A Sporting Declaration
History Makers—Part XVII
What follows is the latest installment in our series on the inaugural women’s Ashes tour of 1934/35. The previous installment is here.
Day One: Friday 14th December 1934
England 221 ( DM Turner 50, ME Hide 44, JE Partridge 32, FL Blade 3-40, EM Shevill 2-53) NSW 1-50 ( H. Pritchard 27, Monaghan 20*) Hours of Play: 1:15-6:00
A crowd of 2,500 saw each team dominate at times during an enthralling day. New South Wales will look to take command when play resumes, but England won’t be downhearted.
England made one change to their XI, bringing in Valentine for Richards, and on winning the toss, chose to bat. Maclagan and Snowball’s class shone through in perfect conditions, sharing 43 for the first wicket. Each time England built a partnership, NSW fought back; at 5-103, the home side were in control, Blade and Shevill taking two wickets each. The neutrals in the crowd were disappointed when Bloomfield caught the free-scoring Hide.
Turner joined Partridge in attacking. They put on 80 for the sixth wicket, but Partridge was run out for 32. Turner fell shortly after 58, containing five fours in 69 minutes. Spear scored a brisk 21, and the innings closed on 221.
Pritchard and Monaghan played confidently in a 47-run opening stand in 38 minutes before Spear bowled Pritchard for 25. Shevill and Monaghan added only three more runs in 20 minutes before stumps.
We end on a slightly negative note. The Sydney Cricket Ground is an appropriate venue for an excellent day’s cricket. However, the authorities need to do a little more work to make it feel more welcoming for all players. Women journalists were permitted to use the press box; however, allowing women to use the changing rooms was considered a step too far. The committee considered the adjacent Sheridan Stand more appropriate.
Day 2: Saturday 15th December 1934
Close of Play: England 221 and 62-3 ( ME Hide 31*, MI Taylor 17) NSW 102 (HD Pritchard 27, RA Monaghan 25, FL Blade 17, MF Spear 4-10, JE Partridge 2-21, DMTurner 2-27) and 175-7 dec ( HD Pritchard 75, RAMonaghan 45, ME Hide 3-22).
The NSW batters needed caution against tight English bowling with unorthodox fields in the first hour. Monaghan, playing in front of the Australian selectors, batted well but lost patience on 25 when Snowball of Partridge stumped her; the game was in the balance at 66-2. Archdale saw an opportunity to take control, bringing back the pace bowlers Spear and Turner, who ripped through the middle order, leaving NSW at 8-81. Poor running led to the running-out of both Peden sisters for single-figure scores. At 11.45, the players adjourned for lunch; they were guests of honor at the nearby Lady’s College. Unfortunately, their bus broke down on the way back, delaying the resumption by 10 minutes. Blade scored nine runs off Turner as play resumed and 14 runs from 11 balls. Wegemund was bowled 2nd ball by Spear. New South Wales, 119 runs behind, was asked to follow on.
Blade kept her pads on to open with Monaghan, but soon departed. Pritchard and Monaghan were much more positive, accumulating 84 runs in 96 minutes before Monaghan fell to Taylor. Pritchard booked her place in the opening Test with 75. Wickets fell steadily, Essie Shevill 23 and Barbara Peden 10 being the only players to reach double figures, but the game looked to be heading for a draw when, at 5:17 p.m., Peden declared setting England 57 to win in 34 minutes.
When three wickets fell for 25, an improbable home victory looked on the cards. It would have been understandable if England batted out for the draw, but they went for victory. Hide batted aggressively and took them home with an undefeated 31.
Both teams took a lot away from the game, and the Australian selectors were beginning to see the eleven who would play in Brisbane.
The scorebook containing the game can be seen on the excellent website Women’s Cricket History.
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