CRICKET

Southland Times, Issue 20939, 23 November 1929, Page 18

CRICKET

(By

"Onlooker.”)

TO-DAY’S SENIOR GAMES. Bluff v. Unions at Bluff. I.C.C. A v. I.C.C. B, at Showgrounds. - Appleby, a bye. ' REPRESENTATIVE FIXTURES. SOUTHLAND'S PROGRAMME. December 28 and 30 —versus Beale’s * Auckland team, at Invercargill. January 1 and 2 —versus South Canterbury, at Invercargill. January 4 and 6 —versus M.C.C. team, at Invercargill. NOTES AND COMMENTS Cyclones and cricket won’t niix—hence the postponement of all games last Saturday. The conclusion of the first round of senior games and the commencement of two-day matches has been thrown back-one week owing to the boisterous weather conditions ruling last week-end. The English team arrives at Wellington on December 10, and commences the first game of the New Zealand tour, with Wellington, on December 13. Plunket Shield games take. Otago to Auckland and Christchurch this season. Their third game against Wellington will be. played in Dunedin. Junior players ure reminded that an Otago junior representative side will be visiting Invercargill about Christmas time. It is time the association did something in the matter and appointed a selection committee.

Preliminary arrangements for the tour of the Australian team in England next season have been finalized and some of the new conditions for team members make interesting reading. Several changes in the procedure of selection and conduct of the team have been made, in view of the last tour’s experience. The selectors have been instructed to choose the team as a whole, not in parts, as was done last time. The selection must be made before January 30, when the Board will meet in Sydney for its next meeting. The Board will not approve of the selection of a player who, during the coming season, comments in the Press on the prospects of any- cricketer who might possibly become a member of the team. Professional journalists, however, have been exempted, up to the time of selection. The team shall consist of 15 players. Each player will receive £5O prior to embarkation, £4OO during the tour, £l5O on return, and 30/- a day expenses. Each player will be required to guarantee not to return to England before two years. The team will leave on March 12 by the Orford, and will return by the Oronsay, leaving London September 27. Tests will start at 11.30 each day, and continue until 6.30. No player may leave the field during a match for a shower or massage. (This follows the incident at Adelaide last year, when exception was taken to one of the Englishmen leaving the field.) In the event of neither side having an advantage in the first four tests, the fifth will be played out. The first four Tests will be of four days. Who wouldn’t be an Aussie cricketer at £6OO per tour (equal to £24 per week) and 30/- a day to help spend the ‘six hundred”? Is this cricket? In the course of a few years we may expect to find the Board of Control abolished and playerartists “playing” under the “J.C.W.” banner or Fuller-Hayward direction, with stars such as Bradman and Jackson receiving £lOO a performance! There are several juniors at present playing second-grade cricket, any one of whom is fit for senior cricket. Three that come to mind are Titchener (1.C.C.), E. Keast (Tisbury), and Logan (Appleby). Not only in their own interests should they be regraded, but also in the interests of other juniors. The association has power to take action should club selectors deem it advisable to keep these boys “down.” The postponement last week favoured I.C.C.C. B. Coupland was not available last Saturday, but will be to-day. It is understood that Frank Petrie and Jack Doig will turn out for I.C.C. B. very shortly. Union’s attack, weak as it is at present, will be further weakened by the absence of McGowan during the next four or five weeks. Owing to pressure of business Union’s young left-hander will have to give Saturday cricket best until the New Year. McGowan is getting plenty of cricket, however, and in Wednesday games is putting up some excellent performances with both bat and ball.

G. W. (“Bob”) Brown’s services will be lost to Union very shortly. Bob has received notice of his transfer to Auckland. While regretting his departure from the town, cricketers generally - will be pleased to learn that the transfer means promotion and will wish Bob all that is good in his new billet.

Union seem to be getting it in the neck properly lately! Archie Hamilton is the latest to cause the club some concern. “A.J.” has been indisposed recently and -it may be a week or two before he can take the field again. He will be missed from the Union ranks, his ability as a good all-round club man being undisputed. Gordon Johnston is gradually mending up after his recent accident and southenders may see him at the bowling crease again before the present year fades. Johnston was badly missed in the Union— Appleby game as the Appleby attack without him is not over-strong. His re-ap-pearance will be welcomed. The Appleby men are looking forward to the turning out of Tom Groves and Harry Sherrills. The latter is due in Invercargill in a few weeks and Tom Groves, last year’s senior captain, has stated his intention of having a go shortly. With this pair and Johnston back again, Appleby will be as strong as any side in the competition.

A Wednesday player who possesses more than a passing knowledge of the game is R. Pollok, late of Timaru High School. Pollok is a “correct” batsman and a splendid fieldsman. He is keen on the game and it is a pity he cannot link up with a Saturday club. There are distinct possibilities in this young player and there is no reason why he should not play himself into one of the Southland teams to meet visiting teams at New Year.,

Ths action of the Southland Times Company in providing a cup for competition among the Wednesday teams is being greatly appreciated by both the association and mid-week cricketers. And strangely enough there* appears to be more keenness m these games than those of the Saturday competition. ' It is good to see the various teams out on a Wednesday afternoon, at Queen’s Park. Last week.a strong "Grocers’” team were hard put to stall off the youthful Collegiate team. Lack of experience cost the exTech. boys the game. They failed to take advantage of the runs waiting to be scored and literally threw the game away by not

taking full advantage of their scoring shots. At least 20 runs were lost in this manner and the margin of defeat was 13 runs! Thom, Ferguson and Sparkes are three good boys in the Collegiate side. In the hands of a good coach these boys should turn out to be good senior players in the course of a season or two.

