Saturday's Cricket May Decide Winners Of Championship For This Season

Chronicle (Levin), 31 March 1949, Page 7

Saturday's Cricket May Decide Winners Of Championship For This Season

"Not Out")

(By '

The game on Saturday between Weraroa! and Shannon may be tne deciding one in the Horowhenua Cricket Association's championship for the Hall Shield. Should Shannon emerge victorious their grip 011 tne shield would be assured, out a defeat would make two games of the final series very mteresting. Close attention will be focussed on this match, which is to be played at Shannon, and indications are that "Not Out" will not be the only Levin spectator there.

It is Monday evening and the weather is a very sharp reminaer that the cricket season is drawing rapidly to a close. As there is insufiicient time to complete the ihird roun-d in the shieid competilion, the Horowhenua Cricket Association has decided to deiete a series. The final associaiion cricket will be played during Easter, when a Horowhenua team will meet a Wellington eleven under the management of Len Calvert. This is to be a two-day fixture, of which we see very few in this district. On Saturday Shannon obtaineri an easy eight-point win ovcr Foxcon. With aii due respect to Shannon — they have done very we.l this season — Foxton seem to have slipped badly. Last season and during the early part of this one they were a foree to be reckoned with and, as the old faces are stlli there, it is hard to understand. Perhaps the reason can be found 011 the other side of the ledger. Other teams have improved greatly. O Donneli Bowlecl Weii Old Boys in their game with Weraroa put on the good score of 135. G. Sciascia, afier an exceptionally s.ow start, finally got going and coliected a useful 43. N. Sciascia (17) and J. Dorne (15) also helped their side's score along while the tail-ender, P. Gardiner, by moving into the ball, added a useful 14 (not out). O'Donnell bowlfed particularly well, having a very long spell at the crease and, with the exception of one over, few runs were scored off his deliveries. ' His action is an easy one and a ! bowler of this type is an asset to any team. Saunders did not find the wicket to his liking. On more than one occasion he gave his •'victory jump," thinking he had a wicket. The well-directed. good bail was beating the batsmen, but the fire in the wicket was making it fly over the top. When Old Boys took the field it appeared as if they had a good chance of winning the game, but lack of bowling strength was again their downfall. What a loss stocl: bowler V. Lynch wasl With him, or a bowler of his type in the team, ! ;

a win may have been secured on Saturday and they would have had every possibility of being at the top of tne championship ladder. Of the Old Boys bowlers tried, E Barraud had by far the longest spell at the crease. Although he sent down a few loose ones, that occasional gocd ball caused the batsmen trou'ble. I think he, as with Saunders, found the fire in the. pitch a little troublesome. Notwithstanding, three for 45 off so many overs under trying conditions was a good effort. N. Sciascia did much better at his second visit to the "crease, while P. Hannan had a' few useful overs. 4 Of ihe Weraroa batsmen, P. Hudson gave the side an excellent start: with a quick 31, while Wi.son (24) and Saunders (26) added handy loials. J. Ryder (16) and G. C. France (13) wtre the only other nen who looked like getting runs. L'he remaining batsmen did not seem to reaiise that they were oiit there to get runs. Wild swinging of the bat or a dead bat will only result in the players early return to" the pavilion with a little addedi to ,he() score. Fielding Was Not Good The fielding, both on the Levin Park Domain and the Weraroa Domain, was not as good as it should have been. On the Weraroa ground Jo.lige iought gamely against the strong Levin side. Lang (26) and Brazier (21 not out) were useful Col.ege scorers, while on the bowling side the last-named, together with Hamilton and Andrews, coliected the honours. Of Levin's tptal, K. Hudson (70) certainly "went for the doctor," while W. Galloway (23) and Lambert (28) did well., The bowling honours of the Levin side were fairly well spread. All cricketers I am sure join with me in congratulating J. Granger in his promotion to registrar of social security and pensions at Blenheim. At the same time it is with regret that we say good-bye to Jim, for he has been a wonderful asset to sport in this town and district and his departure will leave a gap in the administrative as well as1 the playing side.