Canterbury Easily Beats Taranaki

Press, Volume CVIII, Issue 31773, 2 September 1968, Page 15

Canterbury Easily Beats Taranaki

"The Press” Special Service

NEW PLYMOUTH, September 1.

The loss of eight of its best players to the South Island team made no difference to the Canterbury representative side which beat Taranaki, 19-3, at New Plymouth on Saturday.

So well did the replacement players fit into the Canterbury team that it mostly dominated play. Canterbury applied continuous pressure, with some wonderfully-controlled Rugby, and the Taranaki pattern fell apart.

The win gave Canterbury its third success of its four-match northern tour. It lost to Auckland but beat, besides Taranaki, Waikato and Wanganui.

The Canterbury pack was in tremendous form, overpowering the Taranaki pack and winning possession in scrums, line-outs, and rucks. The Canterbury backs were generally the supporters of

the forwards, and there was little spectacular play except from the second five-eighths, L. Legge, who made an impressive debut in representative Kugby. Legge once ran from his own goal-line past his opposite, and launched a move that eventually ended in Legge himself drop-kicking a goal.

Canterbury's skill at continuing an attack with hand-to-hand passing and then setting up the ruck left Taranaki hopelessly in the shade. That these opportunities were not used to better advantage by the backs was perhaps the responsibility of the first fiveeighths, B. A. Watt, in the first half, and the half-back, L. Dickson, in the second. In the first spell, Watt failed to get his backs moving, and was often forced io jink back into the forwards. He also missed with two attempted drop-kicks at goal. Dickson, who in the first spell had passed the ball like a bullet, became erratic in the second spell.

The Taranaki lock, 1. M. Eliason, shared possession at line-outs with W. J. Risman, but Risman made a far better job of feeding the ball back. I. H. Penrose, the Canterbury captain, was also a good ballwinner towards the back of the line—and Canterbury always seemed to get the ball when it really mattered. Legge A Success On the few occasions the back-line moved it looked a smooth force, H. J. Joseph handing on the ball well and both R. Woolhouse and R. Cocks on the wings getting a run or two.

S. Murray was a safe fullback, although he missed touch once or twice. The success of the backs was Legge. A solidly-built young man, he made use of a splendid boot to pin Taranaki back on defence, passed nicely, made that one long, penetrating run, and dropkicked the goal. Penrose was the outstanding Canterbury forward, but Risman, K. Tanner, and Cochrane were not far behind. Tanner and his fellow prop, A. McLellan, gave the hooker, J. N. Creighton, such support at scrums that Canterbury won several tight heads. Tanner was also the promoter of Canterbury’s attacks into midfield from line-outs. Risman was more promin-

ent at line-outs than M. R. Perkins, although Perkins came more strongly into the picture later in the game. All Blacks Missed Taranaki obviously suffered from the absence from the pack of two of Its All Blacks, B. L. Muller and A. E. Smith, who were with the North Island team In Christchurch. Taranaki was further inconvenienced by the late withdrawal of two other first-choice forwards who were suffering from Influenza. Eliason made a great bid In the line-outs but much of his possession was left on the ground in the gap between line-out and half-back and there it was plundered bj Canterbury’s eager men. The junior All Black prop. A. J. Gardiner, and the hooker F. W. Harris, also made strenuous efforts to stem the Canterbury tide while the three loose men. the All Black M. C. Wills. P. G. Coales, and M. Hartley were prominent going forward to the loose ball.

Canterbury Oefenea Safe Taranaki made two sparkling back-line attacks with the full back, K. P. Hurley, in parttcu lar. probing holes in the firstline defence. Hurley and the first five-eighths, T. N. Wolfe also exploited the blind-side from scrums, but Taranaki was forced to do most of its running from deep inside its own half, and even although the first-line defence was cut. the Canterbury cover defence, and full-back, S. Murray, were safe enough. Taranaki,, in its worst moments in the second spell, was pitiful. Passes were tossed as straws with the wind, kicks slid off boots any which way, and most of the attempted tack ling failed to impede Canter bury’s progress. It also failed to find touch at vital times—as when Wolfe, kicking from a scrum five yards from his own line, put the ball into the Canterbury full-back’s hands. Murray caught the ball on the run. burst through almost to the goal-line, and fed the prop. A. McLellan for a try

Taranaki's Try Taranaki did score a try, with but with only six minutes o| the match remaining. After loose play near the Canterbury twenty-five, the ball was kicked to the centre, w. D. Currey, who put his right wing R. L. Clarke, into the clear for a 20-yard run to score. Canterbury immediately retaliated. The centre, Joseph, kicked ahead, Penrose was there to grab the ball, and held it long enough for Cochrane to take a pass and score. The teams;—

TARANAKI: K. P. Hurley; R L. Clarke W. D. R. Currey; W. L. Hopsori; R. C. O'Dowda. T. N. Wolfe; D. J. Edwards; A. L Campbell; M. C. Wills, T. DJenkins, I. M. Eliason, P. G, Coles; A. J. Gardiner. F. W Harris, I. Rielly.

CANTERBURY: S. Murray; R. Woolhouse, H. J. Joseph, R. Cox; L. Legge, B. A. Watt; L. Dickson; I. H. Penrose; L. E. Cochrane, M. R. Perkins, W. J. Human. N. Cornelius; K. Tanner, J. N. Creighton, A. McLellan. For Canterbury, tries were scored by Penrose, Cochrane and McLellan. Murray converted two tries and kicked a penalty goal. Legge drop-kicked a goal. For Taranaki, R. L. Clarke scored a try.