BRADMAN'S STORY

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXXV, Issue 23101, 28 July 1938, Page 17

BRADMAN'S STORY

ON SYDNEY'S "HILL" CANDID CRITICISM WORRIES OF CAPTAINCY TWO TEST MATCHES LOST nv pon nhapman CHAPTKR XIII. Some years ago a very famous barfucker appeared there and was christened "Yabba'' —what the significance of the word is 1 don't know. He was, 1 believe, a rabbiter (a man who catches rabbits; he could have caught a good many at Sydney)—and he was eventually asked to broadcast, and aUo to explain It is technique of barracking on the talkies. Part of the reason for barracking was ilie lack of comfort which at one tinio was obtained on "the Hill." Nowadays, with more conveniences provided —there is a bar which provides rool drinks and hot pies, boys selling ice cream, and a good deal more seating accommodation —the volume of barracking has been reduced. Comfort and quirt usually do go hand in hand.

But you cannot really blame a man who has consumed a copious supply of liquor in order to combat the glaring sun. and who is compelled to stand in a crowd for hot hours, if he does noisily object to a player allowing the ball to pass him over after over. Barrackers are human. ' The Hill'' has always loved personalities. It loved Patsy Hendren, it loved Constantino. calling him "Midnight," it loved the Nawab of Pataudi (lie was at once "Gandhi'' with the Hillites), anil it loved Maurice Tate and George Duckworth. Some of George's too frequent appeals from behind the wickets have annoyed some, but the objectors never said much more than, that he was wasting his tune and should be appealing for charity. Lack of Bias Sometimes "the Hill" does diagnose* wrongly, but I never remember any barracking from it —except, perhaps, from an isolated individual, quickly howled down —-which was purposely biased. However, let any player commit an unsporting act, and then woe betide him. He would be —will be —the object of much verbal criticism. « Let any spectator on ''the Hill" dare fo put up an umbrella, and he is done for (so, probably, is the umbrella). 1 once actually saw a misguided man open an umbrella there, and inside five minutes he had nothing but the ribs of it left. The Hillites are very good shots with oranges. ... When a wicket falls it is generally time for a stretch on "the Hill," and if there is room, the whole crowd rises in masses and then settles down pn masse when the next man comes in. It is a vcrv remarkable sight to see.

For myself, J love fielding in the outiield at Sydney more than on any other ground because the continual stream of banter from the crowd there keeps me

amused. It will he a sad day in the march of progress if ever that lovely sunny bank, where the enthusiasm of many of Svdney's budding cricket stars was first aroused, is demolished. Hopeless Task But to get back to the te.st match. Overnight rain led Allen to close his innings with only six men out, and most of the players went out and held inquests on the wicke? before he decided to put us in 011 it. It was difficult to say how it would play, and when we batted we found it was wet, but with considerable pace in it.

Very soon it began to appear that we were up against a pretty hopeless task. Once again, Voce bowled splendidly, and in his first eight overs he took four wickets for ten runs. J went for another duck 'not much comfort in having survived two balls this time instead of one), and Allen and Verity helped to complete the good work started by Voce. We followed on, Eingleton and I getting some runs this time, and MeCahe a splendid ninety-three; but we were defeated by an innings. The first two te-t matches lost was certainly a setback for Australian cricket, and you can imagine some of the thing-; that won* being said about all of u~. Including me —particularly my two ducks. True, we twice had to <sn in on raindawaned wickets, but this was not fully sufficient to explain .'may everything, and decidedly something had to be done if wp were to retain the A-lies which the !!>:'!I team had brought back from England.

Wuli G. O. Allen's team two up and throe to play, it was necessary ior us to do w}i;ll no other .Australian eleven had ever heen alile to do in similar circumstances —to win the three remaining tests ofl' the reel. Gratuitous Advice I*.ii£»l;iii<l hail boaten us at Hrisbano and Sydney, and it was now very much our business to see ii' wo eould not turn the tables and heat them at .Melbourne, Adelaide and t h'-n .Mid bourne again. •As frequently happens in adverse eirf*'i rust;i»u-«•->. au ;ill1■ 1111 it was made by the critics to find reasons for Australia's unexpected (hdea I s. I lie two player-- receiving the most attention uere I) IJeilly and I. and we PR"took of iinich gratuitous advice. I he suggestion • <»i n vassed most u as that I Snnujr] J,,,,, up the captaincy. •A. C. f.lohnnv; Moves, a former inter-State player and selector, and now sporting editor ol the Sydney Sun. wrote what I thought was a reasonable P<>sit ion on the subject: —- "Keen cricket eyes are watching Don's captaincy. . . . Most of them are sati>tici| with Ins handling of a difficult situation. Others loci that it would he Hotter i! he gave up the job and were able jo conccn t rat e on his hatting. "My view is that while Don lias not had a great deal of experience, no one Pise had had as lunch, and that any change would greatly upset things. ".Xoblo, Armstrong, Collins and AYnodl'ull did their Jobs as captains as Well as batsmen, and. although perhaps none of them carried such a hatting burden as Hrailman does, they had tli< ir responsibilities. Woodfull, in particular. four years ago, had enough worry tor two men. "It Don were not captain, he would Mill have to adjust his batting to the. needs of the moment. It would not make any difference." •lack Hobbs, in Australia as a writer, among those who wondered if "the

carps of captaincy" wore affecting my batting, and "having a curbing influence." In four innings 1 had twice gone for ducks.

I was naturally somewhat concerned, and gave the matter serious thought. I did not profess to he the ideal captain, but as there was no other player considered good enough for the test side who bad ever captained Australia, it would have been sheer cowardice for me to abandon what appeared to ho a, sinking ship. Moreover, I knew that the cares of captaincy were not allccting mv hatting, and was quite certain I could not have done better in any circumstances. I might add that the captaincy of an Australian XI. is a position which is not sought alter. Ihe responsibilities attached to it are heavy and the rewards few.

Ihe appointment is made bv the Hoard ot ( ontrol, not the selectors, and as the board saw lit on this occasions to ask me to lead the team, t was determined to do the very best I could, win or lose. Ihe criticism regarding Bill O'Reilly was ot a ditlerent nature. He had bowled nearly a hundred and twenty overs in the two tests for six wickets. ai\d it was argued that while he might be keeping Hammond and others quiet (Hammond's rate of scoring at Sydne\ had been down to about thirty runs an hour), he was not taking sufficient wickets. O Reilly s amazing success in South Ati lea was taken as a guide. No allowance was made tor the difference in qualify between the batsmen of England and South Africa, or the wickets in the two countries. 0 Reilly was expected to perform superhuman feats in everv game. (To be continued daily.)