CRICKET.

Taranaki Herald, Volume LIV, Issue 13820, 28 November 1908, Page 9

CRICKET.

The Saturday competitions were eon-* tinned on November '21 in ideal weather. New Plymouth met United Servico Bon the .Sports Ground. It was an interesting ganie. resulting in a. win for the former by 24 runs. Steeds, winning the toss for four consecutive times, sent Whittle and Muldoon in to face the bowling of Southall and Preshaw. Muldoon made six and then fell to Southall. Williams filled ihe vacancy, and, taking guard fully n foot outside the crease, scored eight Fiom his first over from the slow bowler. Homer did not last long. Lash came next. With the score at 46 Williams lost his wicket, being bowled by Southall. McLaren followed, and soon began to hit out freely, finding the boundary on several occasion^ with good strokes. Lash left at 01, and 8 were down for 73. McLaren continued to bat in good style, and on Baker coming in the. best partnership ol the day was witnessed. Some oh the newcomer's strokes were a bit lucky, hut he, hit hard and kept his end up while McLaren kept pegging away. Tho bcore mounted rapidly. Baker, was out at last to a ball which reached the stumps at the second hop. The last wicket had added 44 runs to the score in about twenty minutes. Southall and Preshaw bowled unchanged till over the century was on the board — a policy New Plymouth had no cause to regret,

' McLaren's .")| not out is the highest indi\ idual score made in Sa< unlay ii!. itches this sp.imim. He placed good -.'.md cricket, and should make 1 a m-e-l::l recruit tor the Wanderers. Cnited Service quickly lost three wickets. Baker clean bowling Dinniss and Swift in his second over. On : Dixon's arrival matters began to as- ' sumo a more cheerful aspect for the Service. Southall was soon disposed I or, making a couple ot good hits and then losing his wicket from a very poor stroke. Prcshaw and Dixon looked like making a good stand. The former made all the runs while ho was in (16). but for stopping a straight one Ironi Whittle with his pads ho paid the inevitable penalty. Simmons and Dixon made the best stand on the side, putting 34 runs on the board lietore a .separation was eflectcd. Change after change was tried, but the effect of these tactics was always annulled by the consistent manner in which the fieldsmen dropped the catches. Williams was tho chief sufferer by this, no less than four catches being dropped off his bowling in as many oven,. Dixon and Simmons eventually both fell to K. Lash, who came out with the excellent analysis ot 7 overs, 4 rims, 3 wickets. He Kept a good length ;>mi pill a 10l ol work on the ball. Napier and Kennedy gave some trouble over tho last wicket, the former being well taken by Maker for 13. The total just topped the century. United Service A played Kgmont Village and won easily by 36 runs. The game does not call for much comment. Rev. H. Colvile and Mackay again wore to]) scorers, the former making 39 by sound forceful cricket. No one else got into double figures. H. Marsh (13) was the only man on his side to make any stand. ingrain bowled well for Service, remaining on throughout and taking- four wickets lor 23 runs. O'Bvrne (4 for 46) and O. Kinsella (2 for 6) were most successful for tho Village. Fire Brigade lost to High School by 22 runs. L. Bullot (14) and W. Roch (11) did best, tor the former. Sinclair (33) was the only one to make any ptaud for the latter. Ward (6 for 23) and Grey (4 for 22) bowled unchanged for the school. Carrington Road Juniors played NewPlymouth Juniors in the Roc. on Thursday. New Plymouth received a crushing defeat by 93 runs. Batting firut oil a good wicket. New Plymouth wer*e all dismissed for 72 runs, Sinclair (12)' and McLaren (10) alone reaching double figuies. Humphries (o for 18) was mainly responsible tor the smallness ot the scores. For Carrington Road Joidan (42). Humphries (34) and Papps (20) did the lion's share of the scoring, Jordan hitting nine fours in his ' score. Neither team was up to full i strength, New Plymouth missing the < services of Anderson, whose bowling i would have been invaluable to his side. A pressing engagement pre- 1 vented his participating in the match, i The only senior match played on ( Thursday was between Inglewood and Waitara. Inglewood made 103 (Crom- { hie 37, Inman 27), and Waitara lost six wickets for 06. The New Plymouth and Carrington Road fixtures \ di-1 not come oft on account of the show. j The hon. secretary of the New Ply- , mouth Cricket Club has received a letter from the Egmont Village, Cricket j Club inquiring whether the home team is expected to provide refreshments ( for visiting clubs. This matter came up for discussion at the last annual . meeting of the N.T.C.A., and it was decided that in future each travelling team should pay its own hotel expenses. ' This was not intended to arJply to light 7 refreshments served "on the ground, j which, besides being most acceptable, lends a social flavouring to our matches. ' and tends to engender good fellowship 1 between clubs. At the same time let it be distinctly understood that visiting ( teams bhould not expect entertainment. J Indeed, these impromptu afternoon teas ' would lose half their charm if they i came to be regarded as a necessary J adjunct to matches. Our country 1 friends may rest assured that cricket 1 matches played with them on their } home grounds are amongst the most I enjoyable games of the season. To 1 most of our town players a day in < the country is eagerly looked forward 1 to as a welcome break in the monotony of the ordinary round of busi- 1 ness, with its attendant worry and ] confinement. •, At a meeting of delegates to the N.T.C.A., held on Thursday evening, a letter was read from the Wangamii < Association, asking the co-operation ot J our Association in a scheme to form ' a West Coast challenge shield com- j petition on the lines on which the s Plunket Shield matches are played. It i was decided to fall in with the sug- j gestion, it being 'considered that the . interests of the game would be materi- \ ally advanced by some such scheme. i The question of representative I matches was also discussed. It was j decided to play Wanganui and Mana- < watu during the Christmas week, and j it is hoped that arrangements will < allow of matches with Canterbury or j Otago at the New Year. The latter , will depend on the arrangements made ' for playing the Plunket Shield matches ac Auckland. The opinion was also , expressed that the Canterbury eleven Would probably travel up North via , the IJain Trunk line, in which case , Taranaki would be left out ot their ( list of fixture**. i A match has been arranged for St. ' t Andrew's Day (Monday, November 38) ( between the combined United Service , Club's team and a team of players • drawn from New Plymouth and Car- ; rington Road Clubs, play to commence ' at *2 o'clock. The following will play . for the "AH Coniei-tj" ;— E. Whittle, A. S. Hasell, E. Lash, H. J. Price, M. G. Williams, Wallace, A. Sunnier, l W C. Westou, J. H. Muldoon, i*. ] Braund, McLaren, The following table show.s the position 1 o! the clubb in the Saturday competition :—: — < * 1 -N ■ . t 55 £ i I \ New Plymouth 1 3 I 3 : United/Service A... 4 'A J 3 United Service 8... 1 2 I % High School I 2 1 'I Egmont Village 12 12 Fire Brigade 1 0 4 0 The second professional coach en- , gaged by the Otago Cricket Association (Mr Wordsworth) arrived in Dunedin by the Waikare from Sydney last week. Mr Wordsworth was a member of the Redfern Club. He possesses the reputation of a lightning bowler. Gener-

