With Bat and Ball

Sun (Auckland), Volume I, Issue 215, 30 November 1927, Page 7

With Bat and Ball

A Cricket Causerie

The Otago team to play Auckland at Pden Park in a Plunket Shield match arrives he::e on December 29.

C C. Dacre, C. F. W. Allcott and J. E Mills were appointed honorary coaches to the Auckland Cricket Association at last evening’s meeting of the Management Committee.

permission was also granted to the 'ladio Broadcasting Company to broadcast Plunket Shield and other renresentative matches from Eden Park during the coming representative season.

Mr. Beale’s team will tour in Taranaki this season. There is also a chance of Auckland sending a fairly strong touring team to Poverty Bay shortly after Christmas.

Apart from the Shore juniors, promoted this season, Bush. Colebourne and Webb, who have shaped well in the senior eleven, the Devonport Club has plenty of talent available in the two senior B teams which are now half-way through a keen and interesting contest. The Colts secured a lead oC°l6 over the A’s on the first innings, thanks mostly to the fine bowling of George Jay with six wickets for 23 runs, including three wickets with four balls. Jay was also highly destructive in the previous match p-gainst Y.M.C.A., when eight out of ten batsmen failed to score. In the second innings the Colts have 89 for one wicket; Walters, who scored 23 in the first innings, being not out with 62 to his credit. He has scored freely in all his innings, and lays the wood on solidly to anything loose. Lusk, in the A team, is another fine bat who notched a century against Papatoetoe the previous week, and keeps up the family traditions in the cricket world. Auckland Retains Eight-Ball Over The Management Committee of the A.C.A. last evening decided to retain the eight-ball over in all matches under its jurisdiction. The New Zealand Council has reverted to the six-ball over, following in the footsteps of the Australian authorities. Mr. Beale stated that it would be foolish to have two different rules in the country, but the general opinion of the meeting was that from the spectators’ standpoint the longer over was to be preferred.

Hammond a Brilliant Field, Too In the blaze of glory that surrounds Hammond as a batsman, people are apt to forget that he is one of the finest fielders in England, writes a London critic. Unlike most great fielders, Hammond, although he prefers to field extra cover, is not a specialist, but is brilliant in any position. Many matches see him claim a victim or two or three, and with a long cricket future ahead of him, h© may even beat Tunnicliff’s record. Hammond plays for Gloucester —Dacrc’s county.

Official Scorers A minor matter which often escapes the attention of Clubs is the appointment of an official scorer, and the youthful enthusiasts who were enlisted for the job at Devonport last Saturday were so thrilled by Dacre’s dashing display that there was difficulty in tallying the detailed analysis in the two score-books at the close of the innings. In very near finishes discrepancies in scoring have often led to heated arguments, and most dubs find no difficulty in securing a competent volunteer who does the job thoroughly for the solatium of wellearned tea and cakes at the interval.

A Lesson From Bowley If all cricketers played with the zest and energy of E. H. Bowley, there would be no talk of a need to brighten up the game. When Bowley is on the held, batting, bowling or fielding he throws himself into the game with a vigour unknown to many of Auckland’s senior grade cricketers. Nowhere was the value of such play demonstrated more ably than in Y.M.’s match against United Suburbs a fortnight ago. Bowley was worth three men on the field that day. his ability and enterprise made a fight out of what promised to be a runaway victory for the Suburbanites. Many Auckland cricketers would do well to take a leaf out of the coach’s book in this respect.

Back to Form Tli© news that Dickinson, the Otago speed merchant, has shown a return to form, is a reminder of the paucity of tact bowlers in New Zealand. The r eam which went overseas had no one who could muster much pace, and Auckland is sadly in need of a bowler who can “rock ’em in” with some control of length and direction. Jack Simpson was a promising colt who could loosen up some lightening deliveries for a few overs. But he has now exchanged tho bat for the tennis racquet. His one ambition is to become a golf champion. Judging from Simpson’s hurricane hitting as a schoolboy, h© should be able to clout a hefty drive at the Royal and Ancient Same, but it is a pity so promising a colt should be lost to cricket. Lindsay Weir’s Figures

Although G. L. Weir did not meet w ith as much success as usual on Saturday. suffering, as all Eden bowlers did, against a strong first wicket partnership, he was the only one who could keep Rowley 'quiet, even if only temporarily. Weir is a medium fast right-hander who imparts a great deal of speed into his deliveries by 1 bringing bis arm over quickly before finally dispatching

the ball. His figures for each Saturday this season so far are:—5-54, 5-34, 5-38, and 3-61. Gillespie a Solid Man As a batsman of the solid order, IT. Gillespie of Auckland, should have * good chance of a place in the New Zealand team to play against the Australian eleven which will tour New Zealand after Christmas, says the Christchurch “Sun.' * There is solidity ,n all of Gillespie’s cricket, and he is a hard man to dislodge. This is said even in face of the fact that he did not score highly for The Rest against New Zealand. In the field, Gillespie is alert, *nd throws in well. With big match experience, there is no reason why Gillespie should not blossom forth into the M. L. Pago of Auckland, for his cricket at times is reminiscent of that °f the Canterbury captain. Gillespie *nd Mills hold the Auckland record for the first wicket. 441, put up last season.

