Key Games In Southern League

Press, Volume CVIII, Issue 31658, 19 April 1968, Page 15

Key Games In Southern League

Two of the key matches in the Southern league, first division soccer championship will be played tomorrow, when all three. clubs spearheading Canterbury’s challenge will be in action at English Park. The early game brings Dunedin’s top challenger. Northern, into opposition with Rangers, and th Iwlisieb Rangers, and this will be followed by the awaited clash of the pre-season tournament finalists, Christchurch City and Technical. The main game offers all the ingredients for a sumptuous feast of football. Technical won the floodlight final, 2-1, but has lost the inspiring influence of its captain And powerhouse, K. France. However, Technical will

have back in its side the Canterbury centre-half, G. Griffiths, who has now completed his Army service, and has the same talented forward line capable of ripping apart the most solid of defences. City, however, will be stronger this time. Its forwards will be led by the Canterbury representative, R. Taylor, now recovered from a broken rib, while the switching of M. Clements to right- , half should help to plug the . gaps City has left in mid-field. One of the match's keennest and most vital duels will ■ again be fought by the national squad members, F. : Madrussan, City’s left-wing, ■ and G. Davis, Technical’s right-back. Davis won their personal battle in the flood- ’ light final and by doing so, • blunted City's sharpest attacking weapon. The outcome ; of this return duel between I Madrussan and Davis may also decide tomorrow’s big game. The new-look Rangers faces

a tremendous task in Northern, in spite of the Dunedin club’s defeat by City after being 2-0 ahead, on the opening day. M,. Ferguson, G. Crawford and C. Little form a very strong half-back line, and the New Zealand international, J. Ferrier, on the left-wing, has the speed and the finishing power to throw any defence into confusion. At present. Rangers have four positive attributes: they are young, strong, fit and enthusiastic. There are weaknesses, to be sure, and inexperience is one of the greatest, but if the club’s playercoach, T. Haydon, can induce his men to play as a team and at full stretch for the whole 90 minutes, Rangers could be sitting on top of the first division table, albeit on goal average, tomorrow evening. The only other Southern League game in Christchurch is the second division match between Caversham and Shir-

ley-Noinads, which has been moved to Western Park because its scheduled venue, Rangers Park, is unfit for play. Caversham’s strength lies in its player-coach and left-half, D. Daniels, a former semi-pro-fessional in Britain. This will be a hard struggle for Shirley, which lost its opening match of the season while Caversham drew at home with New Brighton. Canterbury’s other three clubs are In Dunedin: Western to Hay St Kilda, Shamrock to meet Dunedin Technical and Brighton to play Maori Hill. Shamrock, 10-1 winner of its Chatham Cup tie on Wednesday, probably has the easiest match. St Kilda was a great disappointment against Technical on the opening day and will be anxious to make amends. Maori Hill started off by beating Shirley but will find Brighten a harder nut to crack.