🧢 Captain's Log

Sat 22 Aug 1896 🧢 1st XIv ? · AwayformDLLLW

We took to the road on Saturday last, the destination lost somewhere between the scorebook and my memory, but the cricket itself was memorable enough for all the wrong reasons.

Winning the toss, I had no hesitation in asking the opposition to bat, and for a while it looked a shrewd call. H G Smith was in irresistible form, running through their order with figures of 6 for 0 — a spell of such hostility that both J H Hobbs and E Larder departed without troubling the scorers. Smith found willing accomplices in J Edmonds (3-0) and S Smith (1-0), and between the four of us we bowled them out for a total the scorebook has since, rather unhelpfully, declined to record.

Sadly, whatever total we required proved beyond us. Our reply was a sorry affair, with S Smith, W Edwards and D H Kennard all falling for ducks, and the innings folding for a score I shall draw a merciful veil over, not least because the book itself seems to have done the same. I did what I could with 15, though "what I could" was evidently not enough.

There was, at least, one souvenir to take home: Smith's six-wicket haul carried him past F Garrett and into 25th on the club's all-time wicket-takers list, a fine achievement amid the wreckage. Jack Fryer, meanwhile, continues his fine season, sitting fourth in the 1896 run charts with 151 and third in the wickets with 16.

In the end we went down by 43 runs. Not our day, then — heads up, and back to the nets.

Mon 03 Aug 1896 🧢 1st XIv RC Rochester CC · HomeformDDLLL

Monday the 3rd of August, and Rochester CC rolled up at Linton Park with the sun doing its level best to cooperate. I lost the toss — no great shock, my coin-calling remains a standing joke among the lads — and we were asked to bowl first, which suited us rather nicely.

Rochester never quite escaped our clutches. L Cooper played the innings of the day, 80 well-made runs, with R A Arnold not far behind on a fine 73 and L A Goldie chipping in with 29. Poor E L Baker will not thank me for mentioning his duck 🦆, but mention it I must. With the ball it was a proper team effort: J N Tonge did the real damage with 3-0, well supported by K McAlpine and George Champion, both also finishing with 3-0, and I managed to find a bit of rhythm myself for three wickets.

Then came the small matter of getting the runs ourselves. Arthur Cornwallis played an innings to dine out on for years, 116 of pure class, with J N Tonge adding a brisk 76 in support. We got home by three wickets — snug, but thoroughly earned.

Milestones aplenty today: Cornwallis's century vaults him past F S W Cornwallis to the top of our all-time run charts, while Champion's three wickets lift him past W H Fryer into third on the all-time wicket-takers' list. He also leads this season's 1st XI for both runs, with 314, and wickets, with 23 — one begins to suspect the man doesn't sleep. Two points banked, and a thoroughly good day for Linton Park.

Wed 29 Jul 1896 🧢 1st XIv Headcorn CC · AwayformLDDLL

Wednesday last took us across to Headcorn, and my talent for losing tosses held firm — no complaints from the home side as they trotted out to bat first. Still, we had the new ball in hand, and Jack Fryer made a proper mess of them, spinning through the order for a scarcely believable 7 for 0, with Tom Peach Snr mopping up nicely at 3 for 0. A Corlett battled his way to 24, W A Briscoe chipped in with 23 and G Knight with 21, but poor F Newton never troubled the scorers, gone for a golden duck.

Our reply was no sterner examination of Headcorn's bowling than theirs had been of ours. Ernest Cruttenden, S Smith and H L Andrews all took the long walk back without scoring — three ducks paddling about the pavilion before tea was even poured. I found some rhythm with the ball myself, taking 7 wickets, but it wasn't quite enough to turn the tide, and Headcorn saw themselves home by 7 wickets in the end.

Not a day without its bright notes, mind. Tom Peach Snr's three scalps carried him past T Gandy and into 6th on the club's all-time wicket-taking list, while Jack Fryer continues to sit handsomely in 3rd place on both the season's run and wicket charts, with 128 runs and 11 wickets to his name in 1896. As for the result — well, we were second best on the day, fair and square, but there's a good deal to build on, and we'll be better for it next week.

