TECHNICAL WINS AGAIN

Press, Volume LXXXVI, Issue 26124, 29 May 1950, Page 9

TECHNICAL WINS AGAIN

RUGBY FOOTBALL

CHRISTCHURCH LOSES MEDIOCRE GAME SENIOR COMPETITION MATCHES There was no change in the order of The leading t< ams in the Canterbury KufTby Union’s senior competition as a result of the matches played on Saturday. Technical, .the only team which has not lost a gam;-, beat Cnristchun. a by 14 points to 5 in a disappointing display, and Albion beat Old Eojs by 19 points to 9 in tie other main game. The results eftne'otner matches wereSydenham 14. Sunn., siac-Sprcydon 6; University 29, Linwood 8: Marist 20, Merivale 0. The positions of the teams, with six rounds completed, is as fo.lows:

MANY MISTAKES Conditions at Lsn.as: r Park were ideal for good Rugby, but Technical and Christchurch provided that only in soasms. There were many mistakes in handling bv rcth sides. Technical won ov 14 points to 5. Early in the game th? Christchurch backs and forwards combined in a splendid movement which suggested that Technical might be fully extended, cut from that point Christchurch could make li'-'-e headway against particularly solid tackling. Christchurch lost the set scrums ® nly by 16 _ to 14 and won line-outs by 40 to 17. but the backs were unable to set going properly at anv staee. For a long time the Christchurch halfback. T. G. Evans, sent cut manv wild pas.-es to B. Jagerr at fmst fiv.-eighths, and Jaggar was also subjected to very close attention b v the Technical sider u ano back row forwards. The Technical backs frequently stood right up on ' their opponents, and Jsggar, in particu- I iar. came through a heavy afternoon’s i verk with credit. With possession from tie line-outs so regular. Christchurch was in Technical territory almost throughout the second spell, but still could make no impression. It was not a very attractive game, although once or twice play vent from end to end and back again very rapidly. The Technical forwards were rather i better than the heavy Christchurch pack m the tight, and in the open showed an aptitude for short passing and assisting I the backs. The best of them, once again. I was the captain, D. Herman. His loot- j b .ii sense is as acute as ever, and he 1 was always in the right place at the i right time. Little behind him was A. Couling, still one of the best forwards I in the province. At the back of the!

s.ruin G. Sibley did some useful things, but it seemed he was sometimes allowed £ little latitude in his winging play. M. Logan played a sound, useful game behind the Technical scrum, and the ouier backs defended soundly. The fullback, T. Jackson, was seldom in trouble £.d his line-kicking was excellent. His two penalty goals and conversion accounted for eight of his team’s points. In J. Mitchell. Christchurch has a very fine forward who, with B. Lcnihan. gave Christchurch a monopoly of the "ball from the line-outs. Mitchell was with the bail all the way, and the try he scored toid of speed and anticipation. Lenihan is one of the best line-out forwards in the competition, and on Saturday he did particularly well. R. Duff was a fine pack leader. Evans, who decided to play at the last moment, although indisposed, imnroved in the second spell but was far from his best. J. Houghton, obviously a clever tack, was closely marked. He had to leave the field with an injury early in the second spell. C. W. McLachlan, at centre, who was playing his first senior game for some time, did well, although .-,e was seldom able to beat a particularly solid tackler in P. Logan. One good run n made, however, brought Christchurch its only try. The Scoring Technical scored after eight minutes’ j play when Jackson kicked a good pen- | .. Cliri.-rcimrcii v. on posion a pass was dropped and a high j kick into a gap by Technical got the ■ 7.. .stcnurch backs into trouble. Herman was on hand to go over with two . jr three opponents on top of him. Jack- ' iw. converted. McLachlan beat several de- 1 fenders m a spirited run and when he j r.e sent a long pass in- : -id for Mtichell. who had come up fast. ' to go over unopposed under the posts. I hou-. .ton conv-rtea the try. Just before j ;..e interval Jackson put Technical further a.-e d with another penalty goal. ■■wed excellent control of the ball at toe in tv. o ' □r three rushes, and Technical was de- I t-. ruing for a long period. From an open- I in_ by Logan, however, the backs staged’ a rood rush which ended in J. Grant | scoring in the corner. Christchurch was l o.i top for the rest of the game, but there was no further scoring. The referee was Mr V. L. Empson. ALBION WINS OPEN GAME Ii Hign School Old Boys iiad fielded a player able to kick goais with anv degree of certainty, it would at least have | held Albion to a draw in a fast and ' □i-c n game at Rugby Park on Saturday. Three tries were scored by each team, fira Albion's winning margin of 10 points came from J. Fraser’s unerring boot. F. sser’s sound game at first five-eighths, together with his two conversions and two field goals, indicate that he would per-: haps be an asset to the Canterbury back line this season. Other prominent players were R. Flem- ! Ing. who was a hard worker in the ■ Albion pack, and the enterprising young • Did Boys breakaway. E. Hern, who j handled the ball as competently and al- ; most as often as >ome of the backs. Fraser opened the scoring for Albion R’ith a dropped goal from well out on the j twenty-five, and within two minutes he I kicked another from a bare five yards ; inside halfway. There was no further

