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The ATG Teams General arguing/discussing thread

CapeTown Guy

School Boy/Girl Captain
That's the game.

He came in and the entire momentum of the game changed. The batsmen at the other end started panicking due to Kallis' slowness. Really, given the 438 game a couple of years before it, SA were in with a shot with the start that Smith and de Villiers gave them. But Kallis killed all momentum and didn't have the decency to get out early.

Incidentally de Villiers was in beast mode that match, as was Hayden. It was a scary innings (though at the time Smith was the bigger SA star).
I would say the momentum of the game changed after the guy that was winning the match for us (AB) got run out taking a silly second run. Anyhow, you obviously view it differently.

Obviously Kallis isnt in the same class as a batsman in the 50-over game as he the likes Ponting, Viv, AB, Kohli. But considering his all-round contribution to a team, but he'd make most 50-over sides better with his inclusion.
 

stephen

Cricket Web: All-Time Legend
Obviously Kallis isnt in the same class as a batsman in the 50-over game as he the likes Ponting, Viv, AB, Kohli. But considering his all-round contribution to a team, but he'd make most 50-over sides better with his inclusion.
I thoroughly agree. He's also one of the few genuinely good all rounders in the format.
 

watson

Banned
.
The best over 50 overs

It's Viv Richards by a mile, according to our jury. Martin Crowe doffs his cap to the King, four writers salute the best of the rest, and the results in full.


MARCH 2015

To celebrate the game's middle sibling, now in its mid-40s, the Cricket Monthly asked 50 players and writers (see box at right) from around the world to submit, in ranked order, their choices for the three greatest players in the history of the one-dayer. Over 2200 cricketers were eligible. Of them, just eight had their names featured as a No. 1 pick: worthy, that is, in the juror's opinion, of the title Greatest ODI Cricketer of All Time. Every major cricket country bar New Zealand was represented. MS Dhoni, who finished in the top five, did not receive a first-position vote; Ian Botham did.

In all, 21 cricketers received votes - six Aussies, five Indians, four Pakistanis, two West Indians, two South Africans, a Sri Lankan and an Englishman. To arrive at the final standings we applied ESPNcricinfo's standard formula of five points for a first-position vote, three for a second and one for a third. The top 11 point scorers could be arranged into a pretty handy XI.

1 Gilchrist
2 Tendulkar
3 Ponting
4 Richards
5 Kallis
6 Dhoni
7 Jayasuriya
8 Kapil
9 Akram
10 Warne
11 Garner

Ten bat, four bowl three kinds of swing and pace, four others bowl four kinds of spin, two keep, and there is no shortage of captaincy options.

Batting, bowling, wicketkeeping, captaincy: the jury liked multi-skilled players. Not counting Virat Kohli, a captain in waiting, only two of the 21 have a single string to their bow: the extraordinary fast bowlers Joel Garner and Glenn McGrath. At 26, Kohli is the youngest player in the list, followed by the outrageous AB de Villiers. They are also the unlucky ones. If this poll were conducted in 2025 (or in the case of AB, after January 21 this year), they would rocket up the charts......


The jury

Zaheer Abbas, Ajit Agarkar, Russel Arnold, Sambit Bal, Ian Bishop, Lawrence Booth, Daniel Brettig, Mark Butcher, Ian Chappell, Aakash Chopra, Ed Cowan, Mike Coward, Tony Cozier, Martin Crowe, Daryll Cullinan, George Dobell, Rahul Dravid, Andy Flower, Ashley Giles, Gideon Haigh, Mike Haysman, David Hopps, Dave Houghton, Dean Jones, Gaurav Kalra, Athar Ali Khan, Jarrod Kimber, Peter Kirsten, Clive Lloyd, Ranjan Madugalle, Sanjay Manjrekar, Khaled Mashud, Ayaz Memon, Suresh Menon, Tom Moody, Mudassar Nazar, Mark Nicholas, Ricky Ponting, Abdul Qadir, Ramiz Raja, Barry Richards, Mark Richardson, Osman Samiuddin, Mike Selvey, Ed Smith, Graeme Smith, Pat Symcox, Sharda Ugra, Siddhartha Vaidyanathan, John Wright


The best over 50 overs | The Cricket Monthly | ESPN Cricinfo
 

the big bambino

International Captain
Comments in the Bedser thread got me thinking about a Captain Grumpy's XI.

Boycott
Archie Maclaren (When told that their ship might sink Maclaren consoled himself with probably the happiest thought he ever had saying "At least that bugger Barnes will go down with us)
Ian Chappell
Ganguly
Waugh
Border (c)
Haddin
Bedser
Snow
O'Reilly
SF Barnes

Special mention to Mike Gatting, Ted McDonald and Andy Roberts. Also cranky Roy Fredricks (angry ... angry man)

To oppose them a Tiger Moth XI captained by David Gower.

Sid Barnes
Happy Jack Ulyett
McCabe
Gower (c)
George Gunn (who charged fast bowlers and then blew raspberries at them ... or so the story goes. He once found an unopened letter in his blazer and dated from the previous summer. It was an invitation to tour Australia)
Arthur Wood
Miller
Flintoff
Eddo Biscuits Brandes
Wes Hall
Ted Peate ("Ah couldn't trust Maister Stood" was his answer when asked why he didn’t give the strike to one of England's best batsmen when he was last out in the 1882 ashes test).

Then again Hassett? Hendren?
 
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a massive zebra

International Captain
I think George Ulyett and Tom Emmett should be certainties in a Happy XI. Their chapters in A.W. Pullin's Talks With Old English Cricketers include some of the most amusing cricket writing I have ever read.
 

a massive zebra

International Captain
,,,
A.W. Pullin said:
TOM EMMETT.



It is not hyperbole to describe Tom Emmett as the greatest character in nineteenth-century cricket. There have been greater cricketers than he, but none so genuinely droll and individualistic. No team could be dull and despondent with Tom Emmett as a member. The harder the task the greater Tom's buoyancy ; the more serious the situation the greater his sang froid^ the more pungent his humour. He possessed an abundant wit, sharpened by the natural 'cuteness of his race, and tempered by a broad and generous sportsmanship. Ladies have been known to call him "Mr Punch." The term showed the discernment of the fair ***. For twenty years Tom Emmett was the Charivari of the cricket-field.

" Tom " was the name given to Emmett at his baptism in the aflfections of the cricketing public. "My full name is Thomas Emmett," said he. " My mother would not have me named Tom, but I got *Tommed' and nothing else. I was born at Crib Lane, Halifax, on September 3, 1841. Crib Lane is not an inappropriate birthplace for an ordinary infant."

Tom Emmett's early taste for the game was acquired in the usual crude fashion of the boys of his day. "I lived close to my uncle, John Dilworth of Illingworth, near Ovenden, who was fond of cricket. One of the great manu-
facturers of the place was Mr Henry Ambler, who had a nice carriage-drive leading up to his residence At the entrance to the drive were two stone posts, and it was one of these that we used for our wickets. That was where I was initiated into cricket, and where I first found I could hit the post with a round-arm delivery. I have never been so big since a,s I used to be then."

It was often a case, however, of dodging the polica A gentleman in blue saw not the budding of a famous cricketer in the young rascal who was the **** of "Ambler's Walk Top." "The constable," added Tom, "wore a silk hat. Oh ! he was a terribly important personage. Talk about the majesty of the law! He would carry more of it under his box-hat than ten ordinary policemen in modern helmets. In fact, such a terror was he to us boys that although the place
was as lively as an ant-hill, the moment the name of * Nichol- son ' was shouted the boys disappeared like so many rats into hiding-places.

