INTERPORT RIFLE MATCH.
BHOOTING AT HONGKONG.
The Interport Rifle Match is now engaging the
Interest of shots in the ports concerned. As is well known, each port is represented by a team of ten men, and each team shoots on its Wn range, any time between the 1st and 15th of October. The conditions are: Seven rounds at each of the 200, 500, and 600 yards' range, a Įsighting shot, not to count, to be allowed at each range; men to fire in a prone position.
Hongkong, which fired off on Oct 11 at King's Bark Range, Kowloon, was represented by Major W. Chitty, 119th Infantry; Capt. J. D'Ōyly, 119th_Inf.; Mr. B. G. »uaro, Lieut. Hayton, H.K.V.C., Sgt. R. Lapsley, H.K.V.C., Sgt. Major J. Andrew, H.K.V.C; Mr. J. Pidgeon, Capt. Kitson, R.W.K.;
Col.-Sgt. Thorne, R.W.K.; and Mr. W. Stackwood. Mr. J. C. Gow, who was se'ected to shoot, could not attend and his place was taken by Lieut. Hayton. The Hon. Mr. L. A. M. Johnston, Mr. D. Macdonald, and Mr. G. H. Wakeman acted as ampires, while Lieut. Northcote was responsible for the arrangements.
Brilliant sunshine prevailed, but with the exception of the rather fierce rays of the sun, the conditions were favourable. There was little or no wind and the light on the targets was good. At 2.25 the first six men Lapsley. Andrew, Hayton, Thorne, Stackwood and Pidgeon-went down, and on the round being completed they were succeeded by the other four. Scores :-
200 YARDS.
Mr. Pidgeon (4) Sgt. Lapsley (4) Major Chitty (4) Capt. D'Oyly (5)
4 5 5 4 4 4 5
4 5 5 4 5 5 3
31 31
4 4 4 5 4 5 4
30
Col. Sgt. Thorne (4)
4 3 5 5 4 4 4 3 4
29
5 4 4
29
Lient Hayton (4) 3 3 4 4 5 4 5 Mr. K. G. Munro (3) 4 4 5 4 4 3 4 Sgt. Major Andrew (5) 3 5 4 4 44 Capt. Kitson (3)
Mr. Stackwood (3)
4 4 4 3 4 4
4 3 4 3 4 3 5 26
Total
287 The average was 28.7. Considering that this year the bull was only five inches as compared with seven inches last year, the total was fairly satisfactory. Certainly it was a sufficient ex- planation for the decrease of 17 from 304, the 1905 score at this range.
500 YARDS,
Capt. D'Oyly (5) 5 5 5 5 4 5 5 Major Chitty (3) 5 5 5 5 4 5 5 Col Sgt. Thorne (4) 5 5 5 5 5 4 4 Mr. Munro (4) 5 5 3 54 5 = 32 Captain Kitson (5) 5 4 4 4 5 5
34 34 33
3 4 5 5 5 5 5 5 4 3 5 5 5 3 5 5 4
32 32 32
4 4 5 4 5
31
5 4
26
318
Mr. Stackwood (3) Lieut. Haylon (3) Sgt. Lapsley (4) Mr. Pidgeon (4) Sgt. Major Andrew(4)4 3 5 2
Total
Average 31.8. This total was only one point below that of last year's at the same range. Among the first six there was an exciting.shoot between Lieut Hayton and Col. Sgt. Thorne. Both men scored five successive bulls, and both dropped to inners with the sixth shot. Thorne secured another inner, which gave him 33, but Hayton only got a magpie, making his total 32. Still more exciting was the shoot between Major Chitty and Captain D'Oyly, who each secured five bulls, then each dropped to an inner, and recovered with a bull at the last.
