TERRIBLE WICKETS.

Sun (Christchurch), Volume I, Issue 275, 24 December 1914, Page 2

TERRIBLE WICKETS.

EARLY DAYS IN CRICKET. i MATCHES WITH OTAGO. r , What would the "spoon-fed cricketers of to-day," as Mr D. Beese terms them with so much justification, think if they had to play in the conditions which pertained for the early matches between Otago and, Canterbury ? In his very useful "History of Otago Bepresentative Cricket, 1863-1906," Mr J. WJ H. Bannerraan points out that players in those days had to go to much more trouble and expense than nowadays. Frequently the playing of one match in another centre necessitated an absence of two or three weeks. Then the grounds were really not fit for cricket,, and the players were unable to obtain much practice. . .; It is interesting to look back to those! early days, with the help of Mr Ban-! nerman's book, which, by the way, wa'si published seven years ago. . Scottish; though they were, the early settlers of; Otago must have been very keen op cricket. The settlement was founded in; 1848, and before that year.was out the : cricket players < of Dunedin publicly; challenged the cricket club at Wellington "to a trial of skill at any point equidistant between' the Port of Otago; and Port Nicholson." That challenge was not accepted, and to console them-j selves the Otago players formed theji Dunedin Cricket Club, and a match be- j tween its married and its single mem-: bers was played. The bats were madjej of native wood, and the balls made: by a shoemaker. That, however,; was the last match played in Otago for! several years. But in 1859 the game! was revived. Matches were played pnj a wicket that, was bare, except for an | occasional tuft of grassf By that time; the game had become well established; in the country, in _ which there were; several flourishing clubs. '<■;■:

AMUSEMENT FOR GOLD RUSHERS The holding of the first representative match between Otago and Canterbury was due to the gold fever in the southern province and the enterprise of a hotelkeeper in Dunedin. Money was spent' freely in. the days of the ,gold rushes, but soon the amusement providers were longing for something new with which to extract the good "coin from the ppekets of the public. 'Theft one Shadrack Jones, the hotelkeeper .'referred to, was seized with.the brilliant idea of holding a big cricket tourney. He arranged for, the Canterbury,* South-' land, and Otago representative elevens to meet in Dunedin. Parr's All-England Eleven, was then touring Australia, and Mr Jones offered to finance a visit of that team to New Zealand, to take part in his tourney. The offer was accepted; and in Dunedin'. The expenses must have been £3000,' but the promoter did -not lose a penny, for the people simply flocked to the tourney. In the first game Otago defeated Southland by an' innings and 143 runs. The wicket was wretched, but Otago's score, ,222, stood as its record for thirty years. There were 16 wides, 17 byes, and 10 leg-byes in the score.

Then came the Otago-Canterbury match. The wicket was even worse than that for Otago's game with Southland, and the papers complained that cattle had been allowed to wander over it during the night before the match. Going in first, Otago made 78 runs, J. Fulton contributing 25. The wicket and the bowling of F. Macdonald were too much for the Canterbury men, and they scored only 34 and 42. Six wickets fell for 13 runs in the first innings, and six for 12 in the second, the "tail" adding the rest. Macdonald took four wickets for 14 runs in the first innings, and six for 17 in the second, while J. Mace took four for 16 and four for 21. We are told that by the end of the game the wicket had become "something chronic." For instance, "during the Canterbury innings Sale, in hitting at a ball, removed a large section of the turf." Having made 74 in its second innings, Otago won by 76 runs. Otago played 22 men against the Eng lishmen, and suffered a defeat by nine wickets, on a shockingly bad wicket. The All-England team thus won the tourney, with Otago as the runner-up, BETTING AND CEICKET.An item of rather curious informa tion which is given regarding that first match between Otago and Canterbury is that the betting was 7 to 1 on Canterbury. : There was heavy betting on nearly every match in those days. In the Laws of Cricket, as revised by the Marylebone Club in 1870, there were these rules concerning bets: —1. No bet upon any match is payable unless it be played out or given up. 2. If the runs of one player be betted against those of another, the bet depends on the first innings, unless otherwise specified. 3. If the bet be made on both innings, and one party beat the other in one innings, the runs of the first shall determine it. 4. If the other party go in a second time, then the bet must be determined by the number on the score."

