HOCKEY SYDENHAM, OLD BOYS SUFFER FIRST DEFEAT

Press, Volume XCVIII, Issue 28897, 18 May 1959, Page 18

HOCKEY SYDENHAM, OLD BOYS SUFFER FIRST DEFEAT

The fourth round of the Canterbury Hockey Association’s senior competition was characterised by the defeats inflicted upon Sydenham and High School Old Boys. In spite of these intial reverses, these teams continue to share the lead In the points table, but the championship has now assumed a more interesting aspect with the prospect of serious challenges from both Woolston and Harewood.

All matches on Saturday w’ere played on grounds which were very heavy and which tended to make ball control difficult, but most of the teams coped with the conditions fairly well. Both Woolston and Harewood showed considerable improvement upon earlier form, but local hockey is still marred by excessive vigour and barging to the detriment of skill. Each of the senior teams is carrying the burden of having players in certain positions who are below the level of skill required by the grade, and while this factor produces a more even competition and some surprising results at times, it retards the general standard of play in this grade. Results:— Ha re wood 2, Sydenham 0. Woolston 3, High School Old Boys 2. Technical Old Boys 3, West Old Boys 1. Competition points to date are:— Sydenham 3, High School Old Boys 3. Harewood 2J, Woolston 2. Technical Old Boys 1, West Old Boys J. TECHNICAL OLD BOYS v. WEST OLD BOYS Technical gained its first point of the season by defeating West Old Boys in a ragged game at Ensors road. Play was characterised by an excessive amount of hard hitting, and there were frequent penalties for barging and left-side tackling which might have earned apuroval in an American gridiron game. In general. West Old Boys played the better hockey, but the West players’ mastery of their chosen methods was not sufficient for them to overcome the more vigorous methods of their opponents. Movements ended prematurely because of inaccurate passing. w’hich was the major fault. The opportunist breaks by the Technical forwards met with more success than usual because of the flimsy nature of the West defence, which suffered through the failure of the wing halves to retreat urgently when by-passed. Once again there was a tendency on the part of some West players to fade badly towards the end and to regard the cause as lost before the game had concluded. For Technical, the goalkeeper, I. Emmerson, was not severely tested but he did all that was required of him calmly and with good judgment. P. Kissell was the mainstay of the defence, showing sound positional play, reliable trapping and accuracy in passing. His partner, L. Lester, was also adequate in his positioning, but he frequently committed one of hockev’s deadly sms, that of fly-hitting. N. Gardner was generally steady at right-half but his passing could have been more closely related to the ultimate destination of the ball. The centrehalf. C. Smart, supported his forwards well on attack but did not always maintain a close check upon the opposing centre-forward. At left-half J. Burrowes contrived to contain the opposing right-wing effectively although he frequently showed scant regard for the requirements of the left-side tackle rule in doing so. . B - Bedwell showed speed and anticipation on the right-wing, while S. Crotty was responsible for some effective back-tackling in the insiderjght position. At centre-forward L. Taylor made several spirited breaks, although a little hurried on occasions in his shooting. K. Collins was the most constructive of the forwards at inside-left, showing plenty of dash in the circle as well, but he appeared to lack fitness. L. Smith used his speed to some purpose on the left-wing, and his willingness to hunt the ball was an asset to his team. For West Old Boys, N. Little made many good saves in goal, and D. Hamilton was a sound and constructive right-back. His partner, R. Elliot, was rather unsteady and often dribbled too far. Peter Clark at centre-half gave his forwards a good service and was reliable on defence. The tactics of the forwards are sound enough, but their execution will not succeed until the passing is improved. R. Thomson at inside-right was the best of the line. j’ Scott in the centre also showed some control and penetrative ability at times. P. Oakes saw httle of the ball at inside-left, and T. Cummins on the left-wing usually dribbled too far before passing. Goals were scored for Technical by L. Taylor, S. Crottv ■nd K. Collins, while A. Scott scored for West Old Boys. The umpires were: Messrs B Rogers and B. Lloyd.

HAREWOOD v. SYDENHAM Felicity descended upon Harewood when it surprisingly but thoroughlj' defeated Sydenham. On a difficult ground, the Harewood players fielded and controlled the ball really well, and their play, especially in the first half, showed great improvement. Sydenham made fierce and desperate efforts to save the game but the Harewood defence never wavered, and counter-attacks were launched with great promptness. B. Densem gave an excellent display in the Harewood goal, his kicking being powerful and reliable, while his two backs. G. Burrows and D. Sheppard, covered each other splendidly and played most constructively. The half-line showed its best form of the season, B. Murray in the centre being prominent on both attack and defence and P. Greenwood defending well on the left, although G. Baldwin was at times rather tardy in his cover defence. The two inside forwards, R. Wear and L. Innes, were the mainspring of the Harewood attack, the former distributing the ball well and making many openings, and the latter dribbling cleverly and contributing manv penetrative thrusts. Both I. Smith and C. Broadhurst were lively wings, but the latter rather spoiled his game by his reluctance to pass soon enough. Harewood’s win was a real team effort in which every player made a contribution. There was more vigour than deliberate purpose in Sydenham’s play, and the main fault was the weakness of the three inside forwards whose stickwork is undeveloped. D. Lloyd was closely marked and bustled by the Harewood defence, and Sydenham looked most likely to break through when K. Cumberpatch took a hand in attacking play. Since his departure from the insideleft position. Sydenham sorely misses his ability to transfer play from the left side of the field. Although slowing up. M. Wall is still effective when in possession of the ball, while L. Lloyd was fairly steady on defence. The Harewood goals were scored by L. Innes and R. Wear. The umpires were Messrs A. D. Holland and J. Calder. WOOLSTON V. HIGH SCHOOL OLD BOYS In defeating High School Old Boys, Woolston showed some of last season’s form. There was more determination and purpose in the play of the Woolston team than hitherto, particularly in the forward line. Old Boys were oy no means outplayed, and the match was a very close struggle in which the decisive factor was the pressure exerted by Woolston in the late stages. This was all the more pleasing since Woolston has lost competition points earlier in the season because of a tendency to fade. The defences of both teams were sound, and the most prominent players in these phases of play were the respective back combinations, J. Abrams and L. Hobson, for Woolston. and W. Boundy and W. Browne for Old Boys. Woolston enjoyed a slight but valuable advantage in the forward line because of a greater evenness of ability. The Old Boys attacks were based mainly on the skill and constructiveness of P. Blyth at inside-right and the opportunism of J. Kiddey at inside-left. Goals were scored for Woolston by L. Hobson. J. Abrams, and D. James, while J. Kiddey scored twice for Old Boys. The umpires were Messrs P. Beere and S. Swift.