RUGBY FOOTBALL COMPETITION MATCHES

Press, Volume LXXXIX, Issue 27036, 11 May 1953, Page 6

RUGBY FOOTBALL COMPETITION MATCHES

OLD BOYS BEATS CHRISTCHURCH TECHNICAL AND MARIST win The weather was fine and grounds were fast for the third round of the Canter-! bury Rugby Union’s competitions on Saturday, when more than one surprise win was recorded in the senior championship. Two of the leaders, Old Boys and Christ-; church, attracted a good crowd to Lan-! caster Park, and a hard, exciting game ended in a well-deserved win for Old Boys. Air Force rattled on points early m the game against Sydenham to score a surprise win, and Linwood more thffn pleased its supporters in beating University. The disappointing Albion team' was not good enough for Belfast. Marist and Technical retained their unbeaten records with wins over New Brighton and Sunnyside-Spreydon without being seriously extended. Following are the results of senior championship matches played on Saturday;— Old Boys 13, Christchurch 3. Air Force 19, Sydenham 11. Marist 28, Sunnyside-Spreydon 5. Belfast 14, Albion 9. Unwood 15, University 3. Technical 27, New Brighton 0. The following table shows the position of teams at the end of the third round;—

OLD BOYS’ WIN The game between Christchurch and Old Boys produced many of the highlights of good Rugby and much that could well have been left out of the play—at times feeling ran high. The referee, Mr V. C. Empson, had a difficult job, and generally ha s. * h * g’me well under control. Old Boys won because its forwards sta i?,4. on *)J? better and showed greater mobility, with consistent backing up and good tackling, and the backs from the first five-eighths out raced into their passes •" d J? 1 ® de Bround at every stage. The Christchurch backs commenced their attacks flat-footed, and the ball went straight ?m^„ a .*2l.- ThO V »P? e w«J to be a better understanding of real team-work in the 9 ld^?^ y ® si de, *nd backs and forwards handled the ball equally well. Christchurch had an advantage in weight in the forwards and often used it effectively in line-outs and set scrums, but once the ball became loose the greater pace of the Old Boys’ forwards told the inevitable tale and. towards the finish, they were clearly on ton. In the set scrums, however, the Christchurch locks and frontrankers dig not receive the full support of the side-row men, who often broke too quickly and caused obstruction. Except in the set scrums, Old Boys employed a whigforward, a very effective unit in N. Roberts, who stood very wide in the lineouts and frequently joined in the passing rushes, besides splendidly tackling the .Christchurch backs. His play was often ! constructive and nearly always effective .on defence or attack. Although E. Hern | and A. Bullmore were often prominent 'in loose rushes, the Old Boys forwards kept well together to offset the greater : weight of their opponents. For consistency iin heavy-rucks and line-outs, in which he secured a fair share of the ball, the palm must go to the lock, R. Cochrane, of whom more will be heard. Taken all round, tne Old Boys forwards played a splendid ‘game of hard football in which speed and physical fitness played a very big part. Although slower than Old Boys in their movements, the Christchurch forwards put up a fine performance until their condition failed lata in the game. At times they completely controlled the scrums, and at other periods were consistently beaten for the ball, with the pleasing result that each half-back had a fair share of the ball and was allowed to make open play. In M. Macdonald, Chrltchurch has a very useful No. 8 forward who has plenty of speed, which he uses effectively. Often his fast following-up bustled the Old Boys backs into hurried kicks to the line. He lasted the game to the end. Both F. Hill, on the side of the scrum, and R. Harrington. front-ranker, were guilty of indiscretions, although with A. Bellamore, both were often leading the forward rushes. R. Ruff at his best in the line-outs, but his determined running with the ball did tackling* 1 much ground against resolute

D. Wilson and J. Hotop A good deal of interest was shown In the performances of the first five-eighths, D. Wilson (Old Boys) and J. Hotop (Christchurch), both mentioned as possible selections for the All Blacks this year. There was a distinct contrast in ths styles of play, and on the day's performances the honours must go to Wilson. Neither of the half-backs, P. Vincent (Old Boys) nor K. Allsop (Christchurch), showed himself In top form, although each sent out passes which, if lacking speed, were well-directed. Wilson had the advantage because he raced into his passes and was immediately in a position to give his outside men a flying start. Hotop took the ball flat-footed and left it to his second five-eighths, C. McLauchlan. to make any progress. Before McLauchlan could get moving the Old Boys backs were ready to tackle him, and the centre, J. Osborne, and the wings, R. Argus and R. Smith, were bottled up. Hotop did some excellent work on defence, and was elusive when he snapped up the ball in broken pley. Wilson, however, was just as elusive and was always on hand to grasp an opportunity to make ground. Of the four wing three-quarters, J. Kennedy (Old Boys) was the best, and of other attacking backs J. L. Johnsen (Old Boys) showed himself clever and resourceful. D. Mayo (Old Boys) and G. Johnson (Christchurch) both gave good exhibitions of full-back play, Mayo showIng his usual initiative in joining up with the attack. Johnson's play was more deliberate. With a bit of luck he would have scored points with goal-kicking. He had several very near misses, including a poster. Mayo opened the scoring for Old Boys when , h « succeeded with a 35 yards penalty kick, a score that was equalled when Allsop, after a good run, gave R. Argus ■VW the nmer ' ln a blind-side move Wilson came inside Smith and scored an excellent try, which Mayb converted, giving Old Boys a lead of 8-3 at half-time.

