CRICKET.

Otago Witness, Issue 2856, 9 December 1908, Page 60

CRICKET.

. ■ ] ] NOTES BY LONG SLIP. Onsi warm evening 1 last week, wheD the very atmosphere breathed cricket, I strolled out to C'ambrook to watch the practice of the aspirants for Plunket Shield honours. Only about half a dozen of those selected were present, and there was a general casualnees about the whole "proceedings which was imprcssue. Indeed, the practice was no better than it should have been ; and in saying this I am not unmindful of the fact that the players are serious enough, but there is no method. And it was lack of system which killed the preliminary preparation of tlie Otago team last year before it went on that ill-fated .northern tour. In it* fight for the Plunkec Shield this year Otago is represented by a very powerful side — powerful, that is, on reputation, — but it cannot be that the Plunket Shield is as good »3 won by Otago. Yet one night be disposed to think so, judging by the practice the other evening. If Otago is to justify the despatching of a team jorth with a view to wresting the shield from Auckland, by all means give the eleven the preparation necessary for the struggle. The who! 31 side should be on the ground at a specified time ; practice should start at that hour as nearly as possible ; all nets should be done away with, and the side given their allotted places in the field as for a match; the recognised bowlers should alone ba put on, including Wordsworth, the Sydney professional ; Ayles, who ia the batting coach, should stand by and instruct tha batsm-en how certain balls should be played. In a word, the practice should be made as keen as the match itself; particular j attention being given to fielding, picking up, catching, and throwing it. All these things tell in a match, and it may be that the Plunket Shield will not be lost through bad batunir or indifferent bowling, but : wretched fieJding, and for wretched fielding | th-e.ir is no excu<sf> Therefore, away with the nets and play the game without trimminga, I

To an. expectant public the team to represent Otago against Auckland has been made known. It requires no hard thinking to recognise in it the strongest combination which has been got together for some seasons to represent the province. It may be that the team will not give universal satisfaction — no team has ever yet done so, — but we must expect this. When the public take up the roll of amateur selectors they are confronted with the difficulty, not who to put. in, buj; who to keep out. This serves to introduce a cricket proverb in connection with the selection of an Australian Eleven: "Next to getting into an. Australian. Eleven, the hardest thing is to get out." In glancing over the names o£ the Otago team the proverb might applyto the representatives for Plunfcet Shield honours, ,hut there is this justification in favour of the" Otago players, that with twoexceptions they are tried and trusted 1 , and worth their pieces. Howden and Hopkins we know to be excellent bats, and before the tour takes place 'are certain, to demon? strate their form. The two professionalsare at present not sufficiently well known in quality to express a straight-out opinion. I prefer to see something more of them before venturing any statement* concerning their worth in the teanr alongside one or two of our own players who have had to stand down in their favour. The Otago representative team must be selected on form, and whatever attitude the selectors take up in regard to the inclusion dfthe"' two gentlemen engaged as coaches the chief consideration in the selection of the Otago team in ita quest for the Plunket Shield should be form. Car.isbrook has five representatives in tho Otago team (Howden, Austin, Siedeberg, -Fisher, and Hopkins), Dunedin two (Wilson and Torrance), Albion two (Williams and Wordsworth), Opoho one (Ayles); * and Grange one (Downes). The team-should be particularly strong in attack with Downes, Fisher, Torrance, and Wordsworth bearing the brunt of the trundling, and Austin and Siedeberg as changes. In ' batting, too, tie whole side is capable of making runs — how many 1 would not like to say. -Messrs Ayles (Melbourne) and Wordsworth (Sydney), the two coaches engaged by the Otago Association, to teach the young idea how to play cricket, have already n taken up their duties.- Wordsworth has a nice, easy action,, and swings down a very fast baU on occasions. He wee alleged in some quarters to be as fast as Cotter, but with better .length and direction. I oarmot 6ay for his "speed," but hehas certainly not yet shown, us that he is as fast as the Sydney "express," but that he bowls with better length and direction there is no gainsaying. Wordsworth | mixes" them with rare judgment, sending down a variety which puzzles the" bateman and has him thinking all the time. Ayles, a Port Melbourne batsman, is so far something of an unknown quantity, and until he gets used to our wickets it would be unfair to judge him on what little ha has shown at practice. That he will prove a .useful club batsman I have no doubt, but whether he is much superior to come of the local talent has yet to be proved. The ex-Cambrook cricketer Fritz Kahlenberg, of this city, who has been in England for several seasons, playing for Wanderers against the* Young Amateurs of Surrey put; up a good performance with the ball, securing five for 20, and compiled 13 with the bat. Kahlenberir is recognised 13 a very promising bowler in English ;ricket circles. Dunedin's score against Albion on Saturday was not what one could term an even performance. Deducting Wilson's and Mackersy's contributions, there remain but 28 runs for the other nine batatnen. Wilson's 93 was a very fine innings, full of power. He picked the right ball to hit, *and made no mistake about the hitting, 21 of his strokes going to or over the fence. It would have been .well deserved had he accomplished the dual performance of going right through the innings and scoring the century. Mackersy once again proved his usefulness by helping Wilson to put on 60 runs. Both batsmen showed a particular fondness for Vorreth's slows, and thumped him unmercifully. The Albion captain's five overs resulted in 55 runs being added to the Dun«»din total, and practically settled the result in favour of the home team-. This class of bowling is not suited to a small ground hkf> the Caledonian. Young Haig showed good defence in making his double figures. Hejfonly needs to put a little more powder into his strokes and smart-on up in his running between wickets to become a useful club man. Haig is on the list of colts being coached by Wordsworth and Ayles, so has the opportunity to improve. Drake's 50 not out in Albion's "first innings was a useful contribution. The runs were grot, too, at a. time when things were going all wrong. Hiddlestone also deserves credit for his double — 22 and 21. Frank Williams, tho veteran * Otago wicket-keeper, is putting up some good batting performances this year. He i» na" lonseer the tail end "basher," but a good, reliable batsman to open the innings with. There was surely something wrong, how- - ever, when Frank allowed- 19 bye» to swellr Dunedin' s total. Wordsworth* first appearance, in «, match in this country was not the- successmost people . expected. The Sydney m»Q. has not been^feeling too fit since, his* arrival, but to become acclimatised before many days. Wordsworth, kept an accurate- length on,. Saturday, and obviously had a bit in reserve, so far as pace » concerned. H« kept them mostly outside the off stick,