Wed 22 Jul 1896 🧢 1st XIv ? · HomeformLLDDL

Wednesday 22nd July 1896

We hosted the visitors under skies that promised more than club cricket ever delivers, and having lost the toss found ourselves in the field first — no bad thing, said I, though I've been wrong before. H A Hughes led their reply with a watchful 39, F E Hughes chipped in 34 and F Barton 22, but it was hardly plain sailing for the away side: H Waghorn, F E Wallis and W T Cox all trudged back for ducks. The story of the innings, though, belonged to Rev Thomas Burra, who found a length from somewhere and simply would not be moved off it, spinning his way to 7 for 0 — the sort of spell that has vicars everywhere reaching for a second sermon. J E Jones (2-0) and Rev J C Wilson (1-0) tidied up what little was left.

Chasing, we owe Jack Fryer a great debt — 96 of the finest, cruelly denied his century but not his dignity, well supported by Ernest Cruttenden's 44 and J E Jones's 28. W Edwards, alas, departed for a duck, proving even fine sides carry a passenger now and then.

For all that good work, we fell three wickets short in the end — a result that will sting rather more than the sunburn. Still, Fryer climbs to 5th on the club's all-time run-scorers list and Rev Burra to 11th among the wicket-takers, so history, at least, was kind to us even where the scoreboard wasn't. We'll be better for it next week.

Tue 21 Jul 1896 🧢 1st XIv ? · AwayformLLLDD

Beaten by 125 runs at away soil on Tuesday last, and I'll own my part in it — winning the toss and putting them in felt the right call at the time, gentlemen.

Our innings had its moments of real substance. A W Fulcher's 47 was the backbone, George Champion chipped in a handsome 39, and M A Streatfield saw us home unbeaten on 37 — though I'll draw a discreet veil over poor H W Smith, whose duck earned him the walk of shame and, one suspects, a round to buy at the bar.

In the field we gave a good account of ourselves without quite landing the killer blow. P M Robinson's 23 and Private Guichard's 20 were the chief obstacles, though we did for T P C Smith, Colour-Sergeant Audsley and Major Daniell without troubling the scorers — three ducks to our name is no small mercy. George Champion was magnificent throughout, his 6-0 a five-for of the highest quality and thoroughly deserved; K McAlpine and L Friend chipped in two apiece, and I managed a modest 25 myself.

There was much to toast regardless of the result: F S W Cornwallis's 25 runs vaulted him past George Champion to the very top of the club's all-time run-scorers, while George's five-for shifted him up to fourth on the all-time wicket-takers list. The lad is in the form of his life this season, leading both our run and wicket charts.

Beaten by 125 in the end — but we'll be better for it next week.

Sat 11 Jul 1896 🧢 1st XIv ? · HomeformDLLLD

It was a red-letter Saturday for Linton Park, out at home on the 11th of July, when I called correctly and had few doubts about batting first on a pitch that looked made for run-getting.

And run-getting it was. George Champion strode to the crease and simply refused to leave it, compiling a magnificent 180 not out — the innings of a lifetime, and one that shunted the estimable E C Streatfield down to fourth on our all-time run-scorers' list in the process. He had fine support from Rev J C Wilson, whose composed 49 kept the scoreboard ticking, and Ernest Cruttenden chipped in a handy 21. A declaration of sorts, in all but name.

With the ball, we found ourselves nibbling away rather than running through them. P J Lampard led their resistance with 30, A J How held firm for an unbeaten 26, and H Goodban added 23, while E J Waterman and W T Beeching both fell for ducks to our credit. Champion, not content with his batting heroics, took the new ball and picked up 2 wickets, with Jack Fryer and J E Jones matching him with 2 apiece — a fine team effort, even if the breakthrough we craved never quite arrived.

A personal 180 is not something one forgets in a hurry, and with 270 runs and 14 wickets to his name already this season, George is fast becoming indispensable. Honours shared in the end — a hard-fought, thoroughly honourable draw.

