The 1939 Claxton Shield was the sixth annual Claxton Shield, an Australian national baseball tournament. It was held at Richmond Cricket Ground, Albert Ground,[1] South Melbourne Cricket Ground[2] ,and National Park[3] in Melbourne from 29 July to 5 August,[4] the second time Melbourne had hosted the Shield. New South Wales won the Shield for the third time, successfully defending their title from the previous two years. Queensland joined the other four states for the first time in the tournament. The other participating teams were Victoria, Western Australia ,and South Australia.[5] It was also the first year an Australia national team was picked primarily based on the Championships.[6]
| 1939 | |
| Tournament information | |
|---|---|
| Date | 29 July – 5 August |
| Host(s) |  Melbourne, VIC |
| Teams | 5 |
| Defending champions |  New South Wales |
| Final positions | |
| Champion | New South Wales (3rd title) |
| 1st runner-up |  Western Australia |
| 2nd runner-up | Victoria |
Format edit
As had been the case in the 1937 tournament, the four teams played a round-robin schedule, meeting each other team once, with two competition points on offer in each game. The points were awarded as follows:
- Win – two points
- Tie – one point
- Loss – no points
At the end of these preliminary games, the top two teams played each other to determine the champions, while the remaining two teams faced each other to determine third place. In the event of a tie between teams in terms of points, the tiebreaker used would have been the net runs for and against, with the team achieving the greater value and placing in the higher position.
Results edit
Preliminaries edit
| Team | Points | Wins | Ties | Losses | For-Against |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Western Australia
|
6 | 3 | – | 1 | +16 |
| New South Wales
|
5 | 2 | 1 | 1 | +23 |
| Victoria
|
5 | 2 | 1 | 1 | +20 |
 South Australia
|
4 | 2 | – | 2 | +22 |
 Queensland
|
0 | – | – | 4 | -81 |
| 29 July 1939 | Western Australia
|
2 – 1 | South Australia
|
Richmond Cricket Ground
|
| 29 July 1939 | Victoria
|
4 – 4 (F/11) | New South Wales
|
Richmond Cricket Ground
|
| 31 July 1939 | Queensland
|
0 – 23 | New South Wales
|
Albert Ground
|
| 31 July 1939 | Victoria
|
2 – 8 | Western Australia
|
Albert Ground
|
| 1 August 1939 | Victoria
|
6 – 5 | South Australia
|
Albert Ground
|
| 1 August 1939 | Western Australia
|
11 – 1 | Queensland
|
Albert Ground
|
| 2 August 1939 | Victoria
|
25 – 0 | Queensland
|
Albert Ground
|
| 2 August 1939 | New South Wales
|
3 – 4 | South Australia
|
Albert Ground
|
| 3 August 1939 | New South Wales
|
2 – 1 | Western Australia
|
South Melbourne Cricket Ground
|
| 3 August 1939 | South Australia
|
24 – 1 | Queensland
|
South Melbourne Cricket Ground
|
Finals edit
Third place final edit
| 5 August 1939 | South Australia
|
2 – 5 | Victoria
|
National Park
|
Championship game edit
| 5 August 1939 | New South Wales
|
1 – 0 | Western Australia
|
National Park
|
| 1939 Claxton Shield Champions |
|---|
 New South Wales 3rd title |
All-Australian team edit
At the conclusion of the tournament, representatives from the Australian Baseball Council selected an All-Australian team. Though the selected team did not actually play together, it was the first time an Australian team had been selected.[7]
| Position | Player |
|---|---|
| Pitcher | J. Lanfear
|
| C. Puckett
| |
| Catcher | L. Miller
|
| A. Goodwin
| |
| First Base | A. Barras
|
| Second Base | F. Catt
|
| Third Base | W. Rankin
|
| Short Stop | R. Corby
|
| Outfield | N. Blanche
|
| S. Yum
| |
| J. Denison
| |
| Utility | G. Borwick
|
| Manager | D. Mould
|
References edit
- ^ "Baseball Teams Here To-Day". The Argus. Melbourne. 28 July 1939. p. 16. Retrieved 3 January 2010.
- ^ "Baseball Win To S.A. – N.S.W. Surprised". The Argus. Melbourne. 3 August 1939. p. 21. Retrieved 3 January 2010.
- ^ "Ground For Baseball Final Changed". The Argus. Melbourne. 5 August 1939. p. 16. Retrieved 3 January 2010.
- ^ "Baseball – Entertaining The Teams". The Argus. Melbourne. 11 July 1939. p. 15. Retrieved 3 January 2010.
- ^ Clark 2003, pp.52–4
- ^ Harris 2009, p.28
- ^ "Baseball Games To Continue – Australian Team". The Argus. Melbourne. 8 August 1939. p. 15. Retrieved 6 January 2010.
Bibliography edit
- Clark, Joe (2003). A History of Australian Baseball: Time and Game. Lincoln, NE, United States: University of Nebraska Press. ISBN 0-8032-6440-2. Retrieved 1 January 2010.
- Harris, John O. (2009). Baseball Queensland 1905-1990. Archived from the original on 6 July 2011. Retrieved 19 July 2009.