REPRESENTATIVE CRICKET

Taranaki Daily News, 5 October 1929, Page 11

REPRESENTATIVE CRICKET

MATCHES FOR COMING SEASON. ASSOCIATION ANNUAL MEETING. The annual general meeting of the Taranaki Cricket Association was held at Hawera last night, when there were present Messrs C. G. Bottrill. T. H. Bates, W. P. Nicoll (northern delegates), H. D. Hughes, C. Massey and B. Malone (southern delegates), and D. F. C. Saxton (honorary secretary). The general cricketihg public were represented by one player —a member of the Hawera Old Boys’ Club. In the absence of the president (Mr. F. G. Treweek), Mr. Bottrill was voted to the chair. Tire annual report (previously published) and statement” of receipts and expenditure were adopted without discussion. The secretary reported that the Waikato match at New Plymouth last Easter had resulted in a profit of £1 Is 4d, .the gate receipts being £2O 6s 6d and the expenditure £l9 5s 2d. The association had started with a credit of £3 7s sd, and finished the season with a debit of Is 6d. Receipts comprised subscriptions of £5 5s each from the northern and southern divisions. The items of expenditure were £6 Os 2d expenses in connection with the visit of the Taranaki team to Wanganui last December to play a Hawke Cup elimination match; advertising, 15s; hire of room for annual meeting, 7s 6d; annual subscription to New Zealand Cricket Council, £4 4s; donation Peake memorial fund, £2 2s; telegrams, toll calls and stamps, 10s 3d. The secretary was instructed to write to the New Zealand Cricket Council supporting the proposal to send a New Zealand team to England in 1931. TOWN v. COUNTRY MATCH. It was resolved to inform the Wellington Cricket Association that . the Taranaki Association is in favour of the abandonment of the Town v. Country annual match at Wellington, and the substitution in its place of periodical visits to the provinces by Wellington teams. It was considered that the minor associations would derive greater benefit from these tours than from the Town- and Country match, in that a much larger number of minor association players would profit by them than has been the case with the Town v. Country matches, and the Wellington selectors would become more conversant with the leading minor association players, who would thus have a better chance of inclusion in Plunket Shield teams. Considerable discussion ensued on the question of whether the Wellington Association should have the power to draw on the minor associations in the Wellington Plunket Shield district for Plunket Shield players. Mr. Nicoll said there was the point to consider that with such a wide field to draw from Wellington had rather an unfair advantage over some of the’ other major associations. ‘ . Mr. Bottrill expressed the opinion that the only solution was the creation oi a new central district to compete . with the existing four major associations for the Plunket Shield. VISIT BY ENGLISH TEAM. The action of the emergency committee in applying for a match against the English team was confirmed. The secretary was instructed to write to the Taranaki Bowling Gentry asking the centre if possible to arrange for its tournament not to clash with the English match, and to apply to the Railway Department for a special train to New Plymouth on Saturday, February I, the second day of the -match. Prices of admission to the English match were fixed as follows: —Men's season, 3s; men’s one day, 2s; ladies’ season, Is 6d; ladies’ one day, Is. Messrs J. Brown (North)’ and H. R. Penny (South) were appointed joint selectors of the Taranaki representative teams. Mr. D. F. C. Saxton was re-appointed secretary and treasurer, and an emergency committee consisting of. Messrs Bottrill, Bates, Malone and Hughes, and the secretary, was set up to deal with

important matters requiring urgent attention. Mr. T. H. Bates was appointed to represent the Taranaki Association at the forthcoming biennial conference of delegates at Christchurch, and Mr. G. T. Weston (Christchurch) was re ; appointed the association’s representative on the New Zealand Cricket Council. The annual match for the Graham Cup between North and South Taranaki was fixed to take place at Hawera on Saturday, ■ November 30, the hours of play to be from 10.30 a.m. till 6 p.m., with an hour’s adjournment for luncheon. As a result of a letter from the northern division, some discussion took place on the question of the conduct of the. provincial final. The northern division delegates pointed out that last season the match was scheduled to start at 10.30 a.m., and did not start until nearly 11 a.m. In addition, only one ball was available, and owing to the wet weather it soon became in a bad condition. It was suggested that the division under whose auspices the match was being played'should control the match, and not either of the clubs concerned, as was the case at Hawera last season. On the motion of Mr. Nicoll it was resolved to ask the north and south •divisions to organise and control the provincial final and to appoint a manager for each match, siich manager to make subsequently a report on the match to the association through the respective divisions. A motion by Mr. Hughes that the meetings of the association executive be held at Stratford, instead of alternately at Hawera and .New Plymouth, lapsed for want of a seconder. It was resolved to send a letter to the Waikato Cricket Association with reference to the match between Taranaki and Waikato to be played at Hamilton this season, asking for the views of the Waikato Association on the question of Easter as a suitable date for the match. Some of the delegates felt that Easter.was rather late in the season. The southern division was granted permission to play a match against Rangitikei early in March. Mr. Hughes suggested that the selectors should be asked to take into account the fact that some players who were only too anxious to represent their province, at home declined to make any effort to travel when the Taranaki team had to go afield, and when selecting teams for home • matches to give preference where possible to players who had sacrificed both time and money to. uphold Taranaki’s record outside the province. The principle expounded by Mr. Hughes found general favour amongst the delegates, but it was felt that there were too many difficulties in the way for the suggestion to be put into practical effect. The chief difficulty, it was stated, was that the selectors would have the utmost trouble in determining whether any particular player was really unable to go on tour, or was merely not attempting to make a special effort to help the association in its outside matches. ‘No action was taken.