NORTHERN UNION.

Auckland Star, Volume XLV, Issue 183, 3 August 1914, Page 8

NORTHERN UNION.

THE TEST MATCH. ENGLAND V. NEW ZEALAND. WIN FOB THE VISITORS. BY THREE POINTS" MAJORITY. ON THE DOMAIN. *NBWr ZEALAND'S PLUCKY ' DEFENCE. tcherfbsppy• augury of tbe morning for th» match between the British touring iteam-oncPlNew Zealand "was Bomewhat marred, shortly "bef ore the advertised ±ime-of starting by a heavy-shower of Erin. Kortnnately, 'however, this was enfficienfly long deferred to .preclude any effect on the attendance. 'By three o'clock there- "was a crowd on the Doimain—iinmlbering about 16,000, and it iwaa olbvaorjg'ihait 'the/interest .of the iaEt-and-most important engagement of ithe- vLsifioT» had not been impaired by the fact sthot the British team had al;ready been on show in the city, fjjhsre canribeJEttle doubt-that the financial result of the tour, so far as the lAucklajid matches are concerned, has Ibeen. very satisfactory. Of those present to-day 15,000 paid for admission, and the takings at the gates amounted to £710.

England made two alterations upon last week's team, the most important "being the inclusion of Wagstaff, the epeedy Hnddersfield centre, in place of "Hall, who went to his accustomed place tolf half-back. In th e forwards Clampitt, of ißraughton Rangers, replaced Chilcott. LAn eleventh hour change was made in ifhe New Zealand team. MdClymont, of Ponsonby, dropped out of the tfullIback position owing to an injury received, in training, and the vacancy was }uHedyby , H&Tdgra've, of Otahuhu. .NEW ZEALAND. Full-back: I • "Qardgrave (Otahuhu). Three-quarters: J"CaWesfcon, right wing PNorth Shore), K. Ifwensen, right centre (GTafton), ft. (Bradley, left centre (Wellington), W. Wilson, left wing (Wellington). Half-backs: SLvßaxclay (Hawke's Bay), W. Bussell (Cbristchurch), scrum. Forwards: S. Walters (North Shore), J. Banks (Hawke's Bay), B. Mitchell (Grafton), C. Savory (Ponsonby), E. Button .(Ohristchurch), J. Parker (Taranaki). ENGLAND. Full-back: Woods. Three-quarters: Bloorhouse, Wagstaffc, Jen-kins, Davies. Half-backs: Hall and Smith. Forwards: Clampitt, Ramsdale, Longetaffe, Coldrick, Johnson, Holland. Beferee: Mr. A. 'Ferguson, Auckland THE PLAY. England won the toss, to gain little advantage of sun and wind, and from the kick-off promptly entered the home territory, where a run and short punt hy Jenkins, on the right, necessitated a touchdown. From the kickout th e English backs again got going, and Moorhouse was only hurled into ibouch-in-goal in the nick of time. A wet ball and the treacherous turf led to some unfortunate muffing in the 2sew Zealand twenty-five, and more than once a score seemed imminent. Luckily, however, the fumbling was not confined to the Dominion representatives, and this probably accounted for the (failure of the Englishmen to penetrate the defence in the first ten minutes.

Although kept on the tip-toe of ex.tpectation the crowd was not treated to any particularly thrilling incident during this period, and play generally was of a scrappy and (haphazard character. At last, however, Hardgrave got in a big clearance, and with the venue transferred to the English twenty-five Wilson dashed away at lightning pace along the wing. 'Tailing to catch him, Jenkins ■was-etall able to hand out a hefty push, and the left-wing shot a dozen yaTds into touch. Immediately afterwards Ifwerson narrowly missed the mark with a pot shot at goal, and then (Hall and Wagstaff indulged in a series off pretty -exchanges down the win<r, which were spoiled by the latter knocking forward. iA free-kick em&kd Savory to bring relief to a tight situation. THE SCOBE OPENS. With the game a quarter of an hour old the (Englishmen opened the score. Coldriek snapped up the iball in the loose, and transferred to Wagstaff, in imidineld. The English captain feinted to beat the New Zealand, centres, and then smartly transfer-red • to Jenkins, who in turn eluded Hardgrave by a.neat exchange to Moorliouse. The wing man crossed for Woods to add the goal pointe. England .-.- v 5 New Zealand 0 Scarcely bad playresumed when England were again •hairrmcTing at the gates, and Davies, who on the right wing liad so far cu/fc a lonely figure, nearly nipped over in the corner, but knocked on. There was no gainsaying ifche fact that New Zealand were being badly beaten in the scrum, and five times out of six the English pack showed a clean set of heels to the ball. And •when the ball did come out the story was invariably the same. F.-om the heaving scrum there was a symphony of perfect movement —if the expression may be allowed—always ending in the lone Hying on the wing. It was only tiro resourcefailnea, of the sturdy Otohuihu man .fiat repelled the invaders.

