Western's Rivals Are Cup Tie Specialists

Press, Volume CVI, Issue 31152, 31 August 1966, Page 11

Western's Rivals Are Cup Tie Specialists

r pHE Wellington club, Miramar Rangers, will send out an S.O.S. when it plays Western in the Chatham Cup final at the Basin Reserve on Saturday. But it will not be the very familiar Save Our Souls message nf those in trouble: this one will contain the ingredients that have taken Miramar to the final of the Chatham Cup for the first time in the 43-year-old history of the competition: Speed, Opportunity and Stamina.

These three made up the mixture in which Miramar stirred the biggest shock in this year’s Chatham Cup competition by beating the fancied semi-professionals of Ponsonbj- (Auckland) in the North Island final to qualify to meet Western in the national final.

Miramar’s football philosophy is simply summed: •'Have stamina, will chase.” When all is going right for the side, the forwards are coal hungry and the defence is deep, solid and unrelenting When things are going wrong the forwards are as effective as soldiers armed with pea shooters but always liable to scramble home the winning goal and the defence remains deep, solid, and unrelenting.

This is the team Western will meet at the Basin Reserve on Saturday. Against Ponsonby, Miramar took a first half lead, scrambled and bluffed its way through the second half —conceding a goal in the process—and then went on to outclass Ponsonby in extra time and win by the odd goal in three. And outstanding at Auckland —as it has been in Wellington throughout the season, culminating in winning the club championship —was that strong, quicktackling. close-marking, wellcontrolled defence. In goal is a player Canterbury representative teams

have come to know and respect the New Zealand 'keeper. P. Whiting. He has been beaten only twice in Chatham Cup matches this season, and one of these was a goal pushed past him by one of his defenders. He parades his penalty box with a cunning and ability that has for some years made him an outstanding goalkeeper. In front of him are two full-backs, C. Mclvor and G. Taylor, whose covering and understanding have helped to blot out almost every opposing forward line in Wellington. Possibly their only weakness is in allowing the wingers too much room. At the core of the defence is the centre-half, J. Barton, the veteran of the team and dictator of all defensive action outside Whiting’s range. The link men are the wing-halves, C. Ward and J. Bruce. Both are remarkably fit and with an overwhelming will to win that has infected the team on numerous occasions when Miramar has been in danger of defeat.

The only member of the forward line with a position to call his own is the centreforward, L. Taylor. The remaining forwards constantly interchange, sometimes all four attacking on one flank and at other times pouring through the middle.

Officially, the inside-right is H. Greasley, playing his first season in New Zealand. He has a tremendous shot and showed the way in earlier Chatham Cup games with goals from opportunist positions when they were most needed.

Outside him is P. Priddey, who this year was converted from a defender into a hard-running winger. He

scored the first of Miramar’s two goals against Ponsonby. Priddey has another sporting interest: he is a member of the New Zealand softball team which will compete in the world series at Mexico in October. The left-wing pair are S. Billing (outside) and G. Clayson (inside). These two interchange more than the remainder of the forwards and have developed an understanding that has baffled opposing defensive patterns.

Taylor spearheads the forward line and is possibly the only orthodox attacker of the five. He has been a consistent goal-scorer and scored the brilliant winning goal in extra time against Ponsonby. He raced on to a perfectly-judged through ball from Greasley, out into the penalty area past the Ponsonby centre-half, A. Masters, and, as A, Stroud came out of his goal to challenge, placed the ball into the far corner of the net.

Taylor often lazes through periods of play, then goes in dashes and bursts to be at his most dangerous. Recently he has been at odds with the Wellington selector, Mr W. Ward, for not attending representative training, and was dropped from the side that played against Canterbury and Auckland at the week-end. The average age of the side is 25. The youngest, at 20, is Greasley, and the oldest, 32, is Barton. G. Taylor and Bruce are both 21, Priddey and Billing both 25, Clayson 26, L. Taylor, Ward and Whiting all 27, and Mclvor 28. Whiting, Mclvor, Barton, L. Taylor and Billing are Wellington senior representatives and

G. Taylor has played for the under-23 team. Miramar’s road to the final has been a happy one, beating Western Suburbs, 3-0. Swifts. 1-0, Northern, 2-0, Seatoun, 3-1, Moturoa (New Plymouth), 3-0, and Ponsohby, 2-1. The whole team has one thing in common—every man is a 90-minute player. There are no slackers and little temperament is displayed. They can play it hard, they can play it quietly—and they never know when they are beaten. They are cup tie specialists.

It is seven years since a Wellington team was in the final and Miramar, accordingly, will be backed to the hilt by a partisan Wellington crowd. Something like 100 club supporters went to Auckland for the North Island final, with rattles, banners and tremendous enthusiasm. Their cry, after Miramar won the local club championship, has been: “Let's make it a double.” Win, lose or draw. Western will know it has been in a game at the Basin Reserve on Saturday.