AUSTRALIA’S CHOSEN

Greymouth Evening Star, 10 February 1934, Page 4

AUSTRALIA’S CHOSEN

FACTS ABOUT THE PLAYERS. SYDNEY, February 1. Seven members of the Australian Eleven chosen to tour England are employed on duties in sports stores. Three are school teachers. Bromley, aged 21 and 4 months, is the youngest member of the team. He is two months younger .than Brown. Following are facts about the players: —

W. M. Woodfull: Born August 20, 1897.5ch00l teacher. He will be making his third tour of England, having been a member of the 1926 and 1930 teams. He headed the batting aggregates and averages on his fii st trip. He was captain in 1930, and in the 1932-3 series of tests in Australia. One of the soundest opening batsmen Australia has possessed. Woodfull is a player of grim determination and great powers of concentration. He has made six centuries in test matches against England, having played in 20 matches. He headed' the test averages in the 1928-9 series, with 54.5. He first appeared for Victoria in 1922. A line sportsman, who has earned the respect' of friend and foe.

1). G. Bradman: Born August 27, 1908. Journalist and broadcaster. The greatest batsman of the day, Brad man, who goes in first wicket down, has an amazing list of records to his credit. On his first tour of England, in 1930, he made the highest test individual score (334, at Leeds), the highest aggregate for the series (974 runs), and equalled the performance of Trumper and Macartney by scoring a century before lunch in a test. Among his many records created in Australia is the world’s individual record score of 452 not out, against Queensland. Ho has scored seven centuries in tests against England (an Australian record), having played in 13 matches, his average being 87.52. He is cricket’s outstanding personality of the day, and is certainly the most remarkable run-getter the world has known. Bradman has made 44 centuries in first-class games. He is also a fast and' brilliant fieldsman.

B. A. Barnett: Born March 23, 1908. A clerk. He succeeded J. L. Ellis as the Victorian wicketkeeper, and this season his form has been splendid. Barnett is also a sound left-handed batsman, with good stroke-making ability. He has made more than 1000 runs in inter-State matches. His highest Sheffield Shield score is 94, against Queensland; but he has scored 131 against Tasmani. In the testimonial match at Melbourne last November he batted most attractively.

E. 11. Bromley: Born in Western Australia on September 12, 1912. A sports store salesman. He first came into prominence by playing two fine innings for 48 and 78 against South Africa at Perth in 1931. Last season lie transferred to Victoria, and on his first Sheffield Shield appearance made an attractive 84 against New South Wales at Melbourne.- He played for Australia in the fourth test at Brisbane, scoring 26 and 7. This season Bromley struck a lean patch, but later scored 161 against South Australia at Melbourne, and made 92 and 33 not out in the recent match against New South Wales at Sydney. A sound but forceful left-handed batsman, he is also a brilliant fieldsman and a. promising left-handed bowler.

B'. A. Brown: Born, in Queensland on July 31, 1912. A sports store salesman. This young opening batsman first appeared for the State last season. He went on the southern tour, and later made a splendid stand against England at the Sydney Cricket Ground, scoring 69 when runs were needed. This season he has shown much improvement, his sound defence being capped by brilliant stroke play and his brilliant innings for 205 in the recent match with Victoria ensured his inclusion in the touring team. He may be regarded as the successor to the late Archie Jackson. Brown is a good fieldsman.

A. G* Cliipperfield: Born November 17, 1906. A groundsman and coach. An extremely useful player, Chipperfield was for several seasons a member of the Western Suburbs first-grade team before he went to play with a Newcastle club. Last season he scored 152 for Northern Districts against the English team at Newcastle, and this season he performed well for the State against Queensland, South Australia, and Victoria. A splendid righthanded batsman, and a useful slow bowler, Chipperfield is also a remarkably fine slip fieldsman. This season marked his first appearance in the Sheffield Shield competition.

1. S. Darling: Born August 14,1909. A clerk. An accomplished left-handed batsman, and a useful right-handed change bowler, Darling has been one of Victoria’s outstanding players in the last few seasons. He scored 809 runs in first-class matches last season. and won a place in Australia’s team for the fourth and fifth test tnatches. He made good, his spores being 17, 39 (run out), 85, and 7. He scored 103 for Victoria against England at Melbourne. Darling has the graceful strokes of the class lefthander. He is a good fieldsman.

Ji, I. Ebeling: Born January 1, 1905. A clerk. This, tall right-handed fastmedium bowler has made, a remarkable rise this season. He had played' for Victoria in previous seasons, and did well against England last year.-., but had rarely been available for big games in recent years. He got his big chance in the testimonial match at Melbourne last November, when L. J.' Nash was unavailable, owing to injury. Ebeling bowled most impressively, and has since had considerable success, although he has had many catches dropped from his bowling. He has stamina and determination, and excellent control of length and pace. He swings the ball dangerously either way. Ebeling has proved a useful batsman on occasions.

