COMPETITION MATCHES IN MUD

Press, Volume XC, Issue 27405, 19 July 1954, Page 12

COMPETITION MATCHES IN MUD

RUGWy FOOTBAEE

Marist Beats Old Boys By Two Points

TECHNICAL NOW SHARES LEAD

For the second week in subcession players in the Canterbury Rugby Uniqn’s competitions on Saturday had the experience of playing on grounds on which good Rugby was out of the question. Lancaster Park oval was probably in worse condition than any other ground, and on it Old Boys suffered their first defeat of the season, Marist winning by two points. The result leaves Old Boys and Technical on even terms, each team having lost one game and drawn three. A further surprise was Sydenham’s win over Christchurch, which had beaten Marist the previous week. In the D.C.L. Shield competition Sunnyside-Spreydon secured its first win of the season at the expense of Air Force. University continued its winning way by beating Albion, and Belfast scored a narrow win over New Brighton.

Following are the results of games played in the senior competition on Saturday:—

Harewood Trophy Marist 5, Old Boys 3. Technical 11, Linwood 3. Sydenham 14, Christchurch 6. D.CL Shield University 6, Albion 0. Belfast 3, New Brighton 0. Sunnyside-Spreydon 9, Air Force 3. The following table shows the positions of teams playing for the Harewood Trophy and D.C.L. Shield:—

MARIST’S WIN Old Boys and Marist struggled desperately for 80 minutes in a sea of slushy mud with lakes of clear water to add variety. For the third year in succession and for the sixth game in that period between these teams the scoring was very close, and for every minute of the game both sides, especially the forwards, struggled on as only well-trained men can do. Marist won by 5 points (a goal from a try) to 3 points (a penalty goal), and on the day’s play this about showed the relative ability of the teams. Because of the closeness of the scoring and the difficulties besetting the players in shifting play from one section of the ground to another, the game retained its interest for a fair crowd right to the end of Play. The Marist forwards, a vastly better pack than that which took the field earlier in the season, played a very good brand of old-time, wet weather football, and in each scrum and line-out carried the ball forward at foot instead of rucking it and feeding the very competent set of backs. When the ball did come loose the five-eighths, P. Kearney, was always ha’-'iy, and with very clever footwork often had the Old Boys backs badly bustled. Most of the work was done by the forwards, and Old Boys, the lighter and more mobile, must be given full marks for excellent defence in going down on the ball and stopping the Marist rushes. On the day’s play there was little to choose between the two sets of forwards. Marist won because it had behind the scrum three backs in K. C. Stuart, fullback, P. Creedy, half-back, and P. Kearney, five-eighths, who were not matched by the opposing side. Stuart has played some great games for his club and province, yet it is hard to remember when he showed up better than he did on Saturday. Although every other player on the field at some time or other speculated instead of attempting to handle the slithery ball, Stuart did not take ?he risk, and although he was often caught in possession, at no stage did he mishandle, and very sledom did he fail to find the line with well-directed kicks.

Creedy, who stood up to a severe gruelling from the nippy Old Boys forwards, and was soon unrecognisable after his immersion in the mud, was going as well as any other player on the field at the finish, and his anticipation and cover defence were outstanding. The third man in the Marist back-line, P. Kearney, always sure-footed, showed what could and should be done with a ball when it is inadvisable to handle. Some of his dribbling would have done credit to men engaged in an Association football match.

