ALL BLACKS DRUBBED, HUMILIATED

Press, Volume CIII, Issue 30533, 31 August 1964, Page 3

ALL BLACKS DRUBBED, HUMILIATED

Wallabies Lift Tour From Depression

[By Our Rugby Correspondent] WELLINGTON, August 30. The cracks that appeared in New Zealand Rugby in the test series against Australia widened into chasms when the All Blacks were beaten by 20 points to 5 in the third test at Athletic Park.

It was New Zealand’s heaviest defeat since it was beaten 17-0 by South Africa in 1928 and it was the highest total ever scored against the All Blacks in a test. It was a magnificent end for the Australians to what had been a depressing and disappointing tour.

There can be no excuses for the All Blacks. They were outplayed throughout and the score could well have been higher if the Australian goal-kicking had been more accurate.

For Australia, E. S. Boyce scored two tries, P. Hawthorne kicked a field goal and T. V.

Casey kicked three penalty goals and a conversion. P. H. Murdoch' scored a try for New Zealand and D. B. Clarke converted it. Although credit must not be taken from a grimly determined Australian team, it was one of the most inept and humiliating displays by an All Black team for many years. The forwards lacked fire and speed and the backs, under pressure from the fierce tackling of the Australian backs and loose forwards, did sune silly things. Distressing Play Most distressing aspect was the performance of the All Black forwards. They were taugfht a rude and salutary esson on the fundamentals Of international forward play

The Australian forwards vere superior in almost every 'epartment. They were quicker to the loose ball, their tackling was more resolute ind in the tight they worked s a unit whereas New Zeaind was disjoined and its -(Torts were sporadic. It was obvious early in the match that C. E. Meads was not going to be a success at No. 8, and rather than play as a third lock he kept to the role of a loose forward. This mean the New Zealand pack became very loose because Stewart and S. T. Meads were left with all the lineout work while C. E. Meads stayed at No. 7. No Recovery As the score mounted one waited for the sight of the All Black pack reverting to its typical tight driving play. But it was a vain hope and even late in the second half there was the pathetic sight of All Black forwards straddling the rucks and pawing at the bail in an attempt to pick it up. These ineffectual efforts were seized on gladly by the Australians who hurled themselves en masse at the loose ball and drove and smashed their way upfield. There were times when the All Blacks came back into the game. For a period of 10 minutes after half-time the All Black captain, D. J Graham, managed to infuse some purpose into his team and New Zealand still had a chance when the score was 6-5, But once the Australians scored again the flame, that at the best had burned only steadily, flickered fitfully and finally was snuffed out as the Australians took complete control and in 11 minutes scored another 11 points. Backs Affected Because of the poor display of the forwards, the New Zealand backs were at a disadvantage. What possession they did get usually was slow and hesitant and the ruthless tackling of B. Ellwood and T. Marks set most back movements back yards and Australia on attack as its loose forwards were first on the scene.

The smooth running line that had been so impressive at Christchurch broke down under the hard tackling of the Australians. The ploy of bringing an extra man into

the line never worked and at times he was only an embarrassment. It was to New Zealand’s credit that'it tried to use its backs at every opportunity. Attacks were often started from near the New Zealand goal-line but although Rangi and Smith did beat their men they could never clear away from the efficient cover defence. Towards the end of the game there was a hint of desperation in some of the attempts by the All Blacks to run the ball. The Australians did not use their backs as much as the All Blacks did but what they did do was done in a far more certain manner. Catchpole and Hawthorne were quicker and more precise than Connor and Murdoch and the other backs made far fewer mistakes than the All Blacks did. From the very start there seemed to be an air of complacency about New Zealand's play. The forwards were ponderous and sluggish and appeared to think their task was finished when the ball had been won in the line-out or scrum.

The pack moved like a tractor in very low gear, crunching forward but without any great purpose.

The Australians, on the other hand, were all determination and vigour. They moved quickly to the loose ball; they crashed into the rucks and quickly stifled, by smother tackling, any attempts by the All Blacks to start hand-passing among the forwards.

