SENIOR CHAMPIONSHIP.

New Zealand Mail, Issue 1032, 11 December 1891, Page 20

SENIOR CHAMPIONSHIP.

The Contest between the Phcfinix and Midland first elevens began on Saturday. There was a fair attendance, and more than ordinary interest Was taken in the match, The weathef Was as fine aS Could be wished. The wicket was in splendid condition. ' The Midland Captain (R. Blacklock) won the toss, and naturally decided to bat. Salmon and A. Blacklock were the first to go to the wickets. A fair start was made, the board showing 21 when the veteran was beaten by Taylor. Salmon’s score was 15, which* included a fine square leg hit for 4, and several nice cuts. R. Blacklock (who does not appear to be in anything like his customary form), Stephenson, Wynyard, Gillon and Fitzsimons were all quickly got rid of, and at the fall of the sixth wicket the. total was only 45, McGiit, however, put a different complexion on the game, and by hit ting freely he succeeded in raising the score to 73 before he was caught in the outfield by Chisholm. After his departure the end soon came, the innings only realising 83. Tucker, who played very nicely, was not out with 8, which included a beautiful cut for 5. Taylor was the most successful bowler, _ securing seven wickets for 40 runs. The fielding of the Phcenix team was excellent, and Taylor especially must be mentioned for his two fine catches In the slip?. Niven ivas in grand form behind the wickets, succeeding in dismissing two men, aud on his piesent form be without an equal in the Colony as a wicketkeeper. Having disposed of their opponents for such a small score, the Phoenix team and their supporters were in high glee, as they reekonedtthey were quite capable of totting up 150. These hopes, however, were not realised, and the innings closed for *he very small score of 37. The batsmen fared badly from the commencement, and one after another they were sent back to the pavillion by Fitzsimmons and McGirr. The sixth wicket fell with the total at 25, and three wickets fell after this without a single run being scored. Chisholm and Roberts, the last two men, made the

stand of the innings, adding 11 runs. It was certainly a most extraordinary collapse, even admitting that the bowling and fielding was good. Fitzsimmons bowled splendidly —in fact, it is doubtful if he has ever been in better form. At one stage of the innings he had captured five wickets for only eight runs (which included one hit for four). He eventually came out with the fine average of six for 15 runs. McGirr also bowled successfully, his average being four wickets for 21 runs. What fielding the Midlanders had to do was done well. Wynyard made a brilliant catch at mid-on, for which he was loudly applauded, and Eyre (who. kept the wickets well) dismissed Harris with a very smart catch. The Midlands thus had a lead of 460 n the first innings. Salmon and A. Blacklock started the second innings, and they made a capital stand. Both of them played good cricket, and the board showed 53 before Salmon was bowled by Taylor. Salmon’s contribution was 25. Tucker followed, and played well, as in the first innings, and assisted in raising the score to 79 before he returned one to Taylor. The next four wickets added 54 runs, the score standing at 132 for eight wickets. A. Blacklock scored 64, and he played fine cricket for his runs. He gave a difficult chance when his score was 57. Blacklock’s exhibition of batting was by far the best yet seen in a Championship match this season. Gillon played carefully for 10, not out. The fielding of the Phcenix was again good. The Midlanders have thus got a lead of 178 runs, with two wickets to fall. Messrs Ashbolt and Knapp were the umpires. Following are the scores : Midland—First Innings. Salmon, bTaylor ... ... . ••• "45 A. Blacklock, st Niven, b Taylor ... ... 28 R. Blacklock, c Taylor, b Benbow ... 2 Stephenson, c Taylor, b Benbow ... ... 2 Wynyard, b Taylor ... ... ... 9 Gillon, b Taylor ... ... -- ••• Fitzsimmons, st Niven, b Taylor ... ... 0 McGirr, c Chisholm, b Taylor 19 Tucker, not out ... ... ... 8 TJpham, b Benbow ... ... ... ... 0 Eyre, b Taylor... ... ... ... ••• 0 Extra ... ... ... 1