D. Mayo Shows Form For Old Boys, D. Mayo, at full-back, although not showing the artistry of Stuart, played a very serviceable game and, knowing how hard it was for the opposing side to make any long stretches of ground, he played close up to his other backs to stiffen the defence. He fumbled an occasional ball that fell short, but his powerful kicking took heavy toll of the Marist forwards. Mayo was the best of the Old Boys backs, and probably had most to do with keeping the score-down. A ground that was expected to suit P. B. Vincent better than the majority found the Old Boys captain all at sea, and it was not until the final stages that he could handle the ball to put in some well-placed kicks which, tried earlier, might have brought results. Bruce Columbus, playing at first five-eighths, and S. Henderson, outside him, shirked nothing. Both speculated a good deal, but they handled better than the others. Columbus saved his side brilliantly when he sent a long pass back to Mayo. It was a risky business, but it paid. Too much credit cannot be given to the tw ; o well-matched packs of forwards, few of whom were recognisable after the first quarter of an hour. Both sides packed low scrums, and although Marist appeared to hold an advantage in the set scrums and line-outs, any benefit derived here was countered by the solid scrummaking which followed. It is a long time since a game was so completely dominated by forwards with the one idea of taking the ball forward at toe. It was hard, gruelling work suited only to very fit men, and although there were one or two exchanges with fists, generally the game was played in the right spirit. In such a game between forwards so evenly matched it would not be fair to individualise, for every man played above himself.

Penalties were rather numerous in the first spell, eight being against Marist and three against Old Boys. In the second half Old Boys were penalised four times to Marist’s three.

With numbers quickly obliterated and every forward covered in black mud from head to foot, the referee, Mr S. Thorburn, must be complimented on his handling of a very difficult game. His rulings were not criticised by the spectators, and the players on both sides were well satisfied. He use a wise discretion all through, and at no stage was he at all hesitant in his rulings. All the scoring was done in the first spell, the second penalty to Old Boys allowing Henderson to open the scoring. It was early in the game, but the ball was already wet enough to make a 35 yards kick difficult. It was not long before Marist was in front, for after a long, well-placed kick of Creedy, hard forward play settled on the Old Boys line, and when the ball was taken over the line Creedy was the first to fall on it. Stuart converted. Mr S. Thorburn was referee. WIN FOR TECHNICAL Handling of a very high quality in the conditions a feature of the match between Technical and Linwood, played on the south ground at Lancaster Park. Technical, securing a greater share of the ball from the tight play, won by 11 points (a goal from a try, a try, and a penalty goal) to 3 (a try). Before the match began the ground resembled an area of miniature lakes, and as it progressed the ground became a sea of mud near the sidelines. After about 10 minutes it became very difficult to distinguish between the two packs of forwards. The first half was dominated by the lighter Linwood pack, which found the loose play to its advantage. Technical tightened up the game in the second spell, however, and its superior weight was the deciding factor. Both lines of backs handled remarkably well, and in several passing rushes the ball got out to the wings. Most of the match, however, developed into a kick and chase affair, with forwards and backs participating. In the second spell, Technical held the territorial advantage and was seldom out

of Linwood territory, and when near the Linwood line on two occasions the bigger Technical forwards carried the day . The only passing rush which brought results was that between J. Waine and D. Taylor* near Linwood’s line, and after Waine had made the opening, Taylor sped through to score in a handy position. Technical’s other try came after a forward attack on Linwood’s line, and D._ Herman, always up with the play, barged' over to score in a handy position. T. Jackson converted this try, and in the first half kicked an easy penalty goal from right in front.

Linwood’s try was also a result of solid forward work, though the try itself was scored by the wing three-quarter, R. Spriggs. Linwood dribbled down over the Technical line and Spriggs, following up fast, pounced on the ball just before it reached the dead-ball area. For Technical, the hardest-worked forwards in the loose were J. Smith. G. Sibley, and D, Young, and in the tight Herman and N. Teague stood out. Sibley and Young, especially, played excellent wet-weather football. In the backs, P. Logan and Waine found some difficulty in combining early, but as the game progressed they found each other admirably. Waine did little on attack until well into the second half, when he cut a hole in the defence for Taylor to score. His kicking, however, was both well placed and deadly. Further out, the only other back to show up was J. Grant, on the wing, who made some determined runs. Jacksons handling at/ull-back was faultless, and his line-kicking sound, if not spectacular. Linwood’s forwards were outstanding in the loose, and shaded the Technical pack I? department. B. P. Eastgate and P. McDonald, in the loose play, were the two best forwards on the field. They received fine support from J. Pickering and M. Couch. b

