OTAHUHU'S YOUTH AND SPIRIT.

Auckland Star, Volume LXVI, Issue 117, 20 May 1935, Page 14

OTAHUHU'S YOUTH AND SPIRIT.

To the delight of their supporters and the confusion of Grafton, last year s champions, a young nnd dashing Otahuhu side scored a spectacular and convincing victory in the big match of the day at Eden Park. Thoir win, 15 —5, wn3 richly o Otahuhn have to thnnk the grim determination of their forwards, the brilliance of E. Hedge at second five-eighth, null splendid backing up both fore and nft for their victory. It was their first nppenrnnce on Kden I'nrk this season —they were rnrely seen on No. 1 Inst yenr—nnd their nttractivo style of football was a delight to the Otahuhu have started the season with great promise. They drew the bye on opening day, played their first match ngninst Manukau last week, and won through the splendid goal-kicking of their full-back, and followed up on Saturday with a splendid win over Grafton. They are a young team with great determination, nnd with a touch of renl brilliance among the backs. One of the most refreshing features of tho match was the display at second fiveeighth of Hedge, who won a place In thp Auckland team for the first time last season, and whose brilliance against Wellington nnd Hawke's Bay resulted in his being hailed as a coming champion.

Speed off the mark, straight running and safe hands mako him always a danger in possession, and unlike the remainder of the Auckland five-eighths (and New Zealand, for that matter), h<; does not stand flat-footed. He Is on his toes nil the time, ready, eager, straining to get uwny. :Severnl times he curved a mizzled defenco to shreds, and his brilliance brought forth wild cheering from th< crowd. Throughout tho match there was an interesting duel between Hedge and the (Jrafton breakaways, but whenever he got the ball cleanly from the bnse ot the scrum, even the fast-breaking McLean could seldom catch the fleeing Hedge. His tackling, too, is deadly, for he goes for the ankles, whereas last year he went tor the hips. The little live-eighth lias tilled out considerably, and if he can reproduce In the trials the high-class football of which he is capable, at least one five-elghtli problem for the selectors will have been solved. Otahuhu's forwards got to work with such force nnd effect in the early stages of the game that they nlmost got a stranglehold on it. Certainly they held command for a Ion,? time, and it must have been a greatly shocked Grafton pack that opposed them. On nearly every occasion that the Otnhuhu backs were sent awuv they covered a lot of ground, and witli two flyers in Brown and Glading on the wings, Graff on were often in danger. Grafton took a hew lense of life nttei half-time, nnd, led by McLenn, who plnyed twice as well in the second spell ns ho did in the first, they set to work with a will to wipe off Otnhuhu's six-point lend., They gnve their bucks a generous supplv of the ball, but only once were the opportunities accepted—when -Nelle, their last nnd dangerous centre, left Pearson high an dry, and Cnrrey flashed down the flunk and round behind the posts for a glorious try Killcen never attempted the spectacular, probably , for the reason that he was suffering from an injury received the pr«V Grafton started off the second spell well, but their obvioiiH resolutions of pacslru a tight scrum and winning tho bnll were soon forgotten, with the result that Otnhuhu got more of the ball. »nd tho Grafton breakaways spent most of their time chasing the fast Otaliubu "ve-eighths. Orafton's recovery was not to be. Otnhuhu were on the crest of a wave. It must have been the determination and nll-rnund sound piny of H. Brown, the Otahuhu wliiK, that won him a place In the reps Brown has more, weight -than he hnu last year, nnd shows u better appreciation of positional piny. Several of his duties brought the crowd to their feet, especially one of 40yda down the grnndstnnd io'.ichllne when even two defenders could not bring him down. Ho has strength, pace and determination.