England batsmen feel right at home
By Peter Deeley in Melbourne
TWO Victorians ruled here yesterday when England A took on the state side, but happily for the tourists they were Craig White and captain Adam Hollioake.
White, who was brought up in the country town of Ballarat, is within eight runs of the side's first century of the tour. He and Hollioake, born in Bendigo, have so far put on 94 for the fifth wicket to play their part in an impressive revival after early setbacks, taking the total at the close of the first day to 231 for four.
White's innings was the high mark of the day. He may have survived two reasonably easy chances but he has hit the ball sweetly and firmly throughout and reached his half-century off only 80 balls.
Victoria are without three players, including Shane Warne, on Test duty, and Dean Jones has also stood down but were still able to field a full side of first-class experience.
Because Michael Jackson is appearing at the MCG, this match has been pushed out to a local football stadium. It was yet another windy, cold day and there were four rain-breaks, yet only 70 minutes was lost overall.
After England had been put in Mark Butcher reached his fifth half-century in eight innings before becoming the fourth and last wicket to fall.
Yet England struggled early on as the ball moved about. Michael Vaughan, on the back foot, was caught behind by a ball leaving him from David Saker and Anthony McGrath soon followed pushing across his crease to Test bowler Damien Fleming.
Owais Shah was unlucky to be picked up at short leg off a flood-blooded drive but with England 59 for three Butcher and White came together in a 78-run stand.
Butcher fell when he went down the pitch to savage a full toss from off-spinner Brad Hodge but the ball sailed past him and wicketkeeper Peter Roch collected it in mid-air to bring off a remarkable stumping.
Day 2 report
Electronic Telegraph
White driven to distraction before missing his century
By Peter Deeley in Melbourne
WHEN you are within sight of a landmark century, the last thing you want is any external disturbance. Craig White got a double dose here yesterday and, as a result, fell one short of England A's first hundred of the tour.
The tourists still went on to much their largest total, 438, if at times their progress seemed too slow to lead on to eventual victory. At the close of the second day, Victoria were 30 for no wicket.
Over breakfast, looking forward to eight more runs to take him into three figures, the Test all-rounder must have choked on his Cornflakes to read in a local paper that he was ``Australian-born.''
White, brought up here but born in Yorkshire, is understandably sensitive on the issue since some have questioned where the true loyalty of Anglo-Australians lies (there are three in the England party.) He was quick to try to find the offending journalist and put the record right.
His problems did not end there. White, who had batted so positively, got an inside edge off the fast bowler David Saker which almost shaved leg stump and ran for four in the day's second over. Then White collided with Saker going for a second run which provoked the two to strong words.
When Tony Dodemaide joined in, the batsman was moved to wave his bat at the Victorian captain as if to show that the shot had come off the wood.
White said later: ``If he [Saker] wants to play it that way I have a few tricks up my sleeve when he comes in. If he is going to play it that way he had better watch out.''
One run later, and only 13 balls into the day, White -blaming ``poor technique'' -drove at Damien Fleming, who had taken the new ball, and the movement was enough to find another edge, this time into the wicketkeeper's hands.
He had batted nearly 3.5 hours for his 99 and, if convention had allowed, should have been marked ``talked out'' in the scorebook. Tour manager David Graveney preferred to call it ``distracted''.
As if motivated by the altercation, England proceeded to bat for most of the rest of the day. Hollioake added only another 12 to his overnight total before Dodemaide had him caught low at second slip but Mark Ealham, searching for the form which had so far deserted him on tour, batted soundly if slowly for nearly four hours.
Ealham was eventually run out when there was hesitation between himself and Warren Hegg over a single but the last three wickets added a further 133 runs.
The last pair put on 48, Glen Chapple batting with a caution curious in one who has scored one of the game's fastest hundreds. Chapple collected 27 in 1.5 hours but Dean Headley happily applied the long handle.
Day 3: Report
Hollioake welds together a unit of steel
By Ralph Dellor in Melbourne
THE England A tour of Australia is building up a momentum which makes the team difficult to beat and determined to win. The pieces are falling into place whereby individuals are all making a contribution while the collective spirit is producing a formidable unit.
They now rejoice in the knowledge that they are a match for any opposition likely to be encountered and it has not often been the case in recent years that any English cricket team on tour go into a match expecting to emerge victorious.
Rod Marsh, the mentor of the Australian Academy XI brushed aside with imperious authority in Mount Gambier last week, commented that this was as cheerful a group of cricketers on tour as he had encountered in his considerable experience. He gave due credit to The Management team (David Graveney, Mike Gatting and physio Dean Conway) for this happy state of affairs. There is no doubt that they have joined with captain Adam Hollioake to weld a unit who are forcing Australia to sit up and take notice of an English team who do not wilt at the first whiff of cordite.
