THE BLAKELY FAMILY

Evening Star, Issue 23486, 29 January 1940, Page 9

THE BLAKELY FAMILY

AND OTHER MANIOTOTO CRICKETERS GOOD MATERIAL IH THE CENTRAL [By Wallaby.] Down in Patoaroa lives the Blakely family. It is one of those families who are regarded as helping to constitute the backbone of the country, for its members are either runholders or farmers. But there is another field in which it has become conspicuous, and that is the cricket field. Followers of the game will have noted in the Maniototo county team and the Patearoa team the names of Harold,. John, James, and Eric Blakely, and against those names invariably appear substantial scores or striking bowling figures, or both. And when the Maniototo team met an Oago eleven in Dunedin last week three of the Blakely boys played a prominent part in the good showing made by the visiting country side. Harold is the eldest brother and the selector of the Maniototo eleven. He did not select himself on this occasion, but down home he is the side’s wicketkeeper and an opening left-hand bat. John Blakely, an ex-Waitaki High School boy, is now 24 years of age. On two occasions he has made over 1,000 runs in a season, and in the present season has already compiled a century score. He is a left hander and Kits hard, while watching the ball carefully. His chief scoring strokes are cover drives and leg-side shots, and his form at Carishrook last week, when he made 21 and 24, was distinctly sound. He is also a steady, orthodox, left-hand bowler. Eric Blakely is 19 years of age, and against the mixed Otago eleven he impressed the critics very favourably. He also is a left-hander and is strong on the oft’-side. Some of his cover drives last Tuesday and Wednesday wore clipping shots, and his confidence and control stamped him as a real batsman. His contribution was 44 and 10, the highest aggregate scorer for Maniototo. Down home he has made over 400 runs since November. Eric is also a slow right-hand bowler who can use the “wrong ’un,” and an excellent slip-field who has not been known to drop a catch for a very long time. He is, hy the way, a medical student at the Otago University. Then there is Jim Blakely, aged 1 <. who w r as also at Waitaki m 1933, Ho is a right-hander, and uses a straight bat, wit.lv driving his main source or runs. Ho did not get going against the Otngo boys, but he has a centurv to his credit this season. Jim also howls a bit. right hand, medium pace, and is quick off the pitch. He is a speedy out-field with a fast throw-in-But there are other good men in tho Maniototo team. Take the skipper, Ur W. A. Priest (or Alec Priest as we remember him), who, after being at the Otago Boys’ High School, .played for Carishrook and University, winning a place in Otago’s Plunket Shield team in 1932-3 S. Ho also captained Taranaki against Holmes s English team in 1935-36. making 2 and 15. After being out of the game for a. couple of years and being appointed to tho Waipiata Sanatorium. Dr J nest turned out to help Maniototo and has been a consistent scorer. James C. Kearney, who has represented Otago at Rugby as a nippy fiveeighth, is a useful cricketer too. Ho bowls left hand, keeps an excellent, length, and makes, pace from tiu> pitch. Last week he took three or tho four Otago eleven wickets that fell in the second innings for 45 runs. He is a fair bat, being strong on the leg side, and an excellent field, especially in the covers. . ' John' Mulholland, who dismissed two batsmen for no runs in the very first over of the recent match, is a righthand, fast-medium-pace howler who swings the new ball well. He, like all the Maniototo team, is a good field, and as a batsman he bits hard, but is inclined to bo fast-footed. Jehu Hanrahan, left-hand bat. gets a lot of runs by on-side shots. He is also a capable wicketkeeper. Albert Murray lived in Dunedin some time ago and played for Old Boys and also for Albion; but he lias improved his cricket form considerably since going to Maniototo, for which team ho usually keeps wickets. A steady opening bat. W. Becker, over 6ft high and a strong-running Rugby wing threequarter, was one of the successlul bowlers in the Carishrook match. He bowls medium pace and a good length. Also a sure field. Jim Lynch, who was unable to accompany tho team to Dunedin, has been a great help down home. He is an astute judge of the game and a good all-round performer. R. Maskol (an ex-University sprinter, hy the way) and W. M'Atntnnoy arc also useful performers, though

they did not reproduce their home form here last week. These Maniototo players rarely have an opportunity of playing on turf wickets, their matches within the county being played on concrete covered with matting, so that the form displayed by so many of them at Carisbrook "was a very commendable feature of the match.