From such a movement camo England's second try. Smith, Jei kins, Wagstaff and Moonliouse handled with ma-chine-like precision, and again the Huddersuela sprinter, who lost week did oncli damage, raced over the line. This time-Woods did not rise to the occasion. ■England ....,, 8 New Zealand 7-~ ■ ~,,, ,- o A FLUTTER OF HOPE. Hope Tose in the breast of the crowd Lwhen Savory headed a nice dribbling rush, wliich compa-rcd favourably with anything *h e (English pack had thus far dene in the loose, hut once, a

bobbing figure dropped down to the ball, and apparently wildly, hut really with perfect accuracy, whipped it out to the untiring qmartet. Weaik tackling by the New Zealand backs all but let the enemy in again, but HaTdgrave heavily brought down Holland at the critical moment. The English forward rolled over to ground the ball on the line, but the referee promptly penalised him for pushing the ball over. Then New Zealand had a belated voice in the argument, and. through the medium of a clever piece of work 'by Weston and Parker carried play into the English twenty-five. Had Weston been better supported a try would have been inevitable. Collared by the full-hack, but still free to part with the ball, he could only wait until the reieree -whistled i a scrum. An unfortunate incident marred the play at this point. Savory was heading a forward rush when he was heavily brought down by an English iforward. The next moment the pair were vigorously exchanging blows. Tlie cause of the unseemly incident was not apparent to those in the Press 6tand, bat the referee penalised tlie wearer of the red and white jersey. Ifwerson failed with the kick, and once more missed the mark a moment later when the visitors were again penalised. A DEBIT ACCOUNT. At the end of tliirty-five minutes New Zealand opened their account. Parker smartly intercepted an English passing movement, and transferred to (Ifwerson, who after trickily eluding several, opponents gave Wilson a chance. The wing ■ man rose to the occasion, and in a great .sprint left Davies behind, and crossed the line. Ifwerson rather badly mis-kicked, and the score changed to:— England ii-.i-sv i.ii.ii 8 New Zealand iv...;..»...;: 3 Just before the interval England nullified the gain. Wagstaff, Jenkins and Davies faultlessly handling for the named player to cross for an unconverted try. Half-time: — England :-. ~.: :^~—•-.- 11 New Zealand .»............; 3 SECOND SPEIX. New Zealand went away with a rush from the kick-off, and between the halfway and twenty-five lines one of the English forwards was penalised for offside, but Ifwerson brought nothing tangible from his kick. Immediately afterwards Wilson made a nice run, and the All Black forwards, beginning to got the ball out better, several times set the three-quarter line in motion. Walters once charged down Wood's kick, nnd the next moment Ifwerson neatly stopped a dribbling movement, and when from the ensuing scrummage the English backs again forced a dangerous situation, Weston saved by a determined tackle. Hardgrave sent a soaring punt to midfield, and following up to put Weston on-side, the wing was up in time to collar Woods in possession. At this point the New Zealand backs raised a. crescendo of cheers by a series of thrilling passing movements, ojid from a strenuous melee on the line Wilson got away, and after practically the •whole of the backs had handled in turn, Banks went over near the post, and this time Ifwerson made no mistake. England — H New Zealand 8 Encouraged by this success, New Zealand returned to the fray with vim, and .the crowd was kept on the gui vive by fine opportunism shown by the Dominion backs at this stage. Ultimately, •however, the All Blacks were penalised •for not playing the ball, and Longstafle tried a magnificent shot from the half-way line, missing tlie mark by only a few feet. New Zealand continued to raise a powerful voice in the discussion, but were pulled up for charging a man who 'had parted with the ball, and once more Longstaffe sent the heavy ball from the halfway line to just under the crossbar. A heavy downpour of rain just here did not improve the already •holding ground, and the passhig consequently suffered. Play see-sawed from end to end of the field, and in the course of these violent fluctuations, Wilson was conspicuous for a plucky save from the feet of the English' forwards, and Walters for a bustling burst in the loose. Savory heavily tackled one of the English three-quarters, who was winded, and after a brief stoppage Jloonhouse raced up the wing with Weston giving a close stern chase. With the prospect of being overtaken, the wing man punted over the line, but Wilson, darting across from the far side, reached the ball a moment earlier than the Englishman, and averted what seemed like a certain try. A mark and a free kick were successively taken by Savory, but only momentary advantage accrued, and when the dangerous English left wing again tore down the line, Hardgrave heavily brought down Moorhouse.