score until the end of the first spell, when the Albion halfback. B. Campbell, tcored at the corner. At half-time Albion kas leading by 9 points to 0. J. Kennedy was replaced at the start of the second spell by R. S. Thomson, who ran strongly to finish off a determined back movement and crossed wide out. D. Mayo, Old Boys’ fullback. v. a- . of position by G. Bond, who made an opening at the twenty-five, and gave Fleming a clear run. This time Fraser made no mistake with his kick. Hern Scored by himself soon afterwards from a ine-out a yard or two from the Albion line. Mayo was caught out of position ivhen he made an extra man in the back line, and a dropped pass gave Sellars a clear run. Fraser again converted. Old Boys scored again when K. Blick evaded a poor tackle and crossed near the corner. The game ended a few minutes later, With Albion winning by 19 points to 9. The referee was Mr S. Whitford. EASY WIN FOR MARIST In the first game at the Show Ground, Ma:;.-t. although showing little combination in the early stages, had an easy win • over the weak Merivale side by 20 points to 0 Merivale could not match the speed Oi the Marist backs, who after a shaky ' Flair, settled down and produced some i nne movements. K. Davidson playing centre three- ' Quarters in the first spell and later on tne :ng. scored two excellent tries. B. , fc-mpson. who retired through an injury ?■ tne break, had few opportunities, but u ' - artd try eariv in the game was the best seen at the Show Grounds this sea- ' son. The inside backs were capable 'inks m a very sound back line. The Merivale P 3( K' tried hard, but their efforts were In the forwards also Marist was super-: lei. in • o. Sclwood and R. Munro worked bard against their more skilled opponents. J- Barrj. S. Southall and G. Lindstrom ‘ v.r-re prominent in an even pack. r *» Marist Davidson (2>. J. Rathburn. v 'H son - Dempsey and Barry scored tries. : A Stuart converted one try. Mr R. G. Condliffe was the referee. UNIVERSITY BEAT LINWOOD University beat Linwood by 20 points to o m the second match at the Show Grounds. I in wood was the first to score when A. Fhihip- dived on the loose ball alter K. hit! acock hsd attempted a field goal. D. L. Reeves evened the score by k eking a out"' fine pena,ty gcal fro,n a long way At the start of the second spell Uni- ' began to open up play, and sent «s fa-t back line into action. D. G. Reid Was the fij*st to- go over, and then Reeves , Kicked a simple penalty goal. Linwood ' rep ied with a try by the half-back, R. Waterland, which M. Munnerley concerted. University took charge at this ‘■aiie. and Reeves. W. Hargreaves, and R. O. McDowell scored. For University. Reid at second fiveflayed a sound game, combining with Reeves, who, although uncertain at the start, gained confidence as the earr.e progressed. L. J. Savage gave good service from the base of the scrum, but was too often caught in possession by j "I- Thomas, the Linwood side-row for- ' *ard. Z. Dalzell, J. D. - Stewart, and R. ; - Stuart (before he retired) were the' be ‘'t of the forwards. The Linwood for- j * a, ds played their usual spoiling game, j **th I. Mitchell and W. Brady prominent. * Mr R. Empson was referee. SYDENHAM WINS DRAB GAME On the No. 2 ground at the Show , Grounds. Sydenham beat Sunnysidecp.’eydon in a drab game by 14 points Sydenham forward*: did not play 1 °’r u ual tight game, and the roving -o'r<bired fo-wards broke through often the ball at the toe. A. Frost was Wrtjicularly effective at this type of game •d/ gained much ground with the ball] i

