RUGBY HONOURS.

Auckland Star, Volume LXIV, Issue 112, 15 May 1933, Page 12

RUGBY HONOURS.

'VARSITY CONTEST. •

GAMES IN THE SOUTH,

CHAMPIONSHIP PLAY. UNIVERSITY'S VICTORY. SENIOR MATCHES REVIEWED. After their splendid win over Grammar last week, Grafton disappointed their supporters in the continuation of the Auckland Rugby Union's senior championship contest on Saturday by going down to Training College by five points. This match, the only real surprise of the clay, was the curtain-raiser at Eden Park. After a morning of showers, the sun shone out, and all matches were played in bright sunshine. A fair crowd watched the play at Eden Park. University and Ponsonby were given pride of place on No. 1 Eden Park and after an indifferent display by both sides, University won comfortably by nine points. There was not a great deal of excitement in the Grammar-College Rifles match at the Showgrounds, Grammar winning after a scrappy exhibition. Technical College Old Boys went out to Otahuhu, where they succeeded in beating the home side •by six points after an interesting game. Manukau stayed at home at Onehunga, but bowed to the visitors, Marist. playing the role of perfect hosts by not scoring a point. Again the Marist forwards carried the side to victory. "Results were:— University 17, beat Ponsonby 8. Training College 17, beat Grafton 12. Grammar 13, beat College Rifles 9. Marist 8, beat Manukau 0. ' Technical 6, beat Otahuhu 3. Championship points are:— Points Ch. P. W. L. D. F. A. Pts. University .. 3 3 05 11 » Marist 3 3 20 3 6 Grammar .... 3 2 1 — 41 40 4 Ponsonby ... 3 1 1 1 3<_> 40 3 Otahuhu 3 111 2;> 30 3 Grafton 3 1 2 — 44 48 2 College Rifles 3 1 2 — 33 3d - Technical 0.8. 3 1 2 — 18 20 - Training Col. 3 1 2 — 20 44 2 Manukau .... 3 — 3 — 14 37 —

PATCHWORK GAME. Good things were expected of University and Ponsonby, the teams which PgoTidea the main attraction at Eden Park, but, taken all round, the game was disapiJointing. It was a game of patchwork, mere were two distinct phases— Ponsonby bail a definite territorial advantage in the flrst spell, but in the second the order was reversed, and University held sway until a few minutes before time, when Ponsonby, in a desperate effort to save the day, came to light with a series of swift attacks that put- an acid test on the University defence It says much for the stubborn University defence that Ponsonby did not score. Points were thrown away earlier on when Hook held on too long and paralysed a thieeouarter movement that looked certain to succeed. Such is the luck of the game. Outstanding in the game was the play or Mulvihill, the University second live-eighth, whose brilliance lit up a bleak afternoon. He played dazzling football, equally brilliant on attack and defence, and one could not help thinking that he is unlucky not to be in the Universities All Black team. He covered in defence with shrewd anticipation, he kicked with judgment, and gave a decided touch of artistry to the attack. Mulvihill gave far the best exhibit on of five-eighths play seen on bden lark tnis season, and completely overshadowed every other back on the field save Jainieson. It was a pity that Caughey had an off dayhe was not the Caughey of the previous week—for with Mulvihill playing so brilliantly, big things should have been accomplished by the University three-quarter line. Milliken and Kedgeley were both in great form, and whenever they got the ball there was real danger for Ponsonby. . University were opposed by a Ponsonby back line that was definitely not ■dependable Frankham served them efficiently, but once Jamiesoh had done his job—and he did it cleverly aU afternoon—one could never be certain what would happen to the attack. It was a pity to see-thf carefullyplanned work of Jamieson failing, with the exception of Jamieson the Ponsonby backs were not a really dangerous attacking force. Jamieson does the spade work like a real workman, but too often the openings he makes are ignored. Forward, there was not a great deal 01 difference between the two teams. Ponsonby had all the best of it in the first spell, some of their loose rushes being of a splendid standard. The old members of the team, Newdick and.Bunting, did a great deal of work, but that cannot be said of Solomon, who showed a decided likeness for the open. As a matter of fact, neither set of forwards appeared to be enthusiastic about tight work. Forwards such as Anderson, Drake, Stacey, and Sherwood were willing enough, but there were others on either side who appeared anxious to save their energy for the loose work, when they could be seen by the crowd. Unfortunately there is quite a lot of that sort of thing creeping into Auckland football these days.

