Hornby Fails To Reach League Semi-finals

Press, Volume CX, Issue 32383, 24 August 1970, Page 15

Hornby Fails To Reach League Semi-finals

Papanui will play Linwood and Addington will meet Marist-Western Suburbs in the semi-finals of the Canterbury Rugby league club championship on September 5. The title-holder, Hornby, was eliminated from contention when it lost to Linwood at the Show Grounds on Saturday.

Constant rain, a blustery wind and muddy playing surfaces allowed little attractive football to be played but the only unexpected result was the defeat of Addington by Christchurch - Eastern Suburbs.

A comfortable victory over Syderiham enabled Papanui to complete the seqond stage of its quest for the three top senior trophies. It had already won the Tavendale Cup (most points in first complete round), added the Massetti Cup (minor championship) on Saturday, and has now set its sights on the Pat Smith Challenge Trophy. The accuracy of G. J. Rosanowski’s kicking for the touch-lines and from conversion and field-goal attempts, and the certainty of Linwood’s cover defence, snuffed out Hornby’s semi-final aspirations.

Hornby led throughout the first quarter before Linwood replied with the only two tries of the game. Once Rosanowski had sent Linwood 10 points clear with his second field goal four minutes after half-time, there was seldom any doubt that a new major championship winner would be found this season.

The final few steps of Marist-Western Suburb’s path to the top four were most tentative. Kaiapoi shared the lead at the interval and only a second try by M. P. Brereton four minutes from the finish took Marist-Western Suburbs to safety. Christchurch-Eastern Suburbs provided added incentive for the Gore Cup teams when it beat Addington—for the Desmond-Rogers Memorial Challenge Trophy cannot now be won by any of the major title contenders. It also slipped away from Kaiapoi in the struggle to avoid possible involvement in a promotion-relegation fixture next year. Rosanowski deservedly won his second “player of the week” award for his valuable contribution to Linwood’s success. The “player of the match” prize in the early game on the oval was awarded to P. T. Tainui (Christchurch-Eastern Suburbs). Results:— Linwood 14, Hornby 6. Christchurch - Eastern Suburbs 18, Addington 5. Marist-Western Suburbs 15, Kaiapoi 9. Papanui 26, Sydenham 12. Championship points (with Vivian Cup points in parenthesis) are:—

I Clever Kicks LINWOOD 14: R. G. Thorpe, M. E. Morgan tries; G. J. Ro- ; sanowski two goals, two field goals. HORNBY 6: T. Williams two goals; B. Houston field goal. Linwood gave a proficient display in the miserable conditions. Its strong cover-defence resisted Hornby’s initial chali lenge and remained a force ' throughout the game. Linwood prospered from G. J. Rosanowski’s kicking and the 27-10 • scrum domination won by J. A. Flanagan. In the first 20 minutes Hornby’s semi-final hopes were brightened by a most promising start. It took the lead when B. Houston kicked a field goal after only five minutes and made several probes deep into Linwood’s territory. However, Linwood slowly began to take command and a break by M. E. Morgan 18 minutes before the interval turned the trend of the game decisively in Linwood’s favour. Morgan avoided several opponents with deceptive foot-work before releasing possession to the supporting R. G. Thorpe who dived across to score. Although Linwood often used only a five-man scrum formation, Flanagan was already beginning to control the scrum fortunes and the Hornby players tired noticeably on defence as the interval approached. The second complete break in Hornby’s cover was made by the strong-running B. Odgers who joined in from full-back to send Morgan over the try-line. After half-time Flanagan heeled the ball from 18 of the 23 scrums. Linwood’s intentions became clear very quickly as Rosanowski forced Hornby back inside its own territory with his precise line-kicking, the stand-off half choosing to pass to his three-quarters only when in the most favourable positions. Hornby came close to breaching Linwood’s defence twice in this spell, when Houston was held up over the goal-line and then when a wild pass by R. E. Pomare went out of the reach of an unmarked defender, but generally Hornby was given little time to use its meagre ration of possession. Flanagan and Rosanowski were the guiding hands in Linwood’s victory. Notable contributions were made by J. G. Greengrass, Thorpe and B. V. Williams in the forwards, Odgers and Morgan being prominent in the back-line. The Hornby pack made hardly any impression on the match. B. Jager and T. Williams impressed most among the backs. Referee: Mr G. Gibson. Narrow Win MARIST-WESTERH SUBURBS IS: M. P. Brereton two, R. Kouka tries; M. W. J. O’Donnell three goals. KAIAPOI f: J. H. Fonotea try; I. Stark three goals. \ Employment commitments prevented M. P. Brereton from taking his place in the MaristWestern Suburbs centres in the first half but he quickly claimed the spectators’ attention when he replaced the injured W. D. Beri with the scores tied a 7-7 at the interval. His two tries were scored under similar circumstances. Marist-Western Suburbs had worked to a position near Kaiapoi’s 25-yard line, the ball was quickly relayed to the threequarters and Brereton ran powerfully to break past and away from the defence to touch down near the corner. The match was disjointed but

