Leading rugby teams have wins

Press, 29 May 1978, Page 17

Leading rugby teams have wins

The strain of leading thei senior rugby competition is beginning to show on Christchurch and University' A. Both sides gained their eighth consecutive wins ini the C.S.B. Cup contest on I Saturday, but there was not' a great deal in their performances to gladden the hearts of their supporters. Christchurch, indeed, won: by only a point from Shirley' in a tedious game at Rugby l Park, while University took; some time to work up the: right amount of concentration to beat the fourteenth-, placed team, Hornby. At I half-time University had been in the shaky position' of trailing, 7-10. The third team on the; points ladder, Marist, main-i

tained its position, just one point off the pace, by beating University B with a five-try effort. Bernie Stewart kicked 16 points for Marist, and with his principal rival, Richard Wilson, away in Brisbane, he now has a clear lead at the head of the individual scorers’ list. Stewart has 83 points to Wilson’s 66. The best finish of the day occurred at Lancaster Park Oval, where Old Boys narrowly failed in a last-minute bid to beat New Brighton. Gary Cookson brought Old Boys to within a point of New Brighton’s score when he scored a try from the final scrum. But his attempted conversion, taken from a difficult position, drifted outside the left-hand

upright. Cookson collapsed on the turf in anguish, but was quickly assisted to his feet by friend and foe alike, all congratulating him on a good game and a bold attempt to snatch victory for his side. The Old Boys first five-eighths scored all his side’s points, his other try coming through quick thinking when a speculator by Bruce McPhail struck a goal post and rebounded.

As a result of this game, New Brighton, Old Boys, Albion, and Belfast are equal fifth on the points table. Just ahead of them is Linwood, which beat Lincoln College with a mixture of dropped goals and penalty goals. The Albion forwards were! in great form on their home ground, Middleton Park, and they laid the foundation for an impressive 26-0 victory over Sydenham. This was the biggest defeat Sydenham has suffered this season — and it has grappled with most of the top sides. Belfast had little to spare from Burnside in a bright, entertaining match in which the standard of tackling was noticeably high. And Meri-vale-Papanui, by gaining a draw with Suburbs, won its first competition point of the season. This was bad news for University B, which is left on its own at the bottom of the table. Both matches at Rugby Park suggested there is a pressing need for a mid-sea-son refresher course on ball skills and the early match, between Merivale and Suburbs, was even less attractive because of the ill-tem-pered nature of much of the play, and the occasional outbursts of fisticuffs. Results were:— New Brighton 11, Old Boys 10. Christchurch 7, Shirley 6. University A 35, Hornby 10. Linwood 16, Lincoln College 6. Marist 36, University B 7. Belfast 10, Burnside 7.

Merivale-Papanui 3, I Suburbs 3. Albion 26, Sydenham 0.

DRAMATIC FINISH The fair-haired Old Boys first five-eighths, Gary Cookson, ex- * perienced the agony and the ecstacy of rugby, in reverse order, in the final minute of the match against New Brighton at Lancaster Park oval.

Packing in the scrum as an extra loose forward, Cookson scored a try after Old Boys had heaved New Brighton back across the goal line to cap seven minutes of sustained pressure. That left Old Boys one point behind, and Cookson was entrusted with the all-important conversion attempt. It was a difficult kick as the angle was wide and Cookson was looking into the setting sun. He struck the ball well. but it passed just outside the left-hand upright—and the seasiders danced with delight. New Brighton would have been desperately unlucky to lose, because it played sounder and more constructive football, displaying greater reliability in its use of the ball. The forwards formed a more cohesive unit than their rivals, producing clean second phase ball by mauling well, and embarrassing Old Boys with four or five telling eightmen shoves at the scrum. In addition. Bob Davison took six tight heads to two. But Old Boys kept their chances alive by dominating line-

out possession, 18-6, with Gary Fuller and Alan Croad making several clean catches. New Brighton relied greatly on Graeme Ellis, the sharp moving half-back to direct the attacking thrusts, and Wayne Burleigh and Ross Gibson made telling runs in an enterprising backline. Old Boys had some initial passing failures through faulty communication and looked to Cookson’s punting to carry them through. But Dave Bowick showed excellent anticipation and wonderfully safe hands for New Brighton. Later in the game Old Boys recovered their poise, with Clive Currie making the extra man in

