NEW ZEALAND TEAM

Hokitika Guardian, 24 March 1927, Page 1

NEW ZEALAND TEAM

VISITING CRICKETER'S HIGH PRAISE. CHRISTCHURCH, March 23. “To-day’s play confirmed my opinion that New Zealand will do wonderfully well in England,” said -Mr "Warwick Armstrong, the famous Australian cricketer who is captaining the Melbourne side on their present tour, to a reporter last evening. “They fought a great uphill fight and turned an almost certain defeat into a moral victory. The team will win many more matches than they will lose.

“1 have not yet had a proper chance to sum up the whole strength of the team, especially the bowling strength, but 1 should say that there is the nucleus of a good attack. The sloe.; howlers were very steady in the test, and Merritt and Blunt were first class as changes. I was very amused with the crowd to-night. They are a good sporting crowd, and I would have liked to stay in longer and had some more fun with them. It was impossible t> give them an exhibition of hatting aL that stage of the game, when there was no chance of getting the runs, and a fair chance of being all out with a big deficiency. The Melbourne second innings was disappointing, but the men had a big spell of fielding, and the fourth innings is not the best of a match for putting uy a big total. One of two of us were not feeling too fit, and it was unfortunate that Jewell, usually an opening batsman and a good scorer, was unable in bat owing to the state of his hands after keeping wickets. 11l Wellington we will meet the true New Zealand team, and I will be able to make a better estimate of their form.”

Mr Hugh Trumhle. the foam’s manager, was also very confident that the New Zealanders would do well in their English tour. Blunt, he said, was a star hat and would score any amount of runs. He was much impressed with the hatting of Mills, though he had not stayed in long in the test. “He had a beautiful style,’ said Mr Trumhle, “and will do very well at Home. He has not come off against us, but the conditions in England, when the men will be. playing more cricket than they would for a season here, will lie such that a man will he able to get on to his game, and a poor score to start with will not make any difference to his tour.

“The trip will put X T ew Zealand on the cricket map, and. with the men that are going will do the country an immense amount of good in other ways as well. I see that some of the men are prominent footballers as well as cricketers, and that is a good thing as it shows that they lmve the temperament. for games. “You have good sound batsmen in Page, .Tames, Olliver, ]farce, and of course Blunt, and the tail showed to day that they can he depended on for nuts. Cunningham is a good stock bowler, and Merrit showed great iorm. though in the second innings, when the batsmen were refusing to hit, it was hard for him to get wickets. Blunt is another great slow howler, hut it would bo as well to keep him a little in tin' dark as a howler, and spring him. as a surprise change. “The great thing is that the team are all young, and their cricket is yet in the making. Some of them will come home great players, and they will lie an immense help to the game in New Zealand.”