interest never deminished because of the closeness of the scores and the possibility of Kaiapoi causing an upset. Players of both teams continually lost possession—by dropping the ball when tackled, handling with uncertainty, or parsing wildly. This- prevented either side from setting up attacking movements with any confidence and was responsible for the fluctuating territorial advantage. Apart from Brereton, the prominent individual player was the young Kaiapoi forward, M. Fuller. He ran with authority when taking the ball from his props, N. Smith and J. H. Fonotea, but his ability to evade the Marist-Western Suburbs defence did not receive the support from his team-mates that it deserved.

M. W. J. O’Donnell was most effective at taking Kaiapoi's kicks ahead with precision at full-back for Marist-Western Suburbs. The Kaiapoi centre, I. Dickson, usually beat two or three tackles before being cornered. Referee: Mr T. Drake. Quick Success PAPANUI 29: p. Blackler two, N. Geddes, S. Dunn, K. Wakelin, H. K. Butler tries; Butler four goals, SYDENHAM 12: B. S. Tatnall, R. Andrews tries: R. G. Scoringe three goals. Papanui dominated the early stages of both halves and built a sufficiently large lead to coast home a comfortable winner. Thirteen points were scored in the first 12 minutes, but this margin was cut to 13-7 at half” time.

Then Papanui quickly regained the initiative with a try by S. Dunn and drew away from Sydenham until R. Andrews scored the final try of the match just before full-time.

There was much scrappy play, both teams finding the slippery surface and greasy ball difficult to handle with any confidence. Papanui was more positive in its attempts to attack and was rewarded with six tries. N. A. Geddes, the Papanui centre, scored his fifteenth touch-down of the season to draw level with the Addington wing, E. Brown, as the leading individual try-scorer in the competition. Referee: Mr M. Towart. Surprise Result EASTERN U: K. Wlnika. B. Ross, G. R. Cooksley, J. C. P. Hawthorne tries; Hawthorne two goals; P. Brown field goal. ADDINGTON S: A. Ratu try; G. H. Teaho goal. Throughout the season. Eastern has impressed as a team containing a great deal of Individual talent. Unfortunately, an unusual number of defections at crucial times has prevented it from realising its considerable potential. Nevertheless, for the second successive occasion, a confident and capable Eastern XIII has deservedly defeated a more highly rated side. Admittedly. Addington was not at full strength, but this does not detract from the clever, entertaining football provided by the victors. Throughout the match, Eastern showed impressive form. Precise handling and passing, enthusiastic support for the ball-carrier, and sound positioning on defence laid the foundation for a praiseworthy team effort. The most decisive period in the game was the first 12 minutes, in which Eastern scored two excellent tries. The movement which culminated in Winika's try deserves special commendation, for it involved at least 12 pairs of hands and

65 yards ot territory before the final transfer. Cooksley’s Solo try after 25 minutes allowed Eastern to lead, 15-0, at the interval. The Eastern forwards adapted well to the slippery conditions and outplayed their opponents in spite of losing the battle for scrum possession. The vigorous Alan Rushton again provided sterling leAderihlp. P. T. Talnui’s consistent defence and initiative on attaok meant touch to his team, and K. Wlnika and P. Brown were always industrious. The halves. Tony Rushton and Cooksley. gave good service to a competent Eastern back line which combined effectively and frequently showed impressive penetration. T. Williams, Hawthorne and B. Ross were always reliable and energetic. A rearranged Addington team rarely functioned cohesively nor did it threaten to take control at any stage. In spite of the persistent efforts of R. M. Cotter, the captain, E. Brown, the wing, and the consistent G. H. Teaho. at full-back. Addington remained an 111-co-ordinated and listless team. Referee: Mr G. Franklin.

W L D For Agst Pts Pap .. 17 3 0 437 218 34 (22) Lin .. 15 5 0 392 226 30 (22) Add .. 12 8 0 453 310 24 (14) Mar - WS 11 9 0 340 337 22 (14) Horn .. 9 10 1 347 299 19 (11)

Syd . 5 14 1 268 465 11 (7) Easts . 5 14 1 275 536 11 (6) Kaia . 4 15 1 234 355 9 (5)