CRICKET.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LV, Issue 199, 11 January 1913, Page 7

CRICKET.

I The "washing-up" process in connection with the first round of the Thursday competition is still in progress. Owing to Inglewood's inability to play I hint Thursday, Xew Plymouth travelled to Waitara, and in order not to waste a day, played their second round match against the Waitara eleven. The result of the play leaves the match in a fair) j interesting position. Waitara aio ali out for 101 runs, and Xew Plymouth have four wickets down for SO. Xew Plymouth were two men short, but as the match is unfinished they have a chance to recover on these. Their fiielding was not very inspiring, and Waitara notched many runs on this account. As regards the home team's innings, it is pleasing to see an old player like W. Skelton come to light . again with a substantial ta'ily of U9. He was a bit lucky, but he batted well when runs were wanted, and the same can be said of Smaill, who notchea 30 runs. Jioth gave chances, and hit a lot of balls just out of the reach of the field. The wicket was fair, and Bain bowled best for the visitors. Bain hit freely for Xew Plymouth to the tune of Gl runs (not out) : nd gave no chances, although .-tune of his .strokes were a trille "uppislj." W-stou showed good form with ]' (not out) and found the erratic bowling to his liking. A shower of rain made the ba',l greasv and this put the Waitara trundlers at "a disadvantage. The match started on time, and during the afternon the ' visiting team were hospitably entertained at afternoon tea. The High School vacation is hanging up the balance of the first-round matches somewhat, another of which will be played next Thursday, in the shape of Xew Plymouth v. Inglewood A. The secondround fixtures will be a repetition of the first round, but it is undecided when they will be properly commenced. The Law v. United Service match, which was set down for this afternoon, has been postponed till the following week, owing to neither club bein<* able to put a full team in the fie'.d. A scratch game will therefore be played this afternoon on the Recreation Grounds. It is said that Hazlitt (a member of the last Australian eleven )may never play again in big cricket. He met with a thumb accident towards the close of the tour.

Some remarkable scoring was witnessed at a cricket match at Nurioopta (South Australia) recently, between the local team and a team from Angaston. The iocal men hit up 237 for four wickets m two hours (P. Warneeke 102, retired; P. O'Brien 55, retired; J. Hatch 64, not out). The last-named knocked up his quota in 20min; he got 38 in two overs. The oldest known bat in the world is almost 2000 years of age. It was presented to the Surrey County Cricket Club to Mr. F. M. Buckland, and originally belonged to Mr. John Chitty, of Knaphill. It is inscribed "J.C., 1729" an<' weighs 21b 4oz. Its shape is, of course, of the primitive kind, curved at the base, and in appearance it resembles a hockey stick far more than a modern bat.

| Playing for Fort Street High School j at North Sydney, against Knox College, Jack Taylor gathered in a'd ten wickets for 21 runs. A feature of the performance was the fact that every wicket was clean bowled. Following up his success with the ball, lie made 30 not out and then got busv again, taking eight wickets in the second innings. Cricket under certain circumstances is a remarkably lucrative and pleasant occupation. When, for instance, an indulgent father offers a son a certain sum for each run he makes and wicket he takes, the young hopeful thus encouraged must go into the game with an untoward zest. Surely that is one of the very best methods of improving the keenness of players. Those who have the means and the inclination to become "impdovers" after that fashion will certainly find p'enty of material willin«and eager to be moulded. In the recent college match in Adelaide two lads set out with a —figurative speaking— carrot dangling in front of their noses Vrl Robley (a St. Peter's boy) was (according to an exchange) told by one of the masters when he went out to the creases that for every run over 20 ho made he would receive one penny. Accordingly he went out to do business, and before he was finally dismissed had accumulated 30 coppers, which he duly collected -inother player—this time a red-had an even more '.useious dainty incentive offered him. 11. T. J. Edwards for every run he makes in an ordinary college match receives a penny. For the big contest the coin was made Is, and the lurther offer of £1 for every wicket taken was added. In his first innings the young fellow made 6 runs, and in i the second 54. so that he will have the satisfaction of collecting £3. }] c w , ls unable to secure a wicket, so the golde" coins remained as a pleasant fancy. ]•'. Walsford, the Central Cumberland wicket-keeper, is in great form (writes a Sydney scribe). He stands up to the < wicket to the fastest bowlers, and does I Ins work cleverly on both sides \\. though Gordon scored 302 runs against I Ins club iv, -iindrim were debited to Watsfonl. :;„th Trumper and Macartney express the opinion that the Stale ■does not possess anyone superior' to W-it.-fnrd behind the slumps. The South Australian score of 5(10 recently compiled at Adelaide Ova) is the third time in the history of matches between New Smith Wales and South \us(lalia. which dates hack to IS'JO, that over 500 nins have been made against the Mother State by South Australia. The other occasions were in Adelaide in December. 1900, when South Australia -cored 570. and won liy an innings and 30 runs, and at Sydney, in December, 1907. when the visitors from S.A. reached 519 in their second innings, after icaching 319 in the first attempt. In (lint match .\'ew South Wale, made 270 and 572. and South Australia won "by the narrow margin of 20 runs. When the record was made ('. Hill'compile.! his memorable first-class score of 3H5 no! out. In 1907 there was only one' century for South Australia, that bein" ('. K. IMlingV 113. although ('. Ijjlj followed up his 92 in the first innings with 91. The chief contributors to New South Wales' :,r> in (,„,. \ W) j t(m fcst were V. Trumper (135) and If. Carter (125). By Steele reaching three figures the other day. a new record was established, for it is the first occasion on which South Australian batsmen have included three single centuries in an innings against New South Wales' bowling. That feat has not yet been accomplished against Victoria, either. South Australia's record one-innings a ""regale is 590. put up against Victoria m 1909, but on that occasion then- were only two centuries (('. Hi'd 170 and R. \ 'Gclirs 118).

match between F.ast Torrens and North Adelaide was full of them (writes a South Australian scribe). Tlie most outstanding was (lie one in which a little-used rule of c: '.ft IXO. 41) was requisitioned. I'.y i'. "eednuin had the unique distinction of •; oring nine runs from one stroke. Th.- veteran sent a hall to leg. which reacliod the pickets. McKie returned to -lames (tlie trund'.ev), and the latter unthinkingly took off his hat and let the almost dead ball roll into it. That was the sin. Umpire Steele did not notice the breach. Comparatively young in effect, ho (being at the bowler's end) signalled a four. Sot so Umpire Downs, lie has not grown "ley at the game for nothing, and is fully seized of all its subtleties. Me remembered lln'ie 41. and after a consultation with his colleague, the scorers were notified to add another live. Following is the text of the rule, which probably has never been used in the State before: ] "A fieldsman may stop a ball with any apart of his person, but if he wilfully stops it otherwise the ball shall be dead, and five runs added to the score." Af, another stage the ball played a strange trick with ''Con." Chamberlain. East Torrens' skipper received a delivery—from Rees. The sphere hit his pads and flew into the air. ''Con" was quite perplexed about where it had gone, and so, in fact, were a number of fieldsmen. The leather solved the problem for itself, however, came down just before the stumps, rolled slowly towards them, and displaced 'he bails. It was a very much disgusted batsman who went pavilionwards. Two accidents occurred —one to Rees and the other to Cehrs. The former attempted to hit a ball to leg from (.'. T. Chamberlain, but the leather flew up, struck him on the cheek, and then travelled far enough for a leg-bye to be registered. Rees had a nastv crack which blackened and puffed up his cheek, and inconvenienced him right through the week.