RUGBY.

Auckland Star, Volume XXXVI, Issue 276, 18 November 1905, Page 12

RUGBY.

The statement published by a Wellington contemporary to the effect that the whole of the present New Zealand football team at present touring England are colonial-born is not quite correct, as D. Gail_ker. the captain of the team, was born hi Ireland, near Belfast, and came out with his parents to the colonies with the Yesey Stewart settlers. GaHaher was a resident of Katikati for some time before coming to Auckland. Says an English exchange:—lt is .[uite premature to begin reusing our views of the game and our methods of playing it. Our clubs have suddenly been faced with a. 15 of clever, wellbalanced players, who have had abundant practice together, and are consequently a homogenous body, who are in good condition, who have been playing in their own country up to a couple of months ago. What wonder is it that our men have gone down, being slack after the summer's rest without practice, unfamiliar with the feel of the ball, slow in packing, unready with their feet? We will consider New Zealand more justly when they have played well into November, and British clubs have found their form. It takes a good while to shake down into Rugby footbalL Men may be soft at the beginning of cricket—but physical condition is not nearly so important in the summer games as in those of winter—and the footbaßer out of condition is almost as ! inept as the boxer in the same state — I a chopping-block for the trained op I ponent. One can view the situation from this 1 standpoint without appearing to make ; excuses for the poor showing of Devon, , Cornwall and the rest. Let a reasonj ably good Welsh, or English side—say, Cardiff, or Leicester, or Devonport Alibian—forego the pleasures of August I sea-side loafing, train for a month or | six weeks, practise assiduously, and turn out in mid-September against an International side (English, Welsh, I | Irish, or Scotch) hastily formed of men j ' who had not handled a baU till a week before the match. Which side would ' j any expert judge of the game back ? For 20 minutes the untrained Internaj tionals might hold their own, but after that there would be only one side in it. Stamina is wanted to win Rughy j matches, and combination with it, and i these two indispensable attributes are just what the New Zealanders are serving up to us just now. Everybody has something to say about the ''wing fur ward," Mr GaHaher, who has proved such a success. Weil, he is not a novelty. We know all about him—not as Mr GaHaher, but as an experiment. He has his advantages and his disadvantages—the latter being more evident when the referee is up to his work, and keen and resolute about it. Tbe wing forward is continually getting off-side, and he is continually liable to penalty for impeding the opposing half-back, the latter being in his place and conforming to the rules- It needs no gift of prophecy to say that Mr GaHaher, who seems to be a very fine and fair player personaUy, will have the whistle busy many times before the tour is over. Will seven forwards hold eight, other things being equal? Hardly. The j visitors get down very quickly, and ] know each other's game very well. But presently we look forward to seeing them run up against a pack which is equally clever, numerically stronger, and heavier. Then we wiH see how the one half and the two five-eighths will fare j behind a beaten pack. It is open to ! question whether the colonial methods will answer in defence as well as they unquestionably do in attack. One thing i the colonials are teaching us, and a j very good lesson it is—the merit of the man behind the scrum, caH —im five eighth or half or three-quarter, who gets tbe ball, and sees the goal, and , sets out to take the ball to the goal. I Individual play has been too much sacnj ficed to the ideal of passing, and in many of our own games of last year : the man who had the courage of his I convictions, and believed he could do better by holding the ball than passing it, has scored heavHy. From Wales comes word that there !is likely to be strong competition for j the position of full-back in the Welsh ; Rnghy team this season. j The £230 gate at the Bristol v. New ' Zealand match has only been exceeded once in the history of the club. That was when a North v. South fixture was played at Bristol some years ago. Commenting on the Leicester v. New Zealand match, the "Athletic News" says the game was a fine and joyous exposition of football of the highest and most cultured standard. There are those who think that the Weigh clubs can outrival the colonials in smartness and accuracy in back play, but to do >,this they will have to be at their highest form, for many of their movements were conceived and executed in a style which is only rarely seen in an international contest in which Wales are concerned. The trio who acted as three-quarters are certainly exceeding- • ly speedy, but Smith combines with his sprinting powers an ability to swerve and dodge that is as bewildering to an opponent as it is delightful to witness. It was positively exhi/Lrating to see this tall, dean-limbed athlete running with the balL How he twisted and turned, eluding opponents on aD. sides, was simply marveHous, and such an exhibition as be gave on Saturday was worth going many miles to see. He 1 reminded one of Arthur Gould in his . palmy days, for he is not merely a player blessed with speed, hat he is full of resuim—, c-paMe of appreciating every sitan-ti-Hj and a man w_o gives [» <_pa_i_-- «c !_■ Wghait «__■_■__,