Belfast convincing in first round of D.C.L. matches

Press, 26 July 1976, Page 13

Belfast convincing in first round of D.C.L. matches

All the favoured teams | won their first round, matches in the D.C.L. Shield rugby series on Saturday. The hardest pressed was Shirley, which had to resort to an ancient deception to gain a late victon' against Albion. The most convincing winner was Belfast, which had the Canterbury lock, Dave Thompson, in outstanding form. He scored two tries in the 24-0 defeat of Bumside. Resu’ts were:— Belfast 24, Burnside 0. University B 13, Lincoln ColShirley 7, Albion 4. New Brighton 22. Hornby 4. Marist 14, Merivale-Papanui 4. Suburbs 14. Sydenham 3. TRICK PENALTY A dummy run without the ball from the base of the scrum by the Shirley halfback Steve Scott, gave his team a penalty which won the match against Albion five minutes from time. The game was evenly contested. but in the second spell the Albion backs began to show improved form and put Shirley under pressure. Had the Albion forwards been able to gain a greater share of K session the match could well e gone the other way, for the .Albion backs looked a sharper combination .han their opposites. Over all. the game was disappointing. with much scrappy plav. but the willingness of both teams to run the hall led to some bright moments. Steve Higginson was an able hooker for Shirley and showed up in the open. Graeme Pulley

| and Mark Young also played i 'well; from full-back. Lindsay | Thorn gave punch to an otherwise mediocre set of backs. The best of the Albion for- 1 wards were Mike Eagle and lan i Kennedv. Lou Wynyard was an i 1 enterprising and quick wing and ’ | Mike Dollan and Brent Harris were sharp and incisive run-| *| ners. BAD LAPSES Lincoln College started and Finished its match extremely well against University B but some bad lapses in between I cost it victory. ! University placed its best J rugby in the opening period of r the second half when it scored J 10 points in as many minutes, but numerous handling errors on both sides made this match a disappointment as a spectacle. University’s main strength lay in second phase play where the half-back, Derek Morrison, and the first five-eighths. Craig Sheard. continually exploited a defensive weakness close to the fringes. Sheard had a particularly good second half and his trv* was a brilliant individual : effort. Lincoln College had frequent ; opportunities to pull the game . out of the fire during the second half, but bad organisation and handling among the backs I undid the untiring efforts of its I pack. Apart from Shearer, the re- ! placement second five-eighths,, Steve Fitchett, was the best of! - the University backs. Fitchett! I tackled strongly and. as the r game progressed, made some ’ fine breaks in midfield. The Lincoln forwards played II extremely well, with a prop, f Mike Direen. setting the exI ample in the rucks and mauls, • particularly during the second II half. BACKS SUPERIOR In a scrappy match at Denton Oval, Marist won through I with a superior back-line. For i most of the game Marist was held in the forwards by the * Merivale-Papanui pack. I In the first half the match r was evenly poised. Because of

I some fine line-out jumping by i John Harwood and hard driving I bv Dennis Skipper and Don 1 Bailey, Merivale-Papanui enjoyed most of the possession in this period. All the Merivale-Papanui; I forwards were quick to the j ; loose ball Placing against the wind in the first half, it looked as [though Marist would be in for a tough uphill fight later. However this was not to be. After 10 minutes in the second half, i Harwood had to leave the field with a head injury and from that point, the Merivale forwards lost interest and drive. Subsequently, the Marist halfback. Adrian Young, received plenty « possession and was . rarely harrassed by the MerivalePapanui forwards. He delivered some long, accurate passes to his five-eighths. ' The Marist backs looked dangerous on attack in the sec1 ond half. They consistently ran I through some half-hearted i tackles and they looked particu- ’ larly dangerous when the full- ■ back. Brian McLean, came into ■ the attack. McLean created the 1 necessary overlaps to give his wings a clear run to the line. THOMPSON TO FORE Belfast's power, size and i strength in the forwards was too much for the mediocre Burnside team. Although Burnside gave a ■ better performance than in its ■ last two matches, it provided i no contest for a team of Belfast’s ability. It had no answer ‘ to Belfast’s bustling, short pass- ‘ ing rushes, while in the rucks and mauls it were always struggling to achieve parity. Tn the backs the battle was of a more even nature, although • the entry of Peter Sheehan into 1 Belfast’s back-line always made things hazardous for Burnside. The player of the day, however. was Belfast’s lock, Dave Thompson, whose strength and determination made him a fearsome opponent. HARD GOING New Brighton's fifth placing in the round-robin competition looked a little flattering when

it struggled hard to beat Hornby at Rawhiti Domfain. Hornby offered solid opposition in the forwards, and sound defence in the second and third quarters kept New 7 Brighton at bay. However, in spite of its diligence. Hornby lacked the ability to shape its moves to the best advantage, and two late tries took New Brighton to a comfortable win.

The home side rucked and mauled reliably, with the captain. Phillip Nixon, showing the way, and in the loose Bruce Gibson gave an industrious display. But although Graham Ellis was his usual perky self at half-back —he scored two tries to take his season’s tally to 11—the New Brighton back-line failed to make the expected headway. Hornby, down by 0-14 at halftime, showed plenty of spirit, with Robert Webster and Gavin McEwan playing vigorously in the forwards, and Neville Wilson, the half-back, often extracting his side from difficult situations. But New Brighton’s strength told, and in the last 15 minutes it scored two more tries. TENTH WIN Suburbs did not have matters all its own way when it achieved its tenth consecutive win, against Sydenham, at Sunnyside. Sydenham contested the forward plays with a will, and shut out Suburbs’ scoring efforts from set play. But Suburbs, with its more proficient forwards and faster backs, gradually took control, with two good tries by Ricky Allen from second phase moves giving it the advantage. Eddie Cutts and the brothers Cron. Stewart and Mike, showed out for Suburbs up front, and Phil Thomas, an able replacement for the All Black. Lyn Davis, at half-back, was always resourceful.

Malcolm Melhopt and Ralph Richards toiled strenuously in the tight for Sydenham, and the hardy 7 veterans. Maurice Pepper and Alan Dunlop, played capably under pressure.