Professionals to Play When the question of limiting the SS m f ) , er ot P rofes sionals in Plunket Shield games was discussed by the l' r 1 . c ° ** fe , r « f -nf e • the ch dirman, Mr. L. Heathcote Williams, said in his view P?„r?L 0 5 e !£ 10 ??' ls should b e played in •rL, nk i t Slue,d or Hawke Cup matches. The young players should not be kept out ot the best first grade matches by the inclusion of professionals. Mr. D. Keese said the experience of New Zealand made him all in favour of the inclusion of one professional. Otago had been made a great side by this policy. “Gate money cannot be ignored,” he said. “Professionals are most expensive articles. They nave improved the play in New Zealand.” Mr. Reese said Bowley had earned the £635 record gate obtained in Auckland last year. A large majority of the delegates was in favour of playing one professional in each team.

Dacre the Hitter Roger Blunt told an amusing story about Dacre, the brilliant Aucklander, at the Old Collegians’ Club at Christchurch recently, says the “Otago Daily Times.” In one of the matches in the Old Country he was instructed to go in first and knock one of the bowlers off his length. Worked up over having to open Dacre announced that he would be clean bowled or score to some purpose. He then went in and made 50 in 17 minutes. When he mis-hit one and was caught, he had made 64 in under 20 minutes, out of a total of 82. He hit five sixes and five fours, and his last six cleared the ropes, the crowd, the scoring box, and ended up in the third lino of cars outside. The Wellingtonian Flavour A Taranaki writer states that credit is due to Kingston for his wicket-keep-ing in the match against the New Zealanders at Wellington. He says:—“The display given by the returned team showed how much the players had profited by their experience in the Old Country. One could not help being struck with the distinctly Wellingtonian flavour in the telegraphed report in the reference to James’s wicket-keep-ing and the absence of any comment on Kingston’s ‘keeping.’ Special note was made when the first extras were lot go by James, but in a score of 267 there were 14 extras, yet nothing was mentioned of the fact that in a score of 369 there were only four extras. Without being parochial one might reasonably expect that if comment was deserved in the one case it was merited no less in the other.”

A Coming Man By his solid bowling for United Suburbs against Parnell on Saturday, Charlie Kerr proved that his sensa-

tional performance the week before, when he cleanbowled Bowley with his first ball was no flash in the pan. His bowling figures for the past two weeks are: 4-48 and 5-55. He is also a stylish left-handed bat, not unlike Mills, and he hit up a well-nigh perfect 51 against Y.M.C.A. recently.

When Shore plays Suburbs in their next match they will be up against one of the strongest bowling sides in Auckland, with such an array of bowlers as Kerr, Williams, and .Leikis to contend with.

Dacre Decides To Go The news that C. C. Dacre lias definitely decided to accept Gloucestershire’s offer and play for the County Cricket Club, will cause no surprise. It may, and probably will bo the beginning of greater things for Ces. He will have some canhco to measure himself with the giants of the game at Home, and the redoubtable Australians when they tour England next. In Dacre we are sending the Homies our greatest fieldsman and certainly a dashing batsman of no ordinary ability. It would bo rash to prophesy, of course, but there is just the chance that Dacre may bo the first New Zealander to obtain an All-England cap. A big hurdle, admittedly, but quite a possibility. If ho fails to remind the English of Gilbert Jessop before he leaves them lie will surprise his friend in New Zealand. PAPATOETOE'S BAD START In answer to University’s total of 157 at Papatoetoe on Saturday, the homo team took the field just prior to 5 p.m., in the opening ball of the innings, AVaddingham bowling for University dismissed Dr. Valintine, and with the next ball. disposed of P. Swaffield, two of the home team’s reliable batsmen. For Varsity, Burbidge topped the score after a good display of all round cket, with a useful 51. others to * £ \ l -h double figures were Jones 27, Wilmott 21 not out, Cleary 16, Stewart 14. Bowling for Papatoetoe, E. Kerr finished up with the good average of six for 54, other successful trundlers were, j., Burnside, Dr. Valentine, Straehan. and Rankin, claiming one wicket each. Papatoetoe have so far lost six wickets for 147 runs, Straiiian 60 not out, is leading for first place, and experienced half a dozen lives up to date, Henderson took fourteen minutes to register 44, when he was cleanbowled by Waddingham, Beighton, 19, was the only other batsman to reach double figures.