CRICKET FIXTURES.

Observer, Volume XVI, Issue 947, 20 February 1897, Page 5

CRICKET FIXTURES.

SHNIOES. Feb. 20— Continuation of Gordon v. Auckland, Parnell v. United. BTBBT JTJNIOBB. Feb. 20 & 27.— Gordon v. Pitt-Btreet, Auckland v. Onehunga, Parnell v. Licensed Victuallers, North Shore v. Newton, United v. Belmont. . SECOND JTJNIOBS. Feb. 20 & 27 — St. Albans v. Parnell, Auckland v. Belmont, Surrey v. United, Ponsonby v. Grammar School, Gordon v. North.Bhore (A), Clarence v. North Shoie (B). A cheap railway excursion will be" run to Ngaruawahia on the day of the Regatta, the 17th March. Auckland won the championship banner, with the record score of 101 points, Wanganui scoring with 37, Wellington 8 and Hawke's Bay 2. The 1890-1 Championship is always spoken of as Macpherson's year, and similarly this year's meeting will be remembered as Holder's year. A. C. Wilmot, the well-known cyclist, was married on Saturday week last at Kaiapoi. This accounts for his failure to attend the Anckland Cycling Club's meeting on that day. Entries for the Ngaruawahia Regatta close on the 28th instant. Mr H. Goldwater, secretary of the Auckland Swimming Club, will receive entries in Auckland. Entries for the swimming events at the Ngaruawahia sports may be left at the Fresh Water Baths, Salt Water Baths, or the hon. sec. of the Auckland Swimming Club, Mr H. N. Goldwater. I understand that Warren, the Wellington representative cricketer, is one of the batch of torpedo-men just arrived at the North Head. As W. Gardiner is an old club mate of his, he will, I should say, be likely to play for Parnell. The 150 Yards Handicap on the first day brought into prominence a local runner of great merit in G. B. Bowser, who won his heat with the greatest of ease in 15seca dead, and the final, after stumbling on to his knees, in 15 3-sth sees. Auckland scored 10 points in the High Jump, which was won by C. C.Laurie with sft sgin; E. T. Laurie being second with sft 43in, and Yercoe third with sft 3|in. Mpir and Kingsley each dropped out at sft ljih. Wally Kerr, the amateur champion of New South Wales, met with an accident while riding from the National Park, Sydney, recently, and injured his right arm so severely that he had to carry it about in splints. What sort of an athlete ' Teddy ' Reynolds is may be gauged from the fact that shortly after winning the Three Mile Running Championship, he came out and knocked spots off the Domain One Mile Cycling Record, which he reduced to 2 mm ■ 23 3- sth sees. Kallendar was rewarded for his assiduous practice with the hammer by a victory in that event, with a throw of 93 ft. 7 inches, O Connor with 90 ft 11 inches, Mauill, the only other to throw, doing 83 ft 2 inches. Although not in the best of form, F. H. Creamer had little difficulty in i annexing the three mile from Wilson, the ! only other competitor, winning by fully 60 yards, in 23 mm 1 sec, which is»ls 2-sth better than the previous best championship performance. On. the second day, he was evidently); fn a bad way, having suffered severely from dysentry in the meantime, and was unable to test- out the mile walk, which Wilson won in the slow time of 7 mm 10 sees.