Waikiwi’s reply of 87 for no wickets against Times (six for 149) last week was a very good performance C. Watson and T. Metcalfe defied all changes and were unbeaten when time was called. Waikiwi won the Wednesday competition last year. Both Watson and Metcalfe are good wicketrunners and what they lack in _ stylish scoring shots they make up in getting full value for all hits. It was good to see their running between the wickets against Times.

In addition to presenting the cup, the Southland Times Company has decided to present a miniature cup as well each year, the replica to become the property of the winning team’s captain. This spirit is the right one and should go even further to popularizing an already popular competition.

The bat that J. B. Hobbs used in the last Test match in Sydney, December 14 to 20, 1928, autographed by members of the English team, and now being displayed in a Sydney shop window, is causing much interest. It will be remembered that this bat was presented by Hobbs to Mrs Morley Watson for suggesting the “Barracker’s Bob-in Fund” to celebrate the great batsman’s 46th birthday on December 15, 1928. In making a contribution of £250 to the South Africa Cricket Association, Sir Harry, McGowan wrote:

“I hope that this lead will enable you to get other individuals to subscribe in the same manner and thus help to continue the sending of South African teams here and elsewhere, as the results of such visits cannot be overvalued from the point of view of Empire.”

During the evening sales at Doncaster (Eng.), Mr Gerald Deane auctioned two cricket bats, one autographed by the English and Australian Test match teams, and the other by the jockeys and Press teams who played a cricket match at Hove. The first was bought by Mr Stanley Wootton for 13gns., and the other by Mrs J. Shepherd, wife of the owner of Winalot, for 60gns. The proceeds go to the Royal Sussex Hospital, the Royal Alexandra Hospital for Children, and St. Dunstans. Keeping well abreast of the times “Senex” sends a iurther budget of very interesting notes concerning cricket and cricketers abroad. His weekly letter is greatly appreciated and is always welcome. This week “Senex” writes:—

“Last week I mistakenly named Sydney instead of Brisbane as the venue of the match between N.S.W. and Queensland, and omitted Oldfield as wicket-keeper for any suggested team of Australian Test players who have also played the game with the pen.

“Australian fast bowlers have lately been disappointing. Wall and Whitfield did poorly against the Englishmen at Adelaide, Alexander failed in the Melbourne match, of which the most sensational features, were the failure of Ponsford with the bat and the success of Blackie with the ball. Theak, the big Sydney youth who bowled well in grade matches and for Macartney’s countrytouring team was ineffective against the Queensland Colts. Halcombe did well at Perth before the Englishmen had got their land legs.- If they were not so far west, he and Horrocks would likely be given further chances to prove themselves. “The N.S.W. team to meet the Englishmen is youthful. Dupain, Oldfield and Kippax are probably the oldest. Like Bradman, C. Andrews was found outside the metropolitan area. I think McCabe was, too. All three are good batsmen. Allsopp is a promoted junior, who batted well for the Colts against Queensland. He is said to have all the batting strokes already and can keep wickets a bit. Dupain has bowled successfully in Sydney grade matches this season. Bill is a tall young batsman, and I guess from his position as emergency man that he is a good fielder.”—"Senex.” The Appleby club seniors and juniors (the bye teams) will play a practice game at Appleby ground this afternoon. V. C. Poole made application to the S.C. A. on Tuesday evening for a transfer from Appleby to Union. Poole gave no reasons for his action and the matter was held over pending the reception of reasons. “Onlooker” is not fully acquainted with the idea which prompted Poole to resign from the Appleby Club, but hopes the association will not encourage the transferring of players from one club to another in midseason. In other centres a player desirous of transferring is required to stand aside until the following season. The idea of fostering cricket among the boys at the Borstal institution is an exceedingly admirable one on the part of the S.C.A. and it is hoped the boys will always be allowed to take part in the competitions. The benefits will be national as well as local, as boys from all parts of the Dominion are housed at the institution. The Borstal Club is not self-supporting, however, and I understand the practice material as their disposal is just about worked out. An appeal is here made to all clubs and the association to round up their old bats (or new ones for that matter), balls and pads and send them along to the Borstal Club. They will be greatly appreciated by the boys who are endeavouring to keep their match material (generously donated by the Sports Trust) in good condition for matches only. After all, seeing that the Sports Trust has “come to light” during the past two seasons it is up to the association to do its part. Material not required by clubs may be forwarded to the institution where good use will be made of it.

A suggestion that the groundsmen of the four major Cricket Associations should prepare. reports on the methods adopted by them in the preparation of grounds and wickets, for the use of smaller associations and clubs, found favour with the annual conference of delegates to the New Zealand Cricket Council, and it was decided to direct the Management Committee of the council, to make investigations into the matter. “It seems that grounds and wickets in the Dominion are not so good as they have been or should be,” said Mr A. T. Donnelly. “Among the many difficulties facing the sport in New Zealand is that most of the grounds are on public reserves, and the fact that there is so short an interval between the football and the cricket season —the latter of course, applying to those grounds on which both sports are 'flayed. It must be borne in mind, however, that it is not possible to improve the game unless the grounds and wickets are of the best.” k PLUNKET SHIELD ALLOCATION OF POINTS. ' NEW SYSTEM ADOPTED. A new system of allocating points for matches in the Plunket Shield Competition was adopted by a conference of' delegates to the New Zealand Cricket Council last week. The award of the Shield has previously been made, first on outright wins, and in the event of ties, on a team average system.

The new system will allot points as follows :— Outright win, 8. Outright loss, 0. Win on first innings, 4. Loss on first innings, 2. Tie on first innings, 2. Tie on match, 4 each. ■’ No result after six hours’ play, 3 each. In the event of a tie between two or more teams, the Shield will be awarded .on averages as is done in the Australian Sheffield Shield competition.