Sportsman’s Notebook French May Play Springboks At Springs

Press, Volume CIII, Issue 30338, 14 January 1964, Page 6

Sportsman’s Notebook French May Play Springboks At Springs

The tour committee of the South African Rugby Board has proposed that the match between France and South Africa on July 25 should be played at Springs, near Johannesburg, says a Reuter correspondent in Johannesburg. There can be no greater tribute to Koos Bosman, who died two months ago, soon after acting as manager of the Springbok team in all four test matches against the Australians, the correspondent adds. Mr Bosman was chairman of the Eastern Transvaal Rugby Union, and shortly before his death he said his big ambition was to see Springs get a Rugby test.

The French have been invited to play five matches in South Africa. The tours committee of the South African board has suggested the following itinerary:— July 11, v. Rhodesia, at Salisbury: July 15, v. Griquas, at Kimberley; July 18, v.

Western Province, at Newlands (Cape Town); July 21, v. Border, at East London; July 25, v. South Africa, at Springs. The Frencn visit will form part of the seventy-fifth anniversary celebrations of the South African Rugby Board. In May, the visit by Wales end three festival matches are due to take place. Wales will play matches against Boland at Wellington, near Cape Town, Free State at Bloemfontein, Northern Transvaal at Pretoria, and South Africa in the only international match at Durban. The festival matches, between teams of players from all the Ruby-playing countries in the world, will be held at Port Elizabeth, Johannesburg, and Cape Town.

Dr. Danie Craven, chairman of the South African Rugby Board, who is at present in London for the meeting of the International Board, will probably this week announce the names of the 18 players from New Zealand, Australia, and the British Home unions who will be invited to tour South Africa to play in the festival matches. The names of several of these players have leaked out, the correspondent says. Among them are the Australian scrum-half, K. Catchpole, the prop or lock forward, J. Thornett, and the All Blacks’ captain, W. J. Whineray. Also mentioned is the former England wing, P. Jackson, and the All Blacks* fullback, D. B. Clarke.

Forwards like A. Pask, of Wales, and M. CampbellLamberton, of Scotland, are among those expected to be invited. It would not be surprising if G. Waddell, the former Scotland and British Lions fly-half, is also on Dr. Craven’s list. The 18 players will travel with 18 South African players and from the 36 composite teams will be chosen to play in the three festival matches, with the two best combinations opposing each

other in the final festival game at Newlands. The 36 players will be given special colours in the form of a blazer, badge, and tie which will include the Rugby emblems of South Africa, New Zealand, Australia, Wales. England, Scotland, and Ireland.

Swimming Progress Considerable advances have been shown by the 14-year-old Canterbury breaststroke swimmer, Miss Alison Mitchell, during her three weeks’ training in Auckland under the Wharenui club's scholarship. Miss Mitchell is training at the Onehunga pool in the squad of the professional, Mr C. R. A. Williams. This squad also includes Miss Vivien Haddon, who is one of the leading breaststroke swimmers in the world, and Miss Helen Green, a promising Auckland junior in breaststroke. In recent trials to aid the national selectors in their choice of a junior team to visit Australia, Miss Mitchell reached the Australian junior championship qualifying time for 110 yards but narrowly failed in the 220 yards. Her 220 yards time of 3min 18.5 sec, while 3.ssec outside the standard, represented an improvement of about lOsec on the average time she was recording before she began training in Auckland. Mr Williams believes that Miss Mitchell has the ability to improve even more before the end of this season. She is soon to return to Christchurch for the Canterbury championships, and can then look forward to the New Zealand championships at Blenheim, which will be contested by a junior team from Victoria. The junior girl’s breaststroke should be one of the finest divisions this year with Miss Mitchell, the Aucklanders Helen Green (110 yards) and Judy White (220 yards), the Waikato sprinter Deirdre Bruton, and the Taranaki star Jennifer Froggatt.

Cricket Averages The South African opening batsman, E. J. Barlow, who has played in all of the firstclass matches, has scored more than 1000 runs on the tour of Australia and is leading the aggregates and averages for the team. Barlow’s total—before the present test —is 1067, and his average is 62.76. R. G. Pollock’s total, not counting his 122 in the third test, is 552, and the next best averages are J. H. B. Waite’s 601 (421 runs) and D. Lindsay’s 53.6 (268 runs). The leading wicket-takers —again before the present test—are J. T. Partridge (30), P. M. Pollock and M. A. Seymour (24), and Barlow (20). The best average is that of Pollock (23.25). Partridge’s wickets have costs 24.47 runs each. R. G. Pollock has taken 18 catches, and Barlow is next, with nine. Waite has taken 14 catches and made two stumpings as wicket-keeper, and Lindsay has 10 catches and four stumpings.