LEAGUE CLUB GAMES.

Auckland Star, Volume LXI, Issue 164, 14 July 1930, Page 14

LEAGUE CLUB GAMES.

ARIST AGAIN DEFEATED PHMONQ SNATCH VICTORY. WEBS' X.AST-MINUTE ' WIN. !TY■ AXD SHORE SUCCESSFUL. l itli- -pnuiy of the most prominent ma? players on tour', tlie senior r -mpionship is -going through vicisi< u> that- poisibiy it would not other;e have clone. .For instance, Alarist, h v.eve well nigh invincible with • ■■fegory and Brisbane to give their backs uetrauon, have fallen from grace. 'feat by Shore a few weeks ago was ilowed by a •.draw with Kiugsiaad 'jhletic. Again on Saturday, Tykes but down with colours flying to tho jjlit, Richmond side. The finish to the fatchj which was the Stellar attraction, ';(■; sensational, the suburbanites win-

.-big when ti'nie was virtually up. A tenalty shot, which meant, all the ditlertnce between a win and a loss, struck ift post, ricoclietted, dropped on to the ;ar. and then slid safely over. The : eiiree called time immediately after'.■ards, and Richmond loft ; the field winders of. a close game in heavy going. Jombination was a telling factor in-giv-ing City an easy win over Newton across Jjjltq way. On the Domain Ponsonby Snatched a last minute win from Ellers-' ije. while across the -water, Devonport Svpre in winning vein and carried too inkny guns for Kingeland Athletics. & '^' ne positions of the teams are now ■ jss follows:— I . - ' ' Points Ch. iJL P- W. L. I).:, P. A." Pis. Iglty .. 0 7 1 l 1.53 88 15 -. jPonsonby ... 0 7 2 — 86 106 14 iDevonport . . 0 »f> ?■ — 307 78 12 :t*Mnrist 9 r> 8 1 137 SO 11 jjNewfon .... 0 3 6 — 102 143 (5 'ißiehmoml ... 0 3 CI — 77 102 G jEllerslie .... ft .2 (l 1 !)0 104 5 ■pCingsland ..0171 70 32 r> 3 -'.*Ma! - itt lost one game on a protest. ::;• FINE FINISH. ■ • A finish iu a hundred was provided in >r ;the Iviarist-Kiclmiond encounter, won by fftlie latter by 11 points to 10 after" one of .the tensest struggles o( tlie season... Kight '- ol time, when Ahirists. held the advantage : of iO points to 9, O'Brien, the green's burly forward got off-side, right in front' of the I goal mouth, and the,- breach was noticed by JUel'eree McKubrey, who for once pleased a section of the cry.w(l; who had been barracking him for what they considered favouritism of Tykes..- 'Mincliaiii was entrusted with tlie kick, .which sailed wide, struck the right 'iiprigllt, '.bounced on to .'the ;crosy-bar, arid, to. the. delight of Richmond Supporters, fell on the To •msiku doubly sure of tlie'win, I'eckhain got up to toticii down for. ii- try. The teams $traiglit-away exchanged coniplimeuts" and til<>d off the with "the toowledge that they ..had; scored a lucky ■win by .the narrowest possible margin. •Throughout a -frame packed with thrills, "and intorspoised by : 'forward v fixchanges and rapid pasi-iiiy bouts amoug the' backs, both sides had- had luck ■ at- .'the busihess'-end. Players .got so .near - and yet so far on several occasions; when points were sorely"' needed. Dfcw, the green winger, for instance, slipped when about to toss out a pass to supports, when the defence was hopelessly nonplussed'; while Prentice, after a brilliant 'break-awny arid dribble through, missed iir his final*'dive for a try, nnd the bnll floated away into the dead-ball iiron. It was. all. ill-the luck of, the gnrne.- The te'ams.were fairly'evenly niatdied. AV'lmt deficiencies there were in the light Richmond pack were counterbalanced by 'their enterprising and low tackling backs, and .usually the Maiist forwards—as hard a working lot as there is in tin; competition—were on hand to bolster up weak links in the backs. Tykes can thank- Skipper Johnson * for their defeat. Essentially a forward, he persisted in playing five-eighths, even after his failure in that position before the interval. .An atrocious pass by him to Brady early in the piece was the means of giving Richmond their first score. Johnson upset j passing bout after passing bout when all that was needed was -foking the ball ■and sending it along for a try. His supports deliberately cut ■ ' i him out on several