600 YARDS.
Mr. Pidgeon (4) Mr. Stackwood (4)
5 5 3 4 5 5 4 5 5 3 4 3 5 5
31
Capt. Kitson (3)
Sgt. Lapsley (4)
4 4 4 5 5 5 3 45
Col. Sgt. Thorne (5) 5 5
Mr. Munro (5)
4 2 5 5 4 3 3 5 4 5
30 30 30 29
Capt. D'Oyly (5) Sgt. Mjr. Andrew (2) Major Chitty (4) Lient. Hayton (2)
2 5 5 4 5 3 4
5 4 4 5 4 2445 3 3
5
5 4
28 28 26 26
286
Average 28.6. Those who gave great promise at the last distance fell away here but Pidgeon and Lapsley continued their consistent shooting.
THE HONGKONG WEEKLY PRESS AND
AGGREGATE.
Mr. Pidgeon Sgt. Lapsley Col. Sgt. Thorne Captain D'Oyiy Major Chitty Capt. Kitson
200 500 600 Total
93 93
31 31
31 32 29 33
8=2******
91
gu
90
89
20 34
30
34
32
26
32
88
32
Lieut. Hayton
28
32
86
Sgt. Major Andrew
28
26
Mr. Stackwood Mr. Munro
82
Total... 891 The record of the Interport Ride matches is as follows:-
:
1889 Shanghai, 819; Singapore, 777; Hong- kong. 774.
1890: No mateh. 1891 Hongkong, 867: Singapore, 741. Singapore, 752.
1892: Hongkong, 835;
1893: Hongkong, 822; Singapore, 768,
Shanghai, 830
Shanghai, 810;
Shanghai, 802;
1894: Hongkong. 823: Singapore, 817: Shanghai, 760.
1895: Singapore, 934; Shanghai, 903; Hong. kong, 879.
1896: Hongkong. 916: Shanghai, 90: Singapore, 870.
Singapore, 923: Singapore, 926;
Shanghai, 860).
1897: Singapore. 934: Hongkong, 916; 1898: Hongkong, 934: Shanghai, 893.
1899 :
Hongkong, 952, Shangbai, 887.
1900: Hongkong, 930: Shanghai, 900.
Singapore, 909;
190 : Hongkong. 901: Singapore, Ex4: Shanghai, 841: Penang, 721.
1902: Shanghai, 926: Singapore, 893: Hong. kong, 871; Penang, 871.
1903: Singapore, 927; Shanghai, 915: Hong. kong, 891: Penang 750.
1904: Singapore, 919; Hongkong, 919; Shanghai. 908; Penang did not finish on account of rain. (The Singapore team having made one more point than the Hongkong team at 600 yards was declared the winner.)
1905: Hongkong. 923: Shanghai, 889; Singapore, 860.
The competition was inaugurated in 1889, and a match has since taken place yearly, with the exception of 1890. Hongkong has secured by far the greatest number of wins, having been first in len matches, as against Singapore's four and Shanghai's two. The northern and southern ports hold equal honours as to the aumber of seconds, each having seven, while Hongkong has been second twice. The third position has been held by Hongkong four times, Singapore five times, and Shanghai seven times. Penang, which only joined the competition in 1901, having been fourth in each of their three shoots.
THE INTERPORT MATCH.
COMMENTS BY MAIL.