and had the wicket been more fiery, might have trapped a few. Hiddlestone accounted for the last three Dunedin wickets at a cost of but 1 run. The ball with which he bowled \\ llson ■was a good length, with just enough turn from leg to beat the bat. Cummings kept them on the wicket, and 01 nis 16 overs 11 were maidens-^seven of tnein in succession. The ball Graham dragged into his wicicet •was wide on the off, and should have feeen left severely alone. Jim was too impetuous as usual. . It was a splendid catch by which Strang aismissed Mackersy. The fieldsman had to run some distance along the banked asphalt track, but notwithstanding the awkward footing, judged the flight of the ball beautifully. It is tantalising io a batsman to play the ball and then have to watch it dnbble against the stumps with just sufficient force to dislodge a bail. He doesn t Know whether to risk a hit or a kick at the ball, or to let it go on the chance of its not shaking a bail off. This was J. Wilkie's experience in the Dunedin inn- " ings on Saturday, and— the bail came oft. The following team has been selected to represent Otago against Auckland :— Austin. Ayles Downes, Fisher, Howden, Hopkins, Siedeberg, Torrance, Williams, Wilson. . Wordsworth ; emergencies— Rutherford and j C Beal. These players are requested to | attend at Cariebrook for practice on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday evenings. As a batsman E. Humphreys, the English professional, is in a class by Himself in Canterbury. He has a pretty style and, unlike some of our other good bats, he shows, no great partiality for anT particular stroke. He excels m good, all-sound play, and is quite as strong on the- on-side as he is in cutting and driving. He sandwiches his play up delightfully, and one never knows what next to expect. His continuation innings of lUU not out on Saturday was flawless, and had he received the opportunity he looked like going on for the day. It is delightful to fit in the shade with a mealy-filled pipe and watch him going. When bowing he has the disadvantage of being treated with norhaps too much respect, and instead ot the batsmen "going for him" and making runs or getting out, they "pat them back, and give no chances, so his average surfers. But this timidity will wear off with mtimacy. , I The question of payment to player? tor tima lost while playing cricket is exciting as much comment in S\dncy cricketing circles as it did in football. The Sydnov Daily Telegraph sa.\*: It is not c\eiv cricketer who can afford to forego his earnings for a Week or two, even for the aionour of being chosen to represent his State on a tour; neither would the pubi.e wish the players to make such a sacrifice or wish to see unrepresentative iem'.-a, chesen from among: those whom lose of irages or billet did not deter. The death is announced in Auckland of George ' Lankham, in his seventy-eighth T ear. The deceased was a member of the team of > 1873 which toured New Zealand and won every match. He represented Auckland on many ocasions with great success, hi 3 bowling— mediocre pace round arm, the ball bein^ delivered in the oldfashioned way (no higher than the *noul«3er}—being very euceesful, as VY. L. Murdoch found op one occasion. He did not depend on break or pace but on accuracy of pitch for his wickets. He was originally played as a wicket-keeper, his bowling abilities being discovered accidentally. He had almo3t quixotic notions as to how tho "noble game" should bo played, contending that a bowlor who made an appeal •when he knew The decision ought to be "not out" was trying to cheat. Although, owing to the infirmities of age, h? had for come years ceased to take an acnvo partin the ga.me, he retain^pd his interest in it to the last. During his last illness nothing■plea^cl him more than to talk over old cricketing episodes with any of lii* old friends. "When the N.Z. Umpires' Association was formed in 1898 he was elected unanimous! v its first president. Tho question of representative matches was discussed at a recent meeting- of the Taranaki Cricket Association. -It was decided to play Wanganui and Manawatu during the Christmas week, and it is hoped that arrangements will allow of matches t

with Canterbury or Otago at the New Year. The latter will depend on the arrangements made for playing- the Flunket Shield matches at Auckland. The opinion was also expressed that the Canterbury eleven would probably travel up north via the Main Trunk line, in which case Taranaki would be left out of their list of fixtures.— [ Otago has decided not to play Taranaki, but is arranging a match against Wanganui instead. — Loxg Slip.]