Time and again the Englishmen swpt down, but hereabouts the New 2ealanders were tackling in deadly style, and it was a great slice of luck when the ball came out from the loose to Johnson, wtho was in a unmarked .position, and sped unopposed to the line, to score between the "posts. Woods had no diffiafrty in adding the goal points. England „ 16 New Zealand J. „ 8 The tackling at this point was no kidglove business, and more than once players were brought down with more than a suspicion of unnecessary force, and occasionally long after a man 'had parted with the ball. A flying run, and a beautifully-judged cross-kick by Davies led to a ticklish situation near the New Zealand line, but Button finely saved, and with the end approaching, England, who for ten minutes had been strenuously defending, again took up the aggressive, for Wagstaff 'to "mark" j near the New Zealand twenty-five. Woods 'failed to turn tlie kick to advantage. When Bussell did get the ball from the scrum, lie proved himself as nippy and resourceful as his agile opponent, who more frequently had the opportunity to serve his centres. Just before the final whistle sounded Walters suddenly darted through from a rough and tumble near the line. He was simultaneously collared by three or four defenders, and was undermost in a heap of struggling players on the line. The referee ordered a five yards scrum, and t'ho New Zealand hooker this time got the ball. The resulting passing movement "went awry, but somehow, despite a series of shockingly mrs-jud"cd passes, the ball rolled along the ground to Wilson on the wing, who snapeped it tip and outpaced (the right win" in the short race to the lino.\ Ifwerson converted, and brought a fitting climax to the game. Time was immediately sounded, with the score— England •ygw^gJPtUaaA-.,^........ w^<r"3*i;-

COMMENTS ON. THE GAME. With Hardgrave at full-back in place of 'McClyniont, the- poundage', difference between the two teams was reduced to 121b per man over all in favour of the Englishmen. It was not this that worried the New Zealanders It was their inferior knowledge of the finer points of the game, which showed out at moments of stress. Throughout the first spell the sturdy English pack, in collaboration with the elusive half-back (Smith), had almost a monopoly of the ball, which gave the visiting bacljs every opportunity of showing their quality.

The New Zealand backs tackled strongly from the jump, but-at the beginning they failed to close with Wagstaff and Co. quickly enough, and gave opportunities of which the visitors were not., slow ..to avail themselves . Twice in succession the speedy Moorhouse crossed the lines before the New Zealanders wakened up to the real need for closing up to the attacking line when the ball went away from the visiting forwards. Then the tackling became strenuous, and the visiting backs repeatedly had to shut down to defence and ground the ball deliberately to enable their forwards to get back to their assistance. At this stage a contrast of methods was strikingly apparent. The "New Zealanders, immediately they were tackled in possession, instinctively played the old Rugby code of kicking-to the line instead of simply and deliberately grounding the ball and playing on. They lost several opportunities in this way. , „,

In the second spell this fault was almost absent from the game of the New Zealanders, who had evidently taken a leaf from their opponents' book, and the benefit to the side was markedly apparent. Also when Wilson outpaced Davies, the slowest of the visiting backs, and scored, the moral effect on the New Zealanders was marvellous.