seemingly glued to his toe. He received able support from B. Chandler and N. Haines. C. Hardie was again the leader in the' majority of the Sydenham sorties and his defensive qualities were tested to the utmost to keep the rangy combined forwards out. I. Bathurst and C. Rhodes were others to show up. K. Gilson, from Southland, gave most thrust to the Sydenham backs. At centre three-quarters he frequently not only outpaced the opposing backs but also his l own wings. He scored two good tries. *'■ played his usual clever game at half-back, and ran M. Dixon into position to score. The Sunnyside-Sp’-eydon backs mate little use of the ball and snowed lack of enterprise. Sydenham won by 14 points (a goal from a try, two tiles, and a penal tv goal) to Sunnyside-Soreydon 6 (a penalty goal and a field goal). Mr F. B. Thompson was referee. LOWER GRADES Results In lower grades were - ■> S ?r i 2L ß „ ese j; vt ‘— e ° l!e S' an s 3-' Linwood 'J.., 9 \. technical Old Boys 9: Belfast I*—High Scnool Old Boys 6; Chidstenuren beat University bv default Second Grade.—Linwood 20, Sumner 12Sydenham 6. New Brighton 3: Christenuren 28, Sunnyside-Spreydon 8; Kaiapoi 6, Lyttelton 3; Marist 5, Albion 3; M £l lvaie b** 3l University’ bv default Third Grade.— p apanui Technical Old Boys 14, Christchurch 5; Technical Old Boys 16. University 0; Albion 6. Merivale 0. Linwood 19, Sydenham 5; Belfast 20 Sunnyside-Sprevclon 8; High School Old Beys 18. St. Bede’s College 6. Fourth Grade N,ew Brighton 8. Albion 3; Technical Old Boys 13. Christchurch 11Limyocd 12, Papanui Technical Old Boys Hign School Old Bovs 37, Merivale O’ Sydenham 25, Collegians 3. Fifth Grade.—Sydenham 9. Lvttelton 9’ beat High School Old Boys by default. Under 18A.—Technical Old Bovs 25 Papanui Technical Old Boys 5; Linwood 15. Christchurch 3. TT- U ;* <3 £ r 188 Technical College 16, Bovs’ Hign School B 0; West Christchurch District High School 11, St. Bede's 3 Under 17 Kaiapoi 18. New Brighton 0 ™H n £. er Bst 71b —Linwood 25. High School Old Boys 6; Sydenham 9, SunnvsideSpreydon 3; Merivale 3, Papanui Technical Old Boys 3; Technical Old Bovs 15 Marist 3. Under 7st 71b —Sunnyside-Spreydon 6. Linwood A 3: Sydenham 16, Merivale 8’ Christchurch 15. Marist 3. Under 6st 71b A.—Belfast 10. Lvttelton 0; Technical Old Boys 11, Albion 0; Christchurch 25. Sydenham 0; Linwood 16. Sunny side-Spreydon 0; Riccarton beat Marist A by default. Under 6st 71b B —Merivale 9. Rangiora 5; New Brighton 9. Marist B 0 Under sst 101 b A —New Brighton 3, Linwood A 3; St. Bede’s 6. SunnvsideSpreydon A 3: Sydenham 25, Merivale 0; 1 Marist A 12, Sumner 3. Under sst 101 b B.—Christchurch 15. I Marist B 3; Linwood B 6, Kaiapoi 3; j Marist C 6. Sunnyside-Spreydon B 0; Ricca ton 6, Rangiora 0. Under sst.—Albion A 23, Albion B 0; Sunnyside-Sprey don 9. Linwood B 6; Linwood A 14. Christchurch 8; SunnvsideSprcydon A 9, New Brighton 3; Marist 6, Sydenham 3.

