Referee’s Ruling Nearly Lost Game For N.Z.

Press, Volume CIII, Issue 30365, 14 February 1964, Page 6

Referee’s Ruling Nearly Lost Game For N.Z.

[From T. P. McLEAN, Sports Euito T of the “New Zealand Herald’*] LYONS, February 13. For a time during the All Blacks’ defeat of North-east Selection at Lyons by 8-5 yesterday it looked as if history was going to repeat itself. Ten years ago R. C. Stuart’s All Blacks suffered defeat at Bordeaux principally because of refereeing decisions which excited derision among the knowledgeable French critics and which totally baffled the New Zealanders.

On Wednesday, Mr M, Durand, a man of portly construction and passionate gestures, recalled in certain ways the unfortunate official of 10 years before and it was a lucky thing for the All Blacks that his award of a try to Chevret, of the French team, did not, as it did in 1954. lead to the losing of the match. There could be no doubt that I. R. Macßae’s boot connected with the ball and sent it flying dead well before Chevret could have pressed it to the ground. However, it would be unfortunate if too much attention were to be to the incident as an explanation of the indifferent display by the All Blacks They were a muchtroubled band behind the scrum where scarcely anything went right.

Licence For Forwards The French loose forwards, who were given considerable licence, had a feast of K. C. Briscoe, whose hands were more thumbs than fingers, and of E W Kinton, who dropped several important passes As to the rest of the back line, it scarcely existed in an attacking sense, and P T. Walsh handled the ball no more than four or five times.

D. B. Clarke's goal-kicking was once more so much off target that Briscoe had to take over, and it was typical of the All Blacks' play that their first try by B. J. Lochore came from a fortunate rebound of Briscoe’s first penalty kick at goal. The most diismal feature of the play of the backs, however. was two instances of unduly rough, if not violent, play by M. J. Dick. He was penalised for crashing Laboure, the home full-back, into the ground from an offside position, and under a referee who spoke English he might have been sent off the field for kicking at Clet, his marker, who was on the

ground performing the good old French—and New Zealand—trick of hanging on to the ball.

This was a most unfortunate episode and an unfathomable act by so talented a young player. Fortunately for New Zealand, the All Blacks’ forwards, especially after the award to Chevret had levelled the scores at 5-5, played with a good deal of sting, and the try which Lochore and S. T. Meads manufactured for I. S. T. Smith from a kick by Briscoe was outstandingly good.

The two Meads, Lochore and Le Lievre were extremely hard workers, and C. E. Meads, a man of strong character when his team is under unusual strain, held and rallied the pack through the difficult first half when the All Blacks spent most of the time defending their own goal. The All Blacks had invited some difficulty by choosing a

slow-moving wing forward Group. But. the All Blacks, without ever looking really dangerous from a scoring point- of view, generally commanded the second half. The warmest tributes had to be paid to the North-east-ern Selection forwards. Masseboeuf, who had played so w_ell for France B, was mag-niflcentr-one of the best forwards of the tour—Mouysett, his partner, was most effective, and Gruarin, a prop, and Porchier, a flanker, were in the van of a fiercely energetic pack. Had Guy. Camberabero not kicked a little too much, even after discovering that Laboure was capable of providing an overlap, the All Blacks might have been really in trouble. It was another they won by the skin of their teeth; they Will be glad to get back to the less fierce forward stuff when they play the last mktch of the tour of Europe, against*' the Barbarians in Cardiff on Saturday.