25 March 1933, Page 8

CRICKET BY "NOT OU" ALL TOO BRIEF

M.C;C. TEAM'S "VISIT

DAY'S PLAY IN REVIEW

.Wellington's- opportunity of seeing in action i;he fine combination., which, andertheJcaptaincy:of D. "B. Jardine,' ■WTCsted. the "Ashes" from. Australia in ttuj recent Test series has come ■; and, gone, and probably the only ieal disappointmeriT; Jfor." the iiany local followers 'of the game'lies" in the fact that' the team's was so brief; '"• It was indeed unfprtunato thatj after Wel3ington<had been allocated, only a twoday match, one whole day should have been, lost 'through' bad;'weather.- s Thesuccessv.of.,W.ednesday2from.,;a cricketing standpoint made the disappointment- iijt Tuesday's '' washout all the ieener.' '. . ..-.- ■ ;; •■•■■...,-.■.- - xi-'-^y':

.It probably came as a surprise to . many that the Englishmen did pot ex- ■: hibit greater superiority on the day's * play, which, if anything, ended in 7Wel-; ; lington's favour. In explanation of this ; fact*., however, there wer& many factors:' t<>} be taken into account. "Jar-, dine and; his men. had just completea a most Exacting tour in which they had beenrkept.at a high state of tension,and ltlwas- only, natural that there should he some sort of reaction from the.strain.. Further,, the team had arrived from Australia only on the Monday when they.had a very busy day, and wa"b to leave on Wednesday night for Christchurch to have only a day's' spell before starting the first Tes£ The Wellington .match could not -demand the same seriousness. from the tourists, as the Test matches, and, particularly when it was" restricted to- one day,; was Snore id the fnatu-r©" of ah" exhibition. " The ,Uiexj>e.cted..^^ Again,.,,;. ,„ ,„.,,;. , . When* Eaynttir^nd'-Sutcliffe. nyalked out to ; open-'tKo'i visitors '..innings on an, easy wicket tfie crowd, which was well on' the-.way vtq-^record-brealuhg dimensions before . the .starting time, was prepared to settle down to an uninterrupted batting display. But the unexpected, which is one of cricket's greatest charms, once again '■ occurred, and Sntcliffe was on his way back to the pavilion before Parsloe- had completed his first over. " '.. Parsloe, s who is often a really-hostile bowler 'during'- his' first"few b.yersy had good Teason torVfeel pleased';with his success against the man who is probably the most difficult batsman in the world to dislodge, but the spectators surveyed Snteliffe'sdepaftinglform,'. with mixed feelings. In a three-day matchj' with! the probability of another'innings, there ...would. ..have, been .ample cause for jubilation, but under the circumstances'".* ■'j-v'-y ■- ?■ '-■""••• •- ■■••—>•..-•-■■ Paynter'a Good Form." -■ • : Where Sutcliffe had failed,, however, Paynter was seen at his Wst and he monopolised ;'; thet ;,.;early- scoring. . Although he> occasionally placed the ball to the off, he showed a strong partiality for the leg^side,: where'he gave the fieldsmen plenl^y'i,to. do..' Thej.mori weie weU plac«d,'however, i andi1 al-. though gaps near the Tyicket were ex-* plotted for short runs,-<it was, no easy matter to get fife* baU'through !/to'the fence. Travelling very;...fast, Lamaspn*. covered; a wide area in 'the vicinity of square-Teg, and^ cut' off irinuhiefable boundaries .in that: quarter.,, Morgan, fielding: -at short had.Cs,e'y-. ■eral strokes ' placed." gust1 r^yqn^::his reach, and-had io tura -and chase .theball either to, or nearly tp the .bouiE-v dary v ' '-'I/.'.sJ| ; i r : -y-' '. ;•■ -:; .:. ;>: .-:: '~ Had" Hammond "fceen sound o£_limb ifiiid' done his own running between the wicketg, he migKt have warmea to his ivork more quickly, but as it was he ierer leally appeared to- get f into -his Stride. He was not troubled by: the bowling, and scored with■:'. completely confident strokes," but was; seldom actually aggressive. He had already giy«ii a' hot chance to Blundell at mid-off "before- he leturned-a high catfch to-Freemanj -who possesses - a terjr safe pair of hands. Thia Oaptain'B^^timg; %&[ .{;'; ,', '% ■ vsuccess with'the'lte* on the; present tour has scarcely come up to rexpeptations,' despite "one Or two goaji innings, presented little trouble to ,the bowlers, but Jardihe, although nofr.producing a big score, revealed himself as a master batsman.. Ev.ery, Vail was* met with complete** assurance, and was, either patted back softly or smacked hard along ythe grouna. ,» In stepping out! to drive rßluridell ,h"e: fell to a particularly brilliant piece ;of stumping by^Tindillj-who" proved a'worthy substitute to- James behina sth© wickets. Wellington's rrielliiing.""-..-.,:-. ; The Weilington'ftttacfevmusfr b©; held have; covered"*j-tsplf, with, credit,, for there was nothing'to 'suggest:'that 'the English -batsmen at "any stage> gdt itheinselves out. Freeman, the young Nelson', slow- bowler, performed signal service by catching both Paynter and Hammond off his own. bowling, in addition to claiming Ames's wicket;- With peculiar style, and a con-, ■^rolof length which could be improved upon, Freeman was always treated with 4 fair amount of -respect. Whether he ■wilt, develop into another Merritt Tem^ihs to 'be "seen, and some critics claim thatjthere-are better slow,bowl-ers-on this; siae t 6f;^he Strait, tut he hasy certainly •.whenever he has been, 'given the chance. '•Parsloe's succesa^was confined to his first over, and "Newman also" claimed only one wicket, but both bowled steadilyif Blundell was used the most of tlie;team's four bowlers, and James's persistence with him iwas;justified. He ■wag tried at both ends, but took each of ffiis three wickets from the southern ena, AlthougE Ee^Haa iio -wind -to him he swerved the; ball appreciably,, and also- -varied his pace-with-effect. iln .fielding;" 'Wellington "showed up" very favourably-"in comparison.' "with th^,visitors, and,-in:regard to quickness in changing over between.-overs; or when a, left ana a right-hander were together, the local men were : greatl^ enperior.. : - A Solid Pair. " ' """' "" " ' * ' Dempster and Foley have figured in fcoine prolific partnerships in the past, andi Foley's reappearance as the coach' 3 opening . partner was overdue so : far as this season is concerned. The! pair played the English bowling" with confidence from the start,..andcame very near to putting on a century for, the first wicket after-scoring at-a rate: which was practically the same as thai set. by Paynter and Hammond: Although frequently unsuccessful in" his efforts to swing Mitchell to leg, Demp-ster-brought most of his scoring shots into.play with precision and repeatedly, won: applause from the crowd. .Foley was "the Foley of oia, presenting a stubborn defence to allthc bowling _• and scoring only when suitable opportunities presented themselves. -He' was»presented with 12 runs as the result;of overthrows. ■ Both O'Brien and. Tindill shaped wellj although the former did not inspire confidence early in his ifthings. Towards the finish he opened out and senti Verity to the boundary four times in one over. ■ ";Bumper"-Bowes. - ' '•■.•••! . ' : Although the bowlers used Jardine were"; mainly/liis: second string' thsy~were_;.scarce]y. as,: impressive ■as might hase.heJei expected^ .. .'Bowes-jdid *«t Tort uj) ft gre*t deal of pace—it is I