" There was a lot of rivalry among the boys who played on the * Walk Top.' It got to the length of arranging a single- wicket match, and we played for 2d. *a man.' We never were such swells before. I turned out in beautiful white smock and clogs. It was such a terrible stake, 2d. each ; we were men ! Our side won, of course. We had such a fright during the match. I sent the ball through the window of an adjoining combing-shed. It hit a man named Harrowby, who was quite a character in the village. He came out covered with blood, and swore he would have us before the magistrates. He looked so gory that I really thought it would be a case of manslaughter. Finally, we clubbed up sufficient to pay for the broken glass, and he consented to get some plaster and forego the magisterial proceedings."

Tom Emmett's first club was called the " lUingworth," representing the village of that name, near Halifax. His first engagement was with the Halifax Club, who paid him 2& 6d. or 5s. a-match — he forgets which. His first cricket-
bag was a local newspaper, and he invariably went in clogs.

" One Saturday I met the Keighley team on the road and rode with them, and they asked me if I would like to take an engagement with them. I entered, into negotiations in earnest, and said if they would find me something to do in
winter I would engage myself to them. They did so. That was in 1863. I stopped with Keighley as their recognised professional for three years. In 1866 I left them to play with local Twenty-twos against All-England Elevens.

"When I was at Illingworth before I went to Keighley there was a gentleman named Mr Priestley connected with the Illingworth Club, who was a great friend of another gentleman, Mr Suthers, attached to the Todmorden Club. Todmorden had arranged a match between a local team and George Parr's Eleven. They wanted me to play in the match, and mentioned my name to the Todmorden Com- mittee, who asked me what my terms were. I said 7s. 6d.
and railway fares. The Committee thought it too much, and would not engage ma Both the gentlemen named, with myself, were disappointed. I was hoping Keighley would arrange a match with Todmorden, and after a year or two
they did so. On the day of the match, driving to Todmorden over **** Hill, I oflfered a silent prayer that I might do well that day. I was answered to my heart's content, for I got 119 not out and took 6 or 7 wickets. They had another
match soon after against the England Eleven, and came to the conclusion that my services were really worth a modest three half-crowns after all."

There has been a discrepancy in the statements as to when Emmett played his first match with Yorkshire. The York- shire County Year-Book gives the date as 1868, newspapers have given it as 1867, but the actual date was 1866. The circumstances of his first engagement may be described in Emmett's own words ; —

"We were playing a match "with Keighley against the United. Jack Oscroft was there. Some one representing Yorkshire saw me, and asked me what I would take to play for the county. I said I would take the usual fee, ;^5. They said it was not the practice to give so much to beginners. As the match was at Nottingham against Notts County, I replied that it was too expensive a journey for me to play for less, so I got my terms. The date of this my first appearance for Yorkshire, and the only one of that year, was August 2, 3, and 4, 1866.

" The next year I was taken in against Surrey at the Oval, and I happened to get some runs, 38, in the first innings. I had never thought much of batting ; in fact, I always wished to be bowling or fielding. I saw, however, that run-getting was useful, so paid more attention to batting afterwards. I did not bowl in that match, for Luke Greenwood and George Freeman got the Surrey team out for 92 and 62, and we won by an innings and 1 1 1 runs. Then I played with Yorkshire in the return match with Surrey on June 24, 25, and 26, at Bramall Lane, and got 18 not out in one innings, and 41 in the second. Again Freeman and Luke Greenwood got Surrey out in the first innings, and I had little chance of showing what I could do with the ball, though I took 2 wickets. In Surrey's second innings, however, H. H. Stephenson and Tom Humphrey made a stand. Then they put me on at Luke's end, and I at once caught and bowled Tom Humphrey and bowled Stephenson, and Surrey were all out for 76 runs, Yorkshire winning by 184 runs. My analysis was — 12 overs, 8 maidens, 7 runs, 6 wickets.

" That was my first great performance with the ball in first-class cricket, and it may be said to have set the seal ui)on my fame as a county cricketer. When it is said that of Surrey's total of 76 Humphrey and Stephenson made 61
between them, it will be seen that I must have bowled very well.

" It is not necessary to give my best bowling performances from that time until my retirement in 1887. It will be sufficient to give what were my best years, and the averages recorded, namely : —


Overs.


Maidens.


Runs.


Wickets.


Average.


1867 .


. 166


69


236


40


5-36


1868 .


. 407


203


529


59


8-57


1874 .


. 856


808


1171


99


11-82


1877 .


. 617


260


1004


72


13-68


1878 .


. 982


464


1278


112


11-46


1879 .


. 435


161


566


54


10-26


1882 .


, 730


350


1044


95


10-94


1884 .


. 1031


557


1250


107


11-73


1886 .


. 1339


677


1675


132


12-91"



It will be seen from this list that a year before retiring, and when forty-five years of age, Enimett had the wonderful record of 132 wickets at a cost of just over 12 runs a wicket. " The bowling performance of which I am perhaps most proud," adds Tom, " was against Surrey at the Oval when I was cap- tain of Yorkshire. I was then forty years of age. We could not lose ; it was a question whether we could get them out in time or not, and they had only two wickets down. I tried Peate, Ulyett, and Bates," but they could do no good. They asked me, * Why don't you go on yourself ? ' and eventually I did so. The result was that in 1 1 overs, of which 9 were maidens, I got all the other 8 wickets for 22 runs, and at one time took 5 wickets in 3 overs without a run being scored off me. That was on August 13, 1881, and, thanks to brilliant hitting by Bates, we won by 9 wickets.

" I had an amusing experience when the match was won. There were some Yorkshiremen present, and they crowded round me and would have shouldered me off the ground. They did, in fact, raise me up. I said, * Nay, for goodness' sake, chaps, don't shoulder me ; I've my pockets full of brass, and if you lift me up it will all roll out.' Thus adjured, they let me alone, and I wriggled through the crowd to the pavilion in safety. I hadn't a cent in my pockets, though."

There used to be a popular saying that when Em met t was bowling the onlooker might expect " first a wide and then a wicket." To be sure, Tom did bowl an unconscionable number of wides, but he protests that he never did so deliber- ately ; though there was one occasion, in Lord Hawke's early days as the Yorkshire captain, when his Lordship said, " Tom, do you know how many wides you have bowled this year ? " " No, my lord ; how many ? " was the reply. " Forty - five," replied his lordship. " Good," promptly remarked Tom. " Give me the ball, my lord, and 1*11 soon earn talent-money." He bowled 55 that year. " The truth was," continued Tom, " I found that off-ball of
mine very useful. I have got wickets with it when I could not get them no matter how straight I bowled. If a man did not step well across with his left foot, and let his bat go as well, he was sure to make a * chip hit.' The man who used to nonplus me more than any one in playing that off-ball was Mr Murdoch. He used to plant his left well across, and didn't he hit it ! Of course when you get to know a man like that you don't let him have such a ball — ^you hang out the danger-signal. But it's all a matter of headwork. What's the use bowling a straight ball at a batsman when he plays it as if with the sharp edge of a knife? If you can bowl an off-ball and then suddenly send down a straight one, you may catch a man napping. Sometimes the off-ball did go wide, but it was really not intentional. I remember once trapping Alf. Shaw with the wide-and-wicket tactics. I bowled a wide, and thought it had lost the match, but that was not so, and the very next ball was a very good length delivery, which Alf. did not know what to do with, and he chopped it into the slips. There is as much art in bowling a crooked ball as a straight one, and I honestly tell you I never bowled a wide on purpose.

" My best ball was one which pitched between the legs and the wicket, and broke back high enough to hit the off-bail. * W. G.' has done me the honour of saying that such a ball has often beaten him, and that he has left the wicket after being so bowled, believing that the ball would beat himself or any other batsman whenever delivered. I used also at times to make the ball *go with the arm/ but that was quite unin- tentional, and I did not know how it was done or when I was doing it. Moat frequently it would be done with a new baU."

