NINETEEN SUCCESSIVE WINS Papanui league coach turns attention to Thacker Shield

Press, 18 September 1976, Page 16

NINETEEN SUCCESSIVE WINS Papanui league coach turns attention to Thacker Shield

By

JOHN COFFEY

Rod Walker, the guiding hand behind Papanui s capture of the major Canterbury rugby league club trophies this year, was no more than “a wee

bit worried" when his team was beaten in three ' consecutive matches during the preliminary competition in April. He was aware that the Tigers had sufficient skills and depth to regain the chamipionship title that had been taken from it by Christchurch-Eastern Suburbs last season, and had confidence that Papanui would realise its potential when it had shaken off a nagging series of injuries. Once the premiership was under way. Walker’s faith in his squad was completely vindicated. Marist-Western Suburbs was humbled in the first round and Papanui’s triumphant march continued for another 18 matches, the most recent of them the 25-9 win over Eastern in the grand final vn Sunday. “We were more or less finding our feet and getting to know each other again at the start,” Walker said. “Much of the training was concentrated on reaching full fitness, and more emphasis was then placed on the basic fundamentals. "When we began to win games, (here was an easing off to prevent attaining a peak too early in the season. It was a matter of keeping to a certain level so that we did not lapse, and the final phase was to build up to the championship play-offs.” There was never any doubt in Walker’s mind that Eastern would be Papanui’s sternest rival — “like us, Eastern has no obvious weaknesses and it had fired very impressively last year.” Although Papanui’s decisive victory in the grand final was largely achieved in the forwards, the team had not taken the field with any pre-planned intention of keeping the scene of action close to the play-the-balls.

"The forwards we have are not very big, but they are all heady players and that makes a big difference. W’e concentrated on backing up the man in possession, as we had done all season, and to have a purposeful defence. Once the tackling is sure, the attacking aspect comes naturally, as the profes-

sional Australian sides have proved,” Walker said.

He was generous in his appraisal of Eastern’s performance, which must have been disappointing in the eyes of its supporters who still had fond memories of the 27-2 winning result achieved in the corresponding encounter 12 months earlier.

“Eastern did not really come up to expectations on Sunday, especially when Alan Rushton had to retire with an injury. Terry Gillman, the other prop, was obviously tired after his match for a New Zealand XIII in the mud at Carlaw Park the previous day: he was still running at the end, but not with the same force,” Walker said.

In commenting on Papanui’s regaining of the Pat Smith Challenge Trophy — which it had held from 1971 until Eastern interrupted its run last season — W’alker had special mention for the four players who had not been in the squad in 1975. “Eddie Kerrigan’s return after his knee injury made

a major impact on the back-line. His setting of a try-scoring record supports that; Grant Findlay was a great asset in the pack, and he used his football brains to good effect; the tremendous effort made by David Field, who was not a good trainer in the lower grades, proved just how promising he is; and Graham Waite was a solid player on the wing when injuries prevented him from consolidating a place in the forwards.” Walker also praised the contribution of Kerrigan’s centre partner, Gary Taie, who was quite outstanding in the grand final and earned his promotion to the South Island squad for the match against Sydney at the Show Grounds this afternoon. For some time other clubs have approached fixtures against Papanui with the thought that the cancelling of Walker’s ball distribution was all that stood between them and victory. No so this year, with Findlay, Mike Godinet and Kevin Walker also proving how adept they were in releasing the bail

when tackled, and Rod Walker has appreciated the comparative freedom allowed him in other aspects of play.

There are no hints of retirements within the present premier squad and, if anything, Walker believes that the depth will be bolstered by the addition of one or two members of the cham-pionship-winning 19-years team. With the 17-years side also having won its grade, Papanui has the potential to remain at or near the top for the next decade at least.

Surprisingly, in the light of his success in only his second season at tne helm, Walker is still in two minds about whether player-coaches have an advantage over their nonplaying counter-parts.

“I have sometimes wondered whether I have had too much on my plate, and my first year was often a bit of a burden. I am still not certain whether coaching has had any influence on my performances, but whether a coach plays or not, he should be running with

the squad,” Walker said.

Walker intends to consider his football future over the summer months. He said that he would “probably” apply for the coaching position with Papanui again, and there was “a chance” that he would be available for the Canterbury team. “I said when I dropped out of representative rugby league at the start of the 1975 season that I was not finished at that level and there is a possibility that I will be back next year.”

Until he stepped down, Walker had appeared in a record 44 successive matches for the province, many of them as captain. He had also had home tests for the Kiwis in 1969 and 1970 and travelled to the 1972 World Cup tournament in France. At 27 years of age, he has plenty of time to considerably extend his firstclass career.

But Walker’s next assignment is tb lift Papanui’s sights to the Thacker Shield challenge from the West Coast titleholder, Marist, at the Show Grounds tomorrow week. He does not know a great deal about the challenger, although he is well aware of the threat presented by the Kiwi second-row forward. Tony Coll, and the solidity of the other Marist forwards who have played for West Coast this year.