ally (says the Duncdiu Times) he bears, excellent credentials. In a recent match between Auiberley and liangiora there was n curious coincidence. One ol the Amberloy bowlers performed the "hat trick" m each o( Kangiorn's innings, taking the wickets of the same three players in the same order. At Melbourne on Saturday week \l. Vaughan scored 202 not out for Melbourne v. Collingwood, batting \\ hours,, without a chance, and hitting fifteen Is. Some big scores ]ihw> beei' mad' 1 in Australia of late. At Adelaide a fortnight ago Kast Tenons scored oO'A in their _ first innings against (ilenelg. It is a curious fact that since 15)03 (inclusive) Victoria and South Australia have won alternately. Ten matches have been played. In" the combined first innings the sides have scored exactly the same number of runs, 307(5. In the combined second innings Victoria has made 11)1<) to South Australia's 2029 runs. Vernon Ransford made 131 for Victoria in the recent match against South Australia. Ho has now made six centuries in lirst-class cricket. "Not Out," of the Sydney Kel'eroe. says' of him : "llansl'ord is a'more typical left-hand batsman than Clem Hill, who, like many truly great players, has a style, and employs great runprodueing strokes, in which there is much of his own invention. Ra us ford is stronger on the off-side than is Clem Hill, and very clean and crisp in fiis strokes. To the > on-side he is vorv good, but has nothing to approach Clem Hill's unique method of boiitinjj mid-on and long-on. Ho lms not the physical powers of Clenj, but is one of the .'H'iJve, ximnvy or<)or who £<>uovuHy accomplish » good ( |o ;1 l in tj, ( . athletic line. In the next Australian eleven the young Melbourne crack should bo one of ihe most interesting players to the English public."