BRITISH TEAM

Press, Volume LXXXVI, Issue 26094, 22 April 1950, Page 8

BRITISH TEAM

RUGBY FOOTBALL

IMPRESSIONS OF I. J. BOTTING ‘FORWARDS A FORMIDABLE PROPOSITION’ “The Press" Special Service DUNEDIN, April 21. “It would be very unwise to take the visitors lightly. The Welsh and Irish elements in the forwards will alone make the British team a formidable proposition.” This is one of the impressions gained of the British Rugby team, now on its way to New Zealand, by I. J. Betting, the All Black wing three-quarter, who this year played for Oxford Uni versitv and England, in letters to his parents. "In New Zealand some people have the Impression that Rugby players from the British Isles are not as good as their own,” Betting says. “Certainly, comparatively few players here have the same opportunity of learning the game in their youth, and this without doubt affects the technical standards in some respects. Then, again, Rugby is not always the chief game in these isles, as it generally is with us—it is not the national sport. “The forwards in this team have great dash, and as far as I know age is well mixed with youth, and experienced men are numerous. McCarthy is said to be the best wing forward (flank or side-row man) in the four countries. Of all the forwards, he is the one who might be called a real star, and his combination with Kyle, the Irish fly-half, was the big factor in Ireland’s success last year In the international series. I have not seen him play, but everyone speaks of him as a really great forward. "McKay is also a very good side-row man, and Evans, of Wales, is a lively player, who has been playing well this year. P. W. Kininmonth is a tall, fast back-row man who should do well on the rear, and R. Stephens, of Wales, is always well spoken of. Second-row forwards are John, Nelson, Hayward, and Matthews. Matthews, the only England forward, is the captain of the famous Harlequins, one of the oldest and most celebrated clubs in England. He is a ton, hard player, whose line-out ability is notable. Nelson, an Irishman, is a good, hard-working forward, full of dash. Hayward and John, from Wales, likewise, are Very good forwards. The Front Row “Of the front-row men, Mullen is regarded as the best hooker in the four countries. He is the Irish captain and is a big-hearted, hard-working player. The other hooker is D. M. Davies (Wales), new to international Rugby this year. Cliff Davies, the veteran Welshman, is a good, herd forward, but considered by some to be too old for a tour such as this. Clifford and Robins are both good. Clifford is also a good place kicker. He is well built, too. Robins is an active player, but as I recollect him is perhaps a little too small for a prop. I think that he also is a place kicker. “Budge, the Scot, is a very stronglvbuilt man. about sft lOin or Ilin 1n height, and weighing about 15 stone. He is a hard worker. The other Scottish frontrow man. Dawson, is a good forward and great leader. "The New Zealand international pack will orobably be heavier, but will be onposed by vigorous and robust plavers, bv an excellent hooker in Mullen, and—this particularly in the Welshmen—ab lity in loose forward rushes. The Irish are also Good at this. Where New Zealand should ave an advantage is in the line-outs On what I have seen here .• we have more forwards with jumping ability than these countries have at the moment. Bv this I do not mean to imoly that the British team will be weak in the line-outs I mean that we can be better than they. “There is also considerable awareness of the importance of loose scrummaging, although I think that all teams here tend to play too high Certainly in the loose scrums there is a tendency to go in much too high, to pack rather loosely, and to concentrate on heeling back from a ruck rather than on pushing over the ball. Here again, if the New Zealand packs do their loose scrums well, we should expect to have an advantage. In the art of dribbling, in forward passing rushes and mobility, the British can reasonably expect at least equality, if not superiority; and if the heeling from our set scrums is slow, you will find the wing forwards are very fast on to the scrumhalves From such positions as these, the Welsh forwards started many a loose rush against England. The Backs “And now for the backs. The full-back, Norton (Ireland), is really very good on his present form and looks the type of player who will not lose it. He is a fine place kick, good with both feet in the other phases of his play, a good positional player, strong tackler, and good handler At the moment he could be regarded as one of the most impressive players in the side. Cleaver (Wales), the other full-back, is an exceeding.y wise choice, and I think h*' may be one of the successes of the tour. He can play soundly and well at stand-off half (first five-eighths), centre, full-back, and scrum half. As a first five-eighths, he kicks too much, but he is, nevertheless, most effective. He is a versatile player, and can be expected to do very well. “Of the wings. Smith, of Scotland, is big and fairly fast. He relies on strength rather than finish, and he has good defence. He can also play in the centre. Jones, another Welshman, was an Olympic •„ sprinter, and is a good footballer, too Lane L fast and also a good player who is full of dash. He is a hard tackler. M. C. Thomas is a young player who is new to big Rugby, but he is most promising—fast, nippy, and, I understand, witn a good defence. He plays centre for Wales. Against England, he did a lot of sidestepping inwards off his right foot, and pocr covering by the English forwards allowed him to look good. He is, howe er, a promising player who may well be expected to do well on the tour. Jones also has " good side-step in off his right foot. "In the centre, B. L. Williams and J. Matthews, of Wales, are a part of a famous Cardiff club combination which also includes Cleaver and one of the scrum halves selected for the team— Willis. The latter has only recently come into that back line. Williams, who has been suffering from a knee injury, has not been so prominent this season, but Matthews came to light with a brilliant game for Wales against Scotland, and must still be rated as a hard and formidable player. Bleddyn Williams, too. must still be considered a dangerous opponent in spite of his recent quiet displays. 1 have not seen Henderson, the Irish centre Included in the side, but I am told that his chief qualities are in the excellence of his defence. “Macdonald was a surprise selection, and had few chances in the international match against England. He is said to be a good partner for Black in the Edinburgh University side at fly-half, and he has a fair turn of speed. His defence seems reasonably sound. Kyle “Most Competent” “At fly-half you may expect to see a most competent penormer in J. W. Kyle. He has not played with so much brilliance this year, possibly because he has not had a very good service from his scrum half, but all the same he is most capable. He is fast off the mark and goes for the opening between the opposing first and second five-eighths. He is a good handler and kicker, and his position in defence for Ireland against England was sound. I have not seen him when he has had many chances, but all acclaim him here as a brilliant attacking player as well. “Ivor Preece, the England captain, is the other fly-half, and he also is a good footballer. He tends to run rather far before passing. Nevertheless, he has good hands, a good side-step, and kicks well, and this season his defensive work nas been very sound. It may be because of slow service from the scrum, but he nas not been able to set the England threequarter line goim fast this season. For all this, he is a good player with a lot of experience. “At scrum-half three men have been picked—Willis (Wales), Rimmer (England), and Black (Scotland). None is a star, but all are game and fairly competent. To my knowledge none of them Is known for speed, and the ability to send tne ball quickly to the first fiveeighths. All are solid defenders and Rimmer’s break from the scrum can be most effective. Willis is sound. Black was not very impressive against England, and at the start he was most uncertain in the somewhat slippery conditions. He did improve later, but his service was not very fast. However, the conditions were difficult. His passes are fairly long. In this position the team is not strong, but the selected half-backs may be good enough not to let the side down.” TEAMS FOR TO-DAY OLD BOYS CLUB Senior v. Tech. 08. Rugby Park. 3 £m. —Mayo, Blick, Kennedy, Johnsen. a vidson, Duggan, Wilson. Vincent. Thomson, Walker, Pur do m. Bragg. Tonkin, Page, Hern, Bair Roberts. N., Sparrow. Wakelin. Senior Reserve v. Linwood, L.P. Oval. 1.30 p.m.—Pavelka, Holdsworth. Kinley. Poore, Stewart, Tie. Colombus. Ironside. Blackmore. Thomas, Mitchell (2). Anderson, McCracken. Nicholls Hooper. Roberts, G., Barton. Preece. M.. Cameron Junior v. Sumner. S P 25. 3 p.m.— Hat ta way, Paterson, Reardon. Gilbert. Hughes. Adie, Owen. Riley, Russell. Rose. Johnson. Young, Hall Ockenden. Wyatt, Henderson. C., Eaton. Moher. Morris. Reeves, Pierce, Calcutt. •entrd Grade C v. St Bede's, at St. Bede’s, 3 pjn.—Henderson S.. Mackwell. Palmer, 8., Stark, Colombus, Ditfort. Palmer, D., Horridge, Auld. Witty, Marshall, Knight. Penrose. 1.. Rastrick, Batchelor. Pilkington, Judson. Main. N-, Kirby. Smith. F. R. Fourth Grade v. Prebbleton; meet at club rooms 12.45 p.m.—Warr. Armstrong, Dyer, Wilson, Cunningham. Kermode. Robinson. Broome, Hobbs Neilson. Leo- j Kid. Jeffrey, Lattimore, Harris, Judge. m, M., Penrose. D.. Mortlock Fifth Grade v. Lyttelton. S.P. 26, 3 p.m. —Todd, Smith, D. R., Kinsman, Bradford, 1