said that throughout the tour he has not! bowled as fast as Ho" did ••in England last season—and, despite one or two bumpers, waa played with littlo difficulty.- j. His-leisurely;,walk, back to start"his run "to' the wicket1- beeamo somewhat tedious after a while.

The principal merit in Tato 's bowl-ing-was his steady, length, which compelled tho" batsmen Ho play him carefully ...alL.tho. way. .'..An occasional ball came very quickly■■.off the pitch, but otherwise he presented little trouble1.

Foley made one or tivo uncertain strokes in Mitchell's first over, but the spin ...bowlers did not appear very troublesome. ; . Well Received. Whatever their experience in the Test matches, Jardirie and his men have no reason, to . be' other- than pleased with the treatment they received from the Wellington public.. The appearance of the captain or. of other well-known members^ of the combination was generally the signal for- an -ovation,, and the team was given a great hearing.on taking the field. There, was nothing in the nature of barracking, although had two New Zealand teams been, engaged some . might: have been expected "at times. The Official Programme. ' ." ' Generally speaking the arrangements in: connection- with the game were excellent and^ the' members of the local ■Management Committee, who acted as a ;sub-committee,,fpr the New Zealand Council, had every reason to feel pleased with themselves. A subject fOft.criticism, however, was to be found in! the official programme (prepared in Christeh'urch), which contained a number, of errors. For"instance,, the names of-the- council's ;, office-bearers were those of .lagt.;year,. instead o£-this year. James was-credited with'having first come under notice as a wicketkeeper at -Wellesley CollegeV whereas he never attended7 that school and did not take up wickotkeeping until after' his college days."'Freeman's" age" was given as 17 instead of 39; Umpires jVisit Hutt.: , ' -With theobjecfr of meeting the Hutt umpires,, the usual weekly meeting of ,W, .Wellington Umpires' .Association was held at LowerHutt last week, ana was well attended by .both- city, "and : rtutt galley members. The -'Hiitt members provided'supper, after-whichSMr. R. 'W/ Toomath. gave' an address on the. laws: of the game; The: next meeting of -the association will be the last for the season, and;a full attendance of members is.desired.- The president, Mr. C. C. Wilson^ wilLbe in the chair and 'Mr. D. McKenzie- twlTgave an address., , . .«:.-' Npies\ on Local lil^tchesV, ;.* Fortunate in' "being able to bat first, thereby .having the .use of Dempster's valuable services .- on-, a ■. run-getting wicket, Petone- seized the' advantage which came their way with both, hands, and; at the end of the afternoon's play. at. the Basin Eeserve, Hutt were left with a big obstacle .to-surmount. . Pebone again owed-much to their two importations" for the season, Dempster - and • Allcott," who produced"' over M 9. runs, hqtweeg ..theni In- addition to producing^ so many 'runs, • their batting bore the-;.hailmark-'ofclas"s;" and made the Hutt bowling appear almost second £rate^ The Hutt bowling .compares,^very favourably with that -of other-clnb teams,'and this-was the'-first time/this..season,it had?had 400 runs Jut off ,it;.and.only the second time, 300 had; been ..passed;:!--, >'" ■Vf.vi ■ "■'. !r y --• - hav^'.producecf several -.promising :.:batsmeh •''"in-/, recent seasons, they have generally:been under the handicap.of having W face bowlers w, llo-ha} re;^t tad the stiSg taken,out of theirz-aeliveriesi'^Thfe":success:^ of Dempster; ana Allcott hag .allowed thfe later batsmeX to ,play ; with greater-confidence-ana freedom- and should ■+X J?