If the final day of this latest match against Victoria does not end with another win, it will be because the side were uncharacteristically cautious in their approach during the first five sessions. Taking nine-and-a-half hours to make 438 could prove to be too many too slowly. It did, however, allow two more names to be added to the list of major contributors. Mark Butcher and Hollioake were already registered but Mark Ealham batted solidly to make 78 and Craig White got within a single of becoming the first centurion on tour.
White was brought up in these parts and made two Sheffield Shield appearances for Victoria before concentrating on a career with his native Yorkshire. He has though often been thought of as being less than the assertive character which would typify his birth or upbringing. In this match, however, he has shown a steely streak which could yet see him emerge as a genuine Test all-rounder.
Just before his dismissal, he appeared to get the better of an altercation with Victorian David Saker which saw White's bat prodding at the bowler with unambiguous intent. When he took the ball, he was still fired up enough to roar in and claim a wicket with his second and third deliveries. He also found some lift in an otherwise benign pitch to break Tony Dodemaide's right index finger and force him to retire hurt at lunch. With wickets for Glen Chapple, Dean Headley and Ealham at that stage, England were already in the driving seat.
A fruitful morning was followed by a wicketless afternoon but straight after tea Ashley Giles ended Peter Roach's stubborn resistance before Chapple swept away the remaining wickets to finish with his best return of the tour. The follow-on was enforced, but weary bowlers could not find the inspiration to part the openers a second time before stumps and it will take one final effort on the last day to make it four wins in a row.
Asked if he was having any vestige of a difficulty with his happy, successful tourists, manager Graveney did vouchsafe one concern about which he had been warned before leaving England. ``Graham Gooch noted the notches on my belt and said I could have a problem keeping it in place if I was to eat every evening with M W Gatting. That probably has been the only serious problem I've had on tour,'' was Graveney's observation, delivered with a chuckle which showed just how harmonious this party had become.
Presuming Dodemaide takes no further part in the match, another nine wickets would enhance that triumphant mood even further.
Day 4 report
England 'A' Tour: Hollioake's men toil to victory by innings
By Peter Deeley in Melbourne
THE triumphant England bandwagon continues to roll across Australia, but what hard work the A side made of their fourth consecutive win. Victoria's final pair defied the tourists for almost two hours before the state side eventually went down by an innings and eight runs.
England dominated the game for 3.5 days but in the end there were only 11.4 overs left when Graeme Vimpani went to pull Glen Chapple and dragged the ball on to the stumps. Vimpani and Victoria's No 11, David Saker, had added 95 with the visitors clearly feeling the effects of a day in the field in the fierce heat.
Their frustrations were compounded when any number of edges flew just wide of clutching hands; Adam Hollioake at second slip made a mess of a thick edge when Saker flashed at Chapple.
The England captain admitted frankly: ``I wasn't concentrating as hard as I should have been. I had a lot on my mind, trying to work out who would take over from Chapple as he was coming to the end of his spell.''
Then Saker edged Craig White between keeper and first slip to reach his maiden first-class century, but it all came right in the end - though England were uncertain whether victory was theirs until the batsmen offered hand-shakes.
Victorian captain Tony Dodemaide, a finger broken when he was hit in the first innings by White, was never likely to bat. Damien Fleming, suffering a leg strain, could have come out with a runner but did not. Hollioake observed: ``He has his Test career to think about and maybe getting back into the Australian side was more important.''
The home side were already weakened by the loss of key players through injury and Test duties; England's earlier 12-run win over South Australia was marginally impaired by the secondinnings absence of Darren Lehmann, on publicity duty for his cricket board.
Australians will no doubt cite these as reasons for down-playing England's successes on this tour. The run began with a one-day win over South Australia and includes a non first-class victory over the Cricket Academy side.
But there is no doubt that this tour party, buzzing with confidence, are making a dent in the long-held local view that English cricketers are ``no-hopers''.
Victoria began the day following on still 207 behind and after their opening pair of Warren Ayres and Brad Hodge had added 52, Hodge pulled a short ball from Chapple to square leg. Then Dean Headley trapped Ayres on his stumps when he cut one back into the left-hander.
White, busy as ever and seemingly bursting to be in the action, claimed a wicket with his second delivery for the second time in the game when he yorked Michael Foster and in the next over he dismissed Ian Harvey, who shouldered arms to a ball coming back into him.
Victoria were then 91 for five - for seven as it turned out and an afternoon relaxing in the sunshine beckoned. The prospect grew larger as Peter Roach contributed to his own downfall by trying a single against Headley's good arm, Warren Hegg completing the dis- missal.
Hollioake, who has shown a knack for mopping up tails, then had Bruce Stacey caught behind to make it 124 for seven in early afternoon before England ran into the seeming brick wall of the eighth, and last, wicket partnership.
England now go to Canberra for a one-day and a four-day (non first-class) match against the Australian Capital Territory.