RUGBY LEAGUE SENIOR CHAMPIONSHIP MATCHES SYDENHAM A BEATS PAPANUI Linwood now, leads in the Canterbury Rugby League’s*senior championship as a result of Papanui’s defeat by Sydenham A in the seventh round of matches played on Saturday. Sydenham won an even game by a margin of a penalty goal. Linwood v. on easily from Riccarton after a good display by its backs. Results:— Sydenham A 2. Papanui 0. I,in wood 34. Riccarton 7. Sydenham B 24. Addington 2. Christchurch 17, Hornby 9. Competition points are: Linwood 12 Papanui 10. Sydenham A 10. Christchurch 8. Hornby 5. R.ccarton 4. Sydenham B 4, Prebbletcn 3. Addington 0. SYDENHAM A v. PAPANUI Papanui had its unbroken run of successes stopped on Saturday when Svdenham beat the team at Athletic Park bv a penalty goal to 0. The game at no stage reached great heights, being a mixture of good and indifferent football.

, However, it was full of lively movements. : Although the only points scored were a i I penalty goal, both sides almost went over ■ for tries on numerous occasions. The best I ! feature of the game was the very solid , I defence of both sides which stopped scor- i I ing opportunities in the nick of time. Syd- i i enham at all times looked the more for- ■ midable side, especially when the backs I had possession, and had the Papanui i players not detended so strongly the score I i would have been much larger. The Pana - i i nui forwards broke very fast from the ! scrums .and continually harassed their op- i ponents. The Papanui backs sadlv lacked | combination, most of their efforts being , individual. Their pa.-sing lacked snap and j slowed up their attack. Although his ' service could have been faster, Greeing. the Papanui half-back, got through a lot of work and was very sound. The Papanui forwards were a very even lot with Broadhurst always conspicuous. This 1 player was at the head of most of the I ! forward rushes and did a great job on , I defence. Until he retired injured. Aitken j I was a tower of strength in the tight. ! Although they threw the ball about with I plenty of vim. the Sydenham backs did i 1 not look the polished side of last season, j A lot of their passing went straight across ; the ground, and they seemed unable to I , escape the attentions of the spoiling tac- I tics of Papanui’s forwards. Yaxley was j a very sound half and gave snappy passes ' I to Graham, who handled well but over- : did the switch back to his forwards. Harris at second five-eighths, was easily : the best back on the ground and made some very fine breaks which should have resulted in tries. Hill and Smith, the Svdenham wingers, both put plenty of dash I into their play, and were almost over for ; tries on several occasions. At full-back. Stapley gave an excellent display of hand- ; ling and kicking, and he never hesitated I ! to link up with his backs on attack. He scored the only points scored in the game I with an excellent goal from well out. The Sydenham forwards held their own with their heavier opponents, with Churton, Casey, and Evans the leaders of a solid pack. Churton, whose handling is firstclass. proved very adept in opening up play for his backs with some fine dashes. Referee: Mr F. French. CHRISTCHURCH v. HORNBY Christchurch beat Hornby by 17 points to 9. Christchurch’s back line was superior to Hornby's, and better and faster passing and better positional play several times, particularly in the second half, had Hornby in difficulties. Hornby’s strength Jay in its forwards, whereas I Christchurch, which also had strong forwards. also had able backs whose combination contributed in no small measure to Christchurch’s success in beating | Hornby by 17 points to 9. Soon after the start of the game Hornby opened its account when W. Woodgate, a front-row forward, following up after the bail had been kicked to the Christcnurch 25 yard line, picked the ball up and scored. The kick failed. Christchurch scored soon afterwards. The ball was passed to the centre threequarters, D. George, who was almost irn- ■ mediately tackled by two Hornby men,

