SURPRISED TEAM.

Auckland Star, Volume LXVI, Issue 231, 30 September 1935, Page 14

SURPRISED TEAM.

I LEAGUE TOURISTS. ROTORUA TRIP CANCELLED. EXTRA TRAINING NEEDED. Tho best of football teams and managers cannot afford to take too much for granted. Having won their lirst matches against Auckland and a combined team at Wellington, tho Australian Rugby League team made advance booking arrangements for a trip to Rotorua, to leave Auckland yesterday morning and return to-morrow for the second Test on Wednesday. Arrangements were based on the assumption that the Kangaroos would win the first Test against New Zealand on Saturday, thus leaving the tourists free to exercise more liberty in sightseeing prior to returning to Auckland to tune up for tho second Test. The possibility of defeat of ono of tho strongest teams that has left Australia was not taken into reckoning. Judge the shock the visitors received to ivalk oil' Carlaw Park on Saturday convincingly beaten by the elect of League footballers in New Zealand by 22 points to 14 —a result that is certain to have surprised thousands of peoplo in Australia. Tho visitors took their loss as good sportsmen, but immediately realised that steps had to be taken to intensify their preparations for tho second Test against proven opponents. Telephone and telegraphic services were utilised to cancel temporarily the trip to the thermal district in order that the team may concentrate upon practice to-day and to-morrow.

PLAYER'S NOSE BROKEN.

ILL-FEELING IN NAPIER GAME. (By Telegraph.—Own Correspondent.) NAPIER, this day. Tho spectacle of spectators invading the field and taking siclcs in a noisy and heated argument was witnessed during tho final of a knock-out League competition on Saturday between Taradalc and Olive. The incident arose out of the ordering oft" of a Olive player for striking an opponent on the nose. While one section of tho crowd engaged in the argument .mother section flocked round the injured man as ho was receiving attention for a broken nose. The Taradalc captain declared that he would not proceed with the game, and the majority of his team mates left the field. The spectators remained, however, and carried on a wordy battle for nearly half an hour. Finally Taradalc were persuaded to continue the match, which was won by Taradalc by 18 points to 12, after being down 12 points to 7 when the trouble developed. Tho captain scored within two minutes of the recommencement of play. The player ordered off was Richardson, who later declared that a Taradalc player bit a Olive player on the arm during a scrum. He did not see this, but saw another Taradale player going for a Olive man. Richardson then entered into an altercation and struck Whitehead on the nose.