TIGHT PLAY BEATS JAPAN

Press, Volume CVIII, Issue 31680, 16 May 1968, Page 15

TIGHT PLAY BEATS JAPAN

(New Zealand Press Association) OAMARU. Playing hard Rugby, during which it gave nothing away, North Otago beat the touring All-Japan team, 17-5, at Centennial Park yesterday, after leading, 14-5, at half-time.

The match developed into one in which the Japanese threw the ball around in grand style and North Otago endeavoured to keep control by playing tight. The visitors, both backs and forwards, combined in many spectacular moves, but, as the score would indicate, while they gained large slices of ground at times, they could not break through the blanketing cover defence. There was the occasional time that the ball did roll loose, but forward passes and a-very occasional dropped pass robbed the visitors of points. Changed Its Tactics North Otago countered this play, after an initial period of trying to combat the Japanese at their own game and failing in the attempt, by keeping the ball among the forwards until they dragged the opposition in, and then loosening it to the backs. A shallow attack by the All-Japan backs did not give North Otago’s backs much room in which to move, and there was much kicking from the inside men and very few chain movements. Japan had many more penalties awarded against it than did North Otago. Jersey pulling was one of the main faults and this cost the visitors points with goals from penalties. Fourth-Minute Goal North Otago scored first with a penalty by P. Ford four minutes after the start Then came Japan’s only points, S. Mantani, who played a sparkling game at full-back, taking a pass high in the air after Katsuraguchi had cut out the left-centre, Ishiyama, to go across in a handy position. R. Yamaguchi converted. Two penalties and a conversion by Ford, after a try by

R. Wilson, gave North Otago a 14-5 lead at half-time. The only points in the second spell came when the North Otago full-back, R. Trask, used his weight to push through 25 yards, to score in the corner.