Kiwis end tour with good win

Press, Volume CX, Issue 32459, 20 November 1970, Page 24

Kiwis end tour with good win

(From ALAN GRAHAM, N.Z.P.A. staff correspondent) AVIGNON. Scoring six tries to two, New Zealand beat France B, 28-14, in a bright game of Rugby league last night.

The team thus completed its eight-match tour of Europe with five wins and three losses. The manager (Mr C. R. Mountfo”d) said he was pleased with the progress made. “They were a young team when they left home, but they have learnt a lot, and they showed this by the way they fought back in the second half tonight after France had levelled at 12-all,” he said. The Kiwis, who led 12-3 at half-time, were shaken when the Frenchmen drew level after 10 minutes of the second half. But the scrumhalf, E. Carson, made his third great break of the night to put the Kiwis ahead, and from then on they did not look back, scoring three more tries. STRANGEST MATCH The team captain, F. R. Christian, said it was one of the strangest international games he had played in his 50 appearances for New Zealand, as the Frenchmen had rarely done the expected. Some of their moves with ball in hand and their backing up were better than those of the senior team last Sunday. But their defence was never as good, and Carson and the full-back, L. Graham, were able to make some excellent breaks to set up a try. GREENGRASS EXCELS When Christian scored .the Kiwis second try he had two men unmarked outside him—and that had not happened before on this tour. The prop, J. Greengrass,

showed how he has developed on this tour into a fully - fledged' international, and there was more good play in the forwards from the hooker, C. E. O’Neil, and the big second row forward, E. Heatley. W. G. Deacon scored his first try of the tour and kicked five goals from eight attempts, making him the top points scorer for the tour with 23. The Kiwis leave France today and will be back in New Zealand on Monday.