CRICKETING TRIAL

Taranaki Daily News, 31 December 1935, Page 9

CRICKETING TRIAL

TOWN V. COUNTRY GAME

IMPRESSIONS OF AN OBSERVER.

THE TARANAKI PARTICIPANTS.

SPLENDID BATTING EXHIBITION.

(The following impressions of the Town v. Country cricket match in Wellington, with particular reference to the Taranaki players participating, have been specially recorded for the Taranaki Daily News by a Taranaki mam closely identified with the game who was a spectator at the match.] Weak batting by the Town team, steady bowling by Montgomery and Gallichan, and brilliant catches in the slips by Gallichan and O’Brien were the outstanding features of the first day’s play in the annual Town and Country match played at the Basin Reserve on Christmas Day and Boxing Day. On a wicket that gave absolutely no assistance to the bowlers the early Town batsmen failed miserably, and it was left to the last four wickets to take the score from 73 to the more respectable total of 184.

The fielding of the Country side was solid without being brilliant, and Biggar, behind the sticks, got through a light afternoon’s work in a satisfactory manner, although he missed a couple of stumping chances through a tendency to heave backwards while taking the ball. Of the Taranaki representatives in the Country side only Christensen was called upon to take a hand in the attack, and except for his first four overs he did not at any time appear dangerous. For the most part he bowled at only medium pace and his length was very poor. So much so that he definitely destroyed any prospects he had of being selected to play for Wellington in the present series of Plunket Shield games. Admittedly he was unfortunate in that two chances went begging, but these were the result of poor batting rather than of any guile in his deliveries. In the opinion of this writer Christensen would do better if he took more pains over his cricket generally. His , bowling and fielding were both affected by a tendency to lose his footing, and it seemed fairly obvious that he had neglected to see that his boots were properly studded. When he closed the Town innings by catching Lamason at ;J raid-on off Montgomery, he slipped again and took the ball while seated. Betts and Donnelly were at all times safe in their fielding,’ and occasionally rose’ to heights of brilliance, Donnelly earning applause for his fast and accurate returns to the Wicket. BEST BATTING OF MATCH. The opening of the Country innings was undistinguished, and it was not un- , til/the second day of the game that the O’Brien-Betts partnership provided the best batting of the match. In putting on 180 runs for the third wicket these batsmen frequently evoked enthusiastic applause from'• the .crowd. At first O’Brien, who had a greater share of ■the bowling, scored more quickly, but when Betts Warmed up he was' delightful to watch. He was safety personified against an attack lacking somewhat in sting, and anything short or overpitched was hit hard and accurately. One glorious six over square leg landed on the terraces in front of the stand, and his boundary shots were directed to all parts of the field. His stroke play was excellent in every respect, and he was particularly effective on the off .and behind the wicket on both sides. . ■ Donnelly’s batting was splendid once he settled down. For about five OVers he seemed a little unsteady, but once over this period, during which he gave a very hard chance to Ell in the slips, nothing in the attack appeared to worry him. On the contrary he was definitely on top of the bowling for ’about twenty minutes before lunch, during which he put on 33 runs, scored mainly by powerful., hooks. and perfectly executed cover drives. The catch by Lamason off his own bowling which ended Donnelly’s knock was an excellent one, and on his return to the pavilion the Taranaki boy received an ovation for what was without doubt the prettiest display of the match. ' Donnelly has one weakness which he will have to eradicate before he can be reckoned in the first flight. This is his habit of playing with apparent carelessness at fast, rising balls outside the off stump. Experience will no doubt rid him of this fault. - GALLICHAN’S FINE BOWLING. With a lead of 135 runs on the first innings Country took the field again' and immediately had the Town batsmen in trouble. Seven wickets were down for 95, and of the first five Gallichan claimed four victims for one run. Shockingly bad generalship on the part of Worker, the Country captain, caused the visitors to lose their grip on the game when victory was in sight. O’Neill and Wilson commenced to hit out at the slow bowling and Worker, instead of persevering with Gallichan, apparently decided to rely on Montgomery, Oliver and Christensen, and persisted with these bowlers, although not one of them worried the batsmen. Oliver especially was a gift to th* hard hitting Wellington pair, who knocked 29 runs off the four overs he sent down. O’Brien was called on to take a hand in the attack, and he was given the hopeless task of bowling from the north end and fielding in front of the sight ■screen at the south end during the alternate overs. He was thus forced to cover more ground, in half an hour than most of the other players had to get over in a day. The Country out-cricket generally was greatly inferior to that of the Town team. Faulty placing of the field and timidity in the handling of the bowling, robbed the Country side of a well-de-served win. Medium paced bowling without guile of any kind is generally ineffective against determined and scientific hitters. Wilson and O’Neill, who put on 100 runs for the eighth wicket, are anything but blind sloggers, and it would have been far wiser to,- persist with Gallichan at this stage, and to give Donnelly or Betts a trial at the other end.

To sum up these impressions it seems fairly certain that Gallichan will find a place in the Wellington side for its next game. Betts and Donnelly may be regarded as possibilities, in that order, and Christensen, who seems to be right off form, appears to have lost his chance.