the attacking line. In the final eight minutes the team attacked New Brighton’s line with furious intent, but thrust after thrust was met by solid tackling from the loose forwards and inside backs. John Te Amo played his usual industrious game in leading New Brighton, and he had sound supnoH frnm the former captain. Jeff Wilkins, who was making his first appearance of the season. NARROW ESCAPE Christchurch bad another of Its narrow escapes when it beat Shirley by seven points to six. with a scoreless second half, in the main match at Rugby Park. Shirley looked capable of causing a major upset when it broke a protracted siege half-way through the second spell. Even in the last minute, it launched a spectacular and well contrived

attack from a free kick on Its own line, which had Christchurch in desperate defence. But it was a very dull game indeed, with only the closeness of the scores and the prospect of a top team being toppled to keep interest alive. There was much dreadfully directed passing, and good ones were dropped or knocked on regularly. The tactical kicking often did not deserve the name. And there were moments of almost comic indecision by players on both sides. Shirley had more reason to be pleased with its play than Christchurch, which looked like the ugly sister of the team at its best. Shirley achieved parity in the line-outs where Christchurch missed Peter Coleman, it had more possession from scrums, where Gary Taylor winkled three tight-heads away from Mick Powley and conceded only one. Only in the second half was a more assertive Christchurch pack able to control the rucks and mauls. There were 28 free kicks or penalties, to slow the game further. Frank Jack, first five-eighths for Shirley, made a strong burst or two early in the match but the backs seldom clicked. Although Robert KilwortKmade the bost of his opportunities in broken play—a superb bit of foot control nearlv brought him a try late in the game—he was under severe pressure from Tony Penny. Hi? clearing of the ball was simplified two or three times through the simple expedient of some Shirley forward wrapping up Penny’s ankles. In a lively Shirley pack, which played to the end with commendable spirit. Roger Smith gave a good lead and he won some very good ball nean the back of the line-out. Among his other attributes. Brendan Dooley showed an ability to punt for touch denied his fellows on both sides. Mark Treweek playing at No. 8 for Christchurch was as large and assertive as ever but the three P’s of the front row—the brother Porter and Powley—had their hands full with Shirley’s scrummagers. Penny had a very unhappy day. doing some dreadful things and often being quite out of communication with his first fiveeighths Barry Thomas. Graham Sims made an interesting debut for the club. He had few chances, but still looked to be a very good player. BRILLIANT PACK Albion's pack acted as though it had been granted the freedom of Middleton Park when it produced an awesome display of forwards power against a disappointing Sydenham side. It took Albion nearly 30min to score its first points, but Murray Davies scored his second try only a matter of smin. later, and a 9min. burst in the second spell produced another three tries. The Albion backs were not particularly impressive—the second five-eighths. lan Barr, apart—and four of the five tries were actually scored by the forwards who sustained their fire for the full 80 min. Sydenham’s backs, on the other hand, passed more quickly and more crisply and consequently looked more dangerous than their counterparts, who were often pushed towards the side-line. But they had so few opportunities that their abilities were as productive as seeds on stony ground. Driving forward play saw Albion at its best with Davie, the tight-head prop, exhibiting great, potential with his determined dashes, demoniac tackling and useful work at the front of the line-out. The loose forward

mv v/x. juutiaj KJLxaigixv, xuviiaxu Hawkes (until he went off injured with 15min left) and Peter Sutherland had many moments of outstanding play, with Straight, Sutherland and Mike Eagle impressing in the line-outs. There was some fine tackling by the Sydenham backs, except when they let Barr through, but the team found Straight in particular very hard to stop. As one spectator said, the tall Albion No. 8 "lives up to his name by running straight and kicking straight.” For Sydenham, Wayne Tinker generally did as well as could be expected behind a demoralised pack that offered him inadequate protection and lie passed long and accurately as well as indulging in accurate little kicks over the top. There was some occasional good line-out play by the veteran, Roger Higgs, and Alan Duffin, but on the whole the Sydenham forwards seemed to have little idea of their purpose in being on the field. Once, with a ball loose a metre or two from his own line, the No. 8. Trevor Luke, stood and looked at it for several seconds. Both teams showed at least one instance of an unpredictable move that all but worked. Tinker was the recipient of one long throw round the back of a short line-out nad Davie was the king pin for one fine piece of deception from a tap penalty. KICKS COUNT A tight defence and greater control of the loose ball plus accurate goal kicking gave Linwood victory over an enthusiastic but inexperienced Lincoln College. The try count was one-all, but Linwood had the accurate place kicking of Robert Johns and the dropped goals of Dennis Andrews and Bruce Hanham to thank for the win. Linwood played with the wind and had much the better of the first spell, camping in Lincoln territory for long periods. The accurate kicking gave the side nine points in as many minutes and robust forward play assured a regular supply of possession. A tenacious Lincoln defence kept the line intact and the many assaults succeeded only in the final minutes of the spell when Wayne Underhay scored from a scramble on tlie line. The second spell was even with Lincoln’s main supply of the ball coming from the consistent efforts of Andy Hollander and Evan Lane in line-outs. But the backs were unable to turn this to account through poor

