NOTES BY LONG SLIP.

Otago Witness, Issue 2649, 21 December 1904, Page 60

NOTES BY LONG SLIP.

No Cup fixtures' will be 'played in Dunedin on 'Saturday " next," December 24-, or on -the following Saturday, December 31. A telephone has been installed at Carisbrook for use during the New Zealand T-ennis Championship meeting. I should much like to see the instalment a permanent fixture, and would suggest that to the Carisbrock Ground Co.

Harry Graham, the painstaking coach of the Boys' High School, was immensely pleased at the victory of the school over Christ's College, the first for three years. The little Victorian was of opinion that if the schoolboys did not win this year, they nev^r would' win, for the majority of the eleven had! beea shaping particularly well in all their matches during the season.

The following team has been chosen to represent (Jtago in the match against Southland), at Invercargill, commencing _oq, Monday: Baker,. Williams (captain), Cummings, Fisher, Siedeberg-, Howden, Pearless, Cramond, D. Geddes, Eckhoff, Corbett. Emergencies — Kilgour (batsman) and Chadwick (bowler). The team to represent Otago against Wellington and! Can--terbury will b a chosen after the match against Southland. The two professionals, Graham and Shaddock, have not been chosen to represent Otago in the match against Southland, and as neither Austin nor Downes can make the trip south, opportunity has been given other players to show what they are capable- of doing. The mafceih between the Otago Boys' High School and Christ's College terminated this (Tuesday) afternoon, and resulted in a win for th© school by 58 runs. In the first innings th© school scored 122, to which the College replied with 137. Going in again for their second venture, the High School Eleven succeeded in hitting up 168 This left the Christ's College 154 to get to win, but the bowling of the school boys was superior to the batting powers of the college youths, who were all dismissed for 95. A feature of the play was the excellent all-round work in thej field of the Christ's College Eleven, and in this, department they excelled over the local eleven? their picking up and returning being particularly clean and' accurate. On the other hand, the High School side possessed! immensely superior bowling talent to that of their opponents, whose trundling, particularly on the first day, was deplorable. On the second day they improved somewhat, but, taken on the whole, their bowling was of very poor quality, and was degrees below the standard usually associated with Christ'? College. Ellis (58 not out) and Goldsmith (40) were the. highest scorers for GhrisVs Collesje. The former, though battinar attractively at times, played a very lucky innings, being beaten time and' again by the bowlers. Goldsmith, on the other hand, who made his score on the second* day, never looked like getting out, and played a solid innings throughout his term «,t the crease. Here let me cause to add

that the catch - which dismissed him, brought off by the bowler, H. Bannerman, was a particularly fine effort, and well deserved the applause which greeted it. For the High School, Foster, who made 37 not out in the first innings and 21 in the second, together with Rutherford (23 and 19), Scott (49), and Fraser (21), batted splendidly. The details of the scoring appear elsewhere in this issue. In the pavilion at Carisbrook, at the conclusion of the match between Christ's College and the Boys' High School, the bat presented by Mr P. Macassey for the High School boy who scored the most points in club cricket and in the college match was awarded to M. Rutherford, who, though equal in points with three others, was adjudged the winner on his all-round play.

A Wellington appreciation of Allan Adams, the ex-Otago cricketer: Adams is almost as painstaking a batsman as his captain (Richardson), with the difference that where the latter reaches forward to kill the work the bowler may have on the ball. Adams plays right back in a crouching position. They tell a tale— l know not how true it is— that, playing for Otago against Lord Hawke's team, Adams took three hours to make six runs.— [This was in the match West Coast v. Lord Hawke's team.— Long Slip.]— What I like about Adams, though, is his work in the field. There is nothing flash about it, but he is a long way the best trier in our cricket. Keen all the time, whether in the country or close in, Adams's method of fielding is an example to every other player in Wellington. Commenting on the appointment of J. Baker to the sole selectorship of N. Z. •teams, a .Christclrarch scribe says the appointment should be an eminently satisfactory one. Few men in Christchurch have had Baker's experience in big cricket. A rare catching incident occurred in the match between the High School and Christ's - College at Carisbrook on Monday, Fry&r batting for the College, mishit a ball through the slips, -where Bannerman reached for it, the ball cannoning off his hand to Scott, who secured it.