~,? h 4 e *? acks saw little of the ball, but what they did received they did not waste. Each of them handled well on the occasions back movements were started, and they followed up relentlessly. and P- Wakelin combined IXSl’iu nd Munnerley, at second fivevifto’c made some beautifully-placed 1 Spriggs was rewarded for a solid fun go u d v. try i and Cameron, at £0!; - ack ’ though bustled into errors on ° C Tvn? l xP S ’xr Saved his side countless times. Mr K. Noonan was referee. CHRISTCHURCH OUTCLASSED pla y to su ’t the heavy ’ Sydenham, fitter and faster in both forwards and backs, beat a less energetic Christchurch side by 14 points to 6 in a Harewood Trophy match at i Par u’ When the teams last met Christchurch won 11-6, but on Saturday Sydenham showed its superiority from the beginning, attacking consistently except i? e iV od _> at the beginning of the second half and another toward the end. we!l as using the kick and. follow-up method of play to advantage, the Sydenham backs, surer of foot than their opponents, gave an admirable display of propping and swerving in difficult conditions. However, they were assisted a great dea! by some very weak Chatchurch tackling, with some of the forwards standing and watching breakthroughs. Christchurch looked a better team at the beginning of the second half, when the forwards put more fire into their play and the backs ran harder, but lapsed again until desperate bids at the e hd> when tries were narrowly missed. Paving the way for the win were the bydenham forwards, who kept up pressure throughout. The hooker, D. Collins, gained a major share of the ball from set scrums, and O. Gibbons gave a similar service from line-outs, jumping high to tah i. e J? 311 cleanl y. Led by A. Couling ?iP d x: Rhodes, the pack often broke through from line-outs. The best of the Sydenham backs were R. Bowick, at second five-eighths, a hard and determined runner who scored two tries, and R. Cotton, with his usual elusive rhhf. Both kicked to good effect, and Cotton showed his ability with a beautiful try on time, when no tackier got near him. The wing three-quarters, M. Dixon, made most of his runs with the ball at his toe, narrowly missing tries several times. Only a few of the Christchurch players showed glimpses of heir best form. One of these was J. Osborne, centre threequarters, who with a typically brilliant speedy run scored the best try of the match. Of the other backs R. Smith, wing three-quarters, had few chances, but sometimes mishandled; K. Allsopp, at half-back, who saved well in the face cf oncoming forwards, and I. Anderson, a replacement on the wing, who showed an appreciation of the nature cf the ground by kicking through hard. The forwards did not show their usual dash except for K. Orsbourn, who often made breaks on his own, and N. Miller, who worked consistently in the tight. Bowick scored first for Sydenham after receiving from a ruck near the line, but K. Orsbourn evened for Christchurch when the forwards went over in a bunch from a movement begun by J. Osborne. In spite of frequent and. intense Sydenham attacks, the score was still 3-all at half-time.

Soon after the beginning of the second half Sydenham gained the ball from three rucks in succession near the Christchurch goal-line, Bowick scoring from the third attempt. Better play by Christchurch all round enabled Osborne to score his brilliant try. To do this he passed several tacklers as he moved toward the outside, then ran very fast down the line, kicked, and fell on the ball over the goal-line. However, a well-placed kick by Bowick gave Dixon a try after two good runs. Determined bids by Christchurch at the end were unavailing, for Cotton increased Sydenham’s lead with a try between the posts from a solo effort on time. He converted his try. Sydenham won by 14 points (a goal from a try and three tries) to 6 (two tries). Mr V. C. Empspn was referee. UNIVERSITY BEATS ALBION Refusing to take the chances of dropping a very slippery ball, University concentrated on foot rushes in its game with Albion, and this paid dividends. University won by 6 points (a try and a penalty goal) to 0. The match was played on the west ground at Lancaster Park, which, like the other grounds at the. park, cut up badly after the first few minutes of play. University fully deserved its win. On few occasions did Albion look likely to turn the game in its favour, and for most of the match was kept penned in its own half. The Albion backs attempted to throw thes' ball about too much, and this; proved disastrous. Players were unable to hold the slippery ball, and hard-won ground was lost to the hard kicking of University. The pick of the University forwards were W. Thomson and K. Thomson, in the loose, and J. Stewart, who bore the brunt of the hard tight play. In the backs University attempted little, and the only back to stand out was J. M. Croucher, at full-back. He handled extremely well, and his kicking was both long and accurate.