A story is often told at Tom Emmett's expense about his being bowled by a ball from Mr Frank Townsend which he never attempted to play, and making some ornate observation afterwards to the effect, "Don't call me Tom Emmett; call me a fool." It may now be given in Tom's own words : —

" It was the most laughable thing out. We were playing England v, Gloucester in 1878. I felt in form, so much so that I thought I had i8s. 6d. of the talent-money in my pocket, when Mr Frank Townsend was put on to try his lobs. Now I thought nobody could play lobs like me : I was A 1 in my own idea as a lob-smiter. I took my guard and he bowled a ball, a good-length one, which got me quite in a knot. First I would jump out to it ; then I would pky forward ; no,
I would play back. All that passed through my mind like a flash. Finally, I didn't play it at all, but held my bat up for it to go by. Whether or no it pitched on something I have never been able to satisfy myself to this day, but to my
astonishment it bowled me out. And I such a lob-hitter, "too ! had such a character for hitting lob-bowling !

"Well, I was regularly nonplussed. I felt foolish, and I daresay looked it. I didn't know how to walk away from the wicket. Just to put a face on matters, and to regain my countenance, I put the bails on again, took guard again to Mr Townsend, and said, * Here, Mr Townsend, just let me have that one over again, will you, please ? ' Of course they all burst out laughing, and I walked away. The incident of my standing up again to Mr Townsend probably caused some uncer- tainty among the crowd, and I walked back to the pavilion, doubtless looking as disgusted as I felt. One gentleman in the crowd said, *Ton), how was it?' * Don't Tom me,' I replied, savagely perhaps. * Well, Mr Emmett, how was it V •Don't Mr Emmett me,' I again replied. Then what shall I call you ? ' he asked. * Call me a fool,' I remarked, as I hurried out of sight. I have thought many a time since that I should have liked to come across that gentleman to apolo- gise to him, for I am afraid he would think me very rude, whereas I did not mean to be so : I was cross with myself, not with him.

" I must tell you of a remarkable match we had at Shef- field, Yorkshire v, Gloucester, on July 28, 29, and 30, 1879, when I lost a fancy bet of 50s. to is. Gloucester made 253 runs in the first innings against our 128 and 195, and on
going in a second time they only wanted 71 runs to win. At lunch-time they had scored 34 for 2 wickets, so that with 8 wickets to go down they only needed 27 runs. Those 8 wickets, moreover, included W. G., G. F., and E. M. Grace. Going to luncheon with W. Bates, I made a remark about it being Windsor Castle to a guinea on Gloucester winning. * What odds will you lay, Tom ? ' asked Bates. * Fifty to one on,' was my rash reply. Bates handed me a shilling and took the odds. An hour and a half or so afterwards I had to pay. Yorkshire won the match by 7 runs,

"It never struck me until afterwards, but the finishing stroke of that extraordinary victory might have proved awk- ward for me had I made a mistake with it. I was fielding middle-wicket off to Peate's bowling, standing "well back to
him, as Fred. Grace used to hit hard in that direction. When that batsman left, the last man in was Miles, a slow left- arm bowler. I knew his play to a nicety, and I thought to myself, Peate will pitch him one up, and he will play forward to it. So I stealthily walked in close to the batsman. The move came off trumps immediately ; for the ball was spooned back, and I caught it with my right hand. Had I missed it, the mistake might have been serious for me, for I had altered my position entirely on my own judgment, and Peate said, • * Why, I could have caught and bowled him, Tom.' Had the catch been missed, and the fact that I had laid a bet of 50 to I against Yorkshire been known, the Committee or others would certainly have made remarks. But, as a matter of fact, I never had the bet in my head, we were all so keen at the prospect of winning the matcL " No, I never had much to grumble at with regard to the
umpires when I was bowling, though they did debit me with a few wides now and again. I remember one funny incident at Lord's in M.C.C. v. Yorkshire, when Jimmy Grundy was umpiring. I was bowling at the wicket to Mr C. E. Green, the popular patron of the Essex Club, and a grand bat at that time. I gave him nearly a half volley on his leg-stump, and he put his left leg clean in front of it. I appealed to Grundy * How's that ? ' and he said nothing. I then appealed again, and he replied, * Go on with you.' * That's not good enough ; how is it ? ' I retorted. He then exploded with the remark, *Go on, you wild Irishman.* And that's all the answer I could get from Jim Grundy."

Emmett's last match with Yorkshire was in 1887. " I had been often asked," he said, " why I did not retire and make way for younger blood, and was perhaps not as keen on county cricket as usual in consequence. But when I did finish a remark was made by some one in authority, whom I shall not name, which hurt me very much. I asked if I should be wanted, and the reply was, * No, we don't want to see you any more.* It may have been meant as a joke, but it was not well put; indeed, after my long service to the county it seemed to be in bad taste, and I felt it."

Emmett's cricketing experiences include three trips to Australia. He was one of five Yorkshiremen who formed part of James Lilly white's team in 1876-77 ; George Ulyett and he were included in the team captained by Lord Harris that went out in 1878-79; and W. Bates, E. Peate, G. Ulyett, and Tom were members of the 1881-82 team, organised by Shaw, Shrewsbury, and Lillywhite. The last-named combination travelled vid San Francisco, after playing a series of five matches in America.

Tom confesses he was a very bad sailor. In the 'Frisco trip they were fourteen days getting from Queenstown to New York. " For the first seven days," says Tom, " we had some sport in the shape of the vessel doing everything but turning over. It would be on the second day out that every one but Barlow and myself could go down and get their heads in the manger, or, in other words, go down to tiffin. So Dick and myself were the only passengers left on deck. By way of consoling one another we sat down in the smoke-room, which we dared not have done had any one been in. Whilst sitting there the vessel gave an extra roll, and by so doing gave Barlow the impression that she was going a little too far, so to stop her from going clean over Barlow seized hold of one of the smoke-room tables, planted his feet, and pulled for all he was worth, remarking at the same time, * Save us.' Seeing Barlow such a good trier and so earnest, I burst out laughing, at the same time remarking that he must excuse me laughing, as I was as much frightened as he was, but I was certain that he had saved the vessel from going over. When our boys
swaggered up from tiffin I told them that Barlow had saved them from a watery grave by pulling the ship straight!

" While I used to be so ill, Ted Feate was a splendid sailor. He would walk the deck as if ship and ocean were his private property. I was quite envious of him, for he would breakfast, tiffin, dinner, ditto-repeato, and generally have a full time, all the while I was providing the fishes with a liberal supply of provender. I have thought since that, after my liberal con- tributions, I should have my fish supplied free."

Emmett's best cricketing success in Australia was under Lord Harris's captaincy. He averaged 18*3 with the bat in the eleven-aside matches, while his bowling record was 482*5 overs, 255 maidens, 521 runs, 45 wickets — average, 11*5. The average reads wonderfully well when compared, say, with recent Anglo-Australian records.

There was a dispute in one match which caused a great sensation at the time, and Emmett's version of it will be read with much interest now : —

" It was the return game with New South Wales at Sydney, which commenced on February 7, 1879. We had a fresh wicket after every innings at that time, which may seem strange to modern cricketers. We batted first. Messrs
Hornby and Lucas scored 125 for the first wicket; the score at one time was 234 for 3 wickets, but the remaining 7 wickets collapsed for 33 more runs, making the total of the innings 267. New South Wales scored 177, Mr Murdoch played through the innings for 82 not out. This scoring was on the Friday and Saturday, and the home men had to follow on 90 runs behind after lunch-time on Saturday.