The only try in the second spell was scored by Kennedy, who received at the end of a blind-side move in which Wilson ployed a big part after receiving from Vincent. Mayo again converted. Old Boys won by 13 points (two goals from tries and a penalty goal) to 3 points (a try). Mr V. C. Empson was referee. MAOIST'S KABY WIN Sunnyside-Spreydon did not present a very serious problem for Marist, and the losers forwards and backs concentrated mainly on attempting to prevent Marist’s fast backs from getting into action. Sunnyside-Spreydon went very close to scoring in the first few minutes, when its five-eighths. A. Jemmett, intercepted a SassJ r 2 m J ® e Marist half-back, D. James, to kicked Over K. Stuart's head, but lost the race for the ball. Marist was not long on defence, and when play settled on the Sunnyside-Spreydon line J. Fahey dodged over for a try. After this B. McCormick and K. Davidson cut through the defence and allowed E. Heenan to score. J. Douglas added a further try after Heenan had made the opening, and the score was increased when James opened up play in his own twenty-five. Heenan carried on and K. Meates ran 25 yards to score a try, which Stuart converted. Stuart added a penalty goal, and at halftime Marist led by 17 points to 0. Sunnyside-Spreydon played better at the start of the second spell, and after R. Smith had scored for Marist a good forward rush took play to the Marist line, and R. Stuthridge, a forward, scored for Sunnyside-Spreydon. A. Jemmett converted. A penalty goal to Stuart, who also converted a try by F. Davidson, took Marist's score to 28 points (two goals from tries, two penalty goals, and four tries) to 5 points (a goal from a try). Marist did not show its usual proficiency in the backs, and though Davidson and Douglas made some telling runs their handling was not so clean as it should have been. Meates and J. Purdie were the mainstay in the forwards, and the hooker, D. Hodgins, secured more than a fair share of the ball.

A. Jemmett, with few opportunities, was the best of the Sunnyside-Spreydon backs, and made several good runs from broken play. D. Dowell, at full-back, made some good saves, and the centre-three-quarters, W. Wakefield, showed speed. In the forward play, which was loose and ragged, B. Righton showed up in the line-outs, and R. Stuthridge was the most consistent worker. Mr B. J. Drake was referee. ONE-SIDED GAME Technical was nearly always in command in the game against New Brighton and the backs took full advantage of the chances given to them by a heavy pack. Yet in the first few minutes of the game New Brighton gave promise of providing stern opposition when its forward* charged the Technical line, a force-down resulting. Very soon, however, the Technical fiveeighths, J. Waine and D, Spencer, combined well in passing, and when Waine cut through the defence, N, Teague, a forward, was on hand to take a pass and score a try. which T. Jackson converted. A. Coniine, the Technical front-ranker, next received in loose play, after M. Logan had made an opening, and the try was converted by Jackson, who showed

his versatility by kicking a field goal from well outside the twenty-five. IlTaylor, the Technical centre, added a good try, points* to h Q intervaJ Tacbiucal led by 16 J. Grant, the Technical wing -threequarters, scored a try after a passing rush ami Couling added a try affer a determined dash from a line-out. Jackson converted the try. Technical forwards and backs combined well in passing to give Spencer a good try. Technical won by 27 points (three goals from tries, three tries, and a field goal) to o.

Mr S. Whiteford was referee. AIR FORCB CAUSES SURPRISE Force caused an upset by beating the highly-regarded Sydenham team by 19 points to 11 in the first game at Lancaster Park Oval, Sydenham looked a beaten team from the start, and the players seemed to lack energy and determination. They found a difference of 13 points after half an nour’s play too much to make up. i Now in its second year of senior Rugby, Air Force gave its best performance so far, and used its opportunities to open up play. Numerous passing movements and centring kicks contributed to. a bright display. Stocky forwards, who packed tightly, and who were able to i push their opponents, gave plenty of ball to backs who threw it about. There was some mishandling through having to reach for passes, and O. Gibbon and M. Dixon scored tries for Sydenham after such mistakes.

