CRICKET UMPIRING.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXVII, Issue 20517, 19 March 1930, Page 18

CRICKET UMPIRING.

RECENT SHIELD CONTEST. DISAPPOINTING DECISIONS. URGENT MATTER FOR COUNCIL. Cricket umpiring in New Zealand in Plunket Shield matches particularly is a matter which requires the urgent attention of the New Zealand Cricket Couucil. For several seasons past there has been dissatisfaction in regard to certain umpires, but incidents in the final game for the Plunket Shield at Wellington between Auckland and Wellington have brought the subject into such prominence that, for the sake of the future of the game, action by the controlling body is vitally necessary.

Members of the Auckland team who "participated in the Wellington match, although not prone to discuss the situations which arose, have expressed disappointment regarding obviously bad decisions which went against the team and incidentally really cost Auckland the shield. Everyone knows that a cricket umpire, like a football referee, has a rather thankless task, but at the sanje time it is an easy matter for the official to give correct decisions when no element of doubt attaches to them.

It is stated by both players and spectators that two glaring instances of bad errors at Auckland's cost occurred in the recent shield match. Lowry, the Wellington captain, was caught in the slips off his glove and had actually started to walk out. In their keenness some of the fieldsmen appealed and the umpire's decision went in favour of the batsman, who then came back to the crease. Another time James hit the ball hard with his bat and was caught by Wensley fairly high in the slips. The batsman stood his ground, and naturally there was an appeal which was answered it; the negative.

It is further stated that the Wellington batsmen who adopted, stonewalling tactics walked right in front of their wickets and even when a straight ball pitched right up to the Crease and was played with the pads leg-before decisions could not be obtained. Nothing gives a batsman more confidence and nothing is more disheartening to a bowler than to have to contend with such conditions. It is only fair to state that these particular decisions were all given by the one umpire. Even some of the Wellington _ batsmen themselves would have been perfectly satisfied to have been given legbefore.

There has been a good deal of controversy of late about widening the wickets, too much preparation of pitches and brightening up the game. It would seem that the time is opportune for the powers that be to introduce a rule "that a batsman is out if he deliberately plays the ball with his pads, whether the ball is pitched in a. straight line with tlie wicket or not." Such a rule would certainly put an end to a decision which is one of the most discussed, and one which lias brought a great deal of dissatisfaction into cricket—that of leg-before. It is a well-known fact in cricket that when there is a doubt the batsman is entitled to the benefit of it. Some umpires have become so obsessed with this idea, however, as to make it almost a fetish, and practically refuse to give a batsman out leg-before. Such a .policy is, of course, ridiculous in the extreme.

It is also giving away no secret to state that the M.C.C. team which recently toured New Zealand was extremely disappointed with sonic umpires they encountered. No further proof of this is necessary than the fact that for the four test matches which were played Gilligan chose the same two officials. Unfortunately for Auckland umpires they were not seen by the visitors until the end of the tour. A considerable amount of money lias been spent in New Zealand in bringing out professional coaches to improve the standard of the game. That they have faithfully carried out their work is becoming more and more evident as' each season passes. Nothing, however, will undo their Rood work and kill the came quicker than bad umpiring. Therefore, bofore it is too late, it is to be hoped the New Zealand Council will take a hand and appoint umpires for Plunket Shield matches even at the expense of going,outside the two provinces concerned—a policy which would give infinitely more satisfaction than leaving the appointments lo the various associations.