" We had brought a player from Melbourne named Coult- hardt to umpire. There was then, and is now, great rivalry between Melbourne and Sydney : if it were a game of marbles they would fight over it almost to the death. Well, when New South Wales went in a second time, Mr Murdoch and A. C. Bannerman opened the innings, and had made nearly 20 when Mr Murdoch was given run out by our umpire. On hearing the decision he walked away like a man, and I always admired him for it. For what followed he was not to blame. On going into the pavilion D. Gregory said, * Go back ; you were not out.' The crowd, seeing that something unusual had happened, jumped the rails and swarmed over the ground. There would be 13,000 or 14,000 persons present. A thousand or two crowded around us, and we had a lively time. The centre of attraction appeared to be Lord Harris. Some one must have struck at him with a stick, for I saw his Lordship let go with his fist. I don't know whether he hit the man or not, but I saw Mr Hornby take him by the collar and march him oflf to the pavilion. His name was there taken, and he was brought before the magistrates and fined.

" The pavilion was like Babel. * Why had we brought a Melbourne man to umpire in Sydney ? ' That was the burden of the crowd's cry. Of course we engaged the man because he was good enough, and he did his duty fairly. If we would not change the umpire the game should not proceed — so they said. Mr Hornby came to me and said, * Tom, they won't start unless we change the umpire. We shall not do that?' * Not likely,' I replied. * We ought to go straight home if we did and never play another match.' Finally, play was abandoned for the day, for, though the Australians had agreed to take the field again, the police could not get the ground clear.

" While they were waiting to restart I was changing my socks, and Lord Harris asked where I was. Of course * Happy Jack' (George Ulyett) must have his joke, for he gravely assured our captain that the crowd had given me such
a fright that I was last seen running like a madman towards Sydney, and that they had sent a cab after me !

" But for the row I think we should have lost the match. Had the home men gone on batting they would probably have given us a good few runs to make in the second innings. It rained throughout the Sunday and Sunday night, but on Monday morning the sun came out hot enough to make nails. Wasn't it a glorious wicket! Talk about the ball being a linguist, — it talked all sorts of languages. Some reports of the match give Ulyett as taking 3 wickets, but he took 4 wickets in four balls, 2 with the last two balls of one over, and 2 with the next two balls of the succeeding over; and whereas New South Wales had made 17 or 19 for i wicket on Saturday, on the Monday they were all out for 49, and we won by an innings and 41 runs. Had we been sent in to get 80 runs, eleven Graces could not have got them on that wicket. Thus you see the crowd did us a good service by stopping the play on Saturday. It was another instance of an unruly mob doing harm to the side whose success they desired.

"Our fielding in the match was splendid. One catch made by Mr Hornby I shall never forget I gave C. Bannerman one a little too far up just outside the off-stump. He did not forget to hit it, and it was never far from the ground, but Mr Hornby had a go for it, and had the satis- faction of landing it in his left hand. It was splendid work both by batsman and fielder, but a little rough on the bats- man.

"I have already spoken of a curious bet at Sheffield. There was another which is worth mentioning. George Ulyett and I were bearded into a bet on this match at Sydney. Spofforth had not been able to play in the first match, and we were beaten by 5 wickets — a match, by the way, in which ;£^i40 was collected for C. Bannerman because he made 60 not out against us ! There's extravagant enthu- siasm for you! Well, Spoflforth was to play in the return
match. George Ulyett was somewhere one night where the match prospects were being discussed ; I was not with him. * Happy Jack ' was told the Englishmen could not play cricket, and would be easily beaten — and so on. The man who said this clenched his opinions by offering to lay 2 to i on the Australians. *I'll take you two ;^io notes to one,' was George's reply, and the bet was made. George told me the circumstances afterwards, and asked me if I would stand halves with him. I said, * Certainly ; dash it all, we are not going to be bullied this way. Two to one on a cricket-match is a good price.' The crowd's bad manners, you see, did us a good turn, too, for we won the bet. That and the SheflBeld 50-to-i incident were about the only speculations I had on a cricket-match."

An Australian writer (Mr T. Horan, if the author remem- bers rightly) has narrated the following : —

" Tom Emmett, brisk and eager as he was for stealing runs, would never dream of running when a ball was played towards Vernon Royle. * Noa ! I tell thee I woan't go ; it's gone t' plaace.' * T' plaace ' always meant the spot where Vernon Royle was stationed. Tom, as you know, used to punish on the off. Once, when a fieldsman at point was standing rather close, Tom said to him, * If I were thee, mister, I'd stand a little farther back, because when I hits there, I hits adjectival hard.' The fieldsman, without delay, acted on Tom's advice. I think it was W. H. Cooper who had a narrow shave once at point from a flashlight stroke of Tom's." (It was on the Melbourne ground, Tom says.) "The ball
tipped *W. H.'s' ear, and was at the boundary in no time. Two years later, when Tom came out with another team, the first words he uttered on seeing *W. H.* were, *That was a narrow shave you had that time, Mr Cooper/ "

Emmett adds another racy incident of the same character. " Alec Bannerman was a little funny chap, and once when we were playing at Harrogate on a slow tricky wicket, he came close up to where I was batting, taking * silly point,' in fact. I said, * Alec, you are rather close in ; are you married ? ' He said, * No.* * Oh, then you're all right,' I replied. * It doesn't matter if I kill you, but if you had been married I should have advised you to get back a bit.' He did have a narrow escape, too, and afterwards went back to a safer distance."

Of the trip to America with Daft's team Emmett has some pleasant recollections. At Niagara George Ulyett played a lark with his socks, and made him think a snake had got into one of them. Eph. Lock wood was not struck with the al- niightiness of Niagara. " It's grand 1 This is a sight worth seeing, isn't it, Eph. ? " Geo. Pinder said. " Nay, I make newt of it ; I'd sooner be at Lascelles Hall," was Ephraim's reply. But Tom apologetically adds that " Old Mary " always was a poor traveller. When having to play in London, he was always happiest when he could turn his heels to it and his toes to Lascelles Hall.

Tom was always noted for his good and agile fielding ; in fact he was generally the liveliest man in the field even when in his forties. He has a few useful words to say by way of advice to fielders : —

" Fielders ought to learn to be ambidextrous. Now, my right arm used to be like a big girl's. It might as well have been slung in my waistcoat. I thought that was not good enough for all-round cricket, so I used to practise for hours
with an indiarubber ball against a wall, catching it and throwing it with either hand. It was wonderful how soon I acquired control over the right hand, and was thus able to bring off catches with it nearly as well as with the left. George
Ijohniann used the left hand better than any one I ever saw for a man who was not naturally left-handed. I often used to tell Peate that he ought to practise how to use his right hand better than he did.

"Did you ever hoar of cricketers being superstitious?' asks Tom. " Some of them are very much so : if they see a thing on the way to a match they think their luck's out or in, as the case may be. There was Tom Damton of Stockton,
who used to play for Yorkshire, and died in 1874. He was very superstitious. A tale is told of him — I don't know whether it is true or not — that he was once going to play in a match at Sheffield. On the road in Stockton he met a
woman who squinted. He therefore turned back, and did not go to the match. He said that it was no use going ; he had met a woman who squinted, and that meant bad luck !

" George Pinder once caused a great laugh among his York- shire comrades. It was at Cambridge, and he made a good hit to square-leg. The Hon. Ivo Bligh was fielding. That gentleman was a tall thin cricketer with a tremendous long stride, and he came lopping along for this catch at a terrible speed, and caught the ball in wonderful fashion a few inches from the ground. George came into the tent looking dis- gusted. * Talk about Bill Buttress saying if I hits 'em I'm out, and if I miss 'em I'm out ; why, if I play straight the ball goes crook'd, and if I play crook'd it goes straight'

" Just another incident concerning Pinder. It was at the Gentlemen v. Players* match at the Oval in June 1877. The Gentlemen had a terrible side up " (" terrible " is a favourite expression with friend Tom), "but the Players made 405. We got Grace out easily, but Mr Hornby made a big score (144), and I'm blessed if the Gentlemen didn't make 427 before they were all got rid of. The Players were older men than the Gentlemen, and the latter could run faster — in fact, could run 3 to a hit which would be 2 to the Playera When they had beaten our first innings, George, who was looking on, said, *Ah, it's not a bit of use; it's like cart- horses playing race-horses I' The remark amused me, the more so because it was so true a description of the diflfer- ence in the teams' running powers."