GRAMMAR BLOSSOM LATE. It was only in the later stages of the second half that Grammar demonstrated their superiority over College Rifles at the Show Grounds on Saturday to win 13—9. College were leading at half-time, and deserved to do so. In the first spell Grammar were seldom out of their own half, and it was not their fault that the blues did not pile on the points. When they did start, Grammar were certainly better, but cv.en then they were not convincing. The match altogether was scrappy, and, though fast when the winners began to force the pace, was not good football. Nobody seemed to have any settled policy, with the consequence that the ball hung between the forwards and the backs to the advantage of neither. On paper the Grammar rearguard was strong, but it could not settle down. The blue back line was not so strong on paper, but it held its own. Mostly the game kept among the forwards, with an occasional back rally. Ultimately, after a lot of messing about, the whites were better in both divisions, but not much. The white backs could not get going. To begin with, Jessup, half, was brilliantly unreliable, while Maclndoe could neither give nor take a pass with certainty. Slyfleld did some clever things, though his passing was erratic. Liudruui was reliable, but that was all. His short stab kicks were not always well judged. Both the wings did all they could, with Brown, College, better than his vis-a-vis, Currey. Anderson at full-back was generally reliable, and, though once or twice caught out of position; tackled solidly, which excuses much in a full-back. In the forwards, Knight, Morgan, and Scarborough stood out, the flrst named particularly in the loose. The other two did it hard in the tight.

Vear and Brown were the best of the blue backs. Both showed dash and initiative. Brown has a lot of toe, which he used well. He had hard luck once or twice, once particularly when he got away, cut out his own man, but, when soundly tackled by Anderson, had no one to pass to. Vear was always there, ready to back up on attack, and to-go down to It on defence. He had a good deal to do. Altogether the blue backs did all they could, saw as much of the ball as their opponents, but lacked the finish that Grammar just occasionally showed. Granville was the best forward, and as good as any on the field. He was always on the -ball, in the tight as well as In the loose. Ross and Stone also did good work, with Hnrt in the offing, in many a rush. SURPRISE FOR GRAFTON. Grafton, who last week beat the titleholders, Grammar, had the tables turned on them quite unexpectedly by Training college in the curtain-raiser at Eden Park. It was a scrappy game, with occasional bright flashes by both teams, especially on the part of the Training College backs, among whom Townsend was the guiding light. The Training College backs were always nippy, ready to take advantage of any opening that came their way, and eventually they were the deciding factor in the game. Townsend stood head and shoulders above any of the other backs on the field. He played a solid all-round game, his judicious kicking saving his forwards time after time. Forward, both sides battled hard, and honours were fairly even among them, Pinlnyson ably leading Grafton. The Grafton back attack frequently broke down, mainly through the poor handling of Dick, at centre three-quarter, who time after time cramped bright opportunities for his speedy wings Although he did not play as well as he did against Grammar th» previous week, Paton was again lit good form. It was right on.time when Townsend, with, lithe swerve aud clever sidestep carvea a way through the defence to saw* tti» grinning txg.

MARISTS BEAT MANUKAU. The Manukau-Marist Old Boys match at Onehunga, was won by Marlsts by 8 points to nil. Conditions were fairly good, except that the ball was slightly greasy, and was hard to handle in the early stages. The forwards were evenly matched until Manukau lost their half-back with an injured leg and a forward was taken out to replace him. It was not by any means a brilliant exhibition of football, there being too many mistakes on each side. Cooney at five-eighth for Marist was the outstanding player on the field, scoring both Marist tries. He was sound on defence, and always dangerous when in possession of the ball. Together with Muller, they were instrumental in smashing many Manukau attacks, besides turning defence into attack. The Marist pack were all triers, and S Hadley's leadership a big factor in their success. The backs were all sound on defence. Manukau were weakened by the absence of a couple of their regular players, and their display was not impressive. The lack of finish to take advantage of their opportunities, so evident in previous matches this year, was again noticeable, and will have to be remedied to bring success in future games. Elliott, who played his first senior game at fullback, was the best hack on his side, and got through a solid afternoon's work, getting his sidi> out of trouble repeatedly. Berridce did not get the support he deserved, and he was called on to do more than his share. Wiklund and Pepper were prominent in good work. Cooney in the first spell short-punted and followed through to score a try. In the second half the same player scored by following up a penalty kick. He converted the first try. TECHNICAL 0.8. WIN AT OTAHUHU. At Sturgess Park, Otahuhu, suburban patrons thoroughly en.ioyed a fast and open game between Otahuhu and Technical Old Boys, the latter winning by 9 points to 3. The most outstanding feature of the game was the sensational nature of the play right through. On two notajble occasions Technical stemmed dangerous Otahuhu offensives, and in a flash, before the attackers could consolidate their defence, the tide was turned, and the Old Boys were sailing for the Otahuhu line. The result was two splendid tries.

