SUCCESSFUL SEASON TO CLOSE ON SATURDAY.

Rotorua Morning Post, Volume 1, Issue 199, 15 April 1932, Page 7

SUCCESSFUL SEASON TO CLOSE ON SATURDAY.

HIGH SCHOOL'S SUCCESS.

(Notes by "Coverpoint.") , With the completion of the match between High School and Albion last Saturday, .the Rotorua Cricket Association's McLean Cup coinpetition was concluded for this season. By their defeat of Albion (the Cup winners), the High School team's total of points now exceed those gained Mamaku, and the School side is therefore the runners-up for the season. Throughout the season the young High School side have generally performed with great success and have at times compiled scores which indicate that in a year or so Rotorua should be well supplied with batting talept. In common with other teams, except- : ing perhaps Albion, the bowling was not quite so good and in this depart- ; ment and also fielding there is plenty I of room for hnprovement. With atj tention to these branches of the game | High School should be a very tough | proposition next season.

Albion Averages. The leading averages of the Albion t team, which won the McLean Cup this I season. are as follows:---

CJosing of Season. The 1931-32 season will be brought to a conclusion to-morrow afternoon, when City will meet Ngongotaha to decide the wariner of the : knock-out competition. Both teams have played some good cricket this past season and it is pleasing to see this competition going to one of the teams lower in the points list of the McLean Cup competition. Interest in the game has genei'ally been more active during the past season than for some time, the selection and challenge of the Bay of Plenty team for the Hawke Cup creating interest among players and bringing the game before the public. The writer takes the responsibility for stating that the game has been thoroughly enjoyed hy all those connected with cricket throughout the season, and farewells his readers in the hope that these "notes" have been of interest and benefit to players and to the game.

New Zealand Cricket. Before leaving New Zealand, H. W. Taylor, the South African batsman, who has scored a century in every country he has visited, gave it as his opinion that New Zealand was not yet up to Test match status, und that it need not come to South Africa until fit had advanced a bit farther along the cricket road. Taylor's opinion of New Zealand was formed by the play he saw in the two Tests. It is the duty of the New Zealand Cricket Council to prove to Taylor and the rest of the world that the Dominion is capable of better form than was revealed against the Springboks. Not Enough Big Cricket. It has been suggested that a cause of weakness in New Ze.aland is that there is not enough big cricket and the formation of more Plunket Shield districts is advocated. It is suggested that Wanganui. Taranaki, and South ! Auckland could form one district, and Hawke's Bay, Manawatu, and Wairal rapa another. By this means, the best players in the country districts would be brought into prominence, and the | calibre of the national eleven raised .It would assist New Zealand cricket greatly if Tom Lowry could be induc- ; ed to act as one of the selectors for national teams, No man in the game to-day has a wider knowledge of playing conditions, and no one is a better j judge of a cricketer. It is impossible to understand how Jack Newman, the Nelson left-hander, came to be dropped for the second Test. Newman, in the Plunket Shield match at Dunedin, captured five wickets for 51 and five for 45, and in the first Test pgainst the South Africans at Christchurch he took two for 76, and yet this was not good enough for the New Zealand selectors, The sweeping success of the Auckland left-hander, H. G. Vivian, in the second Test and the success of W. E. Merritt, the Canterhury slow spin b'owler, should give New Zealand selectprs courage to give more youngsters promotion to the New Zealand team,

Runs Inn. JN.O. Avg. Burton .... .... 27? 14 2 23.1 McGill 274 12 — 22.8 Wallis 11Q 7 1 19-3 Lenihan 171 10 1 19.0 J. Hinton 333 14 — 16.6 Gresham 153 12 2 15.3 Sutherland .... Ill 11 — 10-1 Penno 72 9 — 8.0

Batting

O. M. R. Wkts, Avg. Hampson .... 2.1 — 11 3 3.66 Lenihan 101 19 281 45 6.25 Sutherland .... 94 36 183 24 7.62 Hinfon .... .... 27 2 104 13 8.00 Lewis 3 i 8 1 S.00 Burton 52 1 187 17 11.00 Penno 25 1 128 9 14.22 Tregilgas .... 11 1 60 4 15.00 . Wallis 46 7 174 11 15.81 Atkinson .... 19 — 96 5 19.2

Bowling