Mon 29 Jun 1896 🧢 1st XIv ? · HomeformLDLLL

From the captain's chair — Monday 29 June 1896. We played host on our own turf, and though I shan't dwell on the identity of our visitors, they gave us a proper afternoon's cricket for our trouble.

Batting first, we built something respectable around three fine contributions: G Marshall led the way with a well-struck 74, George Champion followed with a tidy fifty of his own — 58 — and Arthur Cornwallis chipped in with 46. Not every man enjoyed such fortune, mind; G M Style and A L Woodhouse were both undone for ducks, and I shall spare their blushes by saying no more on the matter. I managed 31 myself, which felt a modest enough effort at the crease until I was informed afterwards that it had carried me past Arthur Cornwallis to the top of the club's all-time run-scorers list — one for the mantelpiece indeed, and rather more than I expected from an afternoon's gentle prodding.

In the field we toiled honestly without quite finding the breakthrough we craved. Rev G Lachlan was the difference, serene and untroubled on his way to a magnificent unbeaten century, well supported by W L H Roberts (41) and W Marchant, not out on 24. George Champion did what damage there was with 2-0, R Upcher and G Marshall chipping in a wicket apiece.

A draw, then — honours shared, and honestly, a fair reflection of two sides giving as good as they got.

Sat 27 Jun 1896 🧢 1st XIv SS Sutton Valence School · HomeformDLDLL

Beaten by 8 runs at home to Sutton Valence School, and I daresay the toss had the last laugh on us long before a ball was bowled. Asked to field first, we did the honest thing well: George Champion span through their innings like a man possessed, taking five for nought, with the Reverend Thomas Burra chipping in three and R Upcher one apiece. Only the Reverend J C Wilson, with a stubborn 38, and X Cowles alongside him with 30, gave the visitors anything to write home about.

Chasing their total, we made a decent fist of it without quite landing the blow. G Knight batted with real sense for 35, George Champion followed his five wickets with 26 more runs for good measure, and B W Haynes chipped in a useful 20. As for your correspondent, I trudged out, played some approximation of a forward defensive, and trudged back again for a duck — the sort of innings best filed under "no further comment necessary."

There is, at least, cause for quiet pride in the small print: Champion's bowling took him past S Christopherson into 5th on the club's all-time wicket list, and his batting nudged him past H Vaughton into 9th among our run-scorers — a fine afternoon's work by any measure, even in a losing cause. He also sits atop this season's wicket charts with ten, while Knight holds 3rd in the run charts.

Eight runs is nothing — a misfield, a dropped single, my duck — and it separated us from a very winnable game. We'll be better for it next week.

Wed 13 May 1896 🧢 1st XIv ? · HomeformWDLDL

From the captain's chair — Wednesday 13 May 1896. We hosted, and won the toss to put ourselves into the field first, which felt like the right call at the time.

Their innings never quite got going, for all that it threatened to. An early wicket fell with nought on the board, which ought to have been the cue for a rout, but S D Barrow and Private Howden(who himself departed for a golden duck 🦆) then stitched together a stubborn 95 for the second wicket to drag things back level. R Grant was the chief architect of their recovery, 65 hard-earned runs, well past his fifty, with M P Buckle's 31 lending sturdy support. It was George Champion who dragged us back into it, spinning his way to a magnificent 5 for 0 — bowling of the sort that makes tea taste sweeter — with Arthur Cornwallis (3-0) and S Mendel (1-0) mopping up round him.

With the bat we had every right to feel confident. A W Fulcher led from the front with a classy 87, P Blencowe was hardly less impressive with 83, and S Mendel chipped in a further 31. Poor X Gilbert, though, will want to forget his golden duck 🦆 in a hurry.

Honours on the day to George Champion, who leapfrogged both C A Smith and T Gandy up the all-time club lists with bat and ball alike — a fine advertisement for doing both jobs well. We fell short in the end, but there was too much heart in that display to be downhearted for long. We'll be better for it next week.