The Technical backs were more or less compelled to make rhelr own individual arrangements, as Manning did not receive much of tho ball from the forwards, but they we:fc quick to see an opening and their three fast three-quarters were a thorn in the losers' side all day.

On . the other hand the Otahuhu pack reaped an absolute harvest of the leather. On every occasion Inglls sent out, without hesitation, beautiful, clean passes. But it was no good. Time and time again the inside men failed and great chances were lost. Their defence, too, was wenk. When the ball did reach their winger, Clarke, he was always too well marked, while Peterson's lack of pace nullified his few opportunities. The forwards came through some hard, gruelling contests, Otahuhu excelling at winning possession For the winners their custodian, Goodacre, played a safe "iinio until his retirement in the second spell with a nasty knock. The clean Dandling and speed of the three-quarters. Couper. Evans and Common, had a lot to do with tho team's success. The wings, Couper and Common, were very fast and were always dangerous. Evans at centre also displayed a clean pair of heels, especially when scoring his try, which was the most difficult, one of the afternoon. Oldbury made some good openings and was the better five-eighths, but his defence was WeaiC., Manning, behind the scrum, did not fee very much of the ball, but he defended well. Near the end he made a very nice opening for Couper. Otahuhu's regular full-back. White, was standing down with an injury and his place was well filled bv the veteran Arnold. Peterson was not fast enough for his vis-a-vis. Common, but Clarke, who saw more of the play, had some great duels with Couper. At half, Inglls played a model game. Without wasting a second, he sent the ball away the moment it was heeled into his clean hands. Ills was a most unselfish half-back game. In the pack, Jones and Cox were prominent in the loose, while Brady played another good bard game. They were all toilers and it was not their fault that the team did not win.

GRADE GAMES. SENIOR B GRADE. North Shore B 8, beat University B C. Grammar 23, beat North Shore A 10. Eden 13, beat Manukau 8. SECOND GRADE. Grafton A 9, beat Papatoetoe 0. Grammar A 8, beat i'.M.C.A. 3. Northcoto A 19, bent Technical 0.8. 0. Otahuhu 22, beat Trinity College 0. Tamaki 25, beat Grammar 5. College Rifles 15, beat University B G. Grafton Colts 10, beat Waitemata G. Training College 5, drew with Northcote B 5. Technical Colts 34, beat Suburbs 6. •Ponsonby 18, beat Marist 0. Grafton 12, beat Papatoetoe 3. THIBD OPEN. Newton 6, beat North Shore 4. Eden 47, beat University 3. Technical 0.8. 34, beat Suburbs 6. THIRD INTERMEDIATE. Grammar A 32, beat Eden B 0. University 11, beat Northcoto 5. College Rifles 19, beat Papatoetoe 0. Technical 0.8. 10, beat Parnell 7. Manukau B beat Training Col. by default. Eden A 27, beat Naval Reserve 0. FOURTH GRADE. Technical 0.8. 0, beat Grafton 0. Northcote 0, beat Otahuhu 0. Grammar 19, beat Eastern Suburbs 0. Oratia 9, beat Suburbs 3. FIFTH GRADE. Technical 0.8. 9, beat Eden 0. Marist 12. beat Grammar 9. Manukau 9, drew with Suburbs 0. Eden 13, beat Ponsonby 8. SIXTH GRADE. Grafton 12, beat Northcote 0. Suburbs 23, beat Marist 0. JUNIOR BOYS'. INTERMEDIATE GRADE. Manukau A beat Eastern Suburbs by default. Northcote 15, v. Eden 0. JUNIOR GRADE. Northcote beat Marist by default. Newton 32, beat Waitemata 0. Suburbs beat Y.M.C.A. by default. Manukau A beat Eastern Suburbs B by default. GAMES IN THE PROVINCE. TADRANGA. Cadets Old Boys 6, drew with RangaJuniors. —Cadets 13, beat Country 0; Matakana 20, beat Baptists 0; Matapini 10, beat Rangataua 0. THAMES. College Old Boys beat Physical Training by default. ' . I Huimai 11, beat United G. Juniors. —Ramblers 14, beat Physical Training 8; Huimai 10, beat College Old B ° yS DARGAVILLE. Dargaville 12, beat Southern 6. Kaihu Valley 32, beat Ruawai 8. . Juniors.—Dargaville o, drew with Southern 5; Waima 8, beat Kaihu Valley G; Tangowahine 13, heat Northern Star 3; Ruawai 25, beat AwakTno Point 6. WAIUKU. City S. heat Otaua 0. Waipipi 17. beat Aka Aka 14. Juniors. —Otaua 11. beat Glenbrook 6; Waipipi 3, drew with City • 3.

