MARIST FORWARDS END LONG LEAGUE CAREERS

Press, Volume CXII, Issue 33032, 27 September 1972, Page 12

MARIST FORWARDS END LONG LEAGUE CAREERS

(By

J. O. COFFEY)

The two Rug-by league players who crowds in Canterbury most love to hate, N. P. Beri and R. J. A. MacKenzie, probably made their final official appearances for MaristWestern Suburbs in the championship grand final against Papanui at the Show Grounds on Sunday. After the match—won by Papanui, 27-9 —Beri and

MacKenzie announced their retirements, closing premier grade careers which begun more than a decade ago. Their robust styles of forward play regularly drew very loud reactions from spectators, ranging from cheers when they were representing Canterbury to booing and abuse when wearing their club’s colours. Although some of their deeds could certainly not be condoned and each incurred suspensions from judicial committees, there is no

doubt that they had the rare quality which made them personalities in their code.

Beri had only one season in this province, but it was a most eventful asociation. He captained and assisted Mr D. L. Blanchard to coach Marist to victory in the minor premiership and to reach its third grand final in four years.

In doing so, Beri’s tactics were often criticised for being too robust. His attitude towards referees was a topic of discussion at a number of meetings of the Canterbury board of control and contributed towards the severity of the six-week penalty that he received when sent from the field during a club match. The love-hate relationship —depending on where one’s allallegiance lay—between Beri, MacKenzie and the crowd tended to mask the fact that both were very effective forwards, and were close to taking the final step to international honours. Beri first packed down in the Wellington scrum as a teen-ager, made four appearances for Southern Zone and was a final trialist in

1968. The following year he joined the Newcastle (New South Wales) club, Western Suburbs, for three seasons before transferring to Christchurch. He was also an able goalkicker, setting a club record of 208 points for Miramar in Wellington in 1964. The combination of Beri’s strength and the swiftness of C. E. O’Neil’s hooking was invaluable to Wellington and was a major factor in many wins in inter-pro-vincial fixtures. Two years ago MacKenzie came strongly into World Cup calculations when he

played seven times for Canterbury and was included in the Wellington Invitation XIII which met the British tourists. O’Neil, then the first-choice New Zealand hooker, held MacKenzie in high regard as an opponent, but it was W. J. E. Burgoyne (Auckland) who travelled to England as O’Neil’s understudy. MacKenzie and Beri have stepped down to make way for younger players. Some of their critics will be pleased at their departures, although Saturday afternoons at the Show Grounds next season will surely be less interesting because of their absence.