Total . 83 BowliDg—Taylor, seven wickets for 42; Benbow, three for 4'h Phcenix.—First Innings. Harris, c Eyre, b McGirr ... ... ... 11 Cross, b Fitzsimmons ... ... ... 0 Taylor, b McGiTr ... ... ... ... 1 Mclntyre, Fitzsimmons ... ... ... 1 Niven, b Fitzsimmons ... ... ... 4 Benbow, b Fitzsimmons ... 5 Virtue, b McGirr 3 Webb, b McGirr 0 Ogier, c Wynyard, b Fitzsimmons .. 0 Chisholm, b Fitzsimmons ... ... ... 8 Roberts, not out ... ... ... ... 3 Extra ... ... 1 Total ... ... ... ... ... 37 Bowling—Fitzsimmons, six wickets for 15 ; McGirr, four for 21. Midland —2nd Innings. Salmon, b Taylor ... ... ... ... 25 A. Blackwell, 1.b.w., b Taylcr 64 Tucker, c and b Taylor ... ... ... 14 Stephenson, b Ogier ... ... 1 Fitzsimmons, run out .. ... ... ... 3 R. Blacklock, c Cross, b Webb ... ... 1 Wynyard, c Virtue, b Chisholm ... ... 9 McGirr. c Virtue, b Taylor... ... ... 1 Gillon, not out ... ... ... ... 10 Upham, not out 0 Extras 4 Total for eight wickets ... ... ... 132 SECOND-CLASS CHAMPIONSHIP. Wellington v. Rival. —This heat was played on No 2 wicket. Meek, the Wellington Bkipper, won the toss, and elected to bat, and at the fall of the last wicket the score stood at 132, of which number Leckie made 24, Cohen 22, Frank Ashbolt 20 (not out), Day 18, and Woon 13. The Rivals fielding was far better than usual, Clapcott missing the only chance that was given him hy K. Bethune. No less than seven bowlers were tried by Marryatt, the Rival captain, of whom Lash was the most successful, he securing 5 wickets for 33 runs. Haldane, who was included in the team for his trundling powers, was not a success, and the Match Committee cannot be congratulated on their selection. When the stumps were drawn for the day, the Rivals had scored 113 for eight wickets, of which number Baker made 26, but he was let eff by Brookfield and Woon. He was dismissed by Brookfield, who made the catch of the day in the out field; Wakelin, who played a free innings for. 25, was let off by Cohen, the wicketkeeperj and Marryatt, who is not out, for 34, was let off by Easton when he had scored a single, and shortly afterwards by A. R. Meek. The same player also gave a difficult chance to Poutawera, who made a very good attempt to hold the ball. K. Bethune trundled well for the Wellingtons, securing four wickets for 19 runs. The game will. be continued to-morrow at 5.15, when the Rivals have 20 runs to win and two wickets to fall. The full scores will be published at the conclusion of the match. THIRD CLASS CHAMPIONSHIP. 1 The Wellingtons defeated the Phoenix on No 3 wicket by 7 runs on the first innings. The latter club during the afternoon scored 76 (Fojdham 19, Anderson 14, Deslandes 15, not out) and 42 (Deslandes 13), and the former eleven 83 (Gibbons 19, Smyth 15). Meek, Beyer and Tully bowled well for the victors, as did Stevens, Millward and Deslandes for the losers. The Thorndon Club defeated the Midlands on the College ground on Saturday by ten wickets. Scores—Midland, 49 and 24 ; Thorndon, 67 and 7 for no wickets. For Thorndon, Davies (24) was top scorer, while Costley (10) was the only Midlander to reach double figures. Morton, Haggett, and Port bowled well for Thorndon, and H. Upham and Duff for the losers. The fielding on both sides was very good, several good catches being made. OTHER MATCHES. The New Zealand Times Club defeated the Butchers on No 4 wicket on Wednesday by 25 runs. The Times eleven scored 92 (Grigg 25 Campbell 24. Mills 11), and their opponents 67 (W. Swiney 20, Whelan 14, Sheppard 11). Blanchett, Grigg and Castle for the victors, and Swiney and Kirkland for the losers, bowled well.

Wellington College scored a victory over the Excelsiors by 14 runs on the first innings. The Collegians scored 61 (Bee 22) and 52 (Bee 28, notout), and their opponents 47 (S. Parsons 21, not out) and 19 for six wickets (Wilson 10). Staples, Tripe, and Bee, for the winners, and B. Wilson, Crowe, and Martin, for the losers, bowled well. At NgahauraDga, Petone were beaten by the local club by 5 wickets. The scores were— Petone 33 (Cook 9) and Ngahauranga 34 for 5. wickets, the innings closing for 44 (Bland-

ford 17, A. Picken 10). Dalgleish and A. Picken divided the bowling honors for the victors, and for the losers Arnold and Kite bowled well. The fielding of both elevens was first-class. On No. 4 wicket, Basin Reserve, the Stars defeated the Vivians by 24 runs. The Stars scored 69 (W. Howe 14, Knight 10), and the Vivians 45 (J. Smith and Williams 11 each). Warren, Chisholm and Carman trundled well for the winners, and J. Smith was seen to advantage with the leather for the losers. The second eleven of the Star Club defeated the Albions by 9 runs. At the Hobson street paadock the Woodcote House School eleven defeated the College juniors by 27 runs. The School made 92 (Burnett 28, not out, Higginson 22, Richardson 11), and the Collegians 65 (McGowan 29, Mee 14). Richardson anl Wallace for the winners, and McGowan and Pordham for the losers, bowled well. The Johnsonville Cricket Club lost their match at Kilbirnie by 21 runs on the first innings. Scores —Kilbirnie, 3S and 49 ; Johnsonville, 17 and 24 for four wickets. For the winners Claridge made 10 (not out) and S, Baron 10, and Mowbray 9, and For the losers Bowler 6, London 6, and Moore 5. The bowling and fielding on both sides were really firstclass. S. Philpott ind Thompson for the winners each took 5 wickets for 7 runs. For Johnsonville C. Better took the bowling honours in the first innings (G for 16), and Moore in the second (7 for 8). Better is only 17 years of age, and is a very fast bowler. He was well supported by Moore, whose first 50 deliveries only cost 2 runs. The Kilbirnie team provided tea for the visitors at the conclusion of the game,