The Albion forwards had two fine leaders in G. Bond and W. Garlick. They were in everything loose, although their best work was in the tight. In the backs W. Heath, at full-back, saved Albion time and again. His handling of a greasy ball was little short of brilliant, and his kicking long and accurate. If he learns to get a ball away quickly, Heath should develop into a class full-back. He was the best back on the field. University opened its score early in the first half, when Herries scored wide out after R. W. Marris had obtained possession near Albion’s line. There was no further score before half-time. Half-way through the second spell Albion was penalised practically right in front of the goal posts, and Croucher kicked an easy goal. Mr E. Penlington was referee. BELFAST WINS NARROWLY Belfast held its position as a leader in the D.C.L. Shield competition when one try in the second half gave it a win by 3 points to 0 in a very even match against New'Brighton at Belfast. On a slippery ground, each side made repeated attacks, but failed through mishandling or determined defence. The match began with consistent hooking by the New Brighton forwards, spoilt by lack of combination between the halfback, A. Jemmett, and the first fiveeighths, M. Murray. When the full-back, K. Brown, put his side on attack with long kicks, Belfast made frequent attempts to score, one by a forward, ,G. Fecl?ney,‘ being very close. » Near the beginning of the second half E. Brown, the Belfast centre three-quar-ters, gained the ball from loose play and ran for about 50 yards to score. Other Belfast movements in which L. Odgers,. wing three-quarters, and E. Brown featured prominently were stopped through the good work of Hadley, the New Brighton full-back. He also put force into a New Brighton chain passing movement which finished near the Belfast line. Belfast won by 3 points (a try) to 0. •, Mr R. Empson was referee.

SUNNYSIDE-SPREYDON WINS Sunnyside-Spreydon, which had played a drawn game with Air Force and had scored its only half a point in the championship, improved its position in the ladder when it beat Air Force on the Sunnyside ground. §unnyside-Spreydon set the pace from

AUCKLAND LOSES TO WELLINGTON FINE GOALKICKING BY R. A. JARDEN (New Zealand Press Association) AUCKLAND, July 18. Superb goal-kicking by R. A. Jarden, who kicked three penalty goals and coifverted a try, was the .principal fdetor in Wellington’s defeat of the Auckland Rugby representatives by 20 points to 13 at Eden Park yesterday. Auckland led, 13-12, With 10 minutes remaining for play, but Fitzgerald then broke past Borley, a replacement who was taking part in his first movement, and scored. On the call of time, Wellington scored its second try, when Fitzgerald again made a break and five men handled before N. N. Nicholls scored. This was the only kick Jarden missed. His penalties were from 43 yards, 45 yards, and 25 yards respectively, and his conversion was from wide out to thte left. J. W. Kelly began Auckland’s scoring with a magnificent try after a 60-yard run. Kelly converted the second try, scored by T. Edwards, close to the posts. After Fitzgerald had put Wellington briefly in the lead with a dropped goal two minutes after the start of the second half, Rasmussen scored for Auckland from a brisk forward breakaway, and Kelly goaled to make the score 13-12. Auckland dominated the game for the next 20 minutes, but could not penetrate a tight defence. The attendance was about 12,000. Each team has now won two and lost two of its four matches.

MAORIS BEAT WANGANUI FIRST MATCH OF NORTH ISLAND TOUR (New Zealand Press Association) WANGANUI, July 18. In a bright and exciting match at Wanganui yesterday, the New Zealand Maori’ Rugby representatives won the first match of their North Island tour by beating Wanganui, 22-9. The Maoris’ pack had both weight and pace. The backs had pace, good defensive qualities, and an understanding of good positional play. Until the last 15 minutes, however, the Wanganui team appeared to be the more talented side. H. Tauroa, who played splendidly at full-back for the Maoris, twice came up into the attacking line, and, with speed and accurate passing, enabled Cherrington’s replacement, A. Wilson, to score two great tries from an overlap. Until those tries were scored, Wanganui more than held its own. For the Maoris, D. F. Menzies, A. Wilson, and A. Pryor each scored two tries. H. Tauroa converted two of them. For Wanganui, R. Horton scored a try. L. Head kicked a penalty goal and a field goal.

