CRICKET COMMENTS

Rotorua Morning Post, Volume 2, Issue 359, 21 October 1932, Page 6

CRICKET COMMENTS

"Cover Point.") ;

SEASON OPENS LOST OPPORTJUNITIES IN OLD BOYS-CITY MATCH. WEAK ROWLING.

(Notes by

It was unforiunate t'hat ihe bad : weather last Saturday resulted m ari unsatisfactory commencement to ihe 1932-33 cricket seasqp. Sueh was the state of the Rotorua High School grounds that it was found necessary j to postpone the opening of the mateh- j es between High School 1 and Albion j and Ngongotaha and High School II. j The remaining match, between City and Old Boys was commenced on the Government Grounds whare the wicket was in much better order. The delay in the commencement of the other two games until tomorrow is likely to cause a complicated j position in connection with the eham- 1 pionship as it is practically impossible for the matches to be decided on the only remaining day's play of tli(s series. As might be expected, brightness was lacking in the City-Old Boys fixture and in both team's first innings the total was very small, neither side reaching the century. Anotber regrettable feature for so early in the season was that both clubs fielded short teams, Old Boys being three players short and City two short. City, who batted first could colleet only 66 runs and of this total their opening bat, Davis, compiled 25 runs. However, the display of the eight old Boys was even weaker and at the close of the innings they had failed to reaeh the City total by 7 runs. As in past seasons, bowling talent in the Old Boys team is very lacking and the brunt of the attaclc fell upon Heley who did well in accounting -for six City wiekets at a cost of "6.16 runs per wicket. The City bowling is also very nK' elmore, Reed with 4 wicket s for 20 runs being the most suecessful on Saturday. In their second innings City reeovered well and placeJ themsc-lves in a very strong position by the end of the day's play. In this effort Harding and Bowden played scerling innings by stopping a rot which set in early and adding 54 runs for the fourth wicket. At the time of drawing stumps Harding was still undefeated with 38 runs to his credit. In view of the bad light for almost an hour before stumps were drawn the policy of the Old Boy's skipper in resorting to slow bowling to batsmen who were obviously "set," was surprising, for had he given Musgrave a spell it is likely that a separation would have been effected much eaflier. M-C.C. Tour. It is probable that .he M.C.C. team which commences its tour of Aust-a-lia this month and v;di later play in New Zealand, will visit Rotorua* before leaving the Dorninion. H would be an enterprising move on the part of the Rotorua Cricket Associat on if an exhibition was arranged during their visit here, and it would, vithout doubt, do much to stimula.e int uest in cricket in the district. Cromb's Position. Until W. E. M'jrritt discloses Ihe tarms of the contraet which has been arranged for I. B. CromYs engagement as professioi.al to the East Lancashire Club, in leagiu cricket, Cromb will not know on which day in Mareh next he will have to leave New Zealand to take up the engagement. On that, apparently, will depend whelher or not. he will be available for selection, if required, for New Zealand against the English team which is to come to the Dorninion in March. After Merritt's engagement by the Rishton Club, from the 'first term of which that bowler has now returned to New Zealand, the management eommittee debarred Merritt from i'm\ her representation of New Zealand, because of the breach of the agreement entered into between him — in common with the other members of the Dorninion team that went Home last year — and the council. No decision to debar Cromb from further selection for New Zealand has been made yet by the council's management committee, however, and apparently the committee will not determine its action on the* question until Cromb has left the Dominion and has thus complated a breach of the agreement. In reply to a letter from him to the council on the subject of his engagement by the East Lancashire Club, Cromb has been informed that the management committee would regard his proposal to accept engagement as a professional cricketer as a breach of his contract with the council. "If you leave New Zealand to fulfil such an engagement before the time set out in the contract," continues the letter from the council's hon. secretary, "you will be subject to such penalties as my council may think fit to impose.." The agreement between the council and the members of the New Zealand team which toursd England last year will not expire until November of next year.