The defeat of
con-
occasioned as much surprise at Shanghai it the Hongkong cricketers can have done at Hongkong. The wicket, drying under wind and sun from the effects of the previous day's rain, played very trickily at the beginning, and Mr. Hancock having won in putting the home team in first. The opening the toss adopted what seemed the proper course innings seemed further to confirm this, although the Hongkong bowling could not be called remarkable; it could only be described as moderate. Bird and Hancock bowled sistently well and it is curious that, while Han- cook got three men caught and bowled and Bird got two men l.b.w., not a single ball hit the stumps throughout the innings. There were times during Messrs. Weippert and Martin's partnership when they made the Hongkong bowling look extremely simple from the liberties they took with it. When the Hongkong men went in for their amazingly short stand, the Shanghai supporters were expecting defeat and blaming the wicket. Lanning's achievement in taking eight wickets, six of them clean bowled, for ten runs naturally roused those on the stand to the highest point of enthusiasm. It is a record for interport
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[October 15, 1906. cricket. The complete collapse of the visitors, who were reputed a strong batting side, was quite a surprise, and the fact that afterwards Shanghai added eighty runs for three wickets in the second innings, made the downfall still more inexplicable. Neither side put what it believed to be its strongest team in the field. Mr. Pearce, of Hongkong, had unfortunately contracted fever and Mr. Phelips, one of the reserves, took his place. Shanghai were without the assistance of Messrs. A. E. Lanning and W. J. Turnbull, bat Mr. Marton, at all events, fully justified his inclusion. The second day's weather was still more favourable, and the pitch, though still in favour of the bowlers, was much improved. The home team, with eighty to its credit and only three wickets down, looked well on the way to a large score, but the promise of the preceding after. noon was not fulfilled. Lanning was clean- bowled the third over, and Dew, who succeeded him, only had one hit before he too was stut back, Walker continued to play careful cricket, and survived until the ninth wicket. Guilfoyle was the only other batsman who succeeded in reaching double figures, and Shanghai's second innings closed just after noon for 121. This was not a large score, but even so Hongkong had to make 205 runs to equal and the task proved to be too severe. Lanning was again bowling excellently, while Dew, whose efforts were not quite so successful, was keeping a good length. Just before tiffle, when the score stood at 35 for three wickets, Moule replaced Dew, and his delivery seemed to puzzle the batsmen a good deal. He continued bowling after tiffo, and his selection was fully justified by the three wickets that fell to his hand for six runs apiece. On'y three of the visitors got into double figures, and about 2.40 p.m. Bird skied a ball from Moule and the Hongkong innings came to an end with only 66 on the board. Shanghai thus won by 139 runs on the two innings, but the total of the first innings exceeded that of Hongkong's aggregate by nine runs. The end of the match was rather disappointing. Spectators were just beginning to arrive in large numbers, and the Town Band appeared on the scene to find that play bad ceased. Shangbai's victory was overwhelm- ing, but it would have been more satisfactory from the spectators' point of view if the finish had been oloser, or at any rate delayed for an hour or two more. In the fielding department Shang- hai were undoubtedly an easy first. Not a chance was missed in either innings, and Stanion's catch at point, which dismissed Capt. Smith, was really brilliant. Their ground fielding was also almost perfect and elicited frequent applause, the only noticeable errors in this branch havingfoccurred once at the beginning of each innings and once in the "thirties Bongkong's second innings, when -agaiɑ through over-eagerness--two fieldsmeu tried to gather the ball together and an additional run awas scored. Shanghai also frequently scored a short-run single, where for a similar stroke Hongkong could not venture « run owing to lertness in the field. The filding of the Hong. kong XI suffered by comparison. They were not so quick on their feet and their ground. Two distinct chances were missed, and a couple fielding, though usually sure, was not smart, of possibles were not attempted with the energy that could have been shown. In criticizing the fielding of the visitors, however, it must be remembered that they came from Hongkong's
in the batting department, Hongkong were warmer clime to meet a sudden cold map which was numbing o the digits. Again,
of
on a wicket which did not suit them End were batting against-better bowling-for on his form in this match V. H. Lanning is the best bowler in the Far East. At the dinner, the Chairman, Mr. A. P. Wood, said the before proposing the toast of the evening he felt that he must express Shanghai's deepest sympathy with Hongkong in the terrible loss of life and property which had been caused by the recent typhoon. Not only had Hongkong suffered this severe loss but also the deaths of Bishop] Hoare and Mr. Mitchell, who was for many years president of the Hongkong Club. In the deaths of these two gentlemen Hongkong had lost two true lovers of the noble game of cricket who had everything that would redound to the welfare and happiness of Hongkong at heart. The speaker had never seen more keen cricketers