Sportsman’s Notebook Senior Rugby Clubs’ Form At Easter

Press, Volume CII, Issue 30107, 16 April 1963, Page 3

Sportsman’s Notebook Senior Rugby Clubs’ Form At Easter

Form shown by Christchurch senior Rugby clubs in matches during the Easter holidays confirmed that Christchurch and University, and perhaps Marist, should be the logical contenders for the senior championship this season.

The open back play which Christchurch has favoured in recent years was much in evidence in its matches in the club’s Easter tournament. Its forwards perhaps were not quite robust enough, but the speed and ability of the backs more than compensated for any possible lack of weight in the pack. University played competently against Teimuka and won quite easily, although some of the younger club players were given a trial. Marist, a team with a considerable number of new names, played well in the South Island Marist tournament.

Of the other dubs, Suburbs, a team which has not done well recently but last season showed promise, looked tfcie most likely to force its way into the top six teams. It has a young side, but a very determined one. Other clubs which have shown good form are New Brighton and Old Boys. * * *

Big Forward

H. D. Maxwell, a New Zealand Rugby League forward between 1955 and 1960, will return to big football after a two-year spell. Maxwell, Whose weight four months ago was 21st lib, has reduced to 18st 101b —101 b above his normal playing weight. Maxwell made a big reputation for himself on the 1959 tour of Australia. He would be an undoubted acquisition to the New Zealand team, especially as the Canterbury front-row forward, G. Cooper, will be unavailable because of a broken collar-bone. ¥ ¥ *

Short Season

The Rugby season finished abruptly for R. Vercoe, the South Canterbury representative forward and All Black trial player, when he took part in the Christchurch Rugby Club’s Easter tournament on Saturday. After only five minutes of play, Vercoe had to leave the field with a dislocated shoulder. It is expected that he will not be able to play for another month. ¥ ¥ ¥

100-Mile Race

Long-distance racing has for long been the strong point of New Zealand athletics, and in more recent years the world-ranking performances of M. G. Halberg, P. G. Snell, and several others have done much to increase the public's appreciation of athletics in this country. This upsurge of interest has not been confined to track running, and increasing attention has been focused on long-distance road racing.

Recently there has been much publicity about 50-mile walks, 50-mile running races, and the pushing of bath tubs over long distances. A group of serious Otago athletes, however, has decided to set a new standard for the rest of the country’s long-distance fanatics to aim at.

Third in the New Brighton 50 last year, the former Canterbury marathon representa-

tive, M. Munro, had to scratch from this year’s New Brighton event earlier this month because of an injury. Now in Otago, Munro announced, however, that he and other Otago athletes were planning for New Zealand’s first 100mile running race to be held in May. They intend to set a time for the distance for other New Zealand runners to aim at. Members of the group may also like a target to aim at through their dreary journey. If so, there is the present unofficial world best time of 12hr 18min by R. Hopcroft (England).