NOTES BY SLIP.

Otago Witness, Issue 2027, 29 December 1892, Page 30

NOTES BY SLIP.

The Ofcago cricketers made a Very auspicious start in the first match of their Northern torn', which was played against Hawk-s's Bay. Their complete success is the more satisfactory from the fact that it was only on the night before the contesb was commenced that the Otago team arrived at Napier a r lor three days' hard travelling— many of them between seasickness and ,tho heat being quite knocked up. Early on thoir travels there was, however, a narrow efeape from a serious disaster, which might have wrecked the team 6 prospects for the whole of the tour. It was at Oamaru that the incident — which a special correspondent describes as an exciting one — occurred, four of the players who preferred to lunch at a swagger hotel instead of the station being bo fascinated by a lady attendant that they paid no heed to the engine's whistle of departure. Fortunately there was a gocdnatured guard, who pulled the train up after it had gone some distatca and waited for the truants. The captain, it is hardly necessary to say, has been obliged to keep a careful eye on the same suscept ble quartet ever sinco. The ground on which the Hawke's Bay match was played is at Farndon Park, six, miles from Napier, and is a perfect likeness of a good English private ground. Harper was lucky enough tdvdn the toss, and put his men in to commence what turned out bo be a really good innings, considering their general unh'tness and want of practice. The eleven all made run's and proved that there was very little tail to ib, and that tail a tolerably respectable one. The wicket was a little slow through overwatering, but quickly improved, and the Hawke's Bay bowlers — wild are by no means to be despised— got little work on. Smith, who obtained seven of the wickets, is considered by the Southern players to be as good a howler as Otagd has met for sonle years, leftbanded with varying pace and very like F. H. Cooke, but with an older head and consequently better judgment. Lusk, an old Auckland player, secured two wickets and the remaining one fell to Bruce. The weather, which was perfection itself, wag a t.ifle hot for the Otago liicu aud, as there were no boundaries, when a four had been run out the batsmen nstded no invitation to get ou their backs and have a rest. Though tho local team have some good uud educated bats Obago's bowling was better than they expected, and Lawton, Fisher, and Hope all proved troublesome, — sa iiluch so that in two iunlog* Hawko's Bay could only score 113, aud as Otago's venture had realised 175 the visitors claimed a. victory in a single innings with 62 ruus to spare. The Otago team went in again to bat to fill up the afternoon aud scored 82, Fisher claiming 32 by slashing play. They were, it shou'd be said, most generously and hespitably entertained by Mr Williams, the president of tho I Hawke's Bay Crickeb Association, and his committee.

The second match of the tour, that with Auckland, has nob yet been played, beiDg fixed for the 29th and 30bh. The Otago team arrived at the Northern capital on Friday morning last after a quiet passage, and they will consequently have abundance of time to familiarise themselves with the Auckland wickets. They had a practice after their .arrival, when they found that the wicket is much faster than their own, but otherwise the ground is not to be compared to Carisbrook, much less to Lancaster Park, in Christchurch. The Auckland team selected is reckoned a strong one, particularly in bowliDg, in which department Neill is Bpoken of as a tower of strength, and it will surprise the natives if Obago beats them. This will be the fifth contest between Auckland and Otago cricketers, but only the third in which the Otago team has been acknowledged by the Cricketers' Association. The first match between Auckland and Otago was played at Dunedin on the Oval in 1873, in which year a team of cricketers from the North made a tour of the colony, and the visitiDg team claimed the victory by four wickets. There are few, indeed, of the players in that match who are now participating in the game. On the Ofcago side there is only Glen, who has this season reappeared as an active player, after many years' retirement ; while one of the Auckland team,- Alpe, is now playing in a junior eleven in Wellington. These be your juniors — men who played in representative matches 20 years ago ! Alpe I take to be the oldest cricketer in the colony, with the exception of the Hon. B. C. J. Stevens, of Christchurch. Another of the Auckland eleven who took part in that contest was Mumford, of whose tragic death, while taking part iv a match, we heard last week ; while another was Yates, who is still playing a little. Buckland, too— the honourable member for Onehunga in the House of Representatives — was one of the team, and I notice that he took part in a game the other day. In Auckland they would seem to continue playing longer than we do in the South, but the climate here is not ent icing when men have reached that age when liability to rheumatism is upon them. However, that is a digression. The scoring was small, Otago making 77 and 41, and Auckland 78 and 41 for six wickets. Garwood, who contributed 31 in Otago's first innings, was the highest individual scorer, and he also did his share of the bowliDg with Downes and Glen. Macdonnell (1 and 14 not out) and Thomson (10 and 10) were the most successful of the other batsmen on the Otogo side, the bowling of Robinson, Buckland, and Sweet befug evidently not relished by the majority of the team. For Auckland Clayforth (19 and 2), Dufaur (6 and 10), Bellara (2 and 13 not out), and Sweet (13 and 1 not out) were the highest scorers. After an interval of nine years an Auckland team again visited the South. ;The visitors were a strong combination, and in W. E. Barton, probably the finest ba'stnen who has settled in the colony, they had one player of uncommon brilliancy. During the season in which they travelled South there was unfortunately a split in cricketing circles, and the Dunedin and Suburban Cricket Association was formed in opposition to the Obago Cricketers' Association. It was the former whom the Auckland team elected to play, but the cricketiDg strength of the place remained with the latter body, and the issue of the match was just what was expected — a crushing defeat for the Dunedin players, whom the visitors beat by an innings and 45 runs. Auckland made 150, Barbon carrying his bat through the inniDgs for 76, while Arneil made 150. The Dunedin and Suburban eleven made 57 and 48 only. L. M. Harris (of whom, by the way, the New Zealand Mail last week contained a portrait) claimed 19 and 23, and the other principal scorers were Leith (10 and 1) and Ivens (10 not out and 1). During the Christmas holidays of 1884 the Auckland cricketers ugain visited the Middle Island, but did not come as far south as Duncdoi. The match between Canterbury and Otago, however, was being played at tlie Cathedral City about Ihe wium timu, and a contest between Auckland aud Otago was mooted. Six of the team that represented this province against Canterbury were unable to remain in Christchurch, these being F. H. Cooke, W. G.

