NATIONAL HOCKEY Canterbury is still unbeaten

Press, Volume CXV, Issue 33934, 29 August 1975, Page 20

NATIONAL HOCKEY Canterbury is still unbeaten

(From KEVIN TIITTY) Canterbury retained its unbeaten record at the Rothmans national men's hoekey tournament at Hamilton yesterday with a 1-0 win over Wanganui and will today meet Wellington in a semi-final of the Challenge Shield section.

Canterbury won pool B. scoring 20 goals and conceding only one in four matches and must be favoured to win a place in the final. It has beaten Wellington twice this season, 5-1 and 8-1.

Auckland won pool A when it beat Otago 3-0 yesterday, and it too, had four wins. It will play Northland in the other semifinal.

Canterbury’s win against Wanganui was hard earned in more senses than one. Wanganui provided strong opposition with some effervescent play in the first half, but some members of the side spoilt a good display with blatant foul play.

PLAYER BARGED John Christensen, Canterbury’s inside-right was barged and hit several times by the Wanganui left-back, Noel Adams, whose chief purpose it seemed, was to put Christensen but of the match. Several of these incidents j happened within a few yards of one of the umpires. Mr P. O’Carroll, but it was not until the umpire at the other end, Mr I. Gurney, intervened, that the over-zealous play was halted. Christensen’s legacy from |the match was a bruised thumb, calf, and shin. Other j members of the Canterbury (team were also sporting bruises to add to a number they have received during the week. For the first 10 minutes Wanganui had the better of the match. Canterbury’s trapping was poor because it could not adapt to the bumpy ground, while Wanganui was able to trap the ball and make good progress up the right flank. But for the final three-quarters of

I the match Canterbury dominated. It was awarded eight pen-alty-corners in the first half and four in second, but was I only able to score from the last. The bumpy ground made hand stopping hazardous and only four of the corners were stopped cleanly. Canterbury scored against the run of play after seven minutes when Christensen picked up a rebound from )the goal-keeper’s pads. It was three minutes into the second half before Canterbury scored its second goal. Selwyn Maister netted i from a penalty-stroke after his brother, Barry, had his stick held as he attempted a shot at goal. Canterbury continued to :bumble along, missing traps and passes. But it was not until the twenty-ninth and thirty-first minutes of the second half that the last two Igoals were scored. The first was a penaltycorner by Tony Ineson, and the second by Thone Borren who picked up a Barry Maister shot that rebounded from a post. OUTSTANDING Selwyn Maister was the outstanding Canterbury player. I Ineson and Neil Coster, I the Canterbury full-backs, covered and tackled diligently, and Paul Ackerley, ;at right-half, had much of his good passing spoilt by the bad trapping.

Ashburton caused a surprise when it held Wellington to a 1-all draw. Wellington led for some time with a goal by Allan Mclntyre, and then Ashburton equalised with a penalty-stroke by David Bennett.

South Canterbury lost, 0-2, to Northland in its last pool game, but it gave the North Island side a shock. It was only in the last few minutes that the goals were scored.

Results of Rothmans Cup matches:

Horowhenua 5, Central King Country 4; Wairarapa 6, Piako 3; West Coast 3, Poverty Bay 1; Hamilton B 2, Army 2; Southland 3, Rotorua 1; Tauranga 0, Nelson 0; Taranaki 1, Air Force 1; Hutt Valley 2. Marlborough 0.

Chess. — Anatolv Karpov (Russia) led in the 12 grandmasters tournament after beating Svetozar Gligoric (Yugoslavia) in their sixth-round game. Another Yugoslav, Ljubomir Ljubojevic, is in second place after the adjournment of his game against Smejkal (Czechoslovakia).

Squash.—The New Zealand women’s squash team beat a Rhodesian invitation squad, 4-nll, at Johannesburg. The New Zealand No. 1. Pam Buckingham, was the only New Zealand player to lose a set.