occasions, Diitr somehow or other he would bob up to cripple the good work ' that had been accomplished, Had anyone else tint Johnson been captain,' it is highly provable" that the Marist backs ■would have been reorganised after the spell. Johnson is not a- back—never will bo — and the sooner he realises it '■:,■■■, ■ ~ — the better it will be . for his team. All-the ■ * other backs acquitTT . ted themselves well. Hassan, back once more behind the scrum, played one of his best games, while l> I Young, at first five*eighths, stood up well to his difficult vis-ft-vis, Prentice. Brady was on form, and would have done better 31 he had received more of the ball from Johnson.. Drew got through much good work m the three-quarter - line, and bchultz, a Rugby neophite, gave promise on the_ opposite wing. Little, a promoted junior, gave an uncertain full-back display. His kicking in particular is in need of improvement. Richmond were unfortunate to lose the services of G. Davis, injured in the first few minutes of play. This necessitated _ reorganisation of the backs, and Captain Prentice carried out the job to good purpose. Thomas went on to the wing, Mincham shifted in to centre and B. Davis played behind the pack instead oi T. Peckham. Prentice was the genius of the side and the pivot on which the attack swung. His fast raiding nipped many movements by the opposition in the bud at the inception, his positional play was splendid, and his kicking for the gap paved .the way of many a siege by the suburban forwards. Peckham was really Mercurial at times, and delighted with his jinky runs. Mischam was the hero of the side, and scored eight of Richmond's points. He defended, heroically, • took and gave his passes accurately, and drew the defence nicely. Patterson improved as the game progressed, , and showed great determination on the wing in the dying stages. Thomas also gave a good display of straight running. Lee, again impressed as custodian, and overshadowed his vis-a-vis on the day. The Richmond forwards excelled in the loose, and their fast raiding was largely responsible far their side's success. Ritchie, Lennie, Rogge: and W. Jones were the most conspicuous among the grafters. All the green forwards played a rattling good S-pne anfl they gave their backs plenty ot ball. O'Bripn was. sound in all deparf-wnvL-VY} d • Clark ( «fl a -wealth of useful work botll the pa(;k and , ki

PONIES' TRIUMPH. With a close .finish Ponsonby emerged victors over Ellerslie by 10—5, Ponsonby gaining a converted try in .the closin" stages- of the game. The Ellerslie mudguard handled the ball to '-better advantage than the opposing backs, but poor tackling was most noticeable, and many opportunities -were lost owing to forward passing. There was very little difference in the packs, although the Ellerslie hookerv gained possession ' most of the time. For the major portion of the first, half Ponsonby were penned on the defensive, but the tri-colonrs, although they attacked time and time again, were tillable to penetrate the solid defence. Campner, gathering from the loose, passed to Grogan. and Ponsonby were in difficulties when a penalty relieved. Moore intercepted, and from a penalty inside Ellersiie's twenty-five Dj?lgrosso had no difficulty with the kick. Qlliff secured, and the vanguard swung into action, the ball passing along the line, but the movement, came, to grief wliqii Grogan was tackled, and with a. sudden turn ofevents, Riley gathered and passed to Schofield, who scored after a brilliant dasli from mid field.'. Immediately on resuming pliiy the Ellerslie forwards dashed into the,

at hi ok, but their- efforts were unavailing until they were awarded a penally that was made fu'll use of by Hemingway. QlUff net the backs in motion, the ball going out to Drew, but in sending a forward.< pass to Campnor, who had a clear field in front, a certain try was thrown away. Hemingway failed with another penalty, the ball going wide, and Gardiner, gathering from the ruck, sidestepped Hobbs and pysj-'ed to Kiley, who transferred to Scholie'ld. but here tlie movement broke down. EllersHe pressed to reduce the leeway, but 'the Ponies Withstood the attack. However the tri-.eolours' untiring efforts were not to be denied. Olliff, gaining possession, set the. rearguard in motion, and all the bucks handed until Drew received and Dualised a brilliant movement by scoring an unconverted try. With the score standing five all, there was fast and snappy play, both teams attacking at intervals, to gam the winning try. and just before the whistle Kiley gathered and passed to Angelo, to Delgrosso, who inpassed to Ril'ev, who finalised.

For (lie winners, 'Wilson at full-back was off form, and Ills handling and linn kicking was far from liis usual good display, wliilo. on the win.ur Schofield played an exceptionally brilliant game. Of the other backs -lUlcy ,aud Delgrosso deserve special mention, "and Skeltou. M-eLeay and Gardiner were easily the best of the forwards. For Ellerslie AVobb gave a safe display at full-back, and Grogan was the pick of the three-quarters. Olliff, at halt-back, f-vldoin failed to send his backs away, and Drew made the most'of 11m opportunities that came his way. Cnmpnei , and Quirk were the leading forwards, with Chapman and Uobbs in close attendance. SHORE AS GOOD AS OF OLD.