James, Hodder, Rudd, Boyd, Chisholm, Denford, Cleverley, Saxby, Frew, G.. Rawley, Whitta, Scott, Gray, Forbes, Wiseman. Under 18 v. Marist, L.P West, 1.30 p.m.; meet outside gates al 1 p.m.—Frew, D., Hamilton, McGill. Young, Ormandy, Tebbs, Gibbs. Miller, Shaw. Holdsworth, De Lautour, Miles Simpson. Anderson, Holston. Any player whose name has been omitted please turn out with team last played for. Advt. MALVERN SUB-UNION Draw for First Round of Competition Seniors.—Saturday, April 29: Springfield v. Sheffield (Durbar), Kirwee v. Black Diamonds (Reed). Hororata v. Darfield (Harrison). Saturday, May 6: Hororata v. Springfield, Sheffield v. Kirwee, Darfield v. Black Diamonds. Saturday, May 13: Black Diamonds v. Sheffield, Kirwee v Hororata. Springfield v. Darfield. Saturday, May 20: 31ack Diamonds v. Springfield. Sheffield v. Kirwee, Hororata v. Black Diamonds. Darfield v. Sheffield. Juniors.—Saturday, April 29: Kirwee v. Black Diamonds (Hands), Hororata v. Darfield (Innes). Sheffield a oye. Saturday. Majs 6: Sheffield v Kirwee. Darfield v. Black Diamonds. Hororata. a bye Saturday. May 13: Black Diamonds v. Sheffield. Kirwee v Hororata. Darfield, a bye. Saturday. Mav 20: Sheffield v. Hororata, Kirwee v Darfield. Black Diamonds a bye Saturday. May 27: Hororata v Black Diamonds. Darfield v. Sheffield, Kirwee. a bye. The first-mentioned team in each case to play on home ground. , Advt ASSOCIATION CODE TEAMS FOR TO-DAY Eighth Grade 11. at Hospital Corner, 10 a m.—Clark. Tranter. Consedine. O’Sullivan, O'Neil, Stewart, Leeming, Lane. Jackson. Hill. Rose. Stanton, O’Keefe. Lanslie. Laloli. Seventh Grade, a bye. Report to eighth vrade coach at 10 a.m.—Smith, Hill. De Roe. Woods. Barry, Pope. Alexander (2). Noonan. Codyre. Withers. Sepie, Mahon. Fifth Grade at Beckenham Park, at 1 3T p.m —O Alexander. Codyre (2), Earl. O’Neil. Redditt, Smith, Overend. Campion, P. Lapslie, O’Loughlin, Watson, Park. Advt |