CRICKET.

Wairarapa Age, Volume XXXI, Issue 9053, 12 February 1908, Page 5

CRICKET.

AUSTRALIA v. ENGLAND.

EASY WIN FOR AUSTRALIA.

Bt Telegraph—Pkess Association,

Received February 11, 9 p.m. MELBOURNE, February 11

The fourth test match was concluded to-day, Australia winning easily by 308 runs. The wicket was excellent. Australia's innings was, not carried much further. O'CONNOR CAUGHT.

O'Connor was caught at the wickets for a nicely-made contribution. ,CLEVER PLAY.

Saunders and Armstrong played cleverly so that Armstrong might get the bowling. Saunders was eventually easily caught at point. The innings lasted 317 minutes. Armstrong batted 289 minutes. His score included 14 fourers and 2 sixes. ENGLAND'S INNINGS.

The Englishmen were left with the formidable task of 494 to make to win. They entered upon it :n a feeble manner. A BAD §TAUT: ""7* Gunn and xtsbtib opened; but the Britishers were dismayed to see H?bbs caught and boiled by Saun,ders without scoring. A MODERATE STAND. Gunn and Hardstaff made a moderate stand, Hardstaff batting briskly while Gunn was exceedingly patient, and played slow and .correct cricket. Hardstaff was first to go. After an hour's batting he was caught by Carter. BOWLED NECK AND CROP. Hutching 3 was bowled neck and crop. Braund was weak, and was also clean bowled. Rhodes was caught at the wickets, and Crawford also with the succeeding ball. A DESPERATE INNINGS. Jones played an innings which might be characterised as desperate rather than finished. He saw Gunn bowled by Saunders after 157 minutes' batting. Gunn made only two boundary hits. . ~..

Of the remainder Barnes arid Fielder showed the best defence, and the game should have been won by a bigger majority if Saunders had not missed Fielder when he had scored eiffht off his own bowling. He next misied Barnes at mid-on when seven off O'Connor.

England's innings lasted 203 minutes. They made ,a poor show and made the bowling more difficult than it was. The fielding generally was good, although it was a tame ending to a test match. Subsequent to the match the teams were wired by President McKinnon, who said that the Englishmen's visit meant a strong reviva} of cricket in Victoria. The aggregate attendance at the match was 52,761. and the takings amounted to £2,005. Humphries remains in Melbourne to undergo a surgical operation. Scores: — AUSTRALIA. *' First innings 214

Second Innings. Trumper, b Crawford 0 Noble, b Crawford 10 MacAlister, e Humphries, b Fielder 4 Hill, run out , 25 Gregory, lbw, b Fielder 29 Ransford, c Humphries, b Rhodes 54 Armstrong, not out 133 MacArtney, c Gunn, b Crawford 29 Carter, c Braund, b Fielder 66 O'Connor, c Humphries, b Barnes 18 Saunders, c Jones, b Fielder 2 Extras 15 Total 385 Bowling analysis.—Fielder 4 for 90, Barnes 1 for 69, Crawford 3 for 72, Rhodes 1 for 66, Braund'o for 48, Hutchings 0 for 24. ENGLAND. First innings 105 Second Innings. Hobbs, c and b Saunders 0 Gunn, b Saunders 43 Hardstaff, c Carter, b Saunders 39 Hutchings, b Noble 3

Braund, b MacArtney 10 Crawford, c Carter, ITO'Comor 0 Rhodes, c Carter, *b O'Connor 2 Jones, c Saunders, b O'Connor 31 Humphries, c Carter, b Saunders 11 Fielder, b Armstrong 20 Barnes, not out 22 Extras 5 Total ■, 186 Bowling analysis.—Saunders 4 for 76, O'Connor 3. for 58, Noble 1 for 14, Armstrong 1 for 18, MacArtney 1 for 15. The wickets fell as follows: —One for 0, 2 for 61, 3 for 64, 4 for 79, 5 for 88, 6 for 88, 7 for 128, 8 for 132, 9 for 146.

A match will be played at Napier on March 17th and 18th between the Wairarapa and Hawke's Bay teams. An effort is being made to arrange a match between the Napier Wednesday representatives and Wairarapa, to be played on March 16th at either Napier or Hastings. The following team will represent Carlton A against Masterton B on the Park Oval on Saturday next: — Moss, Waters, Clarke, Swan, T. Hoar, Madsen, F. Welch, E. Welch, Boyd, O'Leary, Ogier, Lett.