The representative match Ota versus Wellington, set down for December 29, 30, and 31, will be played on the Caledonian Ground. The change of venue has been made necessary owing to the tennis championships being played on the Carisbrook. The small boy on the North Ground with his kerosene-tin wicket, takes himself seriously. A correspondent sends the following in proof thereof: '"Ere, I ain't goin' to bowl y'er, y'er standin' in front of the wicket" (two kerosene tins to be accurate). "No, I ain't." "Y'are." "Well, come and see!" As . indicating a stage of Saturday's game, Carisbrook -B -passed Albion's total with three wickets down, but the southerners did not conclude their innings in that "interesting proportion. When one speaks of Carisbrook B. being in the ascendancy over other clubs, one thinks of two players, who, as batsmen and bowlers, are the mainstay of the eleven. One or other steps up with a good score and bowling figures. One of these days both these batsmen will get going together, and establish a first wicket partnership in club cricket. A correspondent -writes for information on the following question: A bowler has delivered a ball, but before it reaches the batsman a bail falls off, and the ball hits the wicket. Is the batsman out? Answer, Yes.

Apropos of Siedieberg's innings on Saturday, one recalls, the regrettable fact that ' the Cariabrobk man has in the* past been a failure id big cricket. Will history repeat itself in the forthcoming representaj tive matches, or may we look for a surprise. I hop© for the surprise, quite as much for the sake of the batsman, who shapes so well in club cricket, as for the province.

Austin's run out on Saturday was a most unfortunate happening for the popular Carisbrook batsman, and Albion got a cheap wicket thereby. It might be remarked in this -connection that the man who hesitates or takes' things for granted on the North Ground is lost. Austin concluded the ball had gone to the boundary, and after running the first one at a smart pace, hesitated before running the second, and Dyson, picking up the ball, smartly returned it in a twinkling — whatever space of time is indicated by that. There is a cricket moral hereabouts, and it is for a batsman to leave nothing to chance. Some time ago, with a view of bringing Callaway's excellent performances with the ball under the notice of Australian scribes, I wrote a few particulars concerning the ex-Australian, suggesting that in the present dearth of bowling talent in Australia, New Zealand might be looked to to furnish a bowler. Appears now as if .some notice was being taken of Callaway in Australia, for it is hinted in various places that he will have an opportunity of showing what he can do when the Australians pass through New Zealand, en route to England.

j At a country match several of the batting team were standing behind the bowler, about 50 yards away. The umpire rej peatedly called out wide. When the innings closed one of the fieldsmen asked him what ho called a wide. He promptly replied, "Anything the player don't strike at!" i The sub-committ&e of the Marylebone i Club has commended to the Board of j Control that the dates for the commencej ment of the tesrt; mutches be May 29, June ! 15, July 3, July 24, and August 14. The ! grounds have yet to be allotted. | Barron, an ex-Dunedin. High School ' boy now in Timaru, who is a fine bat and a useful change bowler, has been transferred to Christchurch, where he will play I for the Midland Club.

Apropos of the Australian vi§it to New ( Zealand and Clem Hill, a Sydney paper ! states that Hill, who is to be married in January, will leave for England in February instead of travelling with, the rest of the Australian. Meyen. The New Zealand Council combats the statement on t'hestrength of the council having written tJve authorities in. Australia a month ago, offering £1500 for a New Zealand tour, contingent on Noble, Trumper, Hill, and Duff playing in all six matches 1 . As no word has been received that the terms are not acceptable, the New Zealand Council is of opinion that Hill will make the trip. The schoolboy record breaker, O. H. Dean, playing for his school in the match against the masters in. Sydney the other day, scored 142 — his fifth hundred this season.