The first 6pell ended 11 to 3 against New Zealand, and the crowd expected the game in the last forty-five to be a procession of scores for England,- but the New Zealanders jumped away like a changed team in the second half, and carried war to the enemy's camp. Getting the ball frequently ifrom the scrum, tlie backs attacked with determination, and in the first ten minutes bad the English backs bustled. Three times in succession Woods, who had hitherto been the acme of coolness, was bustled into error, and when Walters, Parker and 'Banks came flashing into a passing bout that resulted in Banks scoring beside the posts, the scene was one of wildest excitement. Ifwerson kicked a goal, and the score was 11 —8.

For half the spell the Englishmen were playing a defeneive game, their efforts to turn th c attack being well countered by Hardgrave till Wagstaff engineered a breakaway, and a passing bout among the forwards resulted in Johnston scoring behind the posts, and- Woods adding a goal. Even then the New Zealanders rallied, and splendid work by Walters, Banks and Parker among che backs kept a score continually on the tapis. It was not, however, till the very last minute that Wilson got over from a dashing piece of play on his part. Ifwerson goaled, and the game ended in a win for England by 10 to 13.

It was undoubtedly strenuous football on both 6ides, and it was marred at moments by off-side and foul play, and by "shepherding," from which neither side could claim immunity. England's great asset was Smith, at halfback, his vis-a-vis, Bussell, being overshadowed, though whenever it was a matter only of pace and pluck, the Xcw Zealand lad showed up well. Wilson, Bradley and Ifwerson were the strong cards of the home attack, and they did great work, while on the day Hard(rrave was a better full-back than Woods.

Wagstaff and Moorliouse were the outstanding English three-quarters, and, with Jenkins, they gave the local men something to think about. Walters, Banks and Parker compared favourably with the best of the visiting forwards, and were very largely responsible for playing the Tcdoubtable thirteen from the home of the League game to so close a margin. ENTHUSIASTIC SCENES. WILSON A POPULAR HERO. The curtain rang down upon wildly enthusiastic Bcenes, for the winding-up score by New Zealand was what tlie crowd had been expectantly awaiting during the closing stages, when the Dominion team was hotly attacking. Cheers burst from the thousands Tound the enclosure, and a rush was made for Wilson, the first N.Z. player to pass through the wicket gate. Throughout the Wellington man's brilliant wing sprints had been the sparkling feature of the play, and the spectators showed their appreciation of his play by carrying him shoulder high through the applauding throng to tho pavilion. Equally cordial receptions were accorded the other members of the team, as they filed through tlie packed crowd,, and there were generous cheers for the winning team. PLAYERS AT DINNER. A tribute to the sportsmanship of New Zealand players and supporters was paid by Mr. J. Clifford, one of the managers of tile British team, at a dinner given to the players in the Waitemata Hotel, after t'ho match. The players, be declared, had enjoyed themselves far better'in New Zealand than they had in Australia. They had found players and people better sports, and New Zealanders liad shown that they knew how to take a beatin". Wagstaff, the captain of o the English team, spoke in similar strain. He declared that England were "all out" to win that afternoon, and pointed out that when the touring team was beaten by Australia it consisted of only eleven men. The New Zealand match, .he declared, was the hardest game of the tour.

The dinner at which Mr. James Carlaw, the president of the New Zealand Rugby League, occupied the chair was an enjoyable and informal function The Whole of the English and New Zealand representatives were present, as well as the members,of the North Shore Club the winners of the League Cup, and of the Ponsonby Club, the runners-up. After dinner a "smoker" was held and a number of toaetsr were proposed iA short and happy speeches. The prize for the goal-kicking competitions, held dn connection with the cup final and Auckland match were presented to E. Asher Auckland) and Woods (England), the Myers Cup -was handed to .the North all ore capiajn. - rS ,ea^ c b * toe *»•"»** ior Sydney this evening.