CRICKET.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LV, Issue 209, 5 April 1913, Page 7

CRICKET.

j The curtain will be rung down on the ] cricket season in Taranaki to-day, when ) a match will be played at the New PlyI mouth High School ground between past i and present bays.

Not a few of the older followers of cricket use the word notch instead of run, as it was in vogue in their day. The term originated owing to the scorer in the early days of the game cutting a notch in a piece of stick every time a run was made. As soon as ten was scored an oblique notch across them was cut, which enabled the total at the end of the day's play to be easily ascertained. George Ulvctt was very fond of telling his interviewers that he had hit a ball twenty miles. Naturally they were incredulous, until George explained it thus: He was playing against eighteen of Malton and district, and knocked a ball into a passing train, which carried it to Scarborough, from whence it was returned to Malton.

A match with pathetic features was played some time ago between two teams from the South-west Cripples' branch of the Ragged Schools Union in Battcrsca Park. Every player was either maimed or a cripple. The last howler had but one leg, and long-stop allowed byes .to s bo scored by the ball getting jam bed in ' the heel of his long hoot so firmly that it could luvdly be extricated. . Needless to say, the ball, had to be hit a long way before the batsmen dared to venture upon a hobble between the wickets.

During the visit of Parr's team to Austalia in 1804, K. M. Grace and Tarrant played eight of Bnllarat, scoring 20 to the locals' 11. Tarrant played an eleven of Ararat, each side scoring 4. Grace and Jackson played 11 of Castlemaine, scoring 11 to Castlemaine's 2. Grace played six of Maryborough, and his opponents could not get him out, his score bring -106 when the game was abandoned. In ir>o3 J. Pveid. playing in junior cricket, performed the hat, trick three times —twice in the first innings, and once in the second.

W. G. Grace is big and bulky, and once when plavj n <r fnr England v. Australia in the Old Country he came into the field arm-in-arm with Johnny Briggs. of Lancashire, who was a short, chubby little cricketer. Amongst the spectators was a precocious child of 5 years old. Addressing his father he said, "Father, who is that big man?" ''That is Dr. Grace, the champion." replied father. ".And who i« the little on*'" the child contimrd. "That is Briags." the father answered. Dead silence for a few moments, and then the youngster chimed: "Papa, is Briggs Dr. Grace's baby?"