MANUKAU. The revival of Rugby football in Manukau- district was signalised on Saturday by the start of the iirst round of the subunion competitions. In four centres games were plaved—at Manurewa, Papakura, Hunua and Drury—and at each place there wis a big croweJ to watch Rugby. Tt Papakura an official opening took place, Miss G Baulf, daughter of the Manukau president, kicked off amid cheers from player 3 and onlookers. The main senior game was at Drury between the local team and Manurewa. The visitors were beaten by 25 to nil, the combination of Drury being very good. Tries were scored by Ilodgins (4), J. Cossey, B. Cossey and R. Cossey one each, Heard converting two. Clevedon journeyed to Ilunua and won by 6 to 3. ... ■ The junior results were :— Drury 11, bent Manurewa 3; Clevedon 12, beat Papakura 3. MERCURY BAY. Kuaotunu 12, beat Kalmarama 3. Coroglen 11, beat Whltianga 6. WHANGARBI. Hikurangi S. bent City 3. Iloralioia 2d. beat Muuugukaramea 12. Juuiors. —Public Service 15, ,bea%.City 6; Whakapara 14. beat Old Bajs 0,

AUSTRALIA V. AUCKLAND. After their fine victory over Ponsonby the Auckland University College fifteen is in great fettle for Wednesdays match. at Eden Park against the Australian 'Varsities side, which reached Wellington by the Maunganui from Sydney to-day. The light blues for the opening game of the tour are:—Bush, Kedgley, Caughey, Milliken, Mulvihill, Green, McKearney, McVeagb Thomas, Anderson, Lolgan, Stacey, Sherwood, Wood, Robinson, Sutherland. ■.. , ■ - The 'Varsity juniors to play the Takapuna Grammar School senior fifteen in the curtain-raiser will be: . Hamilton, Wallace, Whitecliurch, Dixon, Durham, Maeky, Young, Carnachan, Danby, Murdock, Adams, Bloodworth, Lane, McCarthy, Law, Pickmere.

HASTINGS. Hastings 2G beat Hastings Old Boys 3. Napier Marist 15, beat Tamatea 6. FEILDING. Feilding 10, beat St. Patrick's 8. TAIHAPE. Hautapu 24, beat Pirates 11. Huia 23, beat Old Boys 15. Junior.—Hiwera 12, beat Hautapu 0; Pirates 11, beat Huia 3; Huimai 8, beat Utiku (!. . . „, , Third Grade.—Pirates 16, beat High School 0. TIMARU. Star 21, beat Celtic 0. Old Boys 10, beat Geraldine 6. NAPIER. Napier Old Boys 10, beat Celtic 3. Technical Old Boys 14. beat Pirates 3. WELLINGTON. Poneke 22, beat Athletic 3. Petone 11, beat Wellington C. Hutt 11, beat Eastbourne 8. Old Bovs 10, beat Marist 5. Oriental 1(1, beat Upper Hutt 14. 'Varsitv 33, beat Berhampore G. St. Patrick's 0.8. 11, beat Miramar 6. Johnsonville 10, beat Melrose-Selwyn 3. NEW PLYMOUTH. Star 13, beat Tukapa 8. Stratford 11, beat Inglewood 0. Celtic 0, drew with Clifton 5. Empire Old Boys 1!), beat Eltham 5. Waimate 5, beat Opunake 0. Patea 19, beat Okaiawa 3. Kaponga 11, beat Hawera 0. DUNEDIN. Zlngari 14, beat Alhambra C. 'Varsity A 44, beat Union 5. Southern 31, beat Dunedin 0. Taieri 10, beat Kaikorai G. Pirates 23, beat 'Varsity B 3. PALMERSTON NORTH. Feilding Old Boys 26, beat Palmerslon Old Boys 0. Kia Toa 24, beat Massey College 0. Feilding 10, beat St. Patrick's 8. CHKISTCHUKCH. Old Boys 11, beat Sydenham 0. Albion 11. bent Christchureh 3. Merivale 0, beat Lin wood 3. University 25, beat Athletic 6. MASTEKTON. Martinborough 11, beat Old Boys G. WANGANUI. Kalerau 18, beat Pirates 6. Technical Old Boys 8, beat Old Boys 5. Marist 31, beat Ratana 0. IXVEUCAUGILI,. Old Boys 25. beat Star 12. Pirates 35. beat Waikiwi 0.