The best cover-point Tom ever saw was Mr George Strachan, who used to play for Surrey. " You know,'* said he, " a good big 'un is always better than a good little 'un. Now Mr Strachan could stride nearly as far as ten men and a boy, and I have seen him do some brilliant feats of fielding which would have been impossible to a man of less stature. I found no more willing man in the field than George Ulyett. He would go anywhere or do anything he was asked, and he generally had a joke to enliven us under all circumstances. Eph. Lockwood did the quickest thing in the way of a run out I ever saw. It was against Notts at Sheffield. Alf. Shaw was batting to Eph/s bowling, and returned the ball terribly hard along the ground. Ephraim got his right hand to it and found it stuck, and throwing it back over Shaw's head, Alf., who had stepped too far out of his crease and could not get back, was run out, Ephraim upsetting his middle stump.

" Oh yes, it is quite true that I once made our fellows laugh when W. G. Grace had made over 300 against us by a remark about having Grace before meat, Gr6^e after meat, and Grace all day. The champion narrates that on that
occasion some of our fellows showed a reluctance to bowl after four or five futile trials, and that I said, * Give me the ball and 1*11 finish his innings,' and at once sent him three atrocious wides ! I daresay * W. G.' is right — except in the matter of the three atrocities, which I should say is wide of the mark. Anyhow, * W. G.' cannot get over the fact that I made my only century in first-class cricket off Glo*ster bowling. That was at Clifton."

It has often been insinuated that the county players of Emmctt's day were not exactly as strict on the point of temperance as could be desired. Tom has a strong feeling on the injustice of this insinuation. " I never saw," he says,
" one of our fellows come on to the field unfit for play, or not in a condition to do himself justice. When I was appointed captain I appeared before the County Committee and was spoken to about card-playing, tkc. I told the Committee that, SO far as I was concerned, when I had to make a long railway journey I was glad to have a hand at cards, — it was a pleasant way of relieving the tedium of the journey. But I said I would do my best to prevent the men staying up late at nights for the purpose of card-playing, and I did so. I have heard it remarked that I was given to over-indulgence myself. That is absolutely untrue. I could not have played first-class cricket for over twenty years without taking great care of myself."

It only remains to add that Emmett had his benefit in 1887. It realised about ;^62o. He was engaged at Bradford when he finished with the county, and on March 20, 1889, he took up an appointment as coach at Rugby School. In 1898 he transferred his services to the Leicester County Club.
 

a massive zebra

International Captain
,,,,
A.W. Pullin said:
THE LATE GEORGE ULYETT.




Early in the year 1898 one could have taken a lease on the life of George Ulyett Yet at midsummer he was dead. Colds were contracted and could not be shaken off. He paid what proved to be his last visit to
Bramall Lane during the pro- gress of the Yorkshire v. Kent match on June 13. It was a bitterly cold day for the time of the year. Ulyett contracted another cold, pneumonia super- vened, and at the end of the week cricketers the world over were shocked to hear of his death. He died on June 18, 1898.

This Talk with George Ulyett took place early in the same year. It had to be arranged by stratagem. Ulyett was the most obliging and genial of men, and would talk of cricket l^y the hour whenever he could get any one to talk to. But to talk about himself to a journalist with the idea of his conversation being recorded was more than his modesty was e'jual to. Several appointments between us were made, but there generally came a postcard or a telegram expressing regret that he had been called out of town. At last, with the aid of A. F. Smith, the Yorkshire umpire, "Happy Jack's " modesty was circumvented. "Want to see you on
business, 12 to-morrow." This was the purport of Alf. Smith's wire to his friend George. The writer accompanied him. Ulyett saw the game at once, quietly cracked a bottle of champagne, and began to talk. This was at the Vine Hotel, Sheffield, of which Ulyett was at the time the licensee.

The late R L. Stevenson once said that " wit and a good exterior " presented life in a nutshell. He might have had " Happy Jack " in his mind when he penned the aphorism. It was impossible to be dull, it was scarcely possible to be serious, in George Ulyett*s company : that he had a " good exterior " the many thousands who have seen him on duty " At the Sign of the Wicket " need no telling. Alas, that such a fine fellow should have been so suddenly cut down !

" George Ulyett, commonly known as * Happy Jack.* " This was the great Pitsmoor cricketer's terse description of himself. George Ulyett was rather proud of the liberty which his friends the world over took with his baptismal name. The real Jack Ulyett is his elder brother, the groundsman at Bramall Lane. But George got his new and public christening more than twenty years ago. In Sydney and in Melbourne, in Brisbane and Adelaide, at Lord's and at Sheffield, among kinsfolk in Africa and cousins in the States, there was only one "Jack" Ulyett, and his name was George.

" How did I get rechristoned * Happy Jack ' ? " remarked he. " 'Pon my word I don't quite know, but I believe I owe the service to Charlie Ullathorne. In the dressing-room at one of my earliest matches, when things had gone badly with us, he jokingly remarked, * Look at George there, he is the only jovial man of the company ; we shall have to call him * Happy Jack.' ' And they did from that time."

George Ulyett was born on October 21, 1851, at Crabtree, Pitsmoor, which is within a mile or two of the house in which he died. The first cricket club of any pretensions that he was a member of was Pitsmoor. There was a rule of the club that no one under eighteen years of age should play, Ulyett, when sixteen years of age, was proposed as a member by the secretary, a Mr Pickersgill. The committee declined to
elect him because he was not of the required age. " In the next two months," George laconically remarked, " I grew to eighteen years, and was duly elected."

"Here is a photo of the team. The great rawbone, angular-looking, untamed colt in the background, with his sleeves rolled up, is your sixteen-year-old humble servant; the bearded player in the front is the real Jack Ulyett, looking older than he does now. The trade I was brought up to was in the rolling-mill. I was so fond of cricket that I usually got the sack about a dozen times during the summer for going away to play in matches, but my employer was generous enough to always take me on again.

"It was in 1871 that I first really took up cricket as a professional. In that year I went to the Bradford Club, and was engaged by them for that and the two following seasons. I was supposed to be a bowler, but of course I could not bowl a bit, and I never did much at batting and fielding any time during my twenty years* career. They used to play me in the Yorkshire team for my whistling.

" While at Bradford I had the good fortune to take part in a performance against the United South at Bradford that was much talked about. The South wanted, I think, 66 to win. I bowled the Big 'Un [*W. G.'J at 34, and the other 6 wickets fell to Allan Hill and myself without a run, the batsmen not even crossing the wicket I That per- formance was one of the chief causes of my getting into the county team.

" I paid my first visit to London in May 1875. It was to Prince's Ground for a North v. South match — there were seven matches under that title that year — ^and I went up with Allan Hill, Tom Emmett, Eph. Lockwood, and others. When we got there we found that Mr Prince had got twelve men up. *W. G.' then said, * Young 'un, you have twelve men, can you stand as umpire ? do you know anything at all about it T I said * Yes,' of course, and so I put on the white robe. While batting * W. G.' jumped out to hit a slow ball, but jumped too far, and the ball hit him on the foot * How's that ? * * Out * was my reply. The doctor looked at me — ^you should have seen him look ! — and said, * What ? * I replied as coolly as a judge, * Out,* and out he had to go.

"When he had gone there was some talk about the incident, and I said I would prove between the innings that I was right in my decision.

