University A's Rugby dedine

Press, Volume CXI, Issue 32661, 17 July 1971, Page 14

University A's Rugby dedine

(By

K. J. McMENAMIN)

The failure of last season’s Harewood Trophy winner, University A, to finish in the top eight and so have a chance of retaining the trophy was an astonishing feature of the D.C.L. Shield senior Rugby

competition which was completed last Saturday. University sides are susceptible to seasonal fluctuations in form because of the very nature of' the teams, but the A team fielded this year was not greatly different to last year’s.

Representative commitments made some inroads into its strength and with a B side also in the senior grade the losses were perhaps more heavily felt than among other teams deprived of their leading players.

However, the fact is inescapable that so far this season University A has been disappointing and its embarrassment would not be lessened by seeing University B gain a place in the top eight teams which can now set their sights on winning the Harewood Trophy. University A met Christchurch, with which it drew 11-11 in last season’s Harewood Trophy grand final, in the first round this season, and although beaten 6-3 gave no hint to the lowly placing it would finally fill. Victories in four of its next five games—three being by big margins—maintained the belief that University A would once again be a leading contender for the major prizes. But then the rot set in and University A’s competition points never budged from four during the remaining seven rounds. However, not once in these seven losses was it beaten by more than six points and three times the difference in the scores was a single point. Besides University A, the only other team from last year’s top eight not to make the group again this year is Suburbs. The two which have moved up the ladder are Sydenham and High School Old Boys.

Suburbs was a side of varying moods, the bad ones usually coinciding' with the absence of its star backs, W. D. Cottrell and L. J. Davis. It will now endeavour to regain some lost prestige by winning the Challenge Shield, but University A will have . similar thoughts and Albion and Belfast should also ensure that this competition is keenly contested. Sydenham served notice that it was a young side, apart from its veteran front- ‘ row, on the way to bigger things when it played its best Rugby for a long time last winter and won the Challenge Shield. This year the improvement has continued and judging by its form on occasions to finish sixth in the D.C.L. Shield series, might be destined to attain even greater heights. Although University A’s fall from grace upset preseason assessments it is no . surprise that the top four' teams in the D.C.L. Shield competition are Linwood, ' Lincoln College. Christchurch and New Brighton. There can be little doubt that Linwood and Lincoln College deserved to share top placing as they were clearly the two bestequipped sides. Both lost one game (Linwood to University B and Lincoln College to Linwood) and; both drew with Nr ( Brighton.