N.S.W. COUNTRY TEAM

DRAWN MATCH WITH KING COUNTRY (New Zealand Press Association). OTOROHANGA, July 18. The New South Wales Country Unions’ Rugby team drew, 9-all, with King Couhtry at Otorohanga on Saturday. The Australians scored nine points in a thrilling final 10 minutes. The weather was fine, and the ground in good order. A crowd of 5000 watched the game, which was marred by frequent stoppages for injuries and nurrterous scrums. The King Country full-back, B. Karham, opened the score with an easy penalty in the first five minutes. The King Country forwards were right on top of every Australian movement at this stage, and gave the visitors no room in which to work.

Unconverted tries by the King Country half-back. R. Coffin, and T. Katene brought the half-time score to 9-0 in King Country’s favour. Jn the second half, the Australians gradually settled down. In the last 15 minutes, they had the crowd on its toes with constant attacks and flashing movements which cut the King Country defence to ribbons. In that time, unconverted tries were scored for the visitors by P. Alston, T. Riley, and R. Hale.

MARLBOROUGH BEATS HOROWHENUA

(New Zealand Press Association) BLENHEIM, July 18. Marlborough won its first representative Rugby match in almost two years when it beat Horowhenua, 23-15, yesterday. Marlborough’s points came from tries by Farrington, Elkington, and Wilson. Farrington kicked four penalties, and Meachen converted a try. Mansell, Neill, and Southee scored tries for Horowhenua. They were all converted by Sayer

THAMES VALLEY BEATS BUSH, 23-8 (New Zealand Press Association) m n WAIHL July 18. The Bush Rugby team concluded its North Island tour at Waihi on Saturday, when it lost to Thames Valley by 23 to 8. For Thames Valley, tries were scored by B. Coxhead, J. Schuler, J. Harrison, R. Fisher, and R. Kerby. F. Martinovich kicked a penalty and converted a try.’ R. Laurence kicked a field goal. For Bush, T. Rieckenbach scored a try. W. Speedy kicked a penalty goal and converted a try.

RESULTS IN OTHER CENTRES Wellington.—Poneke 3, St. Patrick’s Old Boys 0; University 8, Marist 6; Athletic 10, Hutt 8; Wellington 10, Petone 6; Onslow 8, Taita 3; Wellington College Old Boys 0, Oriental 0. Dunedin. —University A 12, Taierl 3; Pirates 3, Union 0; Dunedin 5, Kaikorai 0; Southern 18, Teachers’ College 5; Zin-gari-Richmond 8, Port Chalmers 6; Alhambra 8, University B 8.

HURUNUI SUB-UNION The following were the results of matches played in the Hurunui Rugby Sub-Union’s competitions on Saturday:— Senior.—Culver.den 14, Waiau 3; Kaikoura 8, United Cheviot, a bye. Junior.—United 12, Kaikoura 6; Culverden 9, Cheviot B 3; Cheviot A 53, Waiau 0.

Harewood Trophy P. W L. D Points Ch. F. A. pts. Old Boys . 13 9 1 3 196 45 ioi Technical . 13 9 1 3 147 93 101 Christchurch. . 13 8 3 2 147 96 9 Marist . 13 8 3 2 180 108 9 Sydenham . 13 7 5 1 134 128 71 Linwood . 13 4 6 3 113 138 51 D.C.L. Shield Points Ch. W y t D F. A. pts. University . 13 6 5* 2 188 106 7 Belfast . 13 6 5 2 119 103 7 Albion . 13 5 8 0 120 153 5 New Brighton . 13 4 8 84 124 41 Sunny-Sprey. . 13 1 11 1 56 266 U Air Force . 13 0 11 2 60 180 1