At first five-eighths for Air Force, S. T. Hoyt took his passes at top speed, but some bounced oft his chest. His good backing up was offset by his weakness in tackling. A. S. Brown, at second fiveeighths, who had a good eye for a gap, made several runs in which he outpaced would-be tacklers. The half-back, A. D. Magee, caught the defence napping when he ran from the scrum, and he scored from one such run. An otherwise good display by C. H. Willetts, at full-back, was marred by failure to find the line. i The main fault of the Sydenham backs [was in holding the ball too long. R. Cotton, at first five-eighths, and M. Dixon, i wing three-quarters, were offenders in this respect. Cotton made some excellent penetrating runs and backed up well, but 'often failed to get a pass away. Jinking attempts by Dixon were foiled by sound i tackling. R. Bo wick, who looked promising. had few chances. I R. A. Murray and B. J. O’Connor, both on the side of the scrum for Air Force, were fit and intelligent forwards, who were always up with play. ’A. A. Rlssette and R. N. Parker worked hard in the tight. Gibbon stood out in a pack of Sydenham forwards who are specialists in loose play, but who lacked their usual fire. He deserved his try. M. Kllworth, playing a spoiling game, and W. Mockett were prominent in forward rushes. Air Force won by 19 points (two goals from tries, one try, and two penalty goals) to 11 (one goal from a try, one try, and one penalty goal). Mr S. Thorburn was referee. LINWOOD WINS

After an even, interesting first spell, which ended with the score 3-all, Linwood was vastly superior to University in the second half of the main match at Rugby Park. There was plenty of vigorous football—some of it unnecessarily vlgorous—but both sides made many errors. There were few outstanding players. Two experienced players, J. D. Stewart for University, and I. Mitchell for Linwood, were perhaps the best forwards on the ground, and Mitchell in particular never let- up for a moment. He worked diligently, followed the ball consistently, and in the few really torrid forward exchanges he was one who seemed to retain his good humour. The Linwood backs were faster than their opponents, and the whole Linwood team lasted out a strenuous match much better. M. Stoop and G. Royfee showed speed, and in the forwards K. Powell did some good work in the line-outs. S. Mitchell was another who gave a good all-round display. University's best back was F. R. Wells, who ran straight and hard when he had a chance. G. Falloon, who began at second five-eighths, did some good things at times. A. Care was a good line-out forward for University, but the side was unlucky to lose its hooker. K. Ross, and its half-back, S. Comer, during the match. > University scored its three points soon after the game began when Falloon kicked a penalty goal from a handy position. Linwood’s tackling was shaky for some time, and University had the run Of the play for a while, but a high kick by H. Waterland put Linwood on attack and I. Mitchell went over for a try. Early in the second spell W. Beaton kicked a penalty goal, and when a forward rush took play to the University line, the defending backs were badly out of position and Stoop went over for a good trv. Royfee was next to score, when ne slipped through a tackle, and when J. Adlam started a blind-side movement Linwood had an overlap and G. Gascoyne scored a neat try. Linwood won by 15 points (four tries and a penalty goal) to 3 (a penalty goal). Mr K. Noonan was referee.

SOUND DEFENCE Frequent raids on the Belfast line and a territorial advantage in the second half of the game, failed to bring tries for Albion at Lancaster Park South. Belfast won by 14 points to 9. Belfast, which had much the better of the first half, led by 8 points to 0 at half-time. A reinvigorated Albion team led by 9 paints to 8 at one stage In the second half after scoring two tries. However, a penalty goal gave Belfast another lead which was defended doggedly in the face of persistant attacks and was consolidated by a try on time. There were few chain-passing movements by the Belfast backs, but players were quick to snap up the ball from loose play. K. Brown, at five-eighths for Belfast, started well and scored the first try Sith a good jinking run. The best of the elfast backs was C. Cassidy, at centrethreequarters. He scored the fry at the end of the game. He also made possible a previous score. When Albion settled down and began to combine effectively on attack, the tackling of the Belfast players proved to be sound. The Albion backs tried desperately to break through and were attacking the Belfast line for a long time. The backs, however, were not passing the ball quickly enough, and were unable to make ground before being tackled. Play was merely see-sawing from side to side. Determined running by A. Elsom brought one try, but he, too, was given few chances. The half-back, N. Lewis, showed speed and was once unlucky not to

score. The success of Belfast's defence was In part attributable to good backing up by the forwards. They played the loose, bustling type of game, and L. Halligan was the best of a fit pack of forwards. The Albion forwards packed well and. hooked well for a time in the second half, and some good dribbling rushes were led by R, Fleming and A. Bates. Belfast won by 14 points (a goal from a try, two tries, and a penalty goal) to 9 (two tries and a penalty goal). Mr W. J. Brown was referee.

