LEAGUE Kiwis Begin Strenuous Eight Days With Game At Wigan

Press, Volume XCIX, Issue 29330, 8 October 1960, Page 7

LEAGUE Kiwis Begin Strenuous Eight Days With Game At Wigan

(N.Z. Press Association—Copi/rigM)

WIGAN, October 7. The New Zealand Rugby League team, getting its second wind after a tough opening in the World Cup matches against Britain and Australia, will start an even harder programme tomorrow. Some of the players face five matches in the next eight days, three in England and two in France. The New Zealanders will begin their busy week tomorrow by playing their final World Cup match—against France—in which both teams seek their first victory. Although the game is overshadowed by the deciding match between Britain and Australia at Bradford, the Wigan match is important for both the Kiwis and the Frenchmen. France will be out to avenge the two test defeats in New Zealand in the last season. The French say they were beaten by the Carlaw Park mudbath, which did not suit their style of play. They claim that on firmer English ground, and with an English referee, they will show faster and superior Rugby, though they are without many of the regular backs who played in New Zealand. The Kiwis counter-claim that they will assert their superiority again. English officials are hoping none will try to settle old scores which may have been carried over from the turbulent clashes in New Zealand. They finished with two French players banned from playing again in New Zealand. France is fielding one of the suspended players tomorrow, the hooker, A. Vadon, which it is perfectly entitled to do in England. Expected to make his first appearance in New Zealand’s team is the wing, R. Griffiths. He will replace N. Denton, who saw the Australian, B. Carlson, go past him for three tries last Saturday. Wigan spectators are also keen to see Kiwi’s other wing, T. Had-

field, who made a big impression in the match against England. Two days after the Wigan game some Kiwis are in “Th 4 Rest” team to play the World Cup winner at Bradford. The Kiwis will play Halifax on Wednesday, and 24 hours later are due to meet France again under floodlights in Paris. The next Saturday they will play South-East France at Marseilles and this eight-day programme is considered too strenuous. France evidently thinks so, because it cancelled the match it was due to play at Leeds on Wednesday, to enable it to return home earlier to prepare for Thursday’s return match with New Zealand.