CRICKET GOSSIP.

New Zealand Times, Volume XXXI, Issue 4910, 16 December 1876, Page 1 (Supplement)

CRICKET GOSSIP.

(BT TOM DBOWN.I The Englishmen have suffered their first defeat at Sydney. The New South Wales men won the match by three runs and two wickets to spare, after a very hot contest. The general impression among cricketers here on Monday was that the Englishmen would be victorious, although the Sydney men had only twenty runs to get to win, and three wickets to fall. So confident were many of the Englishmen’s admirers, that odds were offered freely on their winning, but no one was game enough to ■take the beta up. Speaking for myself, I must say I was not by any means surprised at the match being a close one. I mentioned some weeks ago that the Englishmen would find in Sydney “men worthy of their steel," end that the match would be close whoever won. Sydney is remarkably strong in bowling, and I don’t believe there is a finer trio in the colonies than Coates, Evans, and Spoffortb, all of whom are proficient in the use of the willow; they are also very strong In batting. Sydney can now well afford to be proud of her champions, and be pardoned for what Anthony Trollope calls “blowing” about the prowess of her rowing-men and cricketers. In rowing she haa beaten the champion of the world, and

now her cricketers have beaten the chosen of all England in their favorite game. Many will say the Englishmen were handicapped, and little credit is due to Sydney for winning Well, so they were as regards numbers, but it must be remembered that it was the flower of England's cricketers they were playing, »nd all men who get their bread by cricket; and .eleven against fifteen is no great odds. I see by the. news brought by the Arawata that Victoria is likely to play eighteen against the Englishmen on Boxing Day. This I very much doubt, for at a meeting of the Victorian Cricketers Association it was decided that in choosing a team tho committee would be guided by the result of the match in Sydney. Now, as the result has been so favorable to N.S.W., 1 don t think Victoria will play a greater number against the A.B.E. than their Sydney friends If I know aught of Victorians they would rather be inclined to play on equal terms, for although they have been beaten this last two years by N.S.W., they still flatter themselves thsit they &ro better cricketers. X i.binV, however, they will play the same number as Sydney, viz., fifteen. The Englishmen have not been very successful, so far, at Newcastle. In their first innings they scored 96, and in their second they only made 77. Tho District men made a very small score in their first innings, viz,, 31. I have no doubt, however, that the Englishmen will pull this match off. , tt ■ n n I see by an exchange that the Union u.C. (Wanganui) played a match at Marton last Saturday against the local club, and won in one innings and twenty -five runs to spare. None of the Marton great guns did anything, but Cross, Lacey, and Farrington did good service for Wanganui, especially the first named, who not only did good service as a bowler but made the respectable score of 73, more than halt the total score of the team. Association Match Committee keep your eye on Cross for the All England match. There is some talk of sending a team during Christmas week to Nelson to play the return Inter-provincial match. Had Napier not been engaged during the Christmas and New Year weeks, the association would have sent a team there instead. Very little cricket has been done on the Basin Reserve during the week. I presume our cricketers think themselves quite good enough to meet the All England Eleven without practice. Time, however, will prove to the contrary. I understand there will be a meeting of the English Eleven Committee early next week. A match committee will he appointed at the meeting to choose the twenty-two. X think it is about time this was done. _

I was glad to see the New Zealand Times take notice of the conduct and doings of several members of three of our leading clubs on the Basin Reserve last Saturday. I trust that what was said will have the desired effect. A costume match will he played to-day on the Basin Reserve between elevens from the Theatre Royal and Artillery. This match should cause a good deal of amusement, and I expect to see a large attendance. The following is the Artillery team Messrs. Russell, Bock, Garwood, Belcher, Humphries, Wills, Remington, Kuchen, Gascome, Turner, and I. J. Salmon (captain) ; umpire, Mr. Grimstone; scorer, Mr. Van Heythuysen. The following from the Sporting Life will no doubt be read with interest :—“ Mr. Good, Hon. Secretary of the Worsley Cricket Club, sends the followingl forward a few particulars anent Mr, W, G. Grace’s marvellous innings, and the mammoth score amassed by the United South in the recent match at Grimsby. The wickets of the South fell as follows

Ist, 85; 2nd, 123; 3rd, 282; 4th, 562; sth, 568; 6th, 577; 7th, 579; Bth, 618; 9th, 642; 10th,675. Mr. Grace’s score of 400 was made up as follows:—Four 6’s, twenty-one 4’s, six 3’s, fifty-eight 2’s, and 158 singles. The bowling was up to the average (mostly amateur), the wicket perfection; but Mr. Grace’s play was acknowledged by all present (including the ■members of the South team) to be such as they never before witnesses. He gave no chance whatever during the first and second day. On the third he gave two easy ones, viz., to short* slip and long-leg, but he had then scored 350 runs, although he was at the wickets during thirteen hours and a half, and had no less than fifteen howlers m turn opposed to him.”