A meeting of the Committee of the Cricketers’ Association was held at the Club Hotel on Monday, Mr R. Blacklock being in the chair. With regard to the representative matches against Nelson, Hawkes Bay, and Auckland, Mr Motley reported that there would be no difficulty in getting a good team to visit Nelson, and a fairly good eleven could be got together for the northern tour. He mentioned also that the return fares would be as follows : —To Nelson, LI ; to Auckland, L 4. These terms were considered very reasonable. On the motion of Mr Motley, seconded by Mr Dryden. it was decided to play Nelson on the 25th and 26th instant, and to start on the northern tour on February 10th. The idea is to leave Wellington on Wednesday, play at Napier on Friday and Saturday, and Auckland on the following Tuesday and Wednesday, returning to Wellington on Saturday.. The question of appointing a match committee to select the teams for the three matches was then considered. Mr Dryden proposed that the committee should consist of one gentleman. Mr Gormley seconded this. Mr Kelling said the general opinion amongst cricketers was that there were two gentlemen equally suitable for the position of selector, and that it would be advisable to select those two with another. He proposed, as an amendment, that the Commit! ee should consist of three. Mr J. Collins seconded this. On being put the amendment was carried on the casting vote of the Chairman. The names of Messrs Ashbolt and Motley were suggested as members of the Committee. Mr Motley said that he had not the slightest objection, if elect-d, to acting with Mr Ashbolt, but he did not think the latter could be always on the ground in the day time. He wished that someone who could be on the ground and take his fair share of the work should he elected. Last year, he pointed out, two gentlemen were appointed with him, but they did not do their share of their work, one of them being away in Invercargill, and the other at Palmerston. The following were proposed as members of the Committee: Messrs Ashbolt, Motley, Taylor, Fu'le-, Fitzfimons, and Crawshaw. A ballot wa.-» taken, and resulted in the election of Messrs Ash olt, Crawshaw, and Motley. A motion was moved by Mr Brittain that in future the charge for admission to the Basin Reserve, except on the occasion of representative matches, should be 6d. An amendment by Mr Motley that the charge should be Is was carried on the casting vote of the Chairman.

One of the greatest drawbacks the cricketers, especially batsmen, have to contend with is the continued encroachment of the public on the field of play. Poutawera, a member of the Wellington second eleven, had the misfortune to lose his wicket in the Rival game on Saturday through a member of the Championship Committee (Mr Motley), who certainty ought to set a better example, impeding a vigourous stroke to leg, which struck the Committeeman on the back, and rebounding was immediately snapped up by one of the Rival players, who smartly returned the ball to the wicket-keeper, with the result that, instead of five runs being recorded, the batsman was run out when well set, through no fault of his own. Mr E. R. Boddington, who has filled the position of accountant at the Union Bank of Australia for some years, left Wellington on Monday by the Talune for Christchurch, to which place he has been temporarily transferred. Mr Boddington was a prominent member of the Wellington Cricket Club, and his loss will be severely felt by the Club during the remainder of the season. Mr Newbold, a prominent member of the Wellington Club, was a passenger by the Aorangi, which arrived in port on Tuesday morning, and as a bowler should be a welcome acquisition to the ranks of the first eleven. The Wanganui Old Boys’ Association decided last Tuesday to put a team in the field against the present eleven of their old school. The match will take place on the Basin Reserve on or about the 17th inst.

Mr W. McGirr, one of the founders of the Midland Club, has been presented by his fellow members with a silver tea and coffee service and an address as a maik of the esteem in which he is held. The presentation was made by Mr R. V. Blacklock, captain of the club, who, in a few appropriate words,. referred to the recipient’s many good qualities both on and off the field. Mr McGirr having made a suitable reply, his health was drunk in bumpers by the company present. In view of the approaching matches with Nelson, Hawkes Bay, and Auckland, the Match Committee of the Cricket Association on Tuesday picked the following 24 players to go go into practice at once, two wickets being prepared for their use in the centre of the j round : —Dryden, Fuller, Holdsworth, McMasters, Fitzsimons, McGirr, E. Upham, Stephenson, Salmon, B. Blacklock, A. Blacklock, Niven, Harris’, Cross, Taylor, Ogier, Benbow, C. Gore, R. Gore, Kirker, Crawshaw, Frith, Wynyard, Mr H. M. M oorhouse, the well-known cricketer, who has been paying a.visit to England, intended returning to Wellington by the Coptic, which arrives here on .Monday next, but his return has been delayed in consequence of the illness of one of his brothers. We understand that there is little probability of Mr Moorhouse returning before the end of the present season,