Dixon, A. B. Drabble, E. T. Colllnson, T. L. Austin, and A. Dawea, but their places were supplied by J. I*. Spring, A. Grieve, J. J. Mallard, A. W. Morris, P. Turnbull, and J. Fitzgerald. The team, which could only be 6tyled an Otago eleven, was captained by Spring, and made up to a certain point a good fight, for after scoring 141 (Parker 45, Grieve 31, Mallard 18, Rabtrny 13, Fairbairn 13), they disposed of Ailek'rtnd for 83 (Stafford 21, Barton 16, Robin on 10), the bowling honours being sham! by O. Frith and Turnbull. In the second inoing3 the Otago players collapsed, and were dismissed by Lynch and Meldrum for 35, of which M'Gregor made 14. Auckland were left with 94 to win, and though Fitzgerald bowled splendidly— Frith was injured and unable to bowl— the required number were obtained for the loss of five wickets, all secured ! by Fitzgerald. Rob"nson (not out) claimed 42, Coxon 21, and Lynch 20. The most recent match between Auckland and Olago was played during the Exhibition season en the Caledonian ground, and, finished in one day, resulted in a, humiliating defeat for Otago. The local players had first bat and, largely through the exertions of Rees, who captured six wickets for 27, were disposed of . for 62 (Dowues not out 25, Harper 12). Even this modest total was too much for the visitors who only made 48 (KissliDg 20, Lynch not out 15), Downes securing seven wickets at a cost of 22 runs. In the second innings Otago made 68 (Beck 20, Downes 16), the bowling of Reeo again proving destructive, and producing the downfall of eight wickets at an expense of 36 runs. Auckland were left with 83 runs to get aud accomplished the task with the loss of two wickets, Kissling making 40 and Lynch 19. Though ther.e have thus been four matches bstween Auckland and Otago, that which was played at Farndon Park last week was the first that has taken place between Hawke's Bay and this province, nor has an Otago team ever met Wellington. It is, as a matter of fact, only within thelaat 10 years that the Wellington Association have put forth any serious claim to being able to put an eleven into the field sufficiently strong to give a good fight to the chosen representatives of the provinces of. Canterbury and Auckland, though their matches with Nelson have generally produced good struggles and in their contests with*Hawke'» Bay— inaugurated, though, within tho decade I speak of— they have generally been able to come out on top. Now, however, the Wellington representatives have to be very much reckoned with, and if tho Otago players on tour manage to win at all there it will only be, I im,agino, after a sharp tussle. The improvement that is noticeable in the play of Wellington is, indeed, rather marvellous when it is considered that cricketers labour under the disadvantage of having only one ground to play upon, and after a club has played a match it may be that it will not again have possession of a wicket on the ground till after the lapse of some weeks. This is a digression, however, from the point to which I -desired to draw attention,— and that is that although there has never been any match between Wellington and Otago, there was an attempt made, far back in the past history of the colony, to bring about one. That the attempt was abortive is a matter for which the cricketers of the time residing in this part of the colony are not to bs held accountable, for the challenge which emanated from them seems to have been ignored. The challenge was in these terms : — CHALLENGE. The. cricket players of Dunedin hereby publicly challeuge the cricket club at Wellington to a trial of skul at any place equi-distant between the port of Otago and Tort Nicholson, due notice of the acceptation of the challenge to appear m the Wellington Independent or by letter addressed to Mr Watsoh, Commercial Inn, Dunedin, Otago. High street, Dunedin, December 9, 1848. That challenge, I may add, appeared as an advertisement in the first number of the Otago News, published on December 13, 1848. C. R. Smith, who performed well with the ball for Hawke's Bay against Otago, has been removed to Cbristchurch. A visit of a Tasmanian team to New Zealand will probably be made in February. The proposal is to play matches at InvercargiU, Dunedin, Oamaru, Timaru, and Christchurch. The Hawke's Bay Herald, in a detailed account of the play on the first day of the match between the Hawke's Bay and Otago teams, says that "the visitors certainly proved themselves strong in batting. Rattray's hitting is declared to have been the finest of the innings, being clean and well timed. Fisher's runs were got by P*etty and free hitting, and yet with good defence, while Croxford is said to have played a fine innings: Parker played very steadily, and showed very good defence, there beiugno fewer than ls singles in his score. Clay ton played a nice innings for his run*, and tho notout man, Hope, showed that if he had had the opportunity he could have further added to his score. The same paper states that the bowling of the visitors fairly nonplussed Hawke's Bay. Fisher and Hope kept a splendid length, and their deliveries came off the pitch very fast and broke back considerably. Lawton kept pegging away dead on, a trifle short, wich a slight work from the off, and was very hard to play. Among recent county matches played in Otago and Southland were the following:— Lawrence '22 and 83 (Ro6coe 31, M'Keich, not out, 16, Sheddan 12) v. Waitahuna 29 and 15 for eight wickets ; Miller's Flat 72 ( W. Hand 15, Coard 12, J. Hand, npt out, 10) v. Roxburgh 33 (Dewar, not out, 11) ; InvercargiU 62 (Kingsland 22, Dalrymple 10) and 54 for three wickets (Kingsland 25, Dalrymple 22) v. Wyndham 46 (Raymond 11). In the match between Lawrence and Waitahuna, the former's second innings was closed with six wickets down, and after Waitahuna had lost -eight wickets in the second innings the captain elected not to send his two last men in. His generositj to his opponents in this respect will not probably be accepted as a precedent. Martin's bowliDg for Lawrence was remarkably successful, 10 wickets falling to him at a cost of 16 runs. That a team should win an intercolonial match by a substantial margin, after followiog on in a minority of 125 runs, such as South Australia have just done in their match with New South Wales, is an achievement of considerable merit. One does not now wonder, however, at anything done by the colony of Giffen and Lyons ; and in this particular match the victory of South Australia, meritorious as undoubtedly it is, loses its apparent significance and is shed of much of its lustre when it is known that C. Turner, P. C. Charlton, and A. Coningham were all unable to travel to Adelaide. The different turns that the match took well illustrate the uncertainty of cricket. On the first day New South Wales went in, and lost S. P. Jone3 and Sid. Gregory for two runs between them, while Alec. Bannerman only made 16, but notwithstanding this inauspicious start the score at the close of the day was 243 for the loss of four wickets. Moses was bowled by Giffen when his score was 99, and Donnan was riot out wibh 97 to his credit. On the following day Donnan increased fcis r core to 120 and Youill (not out) inad^ 36, but the total for the loss of the six wickets was only increased by 94 runs, the innings closing for 337. In the fir.st innings of South Australia Giffen was the top scorpr with 75 and Hill made 60, but the other nine batsmen only comp-

