THE "MINOR TEST."

Auckland Star, Volume LIX, Issue 198, 23 August 1928, Page 19

THE "MINOR TEST."

ALL BLACKS DRAW WITH I NORTHERN. A PATCH-WORK GAME. MATCH OF MANY MISTAKES. (By GRAHAM E. BEAMISH.) KIMBERLEY, July 8. Regarded in the first placj as a minor test, the All Blacks' match against the combined Northern Provinces team eventually developed into a comparatively tame affair. Those Springboks who were at first selected in the Northern Province side were withdrawn by the South African selection committee after tho first Test, partly to give the players a rest and partly out of consideration for the All Blacks, who would have to play what would have amounted to two Test matches in consecutive weeks. And so the team thai was fielded against the All Blacks was not a strong one. and should have been beaten quite easily. Nearly 7000 people, the biggest crow d that Kimberley has ever known, turned out in blazing sun to watch the match. They must have been sadly "disappointed with the display, because, for 1 lie most part, it was distracting, the players on both sides making many mistaken. It was a game of patches. Here and there came a flash of true football, but these flashes wer«s few and far between.

The spin of bad luck that has followed the team throughout the tour stuck to them at Kimberley. for twenty minutes after the kick-off Kilby had a bone in his right ankle splintered and had to be helped off between two "Zam Buks." With the going of Kilby went the slight suggestion of combination that the All Blacks had in the first few minutes of the game. McGregor went to halfback. Nicholls, first five-eighths, Sheen second. Lucas ccntre, and Stewart on the wing. The baok line was demoralised, and it could be plainly seen. McGregor was pitiably slow in getting the ball away from the scrums. Nicholls Mas naturally hampered, and his vis-a-vis was on him before he had time to git rid of the ball. Sheen was off-colour, and Lucas rarely saw the ball. Stewart was lost among the backs. After halftime lie played centre and Lucas went back to the wing. When the ball did fret as far as Stewart in passing rushes he dropped his pass and let the opposition through. Lindsay was the only sound mnn nmong the backs. Srilliant Tries. Strangely enough, all the tries scored were brilliant as a spectacle, but they showed up many weaknesses. The first, one came from an intercept. The kill travelled along the chain of All Hack backs to Sheen. He made a half-h-arted attempt to run. then sent on to Lih-iis but fo#;d, the fast winger, was waiting for a»sintercept and got away with it. the liu i*

cry the left the All Black backs standing. With only Lindsay to beat he made a fine side step going at top, and scored between the posts. Three points came to New Zealand from Lindsay's boot in the next few miiutes, then came a sparkling try. Ten yards out from the goal line and five yards out from the touch line, a scrum was put down. Hore and Hadley did their job, Rushbrook shot from the wing to first five-eighths to make the extra man, and took Kilby's pass going at top. He saw an opening, beat two men and dived over the line for a fine try.

To Northern Province went the next try. Fellows-Smith worked the blind side from a scrum, and Dobie, the solid Transvaal centre, swerved past Lucas and Lindsay for a fine try. The All Black defence had been caught having forty winks. Nicholls, playing better football than he had done in the first half, made an opening characteristic of the player. He drew his man, cut in and sent W»rd away. Down the line raced Ward with Lucas waiting for the pass on the outside. But the pass never came. Ward was tackled ball and all, and with that mistake went a certain trv. Later camc the best try of the tour. Taking a high punt in his stride, Lindsay ran up to the three-quarter line to send Stewart away. Rushbrook took his pass at half-way when going all out. Two nun attempted to tackle him, but he mowed thein down. On he raced like a greyhound, and the rest of the Northern back? could get nowhere near him. Liebenberg came hard across from the other wing as he crossed the line, and Rushbrook got slight concussion after he had scored the finest try so far on the tour.

A magnificent drop-kick by Lindsay came a few minutes later. He took a clearing kick near half-way and with plenty of room to work in, he took careful aim and let drive. The ball soared high into the air and came down squarely between the post?. That goal gave New Zealand the lead, and also inspired the Northerners to do better things. They did. Not long before the final whistle Fellows-Smith sent Francis away. Todd was next to receive, and racing past Stewart, he had a clear run in. It was a good try. Forwards Go Well at Start. For a start, the All Black forwards went well, getting a three to possession from scrums. Then the Northerns changed their formation, and the result was that they got the rest of the scrums in the first half. In the second half thev continued to win the majority, but the "All Blacks finished up by winning the ball in the last quarter of an hour. There were few' decisive line-outs, and the Northerners, to the surprise and chagrin of the New Zealand supporters, won as many as the All Blacks. The man that stood out among the All Black?' forwards was Hadlev, and McWilliams, although he was heavy with influenza, played a good game. The rest were spasmodic. The outstanding man among the Northern forwards was Pot4»ieter, the only Test player on the side. He scored a comical try, but was "a mile" off-side, and the try was disallowed. From a melee on our goal-line McGregor ' kicked the ball downfield. Their full-back booted it into the pack again and Potgieter, snapping up, made

a brilliant effort, and with a beautiful swallow dive, got over. It was one of the brightest gem? of a drab match.

Still the All Blacks cannot strike form. Every* liing seems to go against them. At the same time, in this match it must be remembered that the majority of the players had not played for at least three weeks. Some had been down with influenza and gome with injuries. Several had not been able to practice, so that there was little chance of them showing their true form. McGregor seems to be getting a? unlucky as Harvey, for in this match he was again badly hurt in the second spell. It was found that he had torn a cartilage in his knee. Thi? happened when he had only fully recovered from the injury to his back which he got in the first match at Capetown. Following that, he had the same spot hurt at Kroonstad. Yesterday's match was McGregor's first for a month.

The teams were:— NORTHERN PROVINCES. Full-back: Awerbuck. Three-quarters: Liebenberg, Dobie,. McCarthy, Todd. Halves: Francis, Fellows-Smith. Forwards: Nykamp, de Wet, Potgieter, Kipling, Visser, Billing, Brand, Lodder. NEW ZEALAND. Full-back: Lindsay. Three-quarters: Rushbrook, Sheen, Lucas. Five-eighths: Nicholls, McGregor. Half-back: Kilby. Forwards: Stewart (wing), Hore, Had ley. Snow, Alley, FinUyson, Ward, McWilliams. '