the ball rolled loose, and L. Brown, fiveeighth.', went over tile line to score near tne corner. The Christchurch full-back, D. Wilson, piayed an excellent game. His kicking was particularly good, and his handling a.so was beyond reproach. S. Cooper, half-back, played a creditable game for Christchurch. D. George at centre threequarters played a very useful game. His try came after Wilson had kicked the ball along the sideline to about Hornby’s 25 yard line. George raced along after it. and before the Hornby defence could realise the position he was over the line ar IS, laci touched down under the posts. The game was fairly even throughout even though Christchurch won bv a comfortable margin. During the- second spell Christchurch had more of the ball and nearly all its points came in this half. At half-time the score was .9 points to 6 in Hornby’s iavour, and Christchurch scored 11 points "core ~ econd haif - while Hornby did not Tries were scored for Christchurch by L. Brown, D. George. S. Collins, and H. Timpson: A. McDonald converted George’s try. For Hornby, R. Wilson scored two tri X R and Woodgate scored one The referee was Mr E. J. Smith. SYDENHAM B v. ADDINGTON Sydenham B. superior in all departments. had a convincing win over Addington by 24 points to 2. The winner's super■onty lay in the team work ol tile backs and forwards, who • combined neatlv in some well-directed movements. The game produced plenty of bright, open play, with th? Sydenham backs throwing the ball about in good style. M. Turner, the half-back, sent the ball out smartly, and showed plenty of speed. J. Stackhouse, on the outside of him, did not attempt too much by himself, and he. and the second five-eighths, S. Parks, figured In some Good movements. Parks was the best back on the field, and his try in the first spell, when he ran through the Addington team, was a fine effort. R. Mansei. at centre, was also to the fore. II Burnside, at fuil-back. although uncertain at times in his kicking, played a good game. J. Young. Sydenham front row forward, was the best forward in a good pack. He was always to the fore in the loose, and his tackling was of a high standard. He scored a good try in the first half when he joined in a Pood back-line passing rush, which started from a scrum in the Sydenham half. A. Gallagher and A. Sullivan also combined well with the barks and with Young formed a formidable trio. It was not until half-way through the second spell that Addington showed any form, and tho forwards took play much mor° frequently into Svdenham territory. It was onlv through this effort by the forwards th?t the team was saved from a bigger defeat, as the backs were sadly larking in any form of co-ordination. Tries were scored for Sydenham by Parks (2), Young, T. Hennesy, Gallagher,