The following scores put up by the Canterbury Eleven against the Colts, on Friday last, may give local plyers some incli-

cation of th& form of their cricket brethren across the Waitaki: Ollivicr 62, Orchard 14 Sims 0, Callaway 0, Strange 16, Whitta 20, Garrard 31, Ridley 0, Bennett 0, Patrick 30, Boxshall, not out, 26. In connection with my visit to the Psorth Ground on Saturday, I am tempted to repeat the story of Madame Melba and "Victor Trumper, how the great singer on one occasion went to see the great batsman smite the opposition bowling hip and thigh, and how the great batsman was bowled for a blob, and how Madame Melba turned to her coachman, and disappointly said: "Home, John. 1 ' Well, the writer felt like that on Saturday when Dyson, the man from Lancashire or some other county equally famous for its cricket, was out Ibw to Siedeberg for 4. If to describe brilliant batting one may writo of the "champagne" of cricket, why not in the case of attrociously bad batting refer to it as stout, or some other such heavy liquid. Certainly the- stout of cricket would not fittingly describe the exhibition! (save the mark) given on the North Ground on Saturday, between Albion and Carisbrook B. I pause for quite a time to remember an innings so depressing as that of the north-end club. It is always within the bounds of possibility for a good batting side to be dismissed for a very small total, but intanoes are- rare where so many men in one eleven shape as if it^vas their- first experience of handling a bar. Dyson was certainly unfortunate in getting out Ibw — the most annoying dismissal a batsman labours under, — but G. Cummings, although he was at the crease for some little while, was never really comfortable to the bowling. I marvelled somewhat at this, for the young Otago representative appeared to have batted himself right back into form. Williams was out three times in his short reign, twice from chances, to which I shall refer later, and finally clean bowled. It was left to that patient batsman Stuart to play the bowling as it should have been played, and albeit he got but 14 runs, he shaped confidently from t<he outset. Cramond opened freely, though several of his strokes were uppish and earned applause for lifting a ball from Siedeberg well over the rails. The average spectator dearly loves his cricket breezy, but after Cramond's dismissal the game was becalmed, and the only incidents, if such they can be called, were the going to and fro of the batsmen. • It' might here be added that it was mostly going fro. E. Cummings, next to J. Stuart, shaped the most promisingly on the Albion side, and might very well have been put in earlier. Cohen was in merry vein, and although his was the cricket not aptly described as good, still he livened up matters by having a lash, which was effective while it lasted, but, unfortunately for Albion, that was not long -enough. Now as a set off against the weak batting, the bowling was unusually good, both Siedeberg and Austin sending down good balls, and few, if any, that could be designated as pap. Austin, albeit not getting the wickets, bowled quite as well, if not better, than Siedeberg, who did. There were two chances missed, off -Austin in the slips, likewise two off Siedeberg, which calls forth the remark that even Oarisbrook, so usually sure in the field, are not exempt from the microbe when visiting the North Ground.

The depressing things said of Albion might well be applied to Carisbrook, although in' a milder degree, ior save for the patting of Siedeberg and Sparrow, and the running out of Austin, who ,at the time of the unfortunate happening was playing his eye in, " none of the batsmen shaped like getting runs. Siedeberg's innings was the - one bright spot on an otherwise dull game. Save for being beaten twice by a couple of shooters from Corbett, which caused him somewhat humorously, to look under the carpet for the cause of the trouble, Siedeberg played a lusty innings, full of good cricket, and never looked like getting out. Early in his batting career he was appealed against for ' a catch behind the wickets, but on the accuracy or otherwise of the umpire's decision, which went in favour of the batsman, I am not in a position to state. At anyrate Siedeberg never gave a chance after that until his dismissal, which came about by his anxiety to drive Spence over the fence, when, on stepping out to do so, he was smartly stumped by Williams. Early in his innings Siedeberg allowed quite a number of leg balls to go passed -which should have been sent skimming to the boundary, if it can be said that the ball on the North Ground can be made to skim. For the most part it rolls but a few yards after landing. Carisbrook A have a good change bowler in F. Kahlenberg, who last Saturday, against Grange, clean bowled four men for 10 runs. He bowls a medium to a fast ball which is apt to swerve, away just as it drops. Kahlenberg also gets lots of | weight behind the ball. : Fisher played a good innings on Satur- ; day. batting very freely. He is returning j to his old style of batting. Fisher is also j bowling well this season. His place in the j New Zealand Eleven should be pretty certain, if he does anything at all in the interpro. matches. Pearlers, who has been batting so well and so consistently this season, was out j Ibw to A. Downes. This was all the more unfortunate as Pearless was certain t>he ball pitched outside his off stick, and so had placed his leg across to guard it. The young fielder who wishes to improve hi<3 work in the field would be well ■ repaid if he were to watch H. Graham for I an afternoon at mid-off. Whenever a. ball if driven anywhere wi+hin 30 yards of him it is certain to be stopped. There are. no "fireworks" about it, just good solid work. Two hands are always used if possible, and if not, there is usually afoot behind the single hand.

