ATHLETICS.

New Zealand Graphic, Volume X, Issue 9, 4 March 1893, Page 198

ATHLETICS.

ALTHOUGH there was rain as late as eleven o’clock on Saturday morning, yet it held off during the afternoon, and cricket was proceeded with as usual. A heavy shower which fell in Parnell, and even in the outer Domain, luckily missed the cricket ground altogether. The wickets, of course, were very heavy, although they improved considerably as the day wore on, and the grass, although cut during the week, was still very long. Scoring was consequently a slow business, and bowlers had rather the best of it. The Parnell v. United resulted in a win for United by 61 runs. The former on the previous Saturday had scored 60 in their first innings, while United had one wicket down for 44. The latter increased their total to 121 before the innings closed. Parnell scored 54 for the loss of 4 wickets in their second innings. C. Harvie was the mainstay of the United batting. He increased Itfs score from 18 to 41 last Saturday, by very careful and patient play, his favourite leg stroke being of great service on the slow ground. C. Hay batted very nicely, and had the satisfaction of being not out with 12 to his credit. MacCormick rapidly hit up 12, and then attempted an impossible run and paid the penalty. Hawkins started well, and had bad luck in being caught off a good drive, Brown effecting a fine catch. Stemson, who scored much more slowly than usual, equalled Hawkins with 10, making the seventh double figure on the United side. The Parnell bowlers divided the wickets very evenly amongst them, Carson, Hoile, W. and I. Mills each getting two, and Lawson one. W. Mills (18), Hoile (not out, 15), and King (14) all scored freely in Parnell’s second innings, while D. Hay was successful in capturing all 4 wickets that fell in this innings. The Auckland-Gordon match was rather exciting for a time, Moresby, Meldrum, and Goulstone all being dismissed very rapidly ; but the tail, aided by a fair share of luck, were equal to the occasion, and Gordon finally won by 30 runs. In their second innings Auckland, batting four men short, were dismissed by Kelly and Kallendar for 34. F. V. Kelly was responsible for a very useful 14, but was badly missed off Neill at the start of his innings. This mistake probably cost Auckland the game. Kelly got 5 of the 6 Auckland wickets in the second innings. A. Williamson, who has been promoted from the Second Eleven, shaped very well indeed, and his innings of 12 was the best on his side. Kenderdine as usual was not out. He is now in the re markable position of having an average of about 20, while his highest score is only 17. R. Neill is nearly always very destructive against the Gordon batsmen, and the present occasion proved no exception, as he captured no less than 7 wickets. Harkness pegged away steadily at the other end, and was responsible for 2 wickets, while T. Neill, who made his first appearance as a match bowler, secured the remaining one. The batting of the Auckland Club is going from bad to worse, a result which is attributable to the members, with the exception of Harkness, having apparently given up practice altogether. The junior matches with one exception proved uninteresting. The exception was the Pitt-street Mutual v. Belmont, which resulted in a win for the former, who baited one short, by two runs. There was another protest lodged during the game by Belmont over the vexed question of substitutes. This is the third on the same question which has come before the Association Committee dining the past three or four weeks. The rule of cricket relating to substitutes, and Rule 32 of the Association as to the mode of deciding protests, are so clear that it seems strange any mistikes should occur, but as one of the Committee remarked on Saturday, 'Captains of junior teams don’t trouble to lead the rules, but they consider that they have

every right to be angry if they lose a protest on account of a braech of them.’ One disputant confessed at a recent meeting that *he knew nothing about the rules except what he had been told,’ but he was very angry when his protest was dismissed because he had not complied with the said rules. Saturday’s protest resulted in Pitt street having to bat one short. However, they just managed to beat Belmont’s total of 87 by 2 runs. Edmonds (27) and Wilkinson (23), who were not out the previous Saturday, continued batting well, and undoubtedly pulled the match off between them. Parnell 11. easily beat Auckland 11. The former had scored 157 the previous week, while on Saturday, Auckland IT. who, following the bad example of their seniors, were two men short, were dismissed for 42, O’Keefe (12) being the only double figure. Gordon 11. maintained their advantage over North Shore, and won by 31 runs, the match being played right out. Gordon’s second innings resulted in a total of 70, while the Shore responded with 71. W. Howard with 17 was top scorer for Gordon, while Chapman (23) and Jones (14) were the mainstay of North Shore. As the result of Saturday’s play amongst the First Juniors, Wanderers, Pitt street Mutual, Gordon 11. and Parnell 11. will compete in the second round, North Shore, Belmont, and Auckland 11. dropping out. The acceptance by the New York Yacht Club of Lord Dunraven’s challenge on behalf of his yacht, the Valkyrie, is a reminder of the curious history of the famous trophy, the America Yachting Cup. The cup was originally an English one, being won at Cowes in 1851 by the yacht America. Her owners gave the cup, six years later, to the New York Yacht Club, with a deed of gift regulating the terms under which it was to be offered for competition. In 1867, Mr G. Schuyler, the only sur-

vivor of the five owners, took back the cup and re conveyed it to the club in a document making such severe stipulations as to the conditions to be observed by any club challenging the holders of the cup that no match has taken place since. Mr Schuyler has since died, and the New York Club, in their anxiety to arrange an international match for the year of the Chicago Exhibition, have agreed to waive certain conditions. As with most compromises, each side is accused by its rnoie vehement partisans of having backed down, bnt there is no doubt the match will come off, though it is doubtful whether the Valkyrie wi l win. Mr William Reid, the Hawke’s Bay athlete, winner of the mile at the recent Championship meeting, was welcomed at Napier by the Hawke’s Bay Athletic Club, who gave him a rousing reception at the station and subsequently entertained him.

Polo in Auckland was continued on Saturday. The chosen teams to play at the coming tournament were : — First team. Messrs ORorke, Lockhart, Captain Hunter Blair, Dr A. C. Purchas. Second Team. Messrs Wynyard, Whewell, Stewart, and Forbes. Dr Forbes received a nasty blow on the forehead, but be pluckily continued play. One of the most important Timaru events is the annual meeting of the South Canterbury Amateur Athletic Club. It is usually held in May. This year it came off in February with the result, says my correspondent, that the meeting was a decided failure. The sports themselves were very good so far as they went, but the competitors were much fewer than usual, and the number of spectators was lamentably small. Consequently the whole thing was very slow, and as one lady wittily remarked, it was like attending the funeral of the old sports. The ladies did their very best, and there were many lunch parties on the ground. We were all very glad that the ladies’ cup—the blue ribbon of the meeting—was won by a Timaruvian.