In the backs it was the same. Connor and Murdoch combined well. Moreton and Rangi did

some good things. Clarke and Smith appeared in the back line but nothing ever happened And it was pertinent that the backs were being forced into handling errors which were quickly capitalised on by the Australians. Suddenly the Australians were in front. Johnson won a tight head, Catchpole scooted around the scrum, fed the ball to E. S Boyce, who was completely unmarked, and Boyce ran 20 yards to score in the corner. From Behind That did sting the AH Blacks Moreton and Smith combined well for Smith to run 40 yards before being forced out and soon after Smith again beat J. Boyce but this time Guerrasimoff, who was playing a magnificent game, caught him from behind And then it was half-time and the Australians led 3-0 and had the pleasant prospect of playing with the strong wind. For 10 minutes the All Blacks threatened to come back into the game as S. T. Meads, A. J. Stewart and K. F. Gray responded to Graham’s urgings but it was short-lived. Casey kicked a penalty goal and although Murdoch scored for New Zealand and narrowed the margin to one point when Clarke kicked the conversion, it was obvious New Zealand was almost out of the match.

The Australians, realising the game was there for the taking, suddenly began to dominate play. Crittle, Hemlng and Thornett drove the All Black forwards back and Guerrasimoff and Davies relentlessly pursued

the backs and forced them into errors.

Crucial Stage Then came the crucial part of the match. The Australian loose forwards crashed through to near the New Zealand twenty-five and from the scrum Hawthorne kicked a field goal. After that the game opened up for Australia. Casey kicked two penalty goals and gave Australia a 15-5 lead. New Zealand tried to squirm its way out of the net of its own makings but it had no real chance. The Australian tackling was decisive. Twice Caulton came into the line and twice he was hurled back yards by a ferocious tackle from Davis. It was from one of these shattering tackles that Australia scored its final points. Catchpole seized on a dropped ball and passed to E. S. Boyce on the blind-side. He ran 20 yards and kicked ahead and then won the race for the ball. Casey's conversion was the final nail In the coffin Well Supported Such was the great effort by the Australians that none could be praised too highly. The forwards set the pattern for the team and Thornett probably has never strived so hard or gained better support. He, Crittle and Hemlng took on the All Black forwards In the tight and beat them. These three bore the brunt of the line out work. Although New Zealand won the line-outs, 44-31, the possession won by Australia was far cleaner. Johnson won three tight heads and with Thornett and White presented a solid front row. But it was in the loose that Australia had the greatest advantage. Guerrassimoff was the outstanding forward of the match. His speed, deadly tackling and ability to be always in the right place made him the bane of the New Zealand team. Davis and Shepherd played their parts well and Davis's crash tackling upset the New Zealand backs in the second half Fine Match Catchpole had a fine match He passed well and his darts around the scrum started many attacks. Hawthorne was a cool and efficient first five-eighths and Ellwood and Marks were sound defensive players. E. S. Boyce scored two good tries and also made many dangerous breaks. Casey played superbly at fullback. His handling .was immaculate and although not a long kicker he never missed the line. Connor gave his usual polished display as half-back, but Murdoch, although handling well, showed his inexperience when he passed the ball on when the other New Zealand backs were closely marked. This allowed Moreton to be hit hard by Ellwood. Moreton had no chances to make breaks. Ellwood kept him bottled up, but twice by long passes he gave an overlap to Smith. Rangi also was an inconspicuous figure. Smith was the best of New Zealand’s wings and his acceleration twice took him past J. Boyce. Caulton had very little play but he defended well Clarke Sound Clarke played very soundly but was not the dominant figure of before simply because the Aust alians were determined not to give away penalties in their own half. He had only two shots at goal. In a very disappointing All Black pack there was one player who stood out —the captain, Graham. He covered well was always up to the loose ball but he did not get the support of his team. S. T. Meads, Stewart and Gray had their moments but C. E. Meads played poorly. McLeod was outhooked and also was too loose. Thomas, playing with concussion, understandably did not make much of an impression and Tremain also was not as prominent as usual.