HEARN HAS DISLOCATED NECK 14 Men Hold Out-of-form N.Z. Until Second Half

Press, Volume CVII, Issue 31513, 30 October 1967, Page 24

HEARN HAS DISLOCATED NECK 14 Men Hold Out-of-form N.Z. Until Second Half

(From T. P. McLEAN)

LEICESTER.

Fourteen men playing with an indomitable Elizabethan spirit gave the All Blacks a fright at Leicester on Saturday, and the score of 15-3 for New Zealand over Midland and Home Counties scarcely represented the desperate ebb and flow of an enormously exciting game.

All the points were scored in the second half and long after the England centre, R. D. Hearn, was carried from the field on a stretcher after his neck had been dislocated in violently tackling I. R. Macßae in the fourth minute.

It was in the fifth minute of the second half that W. F. McCormick placed a penalty goal from 42 yards for the first points.

Fourteen minutes later McCormick figured again when he dashed in on the blind side just beyond halfway, and with fine judgment put M. J. Dick into a position to outwit R. Webb and score only a few yards from the posts. McCormick failed to place this goal and he also missed with a penalty attempt from not much greater range.

Herewini Drop-Kick

M. A. Herewini brought some compensation to the All Blacks. Fielding a long pass from C. R. Laidlaw on the half volley, he swivelled away from tacklers and dropkicked a goal from 20 yards. With only 11 minutes to play the Counties offended at a scrum and McCormick comfortably placed the goal from 32 yards.

Then came easily the best movement of the game and it was not by New Zealand In a straight-forward passing rush, D. Taylor, who had gone from the flank to centre to replace Hearn, burst past G. S. Thome and handed to J. Cox on the right-wing. When Cox was checked by McCormick, R. H. Lloyd, the other centre, came up swiftly to take in the infield pass and he reached out a telescopic arm to touch down a first-rate try.

Finally, at a scrum penalty only 20 yards out, McCormick placed his third goal. That should have been the end of things. In fact, it was only the start of a massive inquiry into the causes of New Zealand’s bewilderingly mixed display. It cannot be denied that on the run of play in the second half the All Blacks deserved their win—and a crowd of about 19,000, very much under capacity, generously cheered their scoring efforts. But neither can it be denied that the All Blacks had many weaknesses.

They were out of joint with their combination, their hands

and their control, even in the loose scrummages when the Counties had to depend on only five or six forwards so that the others could defend against the mid-field breaks which the AU Blacks attempted to make. Most of all—and this was ominous, to say the least—the All Blacks were out of joint with the Irish referee, Mr D. P. D’Arcy. From an early stage C. E. Meads was identified as felon-in-chief at the line-outs and many of the 14 penalties the All Blacks conceded originated here.

Rogers Booted

Meads himself appeared to be complaining to the referee about the tactics, obstructive and otherwise, which the Counties men were practising. W. J. Nathan and D. P. Rogen had a tiff in mid-field and the crowd reacted in bitter humour when a New Zealand boot crashed into Rogers as he lay at the bottom of a ruck. Mr D’Arcy observed only a few of these things. He was also not greatly interested in the way both hookers J. Major and H. Godwin, sat upon their bottoms and twisted their bodies in order to reach for the ball—a clear breach of the law—or in the scrim-shanking shirmishing sort iff play which had forwards of both sides operating from offside at some cost to the spirit of the game. Plainly enough, the All Blacks will now have to take stock of British interpretations and, whatever the merits of their case, they must obey the old precept as to Rome and the Romans.

flc^t “defence varied now and then by startling " & the mi tremely hard physically and highly dramatic emotionally. The crowd which stood and sat within only a yard or two of the touch-line rapidly became entirely involved in the play. The spectators voiced elan and disquiet when the All Blacks, after twice blessing their luck at P. barter's failure to goal penalties from more than 40 yards, replied with attacks which all but put Laidlaw, Macßae and P. H. Clarke in for tries. Their efforts failed because of bad handling, and this remained one of the primary weaknesses of the New Zealand display. It was as if a deep anxiety possessed most of the players and evidence of this was povided by the number of times Nathan deputed himself to be an auxiliary half-back. On top of the handling came the failings of the backline to mount more than the authoritative effort which yeilded Dick’s try.

Wingmen Starved

Laidlaw began the misfortunes by slinging out passes which rose like rockets from the launching pad. Herewini compounded these faults by electing to jig and dance and try to go on his own. Apart from one slinking, curving dangerous run, Macßae spent much time testing the efficiency of the Counties centres by charging straight into them and was flung head over heels more than once. Thome was not often used. Twice he set out for the gap and found it was not thereAnd poor Dick and Clarke, both of whom looked sharp and capable, were starved of chances. McCormick tried his best to aid the attacks but when the ball failed to clear the five-eighths, his presence was neither use nor ornament. And it was disturbing early in the game to find him troubled by high punts placed toward the wings because of his fondness for standing deep more or less directly behind the half-back or first five-eighths. Control Lacking The alarming features of the forward play were the want of control in driving play at the line-out and at the loose scrummage and the general inferiority of the lineout men, B. J. Lochore notably excepted, to beat Latter for possession. In the second half, the All Blacks by and large took charge here by relying upon taps and swings of the ball in the general direction of Laidlaw. Certainly, the All Black forwards were quick getting to the loose ball and as to their hardiness and courage not a word of criticism could be voiced. Chunky Front Row But Meads was distracted by his discussions with the referee, Nathan found it difficult to check James, the flyhalf, and the front row of E. J. Hazlett, Major and A. E. Hopkinson was given a hard time by P. E. Judd, Godwin and A. L. Horton, three chunky men inches smaller than the All Blacks but great goers at all times.

A. G. Jennings, especially in the second half, was all heart and fiery vigour, Meads made a number of dashing runs, Lochore was cool and capable and K. R. Tremain buried himself in the battles which went on unceasingly between the packs. No New Zealand forward, however, outplayed G. A. Sherriff, an outstanding number eight, or Larter, a very tall and efficient line-out forward. The match must now be regarded as the best possible experience for the All- Blacks at this stage of their tour. They have been brought down to earth with a thump and they will have to battle most earnestly, especially in efforts to impose their will on a game, if they are to retain their unbeaten record.