ON SLOW BOWLING.

Dominion, Volume 3, Issue 706, 4 January 1910, Page 6

ON SLOW BOWLING.

.! ."""■; . .";V [By GTEO-γ; V" : ' ' The Basin? Yee. Maybe on tricky wicket You've faced the musio when at concert ■ ■•■■■ pitch,' , ■:..■■.-■ .; ;■;■ ;:, .'■'■'■;■': And, fifty passed;by steady, plodding. cricket, : - . '...-. ' .--.''. •'. 'Keen Expectation throbs.. , . ': '■■ Bo jumping in with hefty bat that smothers..' '.. : \ ...'■' '.-. .' ■, ' ■ , ■ ,■ ;• . . All tricks, ; you make some nlnoty runs,' And then— yoii , only want ..ten others— ■■■■■'V ■■■;■ They put Him on with lobs. They.put him on with lobs I The Fates : confound, him! - ... ■'"■■' : /'■.'.■■ '•■'■ Hie : wrotched"BOOglerß" will your stumps ■. bewray.- V ■'■■..'■■ ■■■.■-, , •■•'■' , ' Youswinc -the willow, and yon hit all ..•■ round liim ■' ::■• '.■•" ,; _ ,'He's got yoii in an aotl Or else—for you can never foil him— -You sky, hie "donkey drope." '~•■■'•' ". I'd like to take that "lobster" home and : ' boU. him',. ■•."■■', •■ ' ■'■"■■■'■■ * , ■■'■■■' ■■■■'■'' '■ ':'." And; that's the simplo fact. .■:. \- Old memories have : a way of looking pretty, with/the march.■ of'time. They grow ■... brighter ~".■'and .brighter: ''"as; they , .grow, .more'' ; remote, until, at. ."..last;.; ■ they . shine.. like : strips 'of stadned-glass window/in some dim , , .grey ruin.- It is,•perhaps; phangedvtimes;for I some of us when the bag, and the white boots- and.flannels.are.put, away for ever, and: the .Basin or" some other ground , that/knew -us once, knows "us ndmore for'eyer. It is then that'th'e little: lamps, of Memory burns up.' ' .': ■■.-.' '■;,'■.l .reinembei , ,\with some' distinctness; a when. Harry " Trott's - Australian team -;were'- touring , . New, Zealand! Trott,: ll'Kdbbin, Tnimbie, -"Jim". -Phillips, the umpire, and I: forget ,how many moreVijere in it; "and/afte'r some talk 1 on Tro.tt'e; performances in ."j ockeying- out!' the. best'batsmen in England with his own slow bowling, "3im" Phillips Remarked .that cricket and cricketers were just like ; the complete book 'of life, and nis outstanding impression, about oil of it : was-the; absolute unoriginality of young man.' Youth.he;held to be.the period-or blind, headlong:imitation,,-and,'whether in cricket orin anything else, he had never seen" a:young man'-do , anything-smart or. clever iUnless.it.was a\'direct crib or. copy. ;of. something or somebody,else.; In 'cricket; the /absolute/ : .want : .. of. "idea":' among the\ ygjinger ■ 'players _ ; ; was. something -le, ponder oil. A bowier.Uo'r instance; started -to "wnee'i-. them up", as -soon : as a■ batsnian ; ' had' taken : block; an old; one. kept; jthe; batsman waiting, : giving : him' plenty of ytiiiie. to. think; aiid. get/nervous, : and; there wnis: nothing like "nervousness for" getting' a inau out. • A young captain generally q'peiWd the . attack, by•• clapping :On..a' brace ..of., "battery"- bowlers, whereas the": .skipper always:took- , care that; nis two .bowlers- should, be as dissimiiai; iirstylb as possible—a.fastiuaii: at'ohe.end anil a slojjimaii.at.t'ne other, ■or-;y.;. : right' , ..aud , -loft'v)iander;-/or-'-an,-.offi , break man;audone;with : a: bit of.a.lurn from leg."He.instanced-Upham and Ashbolt /(Wellington) and pbwnes arid. I''isher (Otago) as'spiondad'.pairs of,,bowlers, not. , : w muoh because' each, ; of. these; bowlers/was ■ Himself "a good- man," but because, in : style, ■ caoh/was'thfe aklithesis.ot" the^other,.und the'resUltingdistraction'to'.thejbatsman's, eye 'wae great'. ; "As, to slow:, bowling, pure '.and "sim'pie," the , average , young .bowler, unless, coached 'by , some, wise ...old: : head,' 'left it'seyereivjaione:;.'lt .did: not a'piieal :to •'him'^he. , usually wanted tb)be.a'-light-hing soft'vbf;'-'"giprified-. ■ .Spdfforth , ,': ,, 'with : speed-; eansi ; turn-and ; 'leogthy. ■.' I Besides,:the ; piin'-'ahd.; -suto . good. elow bowler 'did not'etrike .the- ayer.