CRICKET.

Otago Witness, Issue 2913, 12 January 1910, Page 64

CRICKET.

NOTES BY LONG SLIP. A Christchurch critic states that Siedeberg is probably entitled to rank as the besD batsman. Otago has over placed in the field against Canterbury, and thia despite the presence of Graham and Clarke in previous teams.

Dear Long- Slip,—When in town during the holidays I wandered out; to the Carisbiook to see Otago and Southland play. While there I got into conversation with one of New Zealand's oldest and beetknown cricketers. During the course of our talk I mentioned seeing the great Spoft'orth playing there. This was taken exception to by my friend, who 'maintained that this player never played at Oarisbrook. I should like if you .vould settle this point by looking up the tilts of your paper and stating who is correct. If wrong, I have been labouring under the delusion of seeing one of Spofforth's smitten by one of Otago's men right over the tops of the bluogums which surround the ground, the said trees being, of course, much smaller than they now are. —I am, etc., A Lovek of Cricket, Lawrence, January 8. It is r.ot alone- in Dunedin that the umpiring comes i'i for criticism. An esteemed friend in Wanganui forwards a marked copy of ;'he Herald, containing a little discussion in connection with a match in which an Auckland team was 'engaged. Seme extracts: "... At least four doubt'ul decisions were given against the batsmen. . . . The looker would certainly have been better pleased bad there been less frivolous appeals by" the Aucldanders." And the Aucklandere ratort: "We bag to state that the Wanganui players concerned, on being approached, were quite unanimous on the fairness of the ruling given. Wo, as the •'appealers,' wish to convey to the public our assurance, that the local team are too sportsmanlike to have said anything to load, ro the insertion of such a. misleading report." It would not be very reassuring if the match for the Plunket Shield between Otago and Auckland was to be decided at the Mount Albert Ground:—"There ars some bad wickets in Auckland, but surely the Mount -Albert ground 'takes the cake.' On Saturday last the ball was twice lost withini four yards of the stumps ! The ground, except in patches, but especially round the concrete pitch, is covered with docks, etc., growing to a height of fully one foot. With the exception of high boundaries and lost balls the eocr3 wias reduced to siagles for any hit. Strokes worth four on a good ground bad no result. This is a ground on which championship matches are played, and on which good batsmen, coached to correct style, are expected to make runs. This is a good example of the urgent necessity of more pitches with decent outfields." ' _ : • ' ; The last word: ". . . in Auckland at matches in which Relf was playing appeals against, the professional for leg-before were made every time the bait hit the batsman's pads". I am afraid that the. complaint must be infectious, and it will be an un-iortunate circumstance if this contagion spreads to other parts of the Dominion. After the Auekland-Citago match last season, one can believe almost anything of thia kind about the ' sporting' characteristics of the champion province." . , Some unpleasantness was caused in the St. Albans-West Christchurch senior gams (writes my Christchurch correspondent) ■ by one of the umpires giving a"W est Christchurch man out lbw to Sandman, a slow, ; leg-break bowler, on a very faint appeal, and a little later repeating his action without any appeal. The captains asked the umpire to retire, but the. game was stopped nearly half an hour before *he umpire would 'accede to the wishes ot the players. Matters are not running as smoothly With regard to the team to visit New Zealand, as could be wished (remarks an Australian writer). There will probably be no meeting of the Board of Control until late in January. When. Frank Laver, the manager of the Australian team, submits his report, then a meeting will be called. In the meantime there is the team for New Zealand to be chosen. Were all the associations workimgi amicably with the board the appointment of a selection committee would be an easy lratfcer. Viotoria, South Australia-, and New South Wales could each nominate a man. and the three could pet to work. But the association in. thai City of the Churches will not agree- to this. So the selection committee must ba chosen by the board, and there will be ro meeting until late in January. This is altogether a.arainst the interests of the New Zep'nnd bodies.

When Dunedin resumed their innings aeainsfc Oarisbrook B on Saturday, the genera] opinion was that fchev would just about fail to get the runs. So it proved. the B winning by 37. Up to the fall of the eighth wicket, the .game was "anyone's." but after Macknrsy's dismissal, and the fact that the Dunedin were batting one short. Oarisbrook stock went up with a bound.

Undoubtedlv the feature of the innings was Mackersy's 57. This player invariably rises to the occasion, and either with bat or ball pulls his side out of the mire. That he did not- turn defeat into victory' this time was the fault of the batsmen who followed him. Austin was responsible for Mackersy's dismissal, sending him back with a beautiful .length ball, which rose sharply and took the bails.