fl I and Sullivan. Burnside converted two tries L and Turner kicked a penalty goal. For r Addington F. O'Keefe kicked a penalty s goal. o The referee was Mr V. Henry, g LINWOOD V. RICCARTON Playing at Linwood Park, Riccarton . could not counter the speed and experience oF the Linwood backs and was beaten by 34 points to 7. In the early stages, ’ Riccarton played good football, particularly in the tight, and appeared to be capable of extending the competition leaders. Late in the first spell, however, " the side tired, and for the rest of the game play was dominated by the Linwood backs ably supported by their loose forwards. In many good movements the 1 ball travelled right through the line to ’ the wing three-quarters, who, when J blocked, brought play infield. The Linwood total would have been higher if it had not been for some hard Riccarton tackling, which if not of a consistently high standard, at least saved several tries. The whole Linwood back line worked smoothly and handled well, with J. Jones giving excellent service from the scrum. F. Lees, second five-eighths, was an effec- [ five link and made one perfect breakthrough to gain 40 yards before passing to N. Clark, who scored. The centre threequarter, N. Atkinson, also showed plenty of speed in scoring three good tries, j. . Pura, the Riccarton half-back, played his first game for the club and showed distinct promise. He sent out well-directed passes from the scrums, while S. Forbes. [ the second five-eighths, did some good work in a back line which lacked the cohesion of its opponents. L. Glubb and W. Foster were the best of the Riccarton forwards, who worked hard in the tight. M. Murphy, R. Blanchard, and A. Atkinson were prominent in the Linwood pack both for good work in the tight play and for joining in with the backs in good style. For Riccarton, R. Kearney scored a try which was converted by Forbes, who also kicked a penalty goal. Tries were scored for Linwood by N. Atkinson (3). M. Rhodes (3), F. Lees. Mu’ phy. and N. Clark. A. Atkinson converted two tries. The referee was Mr S. Smith. LOWER GRADES Senior Reserve.—St. Joseph's 10. Riccarton 7; Dallington 13. Christchurch 11. Third Grade.—Sydenham B 7, Christchurch 2. Fourth Grade.—Linwood 40, Christchurch 5. Under 7st 71b.—Papanui 16, Dallington 3; Linwood 12, Hornby 5. Under 6st 71b.—St. Joseph’s 11, Addington 5. Under sst 71b.—Addington 12, Svdenham 3; Hornby 6, Linwood 3; St. Joseph’s 27. Dallington 0. I Under sst. Bantams.—Christchurch 33. , Dallington 0: Sydenham 21. St. Joseph’s . 0; Christchurch 12, Addington 9. j Under sst. Midgets.—Dallington 89. Dal- | lington C 3: Sydenham A 15, Dallington A 0: Christchurch 9, Sydenham 3: Christchurch 18. Sydenham B 3. Under sst. Fly-weight.—Christchurch 21. St. Joseph’s 6; Christchurch B 12, Addington 9. NEWCASTLE BEATEN BY ENGLAND (N.Z. Ft ess Association —Copyright) (Rec. 8.30 p.m.) SYDNEY, May 28. Although the English Rugby League team avenged the 1936 and 1946 defeats by Newcastle with a win 21-11 at Newcastle, the local team played one man short for all but the first five minutes. , Its right-winger was injured in a collision, and Newcastle went through the game with only five forwards. Using the extra weight. Egan won the scrums 29 to 17 for England. England’s points, which came from three tries by Hilton and one each by Egan and Ashcroft, and two convers'ons and a penalty by Ward, were all scored before Newcastle scored. ASSOCIATION CODE HURLEY SHIELD GAMES TECHNICAL LUCKY TO BEAT WIGRAM A further series of matches in the Hurley Shield competition was conducted by I Ihe Canterbury Football Association on I Saturday afternoon in fine weather. The I early match at the English Park proved the star attraction of the day, Technical ' obtaining a gift goal when its chances of success seemed slim. It was altogether I a most unsatisfactory finish to a fine disj play of football by the Wigram team. i The other game at the park was com- ' pletely one-sided. Western finishing the I minimum of its scoring opportunities to i score five goals against Rangers. At Barrington Park. Thistle beat Celtic by 6 goals to 2. Results:—

