CRICKET NOTES.

Shannon News, 11 March 1924, Page 3

CRICKET NOTES.

Saturday last was again a perfect cricketing day, the weather being exceptional for the season and the We-raroa-Moutoa match, which decided the northern competition, was played at Moutoa under the most favourable conditions. The win gives Weraroa the right tp m,eet Otaki for the championship of the district the game to ne played in Levin, probably on the Saturday after next. Weraroa deserved their win on Saturday, the better iieam undoubtedly winning. j The outstanding batsman on the | Weraroa side, was .Conder, his score j of 62 being of the very,best. He had bad luck in being given out for i.b.w., a decision which surprised even the bowler, Mason. Conder looked like a century, and although Mason brought every trick he possessed out of the hag, he never looked like shifting him. If Conder can reproduce this lorm against Otaki in the coming game the match should have interesting resultgi. Hughes and Conder carried the score to 72 before 1 Hughes left, two wickets for 72 being about the best pterljornianee put up this season. Hughes batted well, playing the balls on the-wicket with a straight bat, and going for anything loose. Marshall batted yvjeiJL for 15. He can play a straight bat and is working on the right lines. .Sloan, 8 not out, was unlucky in not getting double figures, a terrific drive which would inevitably have made a boundary striking Marshall on the arm, fortunately without doing any serious damage. O’Connor was very lucky in getting his dozen. He did the right thing in declaring, as the result proved. Moutoa started off really better than their -opponents, Mason and Madsen taking the score to 59 before Pringle got one past Mason, making one for 59. Mason is all thp batsman that is claimed of him ; he scored all round the wicket with the greatest ease, a number of his 38 runs being boundary shots. His long reach is a great advantage and Weraroa was the safer for his going. Madsen batted really well for *l2, and extras added 17.

Mason’s bowling was very good, he getting six of the seven wickets captured, the other being secured by Sutherland. O’Connor and Pringle bowled right through for Weraroa, O’Connor getting 5 wickets and Pringle 3. The fielding on both sides was inclined to be wleak, the unsatisfactbry condition of the ground contributing to this to a certain degree. Davis, behind the sticks, caught one and stumped one, but let a lot go through which he should have stoped, his display the weiek previous being very much) better. Moutoa deserve the greatest credit for their sportsmanship in the game. Although their game was to play for a draw, they made no attempt to waste time nor infringe, which under the circumstances must inevitably have been a temptation. With twelve minutes to go they had four wickets in hand, but their luck Was out. Sloan returning very fast with a really beautiful shot, put out Ellsworthy and considerably improved Weraroa’s 'chances.. Weraroa won with two minutes to spare and 58 runs in hand.

It is to be regretted that the Association could not have arranged to have the final played next Saturday, as once the weather breaks properly, a wet autumn is probable. It is to be hoped that they will appoint satisfactory umpires for the game, whilst a reduction in the size of the boundaries would contribute to “brighter cricket.”

The over-size boundaries have kept the scores low throughout the season. It is to be remembered that the batsmen have to contend with a ground that is against a ball travelling, and in order to spore have to run themselves to a standstill. Furthermore, in cricket the batsman is supposed to have the benefit of the doubt, the contrary being the fact on the local ground* Weraroa would be well advised to drop some of their “tail” men for the game. The club is numerically strong and some of the men who have not usually played might be given a chance on the principle that they could not do worse that the men they would displace.

A win by Weraroa would mean the return of the Hall Shield which goes with the 'Championship and which was last won by Levin three years ago and lost in thp following year to Shannon. Previous to this the last trophy captured by a local team was the Bevan Cup won by the old Leyin Club in 1912.

In the same year Otaki won the Championship of the district which carries with it the Shield to he contended for in the coming game. “Micky” Naughton was at that time the captain of the Otaki team and was probably the best bat in the Wellington district. In the previous year the Shield had been won by Foxton captained by Redgrave, who afterwards represented in turn, New Zealand, New South Wales, Quensland, and Australia agiainst England. The standard of cricket in the district has deteriorated considerably since those, its palmy days. In this column next wieek we hope to reproduce some reminiscences of those local; giants of the willow.