Visit of M.C.C. Tea m Is Notable Cricket Event

Sun (Auckland), Volume III, Issue 761, 6 September 1929, Page 6

Visit of M.C.C. Tea m Is Notable Cricket Event

visit to New Zealand during * the coming cricket season of A. 11. Gilligan’s M.C.C. team, including three such masters of the game as F. E. Woolley, Iv. S. Duleepsinhji and E. 11. Bowley, is an event of considerable importance in New Zealand cricket. HP-LIK tour of the M.C.C. team to A New Zealand during the coming season is a return for the visit to the Old Land of a Maoriland side in 1927—the pioneer side to England, led by Tom Lowry, which created such a fine impression at Home. The tour of the Englishmen will also forge a link in the long line of visits by teams from the Homeland, commencing away back in 15(53, when Parr’s side paid a hurried visit to Otago and Canterbury after touring Australia. The most recent was led by Archie MacLaren, the famous English Test captain, about six years ago. Only a few of the great masters of the game in England have not been seen in New Zealand. We never saw the “Grand Old Man” of cricket, Hr. W. G. Grace, but his brother E. M. paid us a visit. We never had the pleasure of seeing in action H.H. the Maharajah Jam Sahib of Nawanagar, Kumar Shri Ranjitsinhji, the greatest creative artist the game of cricket has ever known, but we will this season welcome his brilliant nephew, Duleepsinhji. New Zealand has never seen Gilbert Jessop or P. S. Jackson (“Jacker”), but of the other giants of the game, Shrewsbury, Stoddart, •‘Plum” Warner, “Johnnie Won’t Hit Today” Douglas and A. E. Relf were all at some time or other in New Zealand. The time may come, we will hope, when Jack Hobbs, W. R. Hammond and other giants of the game at present will find time to trip to this outpost of the antipodes. During the coming season Frank Woolley, the world’s greatest allround left-handed cricketer, will be in our midst. Now in the veteran stage (he is 42 years old), Wolley has been in the forefront of English cricket for the past two decades. He made his first appearance in English first-class cricket for Kent County in 1906 at the age of 19. He is one of the outstanding* sonalities of English cricket today, and in almost every respect he seems to be the embodiment of all the characteristics of the care-free type of cricketer, popularly supposed to represent the ideal of English cricket. Such an astute critic and great cricketer as P. G. H. Pender says of Woolley that “when ho goes in to bat, or on to bowl, the feeling gets around that something of importance is about to happen, and it always does, for Prank either gets runs or gets out, he gets wickets, or the opposing batsmen get runs.” Woolley toured Australia with the English Test side in 1911-12, and put up a big score of 305 not out against Tasmania at Hobart—which to this day is a record for an English team in Australia. On no fewer than eight occasions he has to his credit the double feat of scoring over 1,000 runs and taking over 100 wickets in one season of firstclass cricket. He has reached three figures in Test matches in England. Australia and South Africa. Against Armstrong’s invincible team in tho test at Lord’s in 1921 he scored 95 in the first innings, and 93 in the second. In four seasons, he obtained more than 2,000 runs, as well as taking over 100 wickets in first-class cricket. Both Bowley and Duleepsinhji had their first tastes of Test cricket in the recent series against the South African’s, so that there will be three Test cricketers with Gilligan’s side. Already this season, Woolly has

scored over 2,000 runs in English cricket and by making another century la-st week joined the select band headed by Hobbs, and composed of such famous batsmen as Grace, Mead, Hayward and Hendren who have achieved the rare distinction of having scored over a hundred centuries in first-class cricket. New Zealand will await 'Woolley’s arrival with pleasant expectation. Duleep-sinhji is 24 years old, and performed wonderfully well for Cambridge in 1928. Before being taken ill in 1927 he headed the Cambridge University batting averages. *He caught a chill in May, and such a severe attack of pneumonia developed that at one time his life was in serious danger. He recovered, but not in time to be a candidate for the last All-Eng-land Test team to Australia. He is at present playing for Sussex, and stands fifth on the English batting averages with a figure of 53.29. Harold Gilligan also comes from Sussex, where lie acts as deputy to his more-famous brother. A. E. It., as captain of the county side. He is chiefly known a-s a solid batsman. This side includes a number of promising colts, stiffened up by the inclusion of Woolley and Bowley. The average age works out at just over 29 years, but there

Is a wide disparity in some of the ages. M. J. Turnbull (Cambridge University ancl Glamorganshire) is 23 and last season was one of the mainstays of the University batting. He had one big score of IG9. M. J. C. Allom also comes from Cambridge, and is at present playing for Surrey. He Avon a prominent place in the Cambridge attack and later shone as a bowler for Surrey. Allom is rather above medium-pace, and brings the ball, off the ground with much life. Even younger still is E. T. Benson, of Oxford University, one of the side’s wicket-keepers. He is only 22. Last season he took part in a stubborn lastwicket stand with C. Iv. Hill-Wood for Oxford against Cambridge, eventually saving his side from an overwhelming defeat. S. Worthington, of Derbyshire, is a young' all-rounder of 24, who last season had a batting average of close on 30, and took 02 wickets at a cost of 26 runs each. Rather older than the rest- of the side, E. Barratt (35) is a big bowler of some pace, whose run-getting powers are of no mean order. For Notts last year he took 100 wickets, and up over a 1,000 runs, so attaining the coveted cricketer’s double. He was the first Notts cricketer to accomplish this feat since John Gunn achieved the

distinction in 1906. He gave some remarkable displays of high' speed scoring, which never degenerated into mere slogging. The side’s fast bowler is M. S. Nichols, of Essex, who is 28. He was at one time regarded as a likely man for Australia, but eventually did not get the trip. He also is no mean bat, and is noted for his vigorous methods with the willow. The Englishmen's first wicketkeeper will no doubt be W. Worthington, of Sussex, who is well known for his unfailing alertness and safety behind the stumps. He is also a good but. E. W. Dawson is one of the most promising of batsmen and last season was second on the Leicestershire batting averages. He is the county captain, and registered five centuries, so that he realised the expectations he raised at Cambridge University. He is sound in method, attractive in style, and shows good scoring powers in Dffdriving and cutting. He is 25. From the county of Woolley, Freeman and Chapman comes G. B. Legge, one of the batsmen of the side. He is 26, and previously played for Cambridge University. The other member of the side is G. F. Earle, of Harrow, Surrey and now Somerset. He is an all-rounder.