Battle of the underdogs

Press, 7 August 1976, Page 52

Battle of the underdogs

By

JOHN BROOKS

A rugby championship match without a favourite —that is what Christchurch and University A would have spectators believe when the Canterbury Savings Bank Trophy grand final is contested at Lancaster Park oval tomorrow afternoon.

The rival teams are approaching the game in a state of extreme modesty. Both are seeking the psychological advantage of being regarded as the underdog.

“Christchurch has a remarkable record — it has proved that it is a team for the big occasion, and it has flair,” said Mr Laurie O’Reilly, joint coach of the University side. “In addition it has a big institution behind it — the Christchurch Football Club. “No-one picked us to reach the final at the start of the season.”

Mr Ruk Wainohu, the Christchurch coach, said

Linwood was entitled tc favouritism originally, but University had taken over that mantle on the strength of its impressive win in the major semi-final. “We have examined their play, and have detected a couple of weak spots — but that is not many for a senior team,” he said. “I believe that University is getting back to the great strength its sides had in the 19605.

f, We will have to score 18 to 20 points to win. That will be our aim — to get as many points on the board as possible, because there is no doubt that University will be scoring well.” The stage is set for an absorbing encounter, as the teams drew, 13-all, during the qualifying rounds. But University has dropped only one game this season, to Old Boys, whereas Christchurch has been beaten three times. “To be honest, we didn’t expect to do so well,” Mr Wainohu admitted. “We just scraped into the top four, but we played much bettei against Old Boys because we had nothing to lose.” He is apprehensive about 'University, becauao of the

isize of its forwards and their ability to cut errors to a minimum. “If we can force their big men on the run we might have a chance to break down their pattern. Whether the wet weather will bring them down is uncertain; after all, they did run up a big score against Burnside in the wet.” Mr O’Reilly said he was pleased with the style of

rugby produced by University, and gratified with the results. “I think we have done what we set out to achieve,” he said. “Even though we might not win, to have reached the final justified the effort the boys have put into their football. They have trained very hard. “We have worked on basic skills, and this paid off in the Linwood match. We didn’t really make a mistake that day. We played positive rugby, but eliminated errors.” University will be at full strength for the grand final, but Christchurch has lost the services of its big loose forward, Mark Treweek, who tore ligaments in a knee in

a game between Army and Police at the services’ tournament last week. Mr Wainohu will be looking for strong defence from his players — “they tackled like demons against Old Boys” — a plentiful supply of ball for the wings, Scott Cartwright and Bruce Cochrane, and a top performance by the full-back, Richard Wilson.

“If Richard has a game out of the box, we could pull this match off,’ 2 he said. “But if University unsettles him we could be in trouble. “He has won the last two games for us; his positional play and line kicking have been excellent.”

University should obtain a greater amount of possession than its rival, and if Kevin Jennings, the first five-eighths, is on his game the side’s great scoring strength in the three-quar-ters should be utilized

Regardless of the result, the match promises to provide a fitting climax to the club season. Both teams play hard, clean football and have well-earned reputations for moving the ball swiftly and purposefully.