Macartney kept an excellent length, and sent down 33 overs (11 maidens) for 33 runs and two wickets. A lot of half volleys, however, were allowed to go unrnmisbwl. The balls the little Sydney man bowled Wilson and De la Mare'with were trimmers.

Goyen, whose first appearance it was with the Dunedin Senior Eleven, m<a4*i some good strokes, and scored 21 in attractive stvle: but for a forcing batsman he showed rather too much rcspeot for Macartney s half volleys. Porbeous. too, wants to out a lot more power into his strokes. He has good defence, but will neve>- moko a long score unless he uses more "wood."

For a batsman of his build Do la Mare surprised, me with his hitting power. One nice clean drive over the fence off Godfrey was worthy of C. G. Wilson. Maekersy was also very partial to the slow leg-break bowler, off whom, he added several boundary hits to his tally. When Condliffe faced Godfrey it was seen that the Weliingtonian is not at home to slows. He "poked" at them in such a fashion as to bring three fieldsmen within two or three yard's of his bat. It was no surprise, then, when he eventually returned one softly to the;.bowler and retired with 15 to his credit.

That usually safe catch, Austin, missed De la Mare rather badly at deep mid-off. The ball came straight at the fieldsman, who ran- in 'and got it in bs hands, from whence, however, it bounded over his shoulder to the ground. Leys, for some unexplained reason, was absent from the Dunedln team. As things were going, his presence might have made all the difference: one can. never tell at cricket. Leys is a "sticker" when he likes, and has made 50 before to-day. "While on the subject of absentees, I may state, with regret, that, there are far too many "casual" players in the game nowadays, both in senior and junior ranks, but more especially in junior. On the Caledonian Ground on Saturday there were two Seoand Grade matches, neither of which was started much before a quarter to 3, because members of the fielding side were late in turning up. In the case of the Grange, indeed, for quite a while they had five substitutes fielding for them. This '"tired" element is becoming more and more noticeable, and it behoves olub committees to quietly drop those members who have not sufficient interest in their team or in the game to be on hand from the start of play till the drawing of stumps. There is a vast deal of interest, amongst members of the Duncdin Club especially, in the match between the chub's two (Second (irade teams, which begins next Saturday on the Caledonian Ground. The "B's" and the "C's" have 'been looking forward to this game all the year, and there should be some keen cricket. The B team is so far unbeaten, while- the O has fallen away

somewhat from its form at the opening of the season, but the members of tihe latter hope to bo at their best during' tho nexit two weeks.

Austin's dismissal lbw on Saturday was}, the third time in succession he has had to retire in this unsatisfactory way. For to got out lbw is. always unsatisfactory— to rbo batsman- In a junior match at Monte, cillp there was a good deal of discussion, as to whether it was- "possible" for a bats-.: man to bo out lbw to a, bowler bowling round the wiplcet. Of course it is possible,,, but it is very seldom that all. the oondb tions are present—-the ball pitching in the prescribed area and going on so that it would have hit the wicket. Already the disastrous defeat of Southland by Otago in the in.terpirqvincial cricket match .played at Dunedin has been used to "point a moral and adorn a tale." In

