ENGLISH CRICKETERS.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LIX, Issue 18273, 14 December 1922, Page 10

ENGLISH CRICKETERS.

ARRIVAL AT AUCKLAND. e

ALL MEMBERS FIT AND WELL

FIRST MATCH TO-MORROW.

The English cricket team firrived a.t Auckland from Sydnoy yesterday afternoon by the Moeraki. They will open their tour of New Zealand with a match against Auckland, which will be commenced at Eden Park at 2 p.m. to-mor-row. The players are all fit and well, and are looking forward to the tour. The team includes 14 players, with a maiuir ger, Mr. H. Swan. Four ladies also accompany the party. Mr. A. 0. MaoLaren, the captain, arrived at Wellington yesterday, and will reach Auckland tomorrow in time for the opening match.

Members of the team are not downhearted at their lack of success in Australia. They attribute their defeats to the fact that they had had no opportunity for practice. In the circumstances the team's performances may be conaidered satisfactory. It stood a chance of defeating Victoria, and put up a fine performance against New South Wales at Sydney notwithstanding the fact that the homo eleven included five test match players. The pace of t'ho wickets and the strong sunglare, particularly at Adelaide and Melbourne, was a serious handicap. The players were under conditions to which they were entirely unaccustomed. The visitors will be tendered a civic reception at the Town Hall at ten o'clock this morning, and in the afternoon will hold a practice at Eden Park. The team was met on arrival Mr. E. Heat'hcote Williams, president of the New Zealand Cricket Council, Mr. F. Earle, president, and Mr. M. J. Flynn, lion, secretary of the Auckland Cricket Association, and escorted to the Grand Hotel, the team's headquarters. Mr. J. H. Douglas, father of the famous English cricketer, Mr. J. W. H. T. Douglas, who set out to accompany the English team on the New Zealand tour, but had the misfortune to meet with a serious injury on the Makura just prior to the steamer's arrival at Auckland, is still a patient in a private hospital. He ip, however, making a good recovery, but it is not anticipated that he will be able to leave the hospital, for a few weeks yet. Mr. Douglas is a keen cricketer and enthusiast, and known his English cricket well. Speaking of several of the members of the present team, Mr. Douglas stated that Chapman was the star batsman of the side, but that Titchmarsh was almost his equal! and was a consistent run-getter. Gibson was a fine bowler, while Freeman wan also a fine "trundler," having cultivated the art of the " googly " to a degree. The team on the whole was a good side and he expressed the opinion that the English players would perform well on Now Zealand wickets.

MACLAREN ON HIS TEAM.

STRONG BOWLING SIDE.

LESS PROWESS m BATTING. [BY. TELEGRAPH. —OWN COEOESPONDENI] WELLINGTON. Wedne»aa.y.

Mr. A. O. MacLaren, captain of the English cricket team that is to tour New Zealand, reached Wellington to-day. He is accompanied by Mrs. MacLaren. They will leave for Auckland to-morrow. Mr. MacLaren expresses the hope that the visit of his team will give a stimulus to New Zealand cricket and improvo the standard of play here. The tour will also, he Bays, improve the play of most of tho young men in his own team, of ■whom no fewer than nine come from Oxford or Cambridge. " I think you will find," he said, " that this side will give you a good game, You will probably find that we won't be difficult to get out, but that we will be difficult to get runs against. In Gibson, Calthorpe, and Brand we ■ have three really good high-class amateur bowlers, and then we also have Tyldesley and Freeman. " When I see the strength of your side I may prefer to leave the professionals out of our side, and so make it purely amateur, but that all depends on how you shape against us. If you commence to hit us about then we will have to keep our professionals." The point was emphasised that the side was not able to get the amount of practice that was desirable. Without giving any offence to the parties responsible, he felt that they had rather " killed the goose before it had laid the golden egg" in putting -the team into the fieM too quickly. " You must give the boys time to practise. They need time to get accustomed to the conditions, and they cannot get accustomed to the glare, such as that in Australia, in less than a fortnight. We have to obtain our practice in the* games, and those who do not get runs do not get practice. " Only about three of our fellows were in any form at all in Australia. We all lacked confidence. Although I got a few runs against New South Wales. I never timed a ball all through my innings. It was a fine performance in dismissing New South Wales, wsth eight international players in tho team, for 201 runs. Wo should havo beaten them. It would have been a wonderful performance. We ought to Have got more runs in the second innings. "I did not expect to beat the State unless we had some practice. Before leaving home I said that we ought to beat one of the States) but we toOK on tho weakest one when we had hacT no practice and that nullified our chances. At Adelaide we went straight to the hard wicket without any practice, and we had the glare to contend with. I reckoned that South Australia would be tho hardest team to beat. The first side is always the hardest but, for a match of that nature, a week's practice is essential. Yoli really want a fortnight. Wo very nearly snatched victory -at Vic toria. The wickets in Australia ore a great deal faster than those on which we plav at Home." Mr. MacLaren stated that when the M.C.C. considered the proposal to send the team, they did not realise that a team was going to South Africa. "We have got to send our best side to South Africa," he said, "and that has certainly hit our side a little." He could not say what the strength of his team was compared with that of Wynyard's team which toured the Dominion a number of years ago. He thought, however, that in bowling the present side was much" better, but not so good in batting. Mention was also made by Mr. MacLaren that he had with him' a, graphoBcopo, for the purpose of taking pictures of the • matches. He proposed to use them in giving demonstrations and lectures in aid of the funds for disabled soldiers.