iled 77 between them, Lyons claiming 16 of these, and the total was 212. Following on tbe South Australians made 330— a splendid total for a third innings. The mighty punishor,, Lyons, led tho way with , 124, scored at his usually rapid rate, and Reedman assisted ably with 73. New South Wales were left with 206 to win, but could not manage more than 140 runs. A match between members of the Royal Comic Opera Company and the Opoho Club attracted a fair attendance to the Oval on Wednesday last. The jricket played treacherously, and was rather dangerous for batsmen. Opoho winning the toss went to the wickets and put together 66, of which Boddington made 13 and M'Lean 16. The Opera Company were disposed of for 40, of which Beaumorit scored 11 and Leslie 12. Ford was caught before he scored, and Deaue was bowled after compiling 7. Opoho in their socond innings scored 97, M'Kenzie (40), Boddington (13), Hendry (12), Doig (11, not out), and Strong (10) all batting freely. For Opoho, Wells secured five wickets for 17 runs, and M 'Glashan four for 20. For the Opera Company^ Deane secured six for 35 and six for 45, Neilson three for 29, Stephenson two for 24, Watsoii one for 8, and Rice nono for 16. Williamson's Opera Company played a mixed eleven of Carisbrook on Saturday at Carisbrook. The game proved *a very enjoyable one, save for a few shoWers during the afternoon. The Company went in to bat first, and put up the respectable total of 111 beforo the last wicket. fell Rice (43) batted well, but Deane (27) did not show good cricket owing to his injured hand. At the call of time Carisbrook had six wickets down for 69, Cooke batting very freely for 27, Butlin and Boydell being credited with 12 each. In bowling Deane had an average of four wickets for 40. On the other side Wilding for Carisbrook took six for 69. Scores :—

Opera Co»u?am\— Ford 6. Rice 43, Deano 27, Neilson 2, Lissant 1, Leslie 9, Beaumont- 2, Stephenson 4, Young 1, Watson 3, llyley 1, extras 12 ; total 111. Cauisbrook.— Beck 2, Butlin 12, Cooke S7, Wildins; 2, Boydell 12, Cheesoman' 4, Austin 7, extras 3 ; total for six wickots 69.