I am very pleased to notice Howden's name In. the list of the Otago players selected to go to Inveroargill. The Carisbrook man has been singularly unfortunate this season in that he has never been able to get properly going. A good sport and a keen cricketer, the writer wishes him every success against Southland.

There wa3 some aggressive tatting in junior cricket on the North Ground on Saturday. A small boy in knickers named Chadwiek, brother of the Grange wicketkeeper, hit out lustily for the midget he is The little fellow, by the way, had an amusing experience of being nearly run out early in his innings. In attempting a run for a couple he had just left the crease for the «eoond run when the ball was smartly thrown in to the bowler, but that worthy, in his excitement, fumbled it so badly that the boy, who when the ball reached the bowler's hands had soane thing like 20yds to oover, got to the crease in* safety, Iredateu Frank of that cricket family, Akr

languished himself last week in Sydney cricket by compiling 150 not out. Iredale was at the wickets two hours and a.-quarter, during which time he hit 16 4's and seven s's.

Sydney Redgrave, who frequently gave several exhibitions of batting when here with Hawtvcy's Comedy Company, playing in a match in Sydney the other day, scored 84 by brilliant cricket. His runs included three s's and nine 4's.

Playing in Adelaide the other day, Bailey hit up 126, and Darling Joe, of Australian cricket fame, 137 not out. Seems as if the Australian captain was in good form.

A Melbourne cable advises that Mr Frank Layer has been appointed manager of the Australian Eleven.

The veterans in the bar parlour of the Cricketers' Arms were spinning yams about the big hits they had made in the heyday of their youth. One unblushingly claimed that 'ie had once knocked a ball over thr^e fields on to a railway line, where it had dropped with sufficient force to knock the stoker of a passing train senseless. "Well, I'm better at gardenin than cricketin,' " remarked a man who had not previously spoken, "but I remember a funny thing that happened when I lived close to the cricket field. Somebody knocked a ball into my garden, and one of the fielders jumped over the fence, without as much as a 'by your leave,' to look for it. He picked it up, as he thought, and flung" it into a' field o' play, but' a minute later he was back again, laughin' fit " to burst his sides. "What's the matter?' says I to him. 'You found your ball, ch^nTi you?' 'Not I, mister,' says he. It was one o' your big red gooseberries that I picked "up by mistake.' " Then there was a silence in th© bar parlour of the Cricketers' Arms.

The Canterbury Cricket Association, at a recent meeting, decided that no cup matches should be played on December 24 and 31.