Western 5, Rangers 0. Technical 2. Wigram 1. Thistle 6, Celtic 2. Championship points are: Technical 13, We-stern 12, Wigram 8, Thistle 7, Celtic I 2. Rangers 0. WESTERN v. RANGERS j After the excellent match between j Wigrain and Technical, the Western and j Rangers game proved to be a decided I anti-climax. Rangers can no longer be i called the giant-killers of the competition, j Even the lew good players of the side , are becoming mediocre, and particularly was this noticeable in the attack against j Western. The only thing consistent about j the side was the haphazai clness ol the passes sent out. and in this it was not the only team at fault. However, Western-, had tne initiative to profit by its opponents’ mistakes, and that did much to dictate the tvend of play. Rangers’ passing and positional play were poor. The lew runs the forwards were capable of producing never held a territorial advantage because the intermediates rarely supported it. Rangers have some good stali waits in K. Pash, Clark, White, and Barnes. With such a weak opposition Western might ’veil have taken the opportunity to iron out a few crude points. However. for the most pait the side was as disappointing as its opponents. Passes were invariably lobbed, and if the side’s positional play had not been good, and if Rangers had not obligingly given the ball back, the result might have been different. There is no excuse for either halves or backs of the calibre of the Western men slamming the ball downfield when in possession. The potential strength of a match-winning combination is bound up in the accuracy and speed o£ ground level passing. F. Bradley, G. Smith, R. Dowker, R. Smith, and L. Fleete scored for Western. Referee: Mr M. Cassin. WIGRAM V. TECHNICAL In Wigram, Technical has met its toughest opponent to date, and the fact that Technical won by the odd goal in three could not have given even its most ardent supporter any cause for satisfaction. Both teams gave even displays, and a draw would have been a truer indication of their merits. If Wigram’s bcautitullyexecuted passing movements swung the .scales one way, then Technical’s solid tackling and speed in recovery swung it back again. Wigram on Saturday’s play is going to be t.he hardest team to beat in Chatham and English Cup matches. Only one weakness is apparent and that is on the left Hank. Inexperience here probably cost the side the winning points against Technical, for with two very even teams it is the side which makes the most of its scoring chances that wins. Wigram’s allround display could not be faulted. The Packs, apart from one indiscretion, took Lloyd as an example and played solid lootball, and the understanding of the hank halves and inside forwards was well-nigh perfect. Gordon, at outside rignt. got a splendid goal, and it looks 1 Player is right back to his old brilliant form.

Technical also worked well, with N King and V. Smith in particular outstanding. both on attack and defence. The forwards were quick to lake chances but were rather disappointing with their marksmanship. A feature of the match was the brilliant keeping of both goalkeepers, neither of whom looked like making a mistake throughout the game. U. Thomas and E. Bailey scored for Technical and G. Gordon for Wigram Referee: Mr H. Royce. THISTLE v. CELTIC At Barrington Park Thistle beat Celtic by 6 goals to 2. Thistle’s winning margin was mainly represented bv a more accurate knowledge of the requirements of good cohesive football. In this sphere Thistle once again found the services of the intermediate line, headed by the evergreen Sutherland, of inestimable value. As usual the van attempted to do too much individually, but the inside men did attempt to speed the attack by releasing the ball earlier than usual. An infusion of new blood in the Celtic side proved a mixture of good and bad. Guthrie, improvising in goal, worked honestly without McFall’s soundness. P Guthrie moved up to his old berth in the forwards where he showed no loss of form. Celtic’s form still leaves much room for improvement. R. Deakin (2), A. McAnulty (2), G. McAnulty and A. Bains scored for Thistle, and J. Druker and P. Guthrie for Celtic. Referee: Mr L. Tointon.

LOWER GRADES Second Division.—Shamrock 1, Western 1: Nomads 7, University 1; Technical 2, Hinemoa 1. Reserve Division.—St. Vincent’s 1, Wigram 0; Y.M.C.A. 4, Thistle 0; Technical 6, Western 1; Nomads 2, Shamrock 1; Atlantis 2, Rangers 1. Junior Grade.—Nomads 6, Technical 1; Western 8, St. Vincent’s 1; Rangers 5. C.A. College 0; University beat Atlantis by defau't. Third Grade —Training College 5, Technical 2: Western 4, Orientals 2. Fourth Grade.—Sydenham Rovers 7, Watersiders 0; Nomads 1, Technical 0.

Technical P. 6 W. D. 5 1 0 87 31 Ch. Pts. 51 Marist 5 4 0 1 84 14 University 5 4 0 1 78 46 4 Albion 6 4 0 70 45 Sydenham 6 4 0 2 55 4 3 Christchurch .. 5 3 0 2 46 3 Cids Boys Sunnysici' - 5 2 1 2 It 38 2J Sprcydon 5 1 0 4 28 51 •t New Brighton 5 1 0 ■ 14 90 Linwood 6 0 5 • | 93 Merivale 6 0 0 6 21 126 0