In their clash with Kingslr.nd on Saturday. Dovonport played football as they used to play it a few seasons ago, when they possessed such good hacks as Len Scott and Co. Although there was too much kicking at y'&rloiis stages of the game, during the second half, the crowd were treated- to some thrills, interspersed with spectacular play. In Srngiu , , O'Donnell, and Smith, three promoted umiors, ■Devonport have a trio of backs who will add lustre to the club as the season progresses. On Saturday they played like veterans, using their heads to such advantage that they were mainly responsible for Devonport's scores. One of the outstanding players on the field was Alt' Scott, was liore, there am everywhere. His anticipation was at time; uncanny. Had it not been for these foui Kingslaiid might have piled up a score against the blacks. As it was Ihe mei: from the mainland showed sparkling foot ball, which at times was almost brilliant i Longviile, .at full-back, played a great game land L.' Cox, at». second five-eighths, was j reminiscent <of Corner, the All Black in I the second Test match at Christchurch Smith, who is commonly known asSnowy, was easily the most'hard-working forward on 'the field. His soiling tactics were always a thorn in Devonport's side. The score, 13 to 0, is an indication of the run of the play on the day. ' .;.. CITY -PREVAIL. City is one of the. few League teams that suffers- from • an" embarrassment of riches in the way of playing talent. Wethei'ill and Watcno. away in the, ".tew Zealand team in Australia and B. Davidson temporarily'on the bankthrough injury a team was fielded against Newton wliich gave several players who have been perilously, near the second string- stage a chance of. proving themselves, • and the result was a thirteen that teanled so well that Newton never looked like a winning side;- The game was played .on a very slippery surface,' the ball was nearly as elusive as mercury, yet the standard of iPIa.V, .in flashes, was of a very high order. Newton was decisively beaten fore and aft. It was the old story of combination and collaborative effort prevailing against individualism.

Getting the ball with regularity from the set scrums, Shortland had every opportunity to open up the play for his backs, €ind .the mercurial stocky little player was in exuberant mood. He got the ball away with a, lightning touch when it was a ■ case of urgent delivery, while at other" times he showed the great burst, of speed off the mark •which stamps the half-back of real class. -Reynolds, W. Perry, and G. Perry combined well in the inside backs," and got off some clever interplay, .with Iveson on the wing in his best lorm. Hadleyj-Brothers, Hamilton, and Bass stood out in the forwards, the latter cleverly exploiting the last man down position, and giving a glimpse of the form which won his rep. honours in other years Shaded right through the piece, the' Newton forwards gave their best in the open, with Middletpn, Kirkup, and St. George working hard. , The Newton backs were not impressive, the intermediate line particularly so E Bnmble and Hill occasionally tinctured the picture, while McLeod, oil a starved wing ran hard and resolutely when rare chances came his way. - Both team's were splendidly served at full back. Barcharcl,-for City, iiever put a foot wrong, and the same could be said for Dempsey. The latter has steadily improved since he came to the League fold from Marist Union, and is one of the most promising players in the code.

GRADE GAMES. SENIOR B GRADE. P.oint . Chevalier 13," beat Otahuhu 12. ] SECOND GRADE., Richmond 25, beat Mount Wellington 3 Ponsonby 10, beat Devonport 5. THIRD GRADE OPEN. Ponsonby 29, beat Marist 0. Kingsland 8, beat Glen Lynn 5. Avondale 17, beat Richmond 0. THIRD GRADE INTERMEDIATE. Kingsland C, beat Northcote A 0. Newmarket'-38, beat Mount Albert 0. Devonport 10, beat Richmond 0. Otahuhu 30, beat Thames 4. FOURTH GRADE. Papatoetoe S3, ". beat Mount Albert 14. Kingsland 5, drew with Point Chevalier 5. Richmond 29, beat Glen Lynn 2. Devonport 11, beat Avondale 0. : FIFTH GRADE. Ponsonby 0, drew with Newmarket 0. % SIXTH GRADE. . , City 0, beat Devonport 0. Newton 15, beat Newmarket 1-. Marist A 13, beat Marist B 3. Point Chevalier.2s, beat Richmond 0. Northcote 3, drew with Kingsland 3. SEVENTH GRADE. Point Chevalier 22, beat Devonport 0. ' SCHOOLBOYS. ... ,- Papatoetoe 10, beat Ellerslie 0. I Richmond 40, beat Oriehuiiga; 0. ! : : GAMES IN PROVINCE. HUNTLX. Iluntly South juniors 8, : beat Huntlv Maoris 7. . J ' ~ GAMES IN SOUTH. . CHRISTCHDRCII. _ Marist S, beat Sydenham 3. ■ - Hornby 24, beat Waiiiiairi 10. Addington 15, beat Linvvood 10. DUNEDIN. Christian Bros. A 35, beat Kaitangata 0. ' Pacific 20, beat Christian Bros. B 2. '