RULERS OF CRICKET.

Marlborough Express, Volume XLIV, Issue 3, 5 January 1910, Page 2

RULERS OF CRICKET.

BOARD OF CONTROL

IMPORTANT MEETING THIS

MONTH.

Some important business will be transacted at the next meeting of the Board of Control (states the Sydney Daily Telegraph), The date has not yet been fixed, but it will be held early in January in Sydney. THE TRIANGULAR MATCHES. One of the most important subjects to be dealt with is that of the triangular matches between England, i South Africa, and Australia, whichit is proposed shall be held in 1912 after the conclusion of the tour of the Marylebone Club in Australia during the season 1911-12. As ' the South Africans will tour Australia : next season, 1910-11, there will be a particularly busy time ahead for the Australian players, for three seasons of big cricket in succession will be without parallel. The scheme adopted by the conference recently in England for the triangular matches was the one suggested by the Australian Board of Control, and the presumption is that the board will therefore decide that Australia shall take part in, it. Nevertheless it has a number of objections, one being that there can be no return matches in either South Africa or Australia. Another question that will arise is the one of finance. It is. questionable whether a match between Australia and Scjmth Africa in England will draw I the public, and in the circumstances there is a doubt whether Australian players will be prepared to undertake the trip if they are not indemnified against loss. They all have to earn a living, here. If they were independent there would not be the difficulty that now arises. Incidentally, too, neither the Board of Control nor any State Association has sufficient funds to make good the probable shortage, j It will be recalled that when the pro- j

posal was first mentioned only one player who favoured it could be found. He. was Noble, who expressed; agreement with the scheme only because the M.C.C. had suggested thati it should be put into effect.1 If the Englishmen, being on their own-doqr-stepsfas it were/ were to accept only small fees, and the-M.C.C. and the .^ounties would be willing to take a I reduced percentage in the event of, the takings not being big, this ob-j jection would be removed. However,! the ; disability -»mentioned is obvious,! and it will.be the business of those! in charge of tl*e imatch.es toiovereqmej it. Possibly ;the board may ask forj a guarantee. The IMXjXj, 'has set :a! [precedent an 'this ;respect, sd there' shouid be npVdiffidence on the part of the • b'oa'rQ;in ifolloivin^- the example.

IFIN-IAWmiO'F'&HE -LAST TEAM

: 'Anothdr; matter for consideration at ; the January meeting of the board'will be the accounts to be furnished by the Australian Eleven which has just returned!// Mr Peter M'Alister was ■treasurer, but as lie has not furnished accounts to the board, the presumption is that he held office in name only, and that -they will be prbdu'eed by the manager, Mr Frank Layer. If this turns out to be the fact, it will be for the board to say whether" there shall "be a repetition of this kind of thing. If the board appoints a player as its officer and .he^ is ignored by the manager appointed by the players, the future cour^ for-the board to take is obvious. The board should appoint the manager. This is practically the unanimous view held by the members of the board as at present constituted, and it seems remarkable that it has not been adopted before. A NEW SECRETARY. The board will have to appoint a new secretary, for Mi- W. P. M'Elhone has- definitely decided not to hold the office any longer. His civic and business duties prevent him from devoting the time essential to the proper carrying but of the work associated with the office. For- some time he has carried on the diities at considerable inconvenience* and lo.ss to himself , and. it. is shrewdly suspected that only for the fact? that there was a-big figfit in progress, and that resignation would have looked like dropping; from the front line of action to the hospital, Mr M'Elhone would have, dropped but' long ago. That he voluriteerd to see the struggle through was fortunate for those on whose side he elected to stand, and that the associations, through the board, have undoubted control of cricket to-day is largely due to their fighting secretary, who retires only when the Melbourne Cricket Club and like bodies have to admit themselves beaten. TOUR OF NEW ZEALAND, The. board wil also complete ar-' rang?ments for a tour of New Zealand by the second eleven of Australia. The tour commences early in February. On the face of it, the selectors will have a tough task, for it is obvious that there were some players who played in the Australian Eleven in England who could not now get in the first team, and consequently they should go into the second eleven, and incidentally tour New Zealand. This would undoubtedly cause a deal of heart-burning amongst those who would have to stand out of the team for them. CRAWFORD'S CASE. It would seem from the telegrams received by the New South Wales; Association from the secretaries of ■ the Victorian and South Australian j Associations that no residential qualir fication had been agreed upon for inter-State matches, but the idea is quite erroneous. The resolution agreed to by the associations in Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria, and South Australia was— , "That in all intercolonial matches no player shall' be eligible for selec- j I tion unless he has been a bona fide resident of the colony for three months immediately preceding the \ match to be played." j This motion was not carried by the I N.S.W. Association until all the: others named had agreed to it. Yet j when the case of Crawford came vp ; the other day, the secretary of the i j South Australian Association wrote that his association had agreed to the provision if all the other associations agreed, and then drew attention to the fact that not having received any reply the South Australian Assbcia-! tion considered that the matter had i dropped. That seemed a fair position to take up, if the following let-] ter had not been written on March 9, 1896:— I "To John Cresswell, Esq., secretary! S.A.C.A., Adelaide. "In reply to yours of 3rd inst., on looking at the correspondence regarding the three months- qualification, I find a letter dated June i 4, 1894, from Queensland, agreeing to the resolution, also a letter dated '• May 30, 1894, from Victoria also agreeing to the resolution. "PERCY K. BOWDEN, . "Secretary N.S.W.C.A."

In turn the Victorian Association was^ appealed to by Newv South Wales regarding Crawford's qualification to play, and on the 14tli of IJhis month Mr Heather, secretary of the Victorian Association, yired:— - . "No record in minutes of any agreedment with South Australia.' 1

Yet on May 30, 1894, the same Mr Heather wrote: —

"To Mr J. Portus, secretary .N;S.WiC*A. . ■ ~

uDear-Sir,—ln reference to your letter of -May 8, regarding the residential clause, I beg to inform you 4hat my association have also decided to adopt the ■ same.

"iE. D. HEATHER, secretary.'