LOWERGRADES Senior Second Division.—Merivale 14, University 11; Marist 13, Technical Old Boys 8; Kaiapol 12, High School Old Boys 11; Christchurch 11, Papanui Technical Old Boys 3; Training College, 13, Linwood 0. Junior A.—Lyttelton 8, Sydenham 8; Technical Old Boys 3, New-Brighton 3. Junior B.—Albion 25, Merivale 0; Marist 27, Sunnyside-Spreydon 0; Sumner beat Technical Old Boys by default. Third Grade A.—Kaiapol 8, Linwood 5; Papanui Technical Old Boys 8, University B 6; Marist 11, Sydenham 8; R.N.Z.A.F. 25, Christchurch 6. Fourth Grade.—Albion 16, SunnysideSpreydon 8; Technical Old Boys 8, Sydenham 3; New Brighton 21, Christchurch 8: Marist 21, Belfast 0. Fifth Grade.-—Linwood 19, Marist 0; Sunnyside-Spreydon 25, Lyttelton 0. Under ISA.—Xavier College 19, High School Old Boys 3; Marist 8, Christchurch 6. Under 17.—Belfast 25, High School Old Boys 0; Christchurch 25, Linwood 0; Sunnyside-Spreydon 22, Merivale 0; New Brighton 11, Technical Old Boys A 3, Under 18.—Papanui Technical Old Boys 12, Marist 0; Sunnyside-Spreydon 19, High School Old Boys A 8. Under Bst 101b.—Marist 6, Belfast 5; Linwood 24, Kaiapol 5; Sunnyside-Spreydon beat Merivale by default. Under 7st 71b.—Marist 8, Sydenham 0; Linwood 17. Albion 0; Christchurch beat Sunnyside-Spreydon B by default; Sunny-side-Spreydon A beat Papanui Technical Old Boys by default. Under 6st 71b A.—Linwood A 25, Albion A 3; Rangiora 9, Christchurch 6;. New Brighton 25, Kaiapol 0; Sunnyside-Sprey-don A 3, Marist A 0. Under 6st 71b B.—Albion B 9, Linwood B 0; Marist B 8, Sydenham 0; Belfast 25, Sunnyside-Spreydon 0. BANKS PENINSULA SUB-UNION Akaroa beat United Bays by 15 points to 0 in the Banks Peninsula senior Rugby competition at Duvauchelle on Saturday. Akaroa showed better form in the forwards, and its backs had more penetration. K. Langrope kicked three penalty goals for Akaroa and unconverted tries were scored by D. Williams and W. Hokianga. In a junior game Akaroa beat Little River by 8 points to 6. MALVERN BUB-UNION Results of Rugby football matches played at Malvern on Saturday Sheffield 8, Klrwee 8; Weedons Air Force 8, Black Diamonds 3; Darfield 24, Hororata 3. Junior grade:—Black Diamonds 18, Klrwee 0; Darfield 6, Combined 6. BURUNDI SUB-UNION The following were the results of matches played In the Hurunui Rugby Football Sub-Union's competitions on Saturday:— Senior: Cheviot 5, Culverden 0; United 19, Waiau 3; Kaikoura, a bye. Junior: Hanmer 22, Cheviot B 0; United 22. Waiau 6: Cheviot A 67. Culverden 0; Kaikoura a bye. i NORTH CANTERBURY SUB-UNION Matches played in the North Canterbury Sub-Union s competitions on Saturday resulted:— Senior: Nga Tu Ahuriri 3. Woodend 0; Rangiora 19, Amberley 3; Oxford 9, Glenmark 8; Kowai 17, Ohoka 0.

Under 18: Rangiora 9, Oust 3; Amberley 6. Oxford 3. NORTH CANTERBURY SUB-UNION Following is the draw for matches to be played in the North Canterbury SubUnion's competitions on Saturday:— Senior: Oh v. Am (Mr Huria); Wo v. Glen (Mr Hood); Ox v. Rang. (Mr Eaglesome); Ko v. Nga (Mr Grant). Junior: Rang v. S’thbr’k (Mr Shaskey); Lo v. Ko (Mr Sincock); Wo, a bve. Under 18: Rang v. Am (Mr Pearson); Ox v. Cu (Mr Doody). 1.30 p.m. Advt.

P. W. L. D. F. Ch. A. DtS. Old Boys .. 3 3 0 0 42 12 3 Technical .. 3 3 0 0 58 6 3 Marist .. 3 3 0 0 54 17 3 Chch. .. 3 2 1 0 50 18 2 Belfast .. 3 2 1 0 29 28 2 Linwood .. 3 2 1 0 27 23 2 University .. 3 1 2 0 26 39 1 Sydenham .. 3 1 2 0 29 35 1 Air Force .. 3 1 2 0 28 37 1 Albion .. 3 0 3 0 25 40 0 N. Brighton .. 3 0 3 0 8 46 0 Sunny - Sprey. 3 0 3 0 5 80 0