JOYS OF THE COASTAL PASSAGE,

In February, 1865, the second game between the two provinces was played, the Otago team visiting Christchurch. The southerners had a very rough trip up the coast. The wicket was very bad, and "shooters" were the rule. Canterbury won by four wickets, scoring 80 and 55 for six wickets against 63 and 71. Twelve months later, the Canterbury eleven had a deep draught of the joys of the coastal passage. Such a strong gale prevailed that even when the steamer was going full steam ahead it was actually driven some miles backward, and the voyage occupied two days.' Of course, the wicket was bad. Showers of rain made the ball very wet, and no fewer than 35 wides were bowled during the game. W. P. Downes, who made his first appearance for Otago in that "match, was a real terror to the Canterbury batsmen. He bowled with good pace, nice length, and a considerable spin from leg, and he took four for 21 and four for 42. Scoring 105 and 61 for eight wickets to Canterbury's 68 and 92, Otago won by two wickets. The winning score was reached by means of two wides. I The" next match was played at Hag[ley Park, Christchurch. This ground

had been laid down only a few weeks before, and as the soil had jiot set the wicket was almost useless. Downes took six wickets runs and four for 15, Canterbury making only |25 and 32 against Otago's first innings score of 94. Again, in the following season, when the match was played in Dunedin, Downes worked havoc among the Canterbury batsmen, taking six for 14 in the first innings, on a terrible wicket. Otago won by nine wickets. Hendley/ a professional, was another Otago bowler who played a big part in the Otago victories of. those times. In the seventh match between the provinces—won, as usual, by, Otago—Hendley cap-' tured eight for 30 and three for 34. IMPBOVEMENT SETS IN. From 1870-1 onwards the wickets and the scoring improved considerably, and Dame Fortune smiled more frequently upon the Canterbury men. Thrice in successive matches was Otago crushingly .defeated. The Canterbury batting improved so greatly that of the 23 matches played between 1870 and 1891 —there was a return mateh in one season—Canterbury won 15 and Otago six, while two were drawn. One of the matches, that in 1882-3,. was won by :Canterbury. by only four runs., A SENSATIONAL GAME. The match of 1890-1 is claimed to have been the most sensational cricket match ever played in New Zealand. Canterbury made 101 runs in its first innings, J. C. Lawton taking four wickets for 41 and Alec. Downes four for 44. Otago's first innings also-realised 101 Wilding. taking four for 24. In the second innings the Canterbury men were greatly troubled by the bowling of Lawton, who took six wickets for 30 runs, and they made but 120 runs, leaving Otago to get 121 to win. Otago, however, started very badly, losing seven wickets for 36 runs. These are the scores of the seven men:—C. Beck c Hartland b Cuff 5; : , A. Downes c Bidley b De Maus 7; J. C. Lawton run out 3; F. Harper lbw b Labatt 7; W. Parker run out 7; W. Gollar c Labatt b Harm an 0; A. H. .Fisher b, Labatt 0. A./J. Bell was batting finely, but at 58, when his score was 25, he was bowled by Halley. F. Stephenson joined J. Baker, who."was batting brilliantly. ' Stephenson made four'., while Baker shifted, the tally along tq 96. Then Stephenson was caught .on the boundary, off De Maus. . J, Croxford was the last man in, with 2i5 runs still wanted.. Some singles brought up 100. More singles, two byes, and a fine hit to the leg boundary by Baker, and 112 was telegraphed! Wilding, went oh in the attack, but Croxford pulled a full toss 5 for three, and BakerVsiricked a single. 'Another'single was sbored.' Then a slight fumble by Bidley gave a' couple. This was followed :by a single, and the scores were level. Then a desperately-

run single to Croxford settled matters, -and Otago had won a great game by one wicket. The Canterbury team consisted of A, S. Harman,. J. P. Hartland, LI A. Cuff, A. M. Labatt, H. De Maus, Gr. .Marshall, F.. Wilding (captain), W. J. Cottefill, B. Halley, A. E. Ridley, and H. Ogier. The modern history of these matches is, sufficiently well known to make it unnecessary to trace, them .further. W Q 9> in these days, would think of playing oil the '*'terrible/-' wickets of the 'six--tf&sl'.. And who would think for'/..a moment. .arranging 1 a. cricket tourney a cost of £3OOO, .and expect to/get a.profit from it? .Jjone for ever are those days of real rigour of the game. ■/• - ',, A. L. C. '