CRICKET.

New Zealand Illustrated Sporting & Dramatic Review, Volume XIV, Issue 830, 1 February 1906, Page 12

CRICKET.

(By

“ Yorker.”)

The weather was again fine for cricket on Saturday, and the wickets on all the grounds were in firstrdass trim. Of the two senior games being finished in the Domain, interest centred in the Parnell-Grafton match.

As was to be expected, Murray was quite satisfied wth the 411 runs for seven wickets scored by his side the first Saturday, and play was opened with the Grafton side at the wickets.

S. P. Jones and W. Forster were the first pair to face the Parnell bowling, a change in the order of going in which was amply justified by the result. Both batsmen seemed to get going from the jump, and Forster in particular piled on the runs at a great pace, timing the ball beautifully on both sides of the wicket. Sbme of his forcing drives to fairly wellpitched balls on the off were equal to those of Ted Sale the previous week, and he made one or two perfect drives to the leg boundary. The latter, I am told, were taken off the wicket. From the pavilion it is impossible to say where the ball pitched, but there was certainly no doubt as to what happened afterwards. The strokes were perfectly timed, and the ball lost no time in finding the boundary. Jones, too, was batting very safely and well, and made several very pretty off drives off Greville, who was on at the far end. His score also included a couple of characteristic late cuts and several neat leg glances.

Just when these two batsmen sppm ed to have settled down for the afternoon —the century having appeared on the board without the loss ' of a wicket —Forster, in trying to get the wily little Olliff away for four to leg, skied one to short leg and retired. His 64 was a very attractive display. He showed that he had command of a very fair variety of strokes, and was at no time in trouble to the bowling. I shall be surprised if this batsman does not prove himself very useful to the Grafton side in the second round. Besides being an improving batsman he belongs to a class of fieldsmen that require to be encouraged in Auckland, and with a little more solidity in his defence it will not be long before he catches the selector’s eye. * * * * As so often happens, Jones followed his late partner to the pavilion in the same over, bowled with a beautiful leg break from Olliff. It evidently struck a spot and came across two or three feet, just clipping the off bail. Jones’ contribution was 39, made in his best form, and had he not had the misfortune to get such a clinker, might have been there yet. All his strokes were along the carpet all the way, and his play was much more forceful than usual.

Spense followed Jones, but was in and out for 3.

D. Hay was the next man in, but after playing two overs lost his partner, J. A. Kallender, who pulled one of Olliff’s hard into forward leg’s hands. The ball was at no time more than a foot in the air, and was just taken in time. It was really a good stroke, and 19 times out of 20 would have been a boundary—an example of the wisdom of hitting balls along the ground even on the leg side.

After D. Clayton had been disposed of for a nicely-made 20, A. E. Sloman filled the gap, and at once started to punish the bowling. With Hay he helped to put on about 40, and though his innings only occupied about a quarter of an hour, he helped himself to 29 in a very attractive manner. Seven fours and a single tells its own tale. He was out to a slow one from Olliff, which he slammed at anyhow.

With 200 on the board Barry got one into D. Hay’s wickets. Hay made 27 very carefully, and though he was at no time aggressive, the way he was shaping was well out of the way as far as Parnell were concerned.

During the first part of Hay’s innings he was partnered by D. Clayton, who is at present in first-ciass form. At that time it looked as if Crafton had every chance of at least making a draw of the game. Clay-

ton and Hay were both apparently quite comfortable to the bowling, and they had still six wickets left. Clayton’s end came to a full toss on the leg stump from Olliff. He hit hard, missed the ball and retired l.b.w.

It was a sad blow to the Graftonites, for I verily believe if he had stayed with Hay the game would have been saved.

The Grafton total reached 263, a very respectable figure on an ordinary occasion, but little use against the fine total of their opponents.

The latter part of the innings was chiefly remarkable for a fine display by H. Foster, a Grammar School lad of 14 or 15 years. He carried his bat, which is nearly as big as himself, for 17, and made several really good strokes. He is a product of S. P. Jones’ coaching, and when he gets a little more strength will be worth watching. As it is he gets a wonderful amount of power into his drives. r. Williamson also batted nicely during his short stay. He made 11 before Barry got a yorker past his bat.

The Eden-Ponsonby match attracted very little attention, as the game had practically been won on the previous Saturday.

