LEAGUE FOOTBALL.

Auckland Star, Volume LIX, Issue 229, 27 September 1928, Page 17

LEAGUE FOOTBALL.

THE STALLARC* CUP.

ATHLETICS GOOD SHOWING

POINT CffIftTALIBR IMPRESS.

The improvement ehown by*, .Point Chevalier insj£e Stallard Cup matches hae been a .'feature of the knock-out competition,!. »nd, after beating Parn ellon Saturday there is reason to. suppose that the and white* fancy their cihencea agiiliist Athletics.

At the U&main Point Cheval&r'ontplayed Par"n«JJ. and well deserved.-tbeix •win by 13'.ijoints to 6. Point's ineJile backs were\|tiperior to ParnellV, and: on many their Attack «-ae -very effective. wae «&eellently distributed, aijl each attack by> Parnell met with aterrt rt*ietanoe. Point Cffievalaer'e form i 3 t«ry encx>uragii*g- tij its eopportere and .officials, all of whom have worked hard' to; raise the- standard of play of its 're|freeentatives. For Point Callender, at played •oundly throughout. .fielding wa* certain and hie kiekingfWelJ directed. Duncan and McLaren on the winge. The latter is a mcJei' improved player, fa«t and dangerous on Smith, at centre, operated well with tfle winge and succeeded in making eeVeral nice openings. Purdy and Mondwere associated in bringing about Parnell's downfall. The five-eighths rarely failed to thrust home the attack by etraight running and clever ewerving. Purdy in. particular iii in good form at present! Humphries was always in the thick of the game 'H« gave Point's backs, plenty of the ball and hie play was a big improvement' on, earlier ma tehee. T/fce vanguard did well- against the powerful Parnell ecrum which did not hare its own way. In the loose Point's forwards bustled the oppot.ition into reckleee kicking and wild passing. Horton played Ibly and is undoubtedly one of the moat promising youngetere seen thk season. His pace and resolute tackling wero features of his play. Goodwin ecored a good try and waa always on the ball, while the veteran, MePhereon, ably led the forwards in toe loo'c.

For Parnell. Kerr. at full-back, played * great .game. The United Suburb*' crack bowler saved hi? rside With splendid fielding and wonderful tackling. Perry did some effective work among the backs, and with wore support may have scored twice.. A-n-derson -and Little, were also prominent, especially tlic former, whose defence was sound .throughout. Malloy, Clarke and Brocklesd were the pick of tfte forward^. Triumph of Combination. Athletic iad too mnch combination for Kings-land in a well-con tasted game, played ae a preliminary to the Roope Rooster semi-linal. Both, teams played attractive f cot bell , under adverse weather conditions, in wlTieh the blue and golds revelled. Their speedy thruet k«pt Kingsland on the defence for most part of tfie game, and rarely did the ■aaroone irave tb» territorial advantage. The first «pejl was evenly contested and for a while -in the eoeund session it looked as though- Kingsland were going to bo successful. &mg*iil»>-.hQyjjßxr, •rae in brilliant form, and he turned tike tide in Athletic - * favour. Eventwitf tlt#~ grfc4«~«*awpSon» mm -©ft* points to 10.

Longville is undoubtedly a classy, footballer and perhaps the most consistent in the B section. On Saturday his eide-etep proved both elnsive aadeffective and one of hi 3 tries was a gem. In a good thirteen Longville -would do. evffl' better, a<s he is a natural footballeEO Angelo scored a nice try for Athletic and showed up prominency en occasions. Martin played a fine jfame behind the pack, never missing an opportunity to set hie backs in motion. Stevenson did well against a strong opposition, but his play coulAShave been more effective by exploiting the short punt, Hayden has a nice turn of speed, but got few cha: cea to use his pace. Allen, Wileocks and Voisey were prominent among the forwards. List Lacks Variety. For Khigsland. List failed to make an impreeeion. The New Zealand rep. depended upon bis strength and powerful fend to make openings. He has no variety for a centre three-quarter. K,indley . ecored a nice try from fullback by giving the three-quarters exceDeat support. His fielding under trying conditions was excellent. Herring played a solid game and added two nice goals to Kingsland's total. Kingeland's vanguard played good football and more than held their own in the looee. Flower wae especially a great worker.

The final of the Stallard Cup, between Athletic and Point Chevalier, will be played on Saturday next, and more than ordinary interest is being taken in .their meeting. So far .Athletic have not been beaten in 14 matches, while Point occupied a lowly position .iii .ilie B 'section championship. They have, howe-ver, showed considerable improvement ofsjate and have been successful in five consecutive gainea. Many hold the opinion that Athletic have too polid a combination, but Point are keen to win and they arc confident-of being able to duwn the' grade champions. • -