a leaderette on the glorious, uncertainty of

cricket the Chrisbchurch Press has the fob: owing:—"Lush's figures show bow quickly ■,nd ruthlessly a man may be pushed from "be heights of success to the depths of: lilure...After playing a splendid; timingsi >1 102 not out. on the first day of the Otago, natch, he was at once dismissed on the oliowing. morning,: failed to score in the: sooqipd innings, aiud scored 5 and 0 in the .natch against Wellington.. "Macartney,, on, the ether hand, after disappointing many people bsre,. hit up 118 against Southland. Macartney making- a century against Sonthla.nd ..reminds us rather of a bishop making l , jokes at. the. expanse of a curate. It ib entertaining, but rather cruel." ■■■ r. ,.-■■ A: C. Facy, one of Tasmania's best players, who will be a member of the Australian team for N.Z. : next month, put up another fine bowling performance on December 18, his figures for the afternoon reading eight for 46 runs. On the opening day 34 runs were scored' off him, and he failed to get a wicket. In the additional '>Say 17 ; runs, were knocked off him before he got..a wicket,- but once his arm found lis swing, there was a procession of bats-. «en from and to the pavilion on the New Town ground: He bowled at a great -•ace. kept..-, a beautiful length, and his.breaking, back badly beat several of the suburbanites.: Seven of his eight victims had their, timbers knocked back. Facy's. bowling figures this season deserve to rank with the-many splendid' records put up by the leviathan C. J. Eady. Facy : s a young"' and most enthusiastic cricketer and goes, into a game with a whole-heartedness that might well be emulated by others. He ban also wield ' a vigorous bat, and is just the type, •if hitter to create uneasiness amongst opposing bowlers. He has so far this season situred 41 wickets at a cost of 296 runs, ■hich gives Him an average of 7.21 runs wicket. , His figures an© so srood that hey are given.in full: —Against North R - ' iart; 7 wickets for 34 runs; West Hobart, " for 34; West Hobart, 6 for 79; South "Tobart, 7 for 20: South Hobart, 6 for 36; find- New Town. 8 for 80. "Lord's" is 112 years old. In the begin"ing it' was an offshoot of White Conduit <"'hib. which, in the latter half of the last. was the most important jricket -bib in London. It got its name from one ""hoina-s Lord, who was engaeed at that ub in the dual capacity of attendant and 'vwler: Owing to dissensions amongst the ■ ombera. Lord was instructed to prospect "or another ground. The space which is w known as Dorset square was secured, cio' Lord's ground came into' being. M.C.C; •M;t' its ground" in Dorset Square for two oars, and then in consequence of a demand for increased rent from the landlord ■h changed its site to North Bank, a fewhundred vards distant from its present, position. Eleven years later the ground was threatened with sudden dissolution nwing to Lord's resolve to cell some of ground to jerry-builders, but disaster -as averted by the patriotism of a Mi Ward who purchased the remainder of the »«,«> 'at, an exorbitant figure Five years Cter Ward sold the unexpired portion, to ..man man nanwd Dark who disposed f it to the committee in 1863 for £II.OOO -iter on ene of the members advanced -V committee the necessary purchase money and enabled them to secure final possession of the ground. OHRISTGHURCH NOTES. (Fxoix Ovn Own Cobeespondent.J January 10. • 4 fte r a „ interval of a fortnight matches ■„ the district competitions were resumed on SatuSav afternoon in beautifu weather and o good Wekete. All the aemor teape tere weakened through the representative Zm being away in Auckland', but aome *t tho promoted juniors in the West Christ church team played good cricket, The

other teams played short-handed to keep open the places of their members now on tour. St. Albans (one man short) batted first against a West Christchur.ch full team, and made 219. T. W. Reese (61) and Bishop (4-1) was a good opening partnership, and then Ackroyd (37) assisted materially. Wilson made 26, and B. Miles (36 not out) and Weston (11) made a good last-wicket stand. The Westerners' bowling was weak, while their fielding was not up to senior standard. At call of . time West Christchurch had lost six wickets for 100. Jennings (22), Chrystall (20), Fuller (10 not out), and Tattersall (10) were the doublefigure scorers, and there were 14 extras. Sandman got five wickets. Linwocd are in a bad way with Riccarton. The former batted first, and made only 143. Howell was top scorer with 40 not out, made by good hitting. R. Ridley got 36, Thomas 28, and Owen 22. Rix, a promoted Junior, had a day out with the ball, and' got the fine figures of seven for 55. A. Norman (69) and Caygill (73 not out) started off excellently, and the first wicket put on 126. Ellis (27) followed, and' at call of time Riccarton had only three wickets down for 174. Thomas got two of the wickets. East Christchuroh (two men short) and Sydenham (one man short) had a very even afternoon's play. East batted first, but were all out for 101, of which Arthur TSims made 52 not out in his best style. Ward, the last wicket, mad© 20, and Willsteed 10. Watson took six wickets for 42 runs. Sydenham's innings totalled 106. Moore made 30, M'Clelland 13, Watson 14, and Ayling 12. Ward and Sims divided the bowling honours. Ir then second innings East have lost four wickets for 67, Willstesd making 35 not out, Ward 14, and Criohton 10. Sims was bowled by Watson when he had scored 6. Best senior bowling figures:—Watson (S.), 13a overs, 1 maiden, 42 runs, 6 wickets; G. Rix (R), 16 overs, 2 maidens, 55 runs, 7 wickets, 1 wide; Boulton (W.C.), 20 overs, 4 maidens, 82 runs, 5 wickets; A. E. Ward (E.C.), 15 overs, 6 maidens, 45 runs, 5 wickets; A. Sims (E.C.), 13 overs, 55 runs, 3 wickets; L. Edmonds (E.G.), 2 'overs, 2 maidens, 1 wicket.