" I went into the pavilion at the close of the innings, and found *W. G.' and others sitting in solemn conclave awaiting me. *W. G.' still looked things unutterable. He said, * You made a great mistake in my decision.' * I don't think so, Mr Grace,' was the reply. * But I am certain,' he said. * Was not the bowler making the ball turn so much ? ' (indicating the break with his hand). *Yes,' I said. *Well, that wouldn't get a wicket, would it ? * he asked. * But, sir,* said I, *the ball pitched on your foot. The bowler didn't tell me whether he was going to turn the ball or not, and your foot didn't give it the chance to turn.' * W. G.' stroked
his chin and smiled, and turning good-humouredly to me, said, *A11 right, youngster, you'll manage.'"

Ulyett's first appearance with Yorkshire took place in 1873 in the match with Sussex, on July 14, 15, and 16, at Bramall Lane. He was not long in getting into a scrape.

" We went down to play the return match with Sussex at Brighton the next week. Two Bradford gentlemen, members of the Bradford Committee, were there. They asked four or five of * the boys ' to go down in the evening to where they were staying, but none of us turned up. About 10.30 p.m., as I was coming off the pier alone, I met the two gentlemen, who said they had waited in until nearly ten o'clock for us. They would have me go back with them, and I stayed in their company until about 12.30. On returning to my lodgings — which I had difficulty in finding, as it was my first visit to Brighton — I found I was locked out, and though I nearly lattled the door down I could get no admission.

That was a nice how d*ye do. Fortunately a tobacconist next door thought I was knocking his door down, and he came out to see what was the matter. On telling him who I was and that I wanted to get to the Yorkshire cricketers, he kindly took me through his shop to the back, and provided me with a ladder to get to the window of the room where I knew Alf. Smith and Andrew Greenwood were sleeping. I clambered up the ladder and startled my two companions out of sleep. They thought it was a case of burglars, but steadied their excited nerves on recognising my whisper. They let me in through the window, the friendly tobacconist took the ladder away, and I was safe.

" Well, the news of this escapade leaked out, and at the match at Sheffield the following week I was carpeted before the County Committee. I had been up the biggest part of the night on this my first county excursion. They had it down in black and white, and I must answer the dreadful charge. It was the same with the Bradford Committee — I was in a dreadful mess with them ! But when I was able to show that I had been in the staid and excellent company of two members of the Bradford Committee, the charge of raking out was withdrawn, and I was exonerated. Of course I didn't tell the County officials about the ladder escapade, though my colleagues did not forget to call me Jack Sheppard for some time afterwards.'*

"Happy Jack" never took his doings with bat and ball with sufficient seriousness to make a note of them, and he had apparently forgotten that his highest score was 199 not out in 1887. He admitted that though he was played for his good behaviour and his whistling powers, he occasionally had a turn with bat and ball with a slight advantage to his side. It was also true that for a few years he had a hard time with both bat and ball, for he had to share the attack in his opponents' innings, and then go in first with the bat — an arrangement which he did not think wise for any team to adopt. As he got older he used to bowl as a change, and he thought that was better for him both in bowling and batting.

A few words as to " Happy Jack's " Australian tours. In the first, in 1876-77, he came out first in the eleven a-side averages with the excellent record of 48*6 per innings. He was also at the head of the list with 34 per innings with Lord Harris's 1878-79 team, and on going out a third time with Shaw's team in 1881-82, he came out first with the average of 39'2. His highest innings on that tour was 149, and no other member of the team reached treble figures. In 1884-85 Ulyett was out again with the eighth English team in the land of the kangaroo, but he had very indiflferent luck, for he was absolutely at the bottom of the list, only
making 136 runs in twelve innings. As a set-off to this he did fairly well in bowling. His fifth and last visit to Australia was with Shrewsbury's team in 1887-88, when, in spite of being handicapped by an accident, he was fourth on the batting list for eleven arside matches with figures of 22*3 per innings, and second in all matches with 25*11 per innings.

Bringing down from the walls, on which hang numberless photographs and other mementoes of his cricketing experiences, a painted sketch of two coaching parties battling with a flood in mid-stream, Ulyett proceeded to give a graphic narrative of the dangers which Lilly white's 1876 team had to sur- mount in fulfilling one of their engagements in New Zealand. "We had," he said, "to coach it to Christchurch, a distance of about 200 miles. As soon as we had set off, the heavens turned the taps on, and in that quarter when it rains it means a deluge. When we got to a certain gorge we found it so flooded that we had what was practically a running river seventy yards broad to cross. You will see from this picture how we crossed it. There were two coaches. A horse was taken out of one coach, and here is one man astride it, with another holding on to its tail, and each man in turn holding on to his front neighbour's coat-tails. The man here with a lady on his back is Tom Armitage. He is struggling along gallantly under his fair burden.

" The first coach got across all right, but the second had a horse down, and a rare job some of us had to get it up again. I could swim, and I had to swim, too, at one stage of the exciting adventure, or I should not have been here now. This is no fairy tale, mind you ; what this picture depicts is quite true. It was painted by one of the coaching party, as the inscription * J. Gibb, Ch. Ch., N.Z., 1877,' shows.

" Well, when we got to the other side our discomforts were not at an end. There was a shanty at which we sought accommodation, it being too late, and our clothes too wet, for us to continue the journey. There was no chair in the shanty, only lumps of wood to sit down upon. We soon drank everything there was in the house — ^bar water. There were only three bottles of spirits on the premises, and they did not last long, so wet and exhausted were we all. Then what a sight we were, standing round the fireplace clad in the scantiest of garments, while we dried our clothes. We reached the place at 12.30 midnight, dreadfully knocked up. There was only one bed, and five of us crowded into that : the others rested as best they could, or not at all, for the water rose in the hut also.

"At five o'clock the next morning we left the shanty intending to proceed on our journey, but two miles up the mountain we found there had been a landslip, and we had to return to the hut until a path was cleared for the coaches. We had eaten the little food there was in the shanty, but the occupier set out with his horse and gun, and returned in about two hours with a sheep. No time was lost in cutting up the carcass and throwing it on the fire to roast. While it was roasting I set to and made some bread cakes, I tended to the cakes with a hay-fork, and never did fat sheep and oven-bottom cakes seem a greater luxury than when we were able to attack them.

" We got to Christchurch eventually, but instead of reaching there the day before the match, we did not arrive until eleven o'clock on the morning when play should commence. Before we got there we had to cross another brook up to the knees in water. Tom Emmett had been riding in the rain on the box for hours, but Jupp was so vexed at having to get out of the coach and wade, while Emmett was sitting in his wet
clothes on the coach, that he pulled Tom oflf, and they quite got to high words over it. I suppose Jupp thought that as Tom was already soaked, a little extra wet would have done him good, while he (Jupp) might have been allowed to remain under cover as the brook was being forded.

"We were so stiff, cold, and sore with being wet and cramped up in the coach that we could scarcely bowl or run. The local Eighteen batted first, and we only managed to get them out just before the end of the first day. Some of the local critics said that if that were the English team, they had better have stopped at home than come all that way to teach Christchurch folk how to play cricket. That remark, in fact, appeared in a little local evening paper. In the evening I told Lillywhite that as we had been up to the necks in water, had no bed and nothing to eat, it was wort.h stretching a point, so we got him to allow us a case of champagne, and we had a merry evening. The next day we went on to the field new men. The local paper had to alter its opinion of the English team."

In the match with Lord Harris's team against New South Wales, at Sydney, in February 1879, Ulyett took 4 wickets in four successive balls in the New South Wales second innings, though some of the published reports in England do not show that to have been the case. George took 2 wickets with the last two balls of one over, and 2 more with the first two balls of the next over. The feat is duly mentioned by Lord Harris in his resume of the trip in the Ked Lillywhite Annual for 1880, while another well-known cricketer in his descriptive notes of the visit of the English team in the Green Lillywhite for 1880 also gives Ulyett the credit of the performance. *Wisden,' however, credits George with but 3 wickets.