* S -PK.Siitt'a day. I.After losing fi: 6.^?.?!'fe^^et -with two';.easuaitiel' ' *S e-fi?-^ Vh > ah reduce^the"^strength!, of-their attack; •■.; Aim 'injiirea Juf^ ing- hand m stopping; a hot drive, and was unable to. bowl again for 'some time in aaditiori to which McLeod eas «>. but,-came through with credit, and wouia" have haf better figures, haa,-all-the chances- given off A?.?., fowling been accepted; Judd -as usual bowled steadily ilthoush secur! ing only; one wicket, r •■'?-;■.'•■:•, ; The importance" of iaecepting catches was illustrated in the KUbirnie WellingI£ i -birn^ bat™en" did well, the two S^i he sma" score of 183 and two.of th & .four were missed early in &a mnm Zs\ Al«iougpi, !; Wellington Kershaw batted with freedom': for S and thoroughly deserved;his fi VP 4'f rl' lnclude(i in %l k ?lWJh* test knock, of the side. Kershaw was bowled when opening- out•' tovßlunaell. Itdnkhouse and Wilson , batted ..well, .but- b;oth were missed yearly in. their .innings.' r Bilbv compiled a.usefuT'22 ' , " 7 HCoii ? ifi3 did-weU ip. takin^five wickl *" *&?&*??* *0I- WelHngtpn^^our of kJ Vf^i™/ 6 eaueht' and one .was bowled.,* BlundeU bowled well, taking three wickets for 79 runs. After .sornf ¥J»a Vn * ?* St 'wliablp batsmen- had fn?,fc-l?^ Monteath added'so iuns for the sixth wicket and Were unbeaten at stumps. Both treated the bowling I™ r^ ant respect, Ell being particular^ ■ Institute, did surprisingly well to score.3 l3 . against WellinftL College Old Boys on the Hutt Recreation Ground TTheir score was all the more ci editable because it was the result-of good .play by nearly everymember of m^ a % m ' P^three failing-to notch double figures. Top" score was made by Mercantile League. i ifhe ■' exception -of 1 one,.or two matches, most of the gamesvplayed in the Mercantile League ot SatuS-vvere &£ ■P/^.fature^and-a; general"-feel-: £?:t* ™?^ as '^ident on■.^most grtrands. W? Church (Bookefs)"rattied' .o^a.,fi 1 i Q ,veentury, and Kilby found dl* ,i-^?P^slt^ IL:*om- the-bD.wlers of ■the "Milk.osepartm.ent. team," with "whom a c friendly match had, been arranged ~A -Customs "had^ little ;'aiffieulty: Si de-; gating. Health,- and thus winning pride o± place 'for, the season. Customs are undoubtedly a strong side and fully- deservethe hondiir, wKile';Bbqkers are'to be sympathised with in their-very -narrow,, defeat, one point only separating the two teams. ' r 6 Hannahs (the B grade winners) f'haye moulded themselves^ into a. solid allrqund combination in which every man plays his part well ana no particular star" can be singled out for special praise: ■ ~ • •■-; ••■'-.

Macky Logans have annexed the D grade trophy,,and Taxes and Labour were to fight out the C grade final today, this game being the last of the club games played under the league's control. •••;■■

. Thenext two. Saturdays will be taken UP,. with the junior representative niatch, for which -a, strong batting side has been selected: In Meade, 'Brooks, Murphy, Kilby, and ■ Jepp, the associations attack'will be thoroughly.tried out, while it will bo interesting to see how :Allen, '' Bramwell, Webb, and Thompson fare against the more experienced players.

O'Connor will have to carry a big load in regard to bowling, but with the support that Brooks, Jupp, .and Bramwell can give him the attack should be well maintained. The captaincy has been entrusted to d. Murphy, in whom every player has .complete confidence. - .Quite a strong" .team'fiirs'-t'qei'tTijh'osdh" for the C ahd Degrades for: tire match with- the. -relief. -w-orie'us' r -arid'.t.J>is.-alsfli-should produce some bright cricket.