Ike Mills was one of the not-outs with 46 to his credit, and on continuing he carried his score to 71, when he was well taken behind the wickets. Mills very magnanimously came out again to fill a gap in the Eden ranks caused by the absence of so many of the senior eleven with the rep. team, and I regret very much to hear he cannot continue for the rest of the season. He is a player of the right stamp, keen, energetic, and full of sport, and his retirement is a distinct loss to cricket.

Eden finished up with 171, but apart from Mills’ innings there was nothing extraordinarily attractive about it. When Eden get their four rep. men back again in the team they will be a strong side.

Going in for the second time Ponsonby made a very fine start, the two opening batsmen. Mason and Cummings, both scoring quickly and well. The former put on 49 and the latter 61.

At North Shore the game with City showed promise of an interesting finish if the locals were able to get rid of their opponents a second time fairly cheaply. Places had been kept for Haddon and Hussey, and Shore enthusiasts hoped that after City had done sufficient of the afternoon would remain to allow them to knock off the necessary runs. City were, owing to absentees, unusually weak in batting, and the chance was certainly there, but it was not a great one, and, as events turned out, was not to be, thanks to Renwick, who put on 67 and Kavanagh 20. * * * *

City’s second innings total reached 162, thus leaving North Shore 219 to get to win, and only two hours to do it in. Over 100 an hour is a bit of an undertaking, and with Haddon and Hussey both out early for a matter of 10 runs between them, Shore’s chance of winning was nipped in the bud. Had Haddon got going, he scores so fast that there is no knowing what might have happened, especially as Leo Prime got another good start and put on 34 before he was out, caught off Renwick’s bowling.

With Haddon and Hussey both in the pavilion, the possibility of getting so many runs in so short a time vanished, and the result was no longer in doubt. Shore made 154 for nine wickets before time was called.

I stated in last week’s issue that the Victorian team would commence its match with Auckland on Saturday, the 10th. The match, I find, commences on the 9th (Friday), and will be continued on the 10th and 12th.

The following are the names of the visiting team:—W. W. Armstrong, A. A. Aitken (manager), H. Fry, G. Hazlitt, G. Henty, M. Irwin, P. J. Jennings, C. Laver, C. McLeod, D. Mailer, V. Ransford, and F. Vaughan.

They arrive in Auckland on the 4th, and before playing here spend a day or two at Rotorua.

Several of the players are new to New Zealand, and are very anxious to see something of the wonderful Hot Lakes district. The team is a strong combination, the giant of the side of course being Warwick Armstrong, whose performances in England are so fresh in our memories. C. McLeod is also with the team, besides Ransford and Jennings. Ransford is one of the men whom Victorians thought should have been picked in the Australian eleven.

Many of the names are only known to us at present through the newspapers, but if prevous experiences are any guide they will be sufficiently real to us before they leave the sunny shores of Auckland.

Sydney papers are to hand with accounts of the great “ J. J. Kelly benefit” match, amplifying the brief cable reports received at the time.

From all accounts it was indeed a great match, and the performance of the New South Wales team in the fourth innings is one of the greatest in the records of Australian cricket.

New South Wales score of 472 is the highest made against the Australian 1905 eleven, and to get some idea of the magnitude of the achievement we must take into consideration the following facts. —Firstly, the score was made in the fourth innings of the match. Secondly, it was made by a single State against the combined Australian Eleven, and last, but not least, it must not be forgotten that the Australian side included no less than five New Sbuth Welshmen.

The batting of Mackay and Diamond, the opening batsmen, who put on 244 before they were separated, will long be remembered by all followers of the game, especially Sydneyites. The stand by the Waddy Brothers, too, for the third wicket when another 200 almost were added to the score, was a brilliant performance, which ranks little, if anything, behind that of Mackay and Diamond.

For the match against a Melbourne team Mr. F. J. Ohlson has selected the following to practice to assist his final selection: —T. Elliott, H. B. Lusk, W. B. Brooke-Smith, W. Stemson (Eden), S. P. Jones, Hay, A. E. Sloman (Grafton), L. G. Hemus, E. MacCormick (City), A. Haddon, L. Prime, J. Hussey, F. McNeil (North Shore), Cummings, Francis, and F. R. Mason (Ponsonby), Olliff and Sale (Parnell).