-. age.'.inaii : ;:as" : at'!all .amusing.'■< '■'!,{'.';■'.'. -.; .:-' ;. ; Sp..a : .'word.about "slow bowling—that' invincible .-'kind; of-"attack which gets .the, best-;of 'them'out,' aiid which always has and "alwayeVvriU'.be' destructive to bdye andlads.; Ofloiir r Wellington ' cricketers Jabk Mahoney. fielding in tho'elips is,* to: my m-indj'a model;' Fred Midlane fielding, inv the "country": is", good' to. watch ; "Ernio".'Uph'ara;':at.-the ..crease 'has'/: I. think; the'heart , of alionVKen":Tiicker; is the perfection of length, though! to' be' sure, : his bowling" lacks' "devil' ; . Laws, for certain ;all-round;: qualities, I 7 think, I would pick team; but to-.rne -the ; from\ watching'elow !-bowlers' l 'such''as' Coboroft,Vr','.Truei'; '-Jie ;is •' • Bmitten'-.unm'erci i;: fully-.at ~timee,: sbut, ;.tha.t.;,is 'when- '1»< f'loses ;his length."'.;"' -.'■_■ 'j;V .'■-.V.i..- , .. '■■■'':."'- , . i- --■;; Come .to-think-of it,'a slo.w'bbwler.-with>. a .perfect, command ;of- his length -should'. never, : be- hitiafc' all iexcept at great risk; td; thet.batsman. i/Say?the'."lobster"—l am: classing;all:.slow bowling' as.. get a .length- well- up; •on the oiT-stump, or maybe ; . an'^irich , . or x : two outside it, 'and breaking.: further: away, ■ y;hatr:rie. a bate-.. manHo do -ivith 'it?: Ho cannot: do any-• thing "with iti.- , . If ;a.batsman with a long : reach, , Brice,. for , example/'is'.minded; to. hit' well, ; ihe ; : 'lobster's" ; counter-move , is/ quite; simple>-he just J pitches tb.em'/a' bit further'on- the.'iwicket, : to, the , off. , side, v , . Indeedr.it is just when, ,'batsmen.:are; in the: mood l forhitting i that the ; good-length "lobster" should be bagging,, wickets. (The bad-length slow bowler; of course, - always" catchesvif. hot.);.; There' ie ; one device-r-Cobcroftrseems to try-.it : a ;little sometimes,;and.'Earry; .Trott got most of his .wiokets;.' with. it—that alwoye :,ought .to get :; a '■■ batsman out: when/he'.is; itching to ; hiti ".'Ton , send up. to,, say,-: three slow ohes'df J.a'-certain.'paoe and -break. Then you , follow, these::with-,;a -fourth, ball—a. little -higher',.: just a .little-slower, and 'a. foot or"so'shorter." To' the■ /batsnian' this';. 1 ast,;' tliough■ - shorter, : : seems ;, further, up: He \ioUJd scarcely behuman :if.'he! did not jump'in and r liave a'crack" at it','and -he ; is almost certain'to miss,'it... The wioket-. keepers may 'then, 'be ..trusted' for', ellvthat; remains;/tb be'-done.:': ~; . ' •••'-.' ■■ .- Ofcourse.'eucli'a deyice'means , years.'of. practice. -Indeed, thie - poor,, "lobster", wrks. i a >painful: passage; at,'the ' practice; nets aiiyhoiv. •It is- a" season -.'at..- least-before he '.oan. develop ■ a leg-b'reak: without; bowling;: wides , ; another ■■ two or '.three, seasons; before .he -gets;any '.co'nt'rdl' of ; his length, and;unless^he'isa wonder, it would-pos-sibly.' be-six;' , or': seven- ; seasons ■ before he! would be; able -,'to;work; the. "Trott trick" mentidhed'above iwith- accuracy.- •■ .-; But all/:the. suffering ■'and struggle-of: pfactioe.is Mpaid.when the 'lobster'' becomes/prbficient in guile.:lt is a , very fine feeling'to be put ,dn at .the, crease; when your side's, bowling lias been thoroughly collared by put on to dissolve, 'that.: partnership, and to/feel morally certain , that you can do it. _' -Four or : ; five-ounces of cork and string, wrapped up in' stained hogskin—it does not sound ; much,'but in the hands of a crafty; slow:, bowler it" is as potent as ■ a, twelveinch : shell:' It.' can infallibly'.; slay your opponent, and the shell, can do no more. And tho , time \shen : a-batsman is. getting, close up'to'the century: is.'not abad.mme to put someone on with lobs. : '.■•.., -Also against juniors, college-teams, and what are called "dashing young;batsmen . slow .bowling is the best .paying ■ proposition in-: ; cricket. ■; - - ', r ':. . ■' ;