Mr D. H. Thomson has been appointed manager of the Canterbury oricket team which will play Otago at Dunedin on January 2, 3, and 4. The Canterbury Crioket Association has decided to ask the Otago Association to appoint the umpires for the match. The forthcoming tour of the Australian team in- New Zealand is already exciting a lot of interest, and the visrfp promises to arouse nearly as much enthusiasm as that of the British footballers did. After the holidays, during whicii several representative matches will bo played, we shall have a better cKance of judging the "probable starters" for the New Zealand team. As far as Canterbury" is concerned, the first man to be chosen (says a Christchurch writer) must be S. T. Callaway, whose bowling both this season arid last has been, I fancy, as good' as any the Australians will be able to show us. The season has been "a most Variable one, but on whatever class of wicket the ex-Sydneyite has been called to bowl'ttpon, he • has secured good figures.- So far this" season, in th© four Sl^rst Grade -rnafcliea played by his club, be has taken 4-0 wickets for a cost of 294- runs, thus -• averaging a fraction over "7 runs per "wicket. Last sea s: son, when 10 matches were played "in the competition, only three' trundlers took more wickets than Callaway has already to his credit. Other Canterbury playerg who may have a show of being selected are Sims, H. C. Eidley, Orchard, and Ollivier.

Mr F. A. Iredale has replied to the statements made by Mr P. F. Warner on the 1 reasons for the financial failure of" the recent visit to Australia, explaining the terms granted for the big contests at Sydney, where, "according to a ruling of the Equity Court the New South Wales Association has jurisdiction so far as the game itself is concerned -and the arrangement of all matches. The trustees of the ground possess the power to make all charges '-for use' of same, and it has invariably been -he rule before ibe season opens «o' draw up a scale of charges. In connection with the Marylebone Club tour, the rates were fixed as follows: — • Fifty per cent, gross takings to go to the Marylebone Club, Is 6d per head of grand stand entrance only (full charge 2s 6d) to the trustees of the Sydney Cricket Ground, and the balance to the Cricket Association. The percentage worked out as follows: — Fifty per cent. Marylebone Club, 28 per cent, trustees, and 22 per cent. Crioket Association. As the latter body paid all the expenses of the mateh — including players' fees, umpires, luncheons, advertising, gatemen, afternoon tea, refreshments for players, etc. — it wHI be easily seen that the association did not reap much of a harvest." Mr Iredale denies that there was a-n indiscriminate issue of complimentary and sut> scrihers' tickets, the number being as usual — viz., about 300, all told ; nor were -any lower-priced or temporary subscribers* tickets issued.

Prince Ranjitsinhji, the famous cricketer, has left England for India on a holiday visit. He will return to England in time for the opening of the next cricket season. Lord Hawke, the Yorkshire captain, is also going out to India cm a visit.

It is whispered, says a South Aus.traian writer, that Daring has no intention of going to England with the next Australian team, but let us hope his intentions have been misinterpreted, for he continues to be one of our best cricketejrs. His form last Saturday was conspicuous proof that he is still young and full of cricketing vigour. His defence was sound throughout, and his hitting clean and hard — he hit three s's. It is enough that Trumble has declined to seek laurels in the Old Country again. Australia can ill-afford to lose either a Trumble or a Darling jusfc yet, despite the number of promising young bloods who are coming to the fore. It is quite right that young men should get their chance, but a team of youngsters is as undesirable as aw eleven of grey heads. The two elements balance one another. The young men bring the enthusiasm and energy of youth. and the oder men tfte experience and steadiness of experience. Darling is distinctly the sort of man to steady and solidify a. Team. He always keeps his head! and shows good judgment. Therefore let us hope that the rumours about the old Australian captain won't be realised. His name alone will go a long way to inspire our men with confidence on the English ovals in 1905.

Alfred Shaw, who was one of England's greatest cricketers, tells a story which shows what a bowler may do by using a little thought. It wa« in a match between the Gentlemen and the Players, at the Oval. The former had won the toss, and Shaw was to open the bowling. Before the batsmen cam© out, he sent a few balls down by the side of the pitch, and by doing so discovered that he could get on just a trifle of break. Now, Shaw knew that one or tliQ two batsmen who were conaras in wm