This was the famous match when something like a riot occurred. "Happy Jack's" remembrances of it are now given : —

" We won the toss, and Lord Harris made the batting order out, Mr A. P. Lucas and I to go in first, as usual. Mr Hornby, however, had his pads on, and expressed a wish to go in first, and on Lord Harris saying so, I said, * All right, my lord,' and waited to go in first wicket down. I had to wait some time, for Messrs Hornby and Lucas put on 125 runs for the first wicket. When I got in Lord Harris soon joined me. Spofforth was bowling pretty well at the time, but I had a hitting fit on. Between the overs his lordship would give me the nod and say, * George, do play steady ; we want to win this match.' *A11 right, my lord,' was my reply, and bang went two 4's and a 3 the next over. This sort of thing went on, until after being several times told to *play steady' I made the remark, *But, my lord, I feel rather like hitting them.' Then he said, *A11 right, d you, go on.' I went on, and knocked up 55 in just over half an hour, when I was caught by Evans. On leaving. Lord Harris said to me, * Didn't I tell you you would get out 1 ' * Yes, my lord,' I said, *but I have put 55 down on the book, and have had a rare good time.'

" Well, we made 267, and New South Wales had to follow on 90 behind. Mr Murdoch and Alec Bannerman opened the second innings, and the first-named hit one to cover-point, where the finest cover fielder I ever saw was on duty — Mr V. F. lloyle. He had the ball back like lightning, and Mr ^lurdoch was run out a good two yards. Mr Murdoch went away, but the people in the pavilion, who could not possibly see the incident properly, shouted out, * Gk) back ; you're not out.' They would not send another man in, and the crowd rushing into the field, what a lively time we had! I got beside the stumps, thinking they might be useful, and took up one in each hand ready for an emergency. One man struck at Lord Harris, and I elbowed my way to him and said, * Let mo have a go at him, my lord.' *No, no, GJeorge,* ho replied, * we are going to do nothing wrong.* Mr Hornby, however, came up, and taking the man who had struck Lord Harris by the collar, he dragged him unaided through a couple of thousand persons to the pavilion, where he gave the man in charga Then he (Mr Hornby) forced his way back to us in the field, though he had his shirt nearly torn off his back. He was a game 'un !

" Not another ball was bowled that day, and the following day being Sunday, it was agreed to resume play on the Monday, the Australian tempers having cooled on reflection. On the Sunday the Commodore of Sydney told his tars they could have a holiday on the Monday and go to the cricket- match, adding that if they saw any one attempt to molest the English cricketers they were at liberty to *go for them.* Well, on the Monday the tars were in groups of a dozen a few yards apart among the crowd. That was the day I took the four wickets in four balls. We got the whole side out for 49, and won by an innings and 46 runs. The trouble had been caused on the Saturday by a Melbourne man umpiring for us. After the match a couple of hundred loafers waited for the poor umpire, who asked us to stand behind him while he fought the best man in the crowd. While we were getting ready for the fight, however, a dozen of the Commodore's men arrived, and seeing what was happening, they went for the crowd and polished them off with their fists in double-quick time. Then we and the umpire got away without further trouble."

During the 1884-85 Australian trip "Happy Jack's" propensities for practical joking brought him into a very unpleasant predicament. He fell off a steam launch, and had a narrow escape of furnishing a morning meal for an able- bodied shark. The incident has been often referred to in home cricket circles since, and has naturally lost nothing in the telling. The writer has heard it narrated how Ulyett had to draw his big pocket-knife in the water and face a long and gory fight with the voracious shark. The picture of " Happy Jack " slashing and cutting, and diving and splashing, to the confusion of the shark, has been verbally drawn with a graphic detail calculated to give the hearer the creeps. Stripped of its sensational embroidery, the real incident, as given by Ulyett himself in this Talk, is the following : —

" We had been staying at a place called Boorke, and onr steamer was due to leave at four o'clock in the morning, and call at different ports for cargo. A gentleman who possessed a beautiful steam launch invited us to stop and have a champagne breakfast, and proceed in his launch to catch the steamer before it reached the open sea. It was put to the vote whether we should do so, and we put both hands and both feet up in favour of stopping for the breakfast. A jolly time we had, too ! After breakfast, when sailing in the launch, we had a lark with a young doctor who was going to Sydney with us. I suddenly turned to the doctor
and told him he was not well, that his liver was wrong, that he was making too much blood and needed bleeding, and I gravely asked him to permit me to perform the latter operation upon him, at the same time telling some one to fetch a glass. * You bleed me ! What do you know about it, I wonder ? ' I told him I knew all about it, and producing a lance — ^I always carried one to make people believe I knew something of surgery — pointed to the place in his arm from which I should take half a gilL I was sitting on the bulwark of the launch, and when I was about to touch him with the lance he put out his arm suddenly and made the remark, *Gkt away.' I got away quickly: I tumbled head over heels into the water.

"The screw just missed me, and then they reversed the engines, and turned round to pick me up. I was perfectly at home in the water, and so proceeded to quietly swim in the direction of the launch. I was wearing elastic- side boots, and I took them off to enable me to swim better. I hadn't any paper or pencil at the time, or I should have labelled them home to England. Suddenly the skipper of the launch shouted, * There's a shark coming ! ' and sure enough there was. Fortunately it did not see me, and I dived and swam under the water some distance. I was able to do this with my eyes open and thus watch the shark. Some one had a spear on the launch ready to go for the shark if it rushed at me as I was being hauled np. When I got hold of the rope they threw out to me, I felt as if the shark would have to pull over the launch and all if it seized me, but fortunately I got on board with no worse effects than a good wetting and a bad fright. It is a fact that I had my knife out to defend myself against the shark, but I was not under the necessity of using it. When I got on board the young doctor looked as if I had bled him of more than half a gill. He said he would give me ;;^ioo when we got to Sydney, but after giving me a 'possum rug as an evidence of his generosity and good faith, I never again saw him or the ;;^ioo."

George Ulyett was also a member of the first English team that went to South Africa in 1888. "I did not," he said, " go out with them, but received a cablegram asking me to join them, as Mr J. H. Roberts was summoned home by the death of his father. I only got word on the Friday, and had to be in London on the Monday. A friend gave me a four-gallon jar of whisky to take out with me, and on boarding the ship two of the officers stopped me on the gangway. I told them I had a cablegram to go out to the English team in South AfricEu *0h! But what is that you have ? ' pointing to my whisky-jar. * They are breaking all the bats out there owing to the great heat,' I replied. * This is linseed oil to oil the bats with.' They passed the jar.

" On the voyage I of course got chummy with the officers. In their cabins at night we used to * stand' whisky in our turn. One night I took the opportunity of filling a ship's bottle with the whisky from my smuggled four-gallon jar. They soon wanted to know what brand it was and where I had got it, but I did not enlighten them until a few nights afterwards, when I produced the * linseed-oil ' jar. As they liked the whisky, and said they enjoyed my company, they forgave me the linseed-oil dodge."