L. O’B. Fletewooil-Smith: Born March 30, 1910. A sports store salesman. An unorthodox slow left-handed howler. Fleetwood-Smith burst into prominence in the 1931-32 season, when his spin bowling was effective against South Africa and in the intcr-State matched, lie was a member of A. Mailey’s team, which toured Canada and the United States, and took more than 200 wickets. East season he secured 50 wickets in first-class matches. Frequently his length is faulty: but he has his good days. His stock ball is the off-break. He is a poor batsman; but a bright fieldsman.

C. V. Grimmett: Born in New Zealand, December 25, 1892. A sports store salesman. Has played in first-class cricket since 1924. Having been overlooked in Victoria, he went to South

Australia, and' has been of great, value to the State, as a slow spin bowler. In his first test match, at . Sydney, in 1924-25, he captured 11 wickets for 82 runs. In England in 1926 he took 120 wickets, being second to Mailey (141), and on the last tour, in 1930, he proved the mainstay of the bowling, , taking most wickets (144), and heading the averages with 16.84. He was dropped from the test team after playing in three matches in the 1932-33 series. Grimmett is not a reliable batsman, but is a good fieldsman at cover.

A. F. Kippax: Born May 21, 1899. Director of a sports store company. One of the' most graceful batsmen who have represented Australia. Kippax has played in twelve test matches. He scored 100 at Melbourne in 1928-29. He has been a prolific scorer for New South Wales, and has led the State eleven for a number of seasons. He was dropped after playing in the first test last season; but this season appears to have regained his best form. Was considered unlucky to miss selection for the 1926 Australian Eleven, and on the 1930 tour was third to Bradman and Woodfull in the batting list, with 1514 runs at an average of 66.07. With H. Hooker, Kippax holds the world’s record for a last-wicket partnership—3o7, for New South Wales against Victoria, at Melbourne., in 1925-29.

S.J. McCabe.. Born July 6, 1910. A sports store salesman. Regarded as Australia’s . outstanding all-rounder, McCabe’s short career in first-class cricket has been a brilliant one. It was interrupted this season, when he underwent an operation for appendicitis. He is an accomplished batsman, being one of the finest stylists .of the day, a useful medium-paced bowler, and a great fieldsman. He gained a place in the New South Wales eleven in 1929. and went to England in 1930, scoring more than.looo runs for the tour, and playing in all tests. He played throughout the series in Australia last season, and in scoring 187 not out in the first innings of the first test at Sydney played one of the most dashing and exhilarating innings ever seen on the ground.

W. A. Oldfield: Born September 9, 1897. A sports store proprietor. He was a member of the famous A.I.F. team, and will be- making his fourth visit to England as a member of the Australian Eleven. In 1921, he was understudy to H. Carter; but since then he has been Australia s first choice, and has generally been recognised as the finest wicketkeeper in the world. In the third test at Adelaide last season he was struck on the head by a fast ball from Larwood, and was variously hurt; but he played in the fifth test at Sydney, performing splendidly. He has played in 28 tests, has stumped 22 batsmen and caught 41. Against Gilligan’s 1924-5 team he was a valuable batsman; but in subsequent series he has not been dependable with the bat. He is one of the most popular players, both in Australia and in England.

W. J. O’Reilly: Born December 20, 1905. A school teacher. A slowmedium right-handed spin bowler. O’Reilly one of the tallest players in first-class cricket, is Australia’s biggest bowling, “hope.” He came into prominence in the 1931-2 season, when after he had been dropped from a State team, he was chosen to represent Australia against South Afri.ca in the fourth and fifth tests. He played throughout the-series against England last season, and.bore the brunt of the attack. In the tests, he capUired 27 wickets, at an average of 27.25, and took five for 63 and- five for 66 in the second test at Melbourne. For all first-class matches last s,eason he secured most wickets —62, at an average cost of 19.95. He spins the ball either way, and 1 skilfully varies pace and flight. Occasionally shines 1 as a hard-hitting batsman; but was a poor performer in the tests.

W. H. Ponsford: Born October* 10, 1900. A clerk. Like Wodfull, Ponsford will be making his third trip to England. He played in two tests in 1926; but was much more successful on the 1930 tour, averaging 49.13 for all matches. He scored a century in his first test match—llo at Sydney, in 1928-9. In the same season he made 128 at Melbourne, and at the Oval, in 1930. he scored. 110. Early in his career he figured as, a record-breaker, and he is the only batsman to make two scores of more than 400—429 against Tasmania, and. 437 against Queensland. A sound and brilliant opening batsman, he has been a most successful partner to Woodfull.

T. W. Wall: Born May 31, 1904. A school teacher. Wall made his test debut as a fast bowler in the -fifth match of the 1928-9 series, at Melbourne, in which he took three for 123 and five for 66. In the 1930 tests in England, he captured 13 wickets, and in the 1932-3 series in Australia he performed grandly, heading the averages with 16 wickets at 25.55. Although not so fast as some other bowlers Australia has had, Wall swings the new ball well, and can make it fly. He has courage and generally rises to his best on the big occasion. He is a safe fieldsman, and might prove a useful batsman with concentration on this department.