Cricket matches will be resumed on Saturday 20th inßt» A. H. Holder -was- responsible for 27 out of the 37 points scored by Wanganui. . - . , The prize money for the Ngaruawahia Regatta, to be held on the 17th March, has been already subscribed. H. 6. Thomson had hard luck in the 600 yds Handicap, in which event he led to the tape bat fell under instead of breasting it. I hear that the Newton Football Club will next season be strengthened by ; the inclusion of several, well-known Manai watn players, who have taken up their ! residence in the district. The Two Mile Cycle Handicap was a chapter of accidents, all the competitors falling but two (Wheeler and Boat), who finished in that order, Henning, who had remounted, coming in third. The Long Dive Championship of New Zealand, which took place last Saturday at Christchurch, was won by E. Thomas, of the Auckland Club, with 86 yards, thus creating an Australian record. Patrick, the Wellington sprinter, astonished everybody by his wonderful performance. in. the 100 yds. To run this distance in Ipsec. dead, on a track sodden with rain, reads almost too good to be true, but the time keepers and several private watches, also, all agreed as to its accuracy. Bowser's running in the 200 Yards Handicap on the second day was a bit peculiar. In his heat, starting from the 4 yds, he won looking round, by Fully Byds in 20 4-sth sees, but in the final, although getting all the best of the start, he was unable to get closer than second to Norton (scratch) | in exactly the same time. | In the Half-Mile Flat Championship Jim McKean forced the pace from the start with the evident intention of putting up a record. This, however, be failed to accomplish, occupying 2 mm 2 3-sth sec over the journey. Not by any means a bad performance considering the heavy state of the track and the fact that he had to make all his own pace. Local swimmers will have a chance for a good day's outing on March 17th next, as the Ngaruawahia Regatta Committee have added to their programme the following swimming events for members of the Auckland Swimming Clvb :— l5O, 220, and 440 yards handicaps, and 100 yards for boys (16 years and under). •Bookie Sherriff,' well known to local _ footballers, won his events at the Wellington Amateur Swimming Club Sports, which took place on January 22nd last. As he entered as a novice, and won as he liked from good handicaps, the Wellington Club are making inquiries as to his previous performances, if he has any. The Three Mile Flat was looked upon as a moral for McKean, but his big go in the Half Mile had evidently taken a lot out of him, and after going a mile he dropped out. Bnrrell, the .Wanganui rep., led the field all the way until half a lap from home, when Reynolds spurted past him and won with the greatest ease in the slow time of 17 mm. 6 sees. The Pole-jump competition gave rise to a close contest between Kingsley, C. C. Laurie, James Te Pa, and Hori Eruera, the two last named being boys from St. Stephen's Native School. After a competition lasting nearly two hours, the two last named tied at 10 ft. 6£ inches, Kingsley being third with 10 feet 3£. Laurie also cleared 10 feet 6£ inches, but it was then discovered that he had been using a pole with three spikes, contrary to the regulations. He was, however, allowed to attempt the jump, using another pole, but being tired could not do better than 10 feet, which entitled him to a standard badge. Despite the fact that owin.g to the paucity of South Island nominations, the Amatuer Championship Meeting of 1896-97 was more North Island than national in character, the gathering on the whole must be counted a great success. The management and the appointments of the meeting were all that could be desired, and the performances registered in the majority of the events compare more than favourably with previous championship meetings. Indeed, taking the state of the track into account, some of the times registered were little short of phenomenal. The Quaiter-Mile Hurdles brought out a small but select field in T. Roberts, the New Zealand champion, W. H. Martin, the Australasian champion, and A.. H. Holder. As the pistol cracked, Martin jumped away in front and made the pace a cracker, Roberts being in close attendance, and Holder but 6 or 7yds away. At the back of the course Martin stumbled and lost his position, and Roberts went on in front. As they raced to the ninth hurdle Holder had closed up to within a .yard of the -leader, but at this jump Roberta came to grief, leaving the Wanganuite to finish an easy winner. Time 58 4-sth sees; a world's record.

; Considering the disadvantage; at which | Tim O'Connor was placed in Saving a bad hand, his performance in putting 'the 161 b shot 36 feet 3* lnches was a highly meritorious one. . : The visiting athletes were entertained at a harbour excursion on Sunday by the local Athletic Club. , About 150 were present, and the outing was on all hands voted as being in the highest degree enjoyable. Foubister won his heat in the 120 yards Maiden Hurdles ak the Championship Meeting easily in 18 3/sfch sees, but was not placed in the final run in 18 4/sth sees.. And I didn't notice that he struck any of the. hurdles either. The National independent Order of Oddfellows have issued at attractive sports programme of twenty events in connection with their annual picnic to be held at Pine Island on 27th February. Entries close with Mr C. B. Thome, Wellesleystreet/ on Saturday, 20th inst., at 9 o'clock p.m. The Waikato Maoris— even up so far as Te Kuiti — are taking the keenest interest in the preparations for the Ngaruawahia Regatta to be held on St. Patrick's Day. They expect to have as many as five canoes in the War Canoe Kace, and in the other events a very much larger number will compete. At a meeting of the Rugby International Board held on December 12th, a resolution was adopted to the effect that the meeting recommended such addition to the laws of the game as will include penalties and free-kicks for systematic breaches of the laws not provided for — systematic knocking on, systematic waste of time, &c. A. H. Holder started in live championship events, won four of them in remarkably fast time, and was only beaten a yard in the other (the 100 yards) run in lOsecs dead. Unquestionably he is every bit the champion the 'Wanganuites claimed him to be, and is, perhaps, the best allround man at present running in Australasia. Elsewhere in this issue will be found the programme of sports arranged by the H. A. C B. Society for their Grand Hational F&te, to be held at the Domain on 17th March. In addition to the usual professional and cash amateur cycling events, a number of items for amateurs are also included, and as these annual sports are always excellently conducted, they should attract large entries. Southern athletes who attended the Amateur Athletic and Cycling Clubs meeting, on the 13th inst, might do worse than remain a few days longer, in order to compete at the Hibernian Society's Sports.

Mr Willis, the representative of the Collier Two-speed Cycle Company, has arrived in Auckland with a shipment of two-speed cycles. A trial of the two-speed gear was recently made in Melbourne, when a platform of a certain grade was built, and a Collier bicycle ridden up to it. Any other make machine geared to the same height was then challenged to ride up the same incline, and although numbers tried none succeeded, although all could do it on a Collier gear, thus proving its immense advantages as a hill climber. In a hilly district like Auckland Collier bicycles should undoubtedly meet with a ready sale