THE SOCCER GAME.

Sun (Christchurch), Volume I, Issue 156, 7 August 1914, Page 2

THE SOCCER GAME.

BROWN SHIELD MATCH. From all accounts the struggle the Brown Shield at Richmond Pai;k ,to- ! morrow wiltT be., the keenest yet seen since. Canterbury wrested the trophy from Wellington l . : last year. 1 bury's forces will- be fully extended^! and the visitors/ will have(the pleasure < of seeing the'ympst. brilliant fprwardi line that Canterbury lias ever piit in the! field. G. Norman, E. Norman, and Tanner make a vanguard of which Canterbury may well be proud. Clay is playing,,in.his.correct position I,am pleas.ee) to-notej and.at eentre r half | is certainly the -j, best .player' in .the '", Christehurch League. , He plays the correct half-back game, and does it with such vim and vigour as to ,be a delight to all 6'nlookersf ..-Baxter'j the ever-' green, is also .taking ,his correct placeat left half, and,should give a good account of himself., Mitchell, of Linwood, in the ..right hnlf, position, has many followers. In, my opinion he has but; one fault—he tries to do too much, and as often as ; not, nullifies his work by ; putting the bait out of reach of the for- j wards. A. Cornish must feel proud to j think that he : is being called on once j more to defend Canterbury's soccer 1 honour.* He is pur oldest Brown Shield 1 representative, and though lie has lost. much of his ,ol(t speed, he stillranks as a fine, tackier.'and a splendidly clean kick. . Watson!,-at right back, could, I think, have improved upon; McFarlane, to my mind, being a much; better' ihan. This latter player is'fast,' a good tackier, and a magnificent kick, and would have been an excellent partner for Cornish. And he does not "sky" the bait' I cannot understand how the selectors came to pass over Swift for goal.' I have seen this player five times this season, and have no hesitation in saying that ne s * ne w-ost finished custodian. I have seen in Christchurch footbalL; I airi not saying that Tennant is in fact, I have a high opinion of his; powers, but lie ranks a good second to ; Swift. ' ■ ' " . WANGANUI'S'CHANCE. Six of the risitors were here two years ago, when * Waiiganui retired defeated by 5 goals',to 3. They were unfortunate, everyone knows, for they, to all intents and purposes, played 10 men. That this.!will not occur again there is every assurance from Wanga-' nui. In fact, they have great hopes of, lifting the coveted trophy. The Wanganui team is as follows: — Goal.—Hyder;<Wanganui F.C.) ; a Dublin man; was,selected in the International trial game, last year. Right Back:—(-Newsham (Eastbrook ; F.C); hails from. Lancashire; a fearless, vigorous player, and the mainstay of the defence. Left Back.—Murray (St. John's F.C): A mediocre player with no special merits; the weak spot in an otherwise strong team. Right Half.—Healey (Eastbrook: F.C): A fine,'hard worker of the bustling type, who never accepts defeat. Centre Half.—Mitchell, captain (St. John's F.C); late of Raith Rovers, a brilliant, finished player; the star of the team.. Left Half.-rCampbell (St. John's F.C); a fail", player with a weakness for skying the bail. Outside Right,—Lowe (Wanganui: F.C): An'exceedingly fast man; the! only colonial in the team. Inside (St. John's; F.C); a flyer;, extremely tricky and a reputed fine: shqt/ Centre.—Beckett • (Eastbrook F.C);: not blessed with, too much speed, but a noted goal : getter. • Inside Left. —Cameron (St. John'sF.C.); a reliable player, absolutely fear-j less, and a sure shot. j Outside Left.- 1 -Watkins (Wanganuij F.C); a steady,,consistent player, but| not brilliant. ' . Summed up, Wanganui is in much; the same boat as Canterbury. It has! splendid forward and half-back lines,: but weak backs. Nevertheless the; Wanganui men consider that they have a great chance, and the feeling which permeates the whole team augurs well for a hard fought battle. I WANDERER, i