" Happy Jack " was one of Daft's American team, and also went to San Francisco with the team that travelled that way to Australia in 1881-82, captained by Alf. Shaw. "At Trisco," he said, " we came up against an American baseball- player, who in the first innings jerked nearly all of us out. When we went in a second time, some Englishmen present asked us why we did not make the man bowl ; but we simply altered our tactics. Barlow going in for stopping them, and I for hitting them. The baseball pitcher kept asking Alf. Shaw if he objected to his pitching, and Alf. said to me, * Jack, do you object to this pitcher 1 ' * Not I,' I replied ; * I wish he would pitch at both ends.' The pitcher nearly pitched his arm away, while I made i6o odd, not out, and finally he remarked in disgust, * I guess I don't care about cricket. It's too darned long. Guess I rather like a match that's over in about two hours.' "

One of George Ulyett's best performances in test cricket with the ball was seen in the second Australian innings of the match England v. Australia, at Lord's, in July 1884. His analysis was 39 overs, 23 maidens, 36 runs, 7 wickets. There was a wonderful catch by which he dismissed the giant Bonnor — a catch that has often been referred to. What were Ulyett's impressions of it ? —

" The ball was no sooner out of my hand than it was back again — something after the manner of those elastic balls with which you see young men and maidens amusing themselves nowadays on the sea-side parades. I had no time to judge the catch at all ; the ball was back in my hand like lightning, and stuck there. I was not hurt on the inside of my hand, but on the outside or back of the hand I suffered some pain
from the force of the concussion. The delivery was a straight half- volley, and Bonnor * middled' it. Both *W. G.' and Lord Harris said I was very foolish for attempting the catch, for if the ball had hit my wrist or arm, it would have snapped the limb as if it were a stick.

" When the innings, and with it the match, was over, a boy came to me and said I was wanted in the pavilion. I went up and saw no one, only an old gentleman in a tall hat. He never spoke and I did not speak, but went out again. The lad came to me a second time, and again I went. The old gentleman was still there, and I didn't know him from Adam.

He proved to be one of the oldest members of Lord's. He said, * Ulyett, I want to have a word with you. I have seen very nearly every ball that has been bowled on this ground, and I have seen every ball that you have bowled, but I have never seen such a catch as that by which you got Bonnor. Will you accept this ? ' (handing me a gold coin). I accepted it, and was, of course, more pleased with the old gentleman's kindly words and praise than with the present itself."

By the way, * Punch ' made mention of that catch, and said we wanted more men like Ulyett to go to war, as they would be useful in catching the cannon-balls ! Ulyett had the ball presented to him, with a plated inscription upon it, and he possessed it at the time of his death.

In his career " Happy Jack " took part in a few exciting finishes. There was a famous match against Gloucester, at Sheffield, for instance, in July 1879, when Yorkshire won by 7 runs. Ulyett throws an interesting side-light upon this match. A local "three o'clock tissue" had published the result as a win for Gloucester by 7 wickets — a sad case of ultra-journalistic enterprise. Some of the " sports," who had seen the extraordinary collapse of Gloucester, and Yorkshire's sensational win after luncheon, went into those mysterious haunts where sportsmen who like to back their opinions can always rely upon finding the necessary accommodation.

The supposed downfall of the Tykes was being caustically discussed. Those in the know asked, " What odds will you lay that Yorkshire have lost ? " " Oh, it's like robbing you to make a bet; why, here's the * three o'clock tissue,' and Gloucester have won by 7 wickets." No matter; the cool ones were prepared to bet. Ulyett said they did bet, and at various places scooped up a nice sum of money from those who thought it impossible that W. G. Grace, G. F. Grace, C. Townsend, and the other crack Gloucester bats could be dismissed for less than 30 runs.

Ulyett added that, with reference to Tom Emmett's bet of 50 to I with W. Bates against Yorkshire winning this match, the players had a little meeting among Hhemselves after the game, and told Bates that he ought to accept 30s., which he did.

A word as to the famous defeat by 7 runs of England by the Australians at the Oval on August 29, 1882, when the " ashes " of English cricket were taken to Australia. George thought England " ought to have won that match as easily as anything.'' Asked the reason why England did not win, George replied, " I am afraid one or two of our batsmen were a bit nervous. It looked 10 to i on England when *W. G.' and I were together, for we only wanted 85 to win, and we made 43 between us. They let Boyle bowl maiden after maiden, when a hit or two would have made all the difference. Personally, I was never nervous when I had to go in."

Another exciting match, which cricket readers will readily recall, was that at Manchester in August 1893, when Lanca- shire defeated Yorkshire by 5 runs. " I thought we were sure to win that match. I went in to join Moorhouse, and there were Hirst and Hunter to follow. Moorhouse goes out, and then in comes and out goes Hirst. That left only Hunter, and 6 runs were wanted. I thought to myself, I must try and force the fight somehow. If David Hunter had not been the last man I should have waited, but I thought it was better to make the runs if I could while I was facing Johnny Briggs. So I went for the boundary, but Albert Ward was
on the edge of it and we lost. I still think I adopted the right coursa I thought it was 100 to i on us winning the game at one time. The sequel shows how little you can be certain of in cricket."

Ulyett was perhaps the "coolest customer" that ever Yorkshire cricket has produced. Edmund Peate narrated how George invited himself into a Ministerial reception in Downing Street. Another colleague, Charlie UUathorne, tella the following : —

" We were playing Surrey in London. * Happy Jack ' and I stayed at the Crown Court Hotel. We and another of our men after the match ordered steak for three. In due course it came — a big porterhouse steak in a disk The waiter placed it opposite Ulyett, who promptly helped himself to the lot We sat expectant for a few minutes, and then called the waiter and asked when our share was likely to make its appearance. * Beg pardon, gentlemen, but you ordered steak for three and I brought it.' * What ? ' said Ulyett, Hhis for three! Nonsense; bring the gentlemen one apiece. We always grow them this size in our country."

" Happy Jack," near the close of his career, was playing on the Leeds ground. A journalist from a neighbouring town wished to interview him. Calling at the dressing-room, in Ulyett's absence, he announced his desire, which was duly communicated to George. A little later Ulyett stalked into the room in a state of great excitement, and said, " It's too bad, lads. There will have to be a change somewhere." "What's the matter, Jack?" "Why, read this telegram. The wife has had twins." The interviewer forbore to intrude upon " Happy Jack's " excitement, but the next day a paragraph congratulating him upon the increase in the
family duly appeared. It is to be feared these twins were born on a good many occasions. The mirth they caused in the Players' dressing-room is not easily described.

Ulyett had his benefit in 1887. The match was over in two days, and the gate money was a disappointment. " Happy Jack's" great popularity was shown, however, in the sub- scription list, which yielded the handsome sum of ;;^7oa "I was very pleased," said George, "to find myself so respected." The benefit totalled to just four figures. On the whole, Ulyett fared well out of cricket, but he admitted he was " lucky in getting so many times across the water.''
 
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AndrewB

International Vice-Captain
Not sure about Sid Barnes in the Tiger Moth XI, since he seemed to spend most of his time falling out with people. Compton, Edrich and Godfrey Evans are also contenders for that XI.

You could strengthen the Grumpy XI with Lillee and Miandad.
 

Coronis

International Coach
Not sure about Sid Barnes in the Tiger Moth XI, since he seemed to spend most of his time falling out with people. Compton, Edrich and Godfrey Evans are also contenders for that XI.

You could strengthen the Grumpy XI with Lillee and Miandad.
Wasn't he just a big drinker and gambler and we were more puritanical then?
 

Red

The normal awards that everyone else has
Gilchrist
M.Waugh
Ponting
Jones
Watson
Hussey
Symonds
Lee
Starc
Warne
McGrath
 

Lillian Thomson

Hall of Fame Member
I'm not convinced by the obsession with Michael Bevan in all time ODI selections. In his day his clever manipulation of the innings was undoubtedly valuable. It's more of a power hitting game these days and I'm not sure he'd be as successful.
 

OverratedSanity

Request Your Custom Title Now!
I'm not convinced by the obsession with Michael Bevan in all time ODI selections. In his day his clever manipulation of the innings was undoubtedly valuable. It's more of a power hitting game these days and I'm not sure he'd be as successful.
Why assume that an all time ODI team is to play under current rules?
 

mr_mister

Cricket Web: All-Time Legend
Modern day bowlers are pretty piss weak compared to what Bevan faced his entire career too. He did so well to average so much higher than his peers
 

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