fond of playing forward as much as poseible. "So I said to myself," to use the old bowler's words, "If I can get him to think I can't make tEe ball break, he'll lunge out carelessly at everything. So I bowled him two overs of straight, goodlength balls, which he played forward at in fine, graceful style. Seemg 1 ho was easy tn his mind and confident, I bowled the next ball a little slower, and with all the off break on I could. He came out just the same, so gracefully, but the ball brpJce in just an inoh or so, enough for him. to play outside it, not watching it, and it hit his middle and leg stumps. Now, if I had bowled him that ball In the first over He'd have played it, because he was on the lookout. He would have learned his lesson from it." This story illustrates how valuable it is for a bowler "to use his brain. Many Übwlers are quite content «o t long as they keeo a length and make the ball break. If they *dded a little thinking power they would achieve greater success. Thought and Btrategy will help considerably to dismiss the most troublesome batsmen. M. A. Noble is one who is a general at out-generaiiing a batsman (says a Sydney writer). Trunible and a number of other Australians also shone in the same way. There is far too much off theory* bowling and time and time again the crowd has been heard to tell the • bowler to have a go at the stumps. But some bowlers seem to despair of ever bowling a batsman, and are quite satisfied to keep pegging away well outside the off stump, with a good length, of course. They, hope by this -method to' cause the bateman to lose patience, and to make him lash out at a bafi too wide for him to hit properly, and' then to-be "caught. - Of course- the off theory came off successfully when, it was first tried, but it is now "quite common, and very few" batsmen fall victims -to it. After a eeries of. reverses at the han<?s of the Patearoa men the Naseby cricketers have at last succeeded in stemming the tide of adversity by 'scoring a meritorious win lasi Saturday against their formidable opponents. "Although only given 70 runs to beat,-, the batting of the Patearoa team proved unequal to' the task, and less than half of the' required, number were obtained. Taking into consideration that the,-bowlers-•who proved the destructive agents on this occasion ."have played in every match between the two olubsj and are therefore well known, % the only reason .to be assigned- is over confidence, or" perhaps the batting has .deteriorated or the bowling improved co immensely.' Be that as it may, the collapse of the strong batting team is unaccountable, and a hig improvement' will have to be effected before v th£ return match, or the Patearoa. Club will lose- its supremacy. The Naseby people are now looking for-, -ward to the visit of the Albion team, whicn visits' their tow.n on thedlfcth December, and «very effort, is- 'to be made to make -itje visitors' sojourn as enjoyable as possible. The Naseby Cricket Gmbjhas been greatly strengthened lately by th©-. inclusion in jts Tanks of ' -H. A." Boddington, " jthe wellknown Otago, .Canterbury, and Nelson inter*-' provincial representative. '* His lorm, Both' in.- 'batting 'and. wicket-keeping, this season 'is. up to his usual standard, and there is :nor:doubt. c .that- with-I his coaching and example,' the". younger members/of the teaja amtst -greatly' benefit? 5 - . - Another /player whose -presence ■ greatly strengthens the Naseby team is. that of H. • W. Hilton, whose bowling "and bat-, tingx some years , ago. were the principal factors in- maintaining the Lawrence team in the. .premier position among ''the South Otago. clubs. Although • rather out* of. form, ■ Hilton' 4 .performances this year in ' scor-ing-double .figures- ao> every occasion he aas played shows that he is as reliable as ever. The latest addition to"' their ranks is J. James,- an, old Dunedin cricketer, of .the time of the Civil. Service Phoenix Clubs some 14- .years ago, but. whose name nas been more . prominent in connection with other sports -than cricket since that time. However, as there is no rowing up Mount' Ida "way, James has returned to his old love, and, witu his well-known enthusiasm and energy, ought soon to recover some of his old form. Besides^these three, the club includes among its members J. P. Malcolm, another ola Phoenix man, wa~> last season annexed the,, batting average', and as several of the younger members show very promising form, there appears every prospect of cricket, matches in the curling district being more than usually interesting — anyway, any town, team desirous of a good game, an interesting trip, and a cordial welcome, can do a deal worse than visit Kaseby.

A Napier telegram states that the first century of the cricket season there was made on Saturday, when J. (E. Macassey, playing for United against Scinde, scored 213^. not out, and also 1 obtained the best bowling average for his side.