League Champion Beaten By Papanui In First Game

Press, Volume CVIII, Issue 31660, 22 April 1968, Page 7

League Champion Beaten By Papanui In First Game

Papanui gave notice that it would challenge strongly for the premiership when it beat the title-holder, Hornby, in an exciting opening to the 1968 Canterbury Rugby league season at the Show Grounds on Saturday.

Papanui was without two of its most prominent backs, G. H. Clarke and M. R. Napier, but it was clearly the better team. However, Hornby staged another of its well-known lastminute come-backs to give Papanui some anxious moments on defence. The other finalist of last season, Addington, was extremely hard pressed by Eastern Suburbs before F. M. Endicott scored a try four minutes from time to give Addington a 7-4 win. Marist-Western Suburbs beat Sydenham in a rugged encounter at Sydenham Park and Linwood, in spite of a lack of possession, decisively beat Kaiapoi at Bradford Park. The Papanui second-row forward, A. W. Thompson, won the “player of the week” award against Hornby. Thompson, playing his first club Rugby league match, scored two fine tries in the first half. Results:— Papanui 15, Hornby 12 Addington 7, Eastern Suburbs 4. Marist-Western Suburbs 10, Sydenham 2. Linwood 25, Kaiapoi 6. Championship points: Papanui 2, Addington 2, MaristWestern Suburbs 2, Linwood 2, Hornby 0, Eastern Suburbs 0. Sydenham 0, Kaiapoi 0. Forwards Important PARAMUI IS: A. W. Thompson two. K. R. Blackler tries; C. R. Schwass three goals. HORNBY 12: B. Jager, B. W. Langton tries; G. Woodgate three goals. The superiority of the Papa-

nui forwards was the decisive factor in a game of changing fortunes and many exciting moments. Hornby had an even greater deficiency in experience when P. J. Tongue and O. Baillie left the field injured. Thompson dominated the first half with crashing runs that drew three or four Hornby de fenders to him. He scored two tries, the second after J. A. Bond had intelligently reversed play infield to catch the defence on the wrong foot. Although less prominent in the second half, Thompson still defended with zest and shared the tight work with D. J. Alsop and T. L. Bisman. The youthful loose forward, R. Walker, made a fine impression with his cover defence. Blackler shared possession in the scrums and tackled well. Bond was the pivot of Papa* nui's attacks. His kicking in the slippery conditions was intelligent and he gave J. M. Bray no lee-way to mount attacks from set play. The two tries scored by Hornby were the result of a fine understanding between Jager and Langton. The speedy Hornby three-quarter line received few opportunities, partly because of the conditions but usually because of the fine Papanui defensive cover. However, enough was seen to give Hornby some heart in its attempt to win its fifth championship in succession. Referee: Mr T. Houston. Suburbs Unlucky ADDINCTON 7: F. M. Endicott try; R. L. Lanauze two goals. EASTERN SUBURBS 4: L. Tehuia two goals. Eastern Suburbs was perhaps unfortunate not to have upset Addington, for it came within a yard or two of the Addington line several times mid-way through the second half, only to be frustrated by the slippery ball, back-line crowding, or efficient cover defence. With 10 minutes remaining Addington began to display the dominance that had been expected much earlier. It bombarded the Eastern Suburbs line, Lanauze missed a penalty eight minutes from time, then Endicott forced his way over with two defenders holding him. Eastern Suburbs revelled in the conditions and took advant-

age of any handling errors by Addington. The loss of G. R. Cooksley was offset by the fine form of his replacement, R. H. Turton, who carved many gaps through the Addington centres. E. Bennett and W. Morrison were the most impressive of

the Eastern Suburbs forwards, who bustled the opposition many times. D. J. Carroll handled most of Addington's kicks with assurance. The strong-running Addington prop, B. L. Gillman, carried play away from his own line on numerous occasions, and R. S. Cotter, who made the best break of the game, and J. L. White had their moments. Referee: Mr P. Yaxley. Wing’s Tries MARIST-WESTERN SUBURBS 10: B. F. Dobbs two tries; J. C. Hawthorne two goals. SYDENHAM 2: J. Winika goal. The determination of the Marist wing, Dobbs, earned him two tries and his team victory by a larger margin than the run of play would indicate. On each occasion he used his pace effectively to score, the second try being a courageous effort to force the ball as he, and two defenders, crashed into the corner post. The boggy ground encouraged poor handling and throwing. Marist dominated the first quarter, but there was little between the teams. The Sydenham forwards kept the ball in the tight play. A flare-up involving several players marred the second half. D. R. Barton, who was the outstanding forward in the first half, M. H. Mohi and N. M. Diggs were prominent in the Marist pack. B. T. Barron marshalled his resources well as the Sydenham leader. Several times Barron took play near the Marist line, only to be frustrated in the vital moments. Referee: Mr J. Hillsdon. Young Players LINWOOD 2S: R. Auld two, G. J. Rosanowski, W. Taylor, J. Hales tries; Rosanowski five goals. KAIAPOI 8: J. E. Bond three goals. The young Linwood threequarters, Taylor, Auld, and D. White, impressed when Linwood outplayed a Kaiapoi team which dominated possession from set play. The younger, but much heavier, Kaiapoi pack was able to push Linwood off the ball in the scrums, and Bond had little trouble out-hooking W. P. Noonan. In spite of its surfeit of possession, Kaiapoi did little on attack and had no variation in its play. In contrast, the Linwood captain-coach, J. A. Flanagan, was able to switch play almost at will. J. Kataio proved a most promising second-row forward with his strong running and intelligent P The most Impressive Kaiapoi player was F. Day, the fullback, whose handling in the difficult conditions left little to be desired. Referee: Mr K. Carter.