NARROW WIN

Ashburton Guardian, Volume 69, Issue 268, 25 August 1949, Page 2

NARROW WIN

FOOTBALL

Ashburton Defeat West Coast MANY MINOR BREACHES In a. match which was characterised by numerous minor bi'eaches which had the effect of spoiling what might have proved try-getting moves, the Ashburton Rugby representatives yesterday defeated the touring West Coast team by 11 points (three tries, one converted) to !) (a try and two penalty'goals). The game, which was played on the Oval in the Domain, fell a good deal short of the spectacular, although bright play was not lacking. In fact, the try which won the match for the home team wan a,"splendid one, the result of quickly profiting by a mistake on the part of the opposition. On the other hand there was far too much mishandling for representative players, and the round-the-neck tackling of Ashburton players let the Coastere away on many moves which should never have started.

There was not a great deal between the packs in the tight, although the visitors had'the edge on the home side in hooking, and saw sufficient of the ball to have come out with'a comfortable margin had the backs possessed penetration. Many good openings were made by Hunter and Lindbom, but the moves later broke down. Behind the Ashburton scrum White sent out good passes, but the opposing backs bustled the rest of the line into errors. Blacklow’s slowness off the mark militated against effective at tacks The Ashburton forwards played solidly all day, none more so than Small, who proved a good leader. The Coast pack at times seemed to lack dash possibly due to the long tour but they fed the backs persistently in the loose. The game was played at a fast pace under ideal conditions, although the strong’ cross-wind at times proved disconcerting. There was a good attendance for a mid-week match.

The Teams The teams were: West Coast—!. B. Muir, J. R. Steel, J. Lindbom, M. Stoop, R. Breeze, C. H. Hunter, H. Tainui, J. Flynn, J. Woods, J. Goldworthy, J. Curtain, G. Nelson, R. Bastgate, K. Fisher and M. Wells. ' „ Ashburton—C. Bradley, R. Collard, K Mead, A. McLeod, G. Blacklow, E. Behrns, T. White, R. Copland, J. Small, K. Rushton, J. Washington, I. McGarry, C. Body, K. Smith and G. Campbell. Play Described C. Bradley kicked off for Ashburton and the local forwards were off at a fast pace. Unspectacularly they gradually drew near the West Coast goal line, where J. Small bullocked his way over to set Ashburton off for a pleasing start. A determined bid to equalise was made by the visiting forwards, but infringements forced them to lose territorial advantage. A stab kick by G. Blacklow, the Ashburton first fiveeighths, caught the Coast backs on the wrong foot, the last line of defence fumbling the ball, E. Behrns, second five-eighths for the local team being on the spot to snap up and score. The Ashburton forwards were breaking round on the visiting inside backs very quickly, but this did not affect the run of play, as both teams tried to keep the game open. This failed, however, because of poor handling. The local centre, K. Mead, who was standing very shallow, intercepted a pass, “drew” the full-back and passed to A. McLeod, who was brought down from behind. Next the Coast backs produced a glimpse of good football, when H. Tainui, the half-back went to the “open” side and weaved his w<*y through the weak tackling and baffled defence for J. R. Steel on the wing to score and make the score Aslibuiton 6, West Coast 3. In this movement, Tainui was injured and v/as replaced by G. Richardson. , This success heartened West Coast, and they threw the ball about freely. Lindbom, the visiting second fiveeighths, sliced the defence to ribbons, but Steel was tackled just short of the line. Wh’en Ashburton were penalised Lindbom just missed with a long shot, and the half-time score was still: Ashburton G, West Coast 3.

Second Half The second half saw the visitors making a determined effort to make up the leeway, but the passing movements broke down through faulty handling. When Ashburton were penalised in their own half, Lindbom kicked a good penalty to make the score 6-all. Once again the West Coast forwards took the upper hand but not for long, for Blacklow, in an opportunist position, intercepted a pass in his own half, passed to J. Small, who drew the full-back, and then passed to Mead, who raced over unopposed to score under the posts and convert his own try and give Ashburton an 11-6 lead. West Coast threw the ball round, but were running too much across the field, and the Ashburton backs were looking for opportunities. McLeod provided the next thril with a powerful burst, but he was well tackled by the Coast full-back, and Steel relieved with a long line-kick. The heavier Ashburton forwards were keeping the visiting forwards out, but when the Coast pack exploited a combined passing rush matters looked dangerous for Ashburton, and in a desperate effort to defend an Ashburton forward was penalised, for Lindbom to kick another penalty and further reduce Ashburton’s slender lead, the score being: Ashburton 11, West Coast 9. Now the Coast team played vigorously, throwing the ball everywhere, but Small especially was giving the inside backs a torrid time and what movements did get under way were spoilt through knock-ons. I. McGarry, who had been playing a good game on the side of the Ashburton scrum, was replaced by P. Prendergast, But for the heavier local pack forcing them back, the visitors would have scored. Vainly they tried to assume command, but the final whistle blew with the scores: Ashburton .. .. 11 West Coast .. 9 Mr N. Jones was the referee.

THOMAS MEMORIAL CUP MATCH The curtain-raiser between the Stock and Station Agents and the Banks and Professions for the David Thomas Memorial Cup, produced glimpses of very good football, but the Station Agents’ team, with a. speedy bacldine, was too good for the Professions, although they

should have won move convincingly. Playing for the Station Agents, S. Lemon and H. Tait, both outstanding sprinters, were well marked, E. Welsh giving Tait no opportunity to show his pace. Lemon frequently beat his diminutive opposite number, but the cover defence was always there to tackle him. R. Carter, playing in the five-eighths position for the Professions, was given little room to move in but his cover-defence and tackling were good. Points were scored for Stock and Station Agents by W. Oclcenden (penalty). A. Donaldson, S. Lemon, H. Tait and L. Cornwall (one try each) and L. McDonald scored two tries for Professions to make the final score: Stock and Station Agents 15, Banks and Professions G. Mr D. Kenny was the referee.