(handling and ill-judged running. The Linwood backs were an even lot. They tackled and covered consistently and the inside combination of Graham Parratt and Dennis Andrews played well. The forwards had the edge in the tight and loose with lan Mallard always prominent in the open and Bryce Parratt working solidly in all phases. Brett Codlin was a capable full-back for Lincoln, but could not find goal kicking form, and Mike McCurdy made the most of his few opportunities at wing. LIVELY GAME "Rugby was the winner" has become one of the worst cliches in the game, but It was worth one more airing after an invigorating Lancaster Park match between Belfast and Burnside on Saturday. Both teams contributed fully to a free-flowing match, packed with vigorous attacking and splendid tackling. Indeed, the quality of the defence was so high that only two tries were scored, but there was no lack of enthusiasm for moving the ball purposefully. Belfast gained an edge over its rival through achieving greater order among the forwards in massing at the breakdown. The ball was smuggled back through the maul and delivered with loving care to Teddy Davis, the lively half-back, who cooked up most of Belfast’s moves. Apart from Davis and Wayne Nutbrown, the Belfast backs were kept in check, but Andy Karatea, the big flanker who filled in at No. 8, made many powerful surges, and Tony Burrows also ran hard and straight. Gary Richards and Tim Ashworth were at the core of a pack which won good second phase ball. The first five-eighths, John Lindsay, exhibited cool control for Burnside, and the sharpest attackers in a mobile team were Stuart Albrey and Paul McKay’. There were also two startling charges by the burly prop, Ron Grossi, which caused dismay to ail in his path. Burnside led until 12min into the second half, but had to defend desperately in the last quarter. Belfast, with a big territorial advantage, made numerous attempts to cross the goal-line in this period but was held out by a tenacious defence, in which Bruce Grantham distinguished himself. DREADFUL GAME Merivale-Papanui won Its first competition point of the season, and was a little unlucky

not to do better than draw with Suburbs. But it was not among the season's more memorable matches.

It was a dreadful game to watch, because of the regularity with which the ball was mishandled. the lack of pace and penetration of both sets of backs, and the stream o£ penalties, many of them for head-high or late tackles. And there was an unseemly brawl soon after half-time in which seven or eight players were involved. Even the goal-kicking was second-rate. Gary Shearer kicked one penalty goal in seven attempts, Graham Northage one in four. Merivale-Papanui. after a slow start, found some drive in its forwards, and on the run of play, it was unlucky not to win for the first time this winter. But it was all whistle, in the second half, and lhe referee could certainly not be blamed. There were “21 penalties in the spell, 31 in the match. Doug McLeod was sturdy on defence for Merivale. and although as a wing his chances were limited, he ran strongly on a couple of occasions. Lisote Tutallo made two or three very determined bursts and Bruce Stewart gave accurate service at half-back. The best player on the field was the Merivale No. 8, Steve Barnden, who inspired his pack with his quick reactions, his resolute running, and capable distribution. lan Culpan played solidly at lock. For Suburbs, Wally Argus gave the game an occasional touch of quality. Warren Hay was a good forward leader and Mike Cron, making his first senior appearance this season, had some good moments. FLATTERED In a fast moving match on the Ham field, Marist overcame a determined first-half effort by University B to win by 29 points. But although it scored five tries to one, Marist was a little flattered by the margin. There was an even struggle for possession in the first half, although neither side gained much of value from the lineouts. The tackling of both sides left a lot to be desired. The University first fiveeighths, Philip Holstein, made valuable ground with some jinking runs, but he was denied some hard won possession from set play because of erratic passing by Hiroshi Yamashita, the half-back. However, Yamashita

troubled Marist with his kicks "over the top.” The best of the University players were Neville Brown, the full-back, and Rob Brassel. the hooker. Brown was rarely caught out of position by Marist’s probing kicks and his line kicking was usually sound. In the second half the more experienced Marist forwards gained the upper hand in the tight, with Terry Petersen making his mark. In the line-outs, Kevin O’Gorman was prominent. Bernie Stewart and Garry Hooper gave notable displays in the Marist backs. Stewart kicked for goal with his customary efficiency, and slipped the defence a few times in the second half. SECOND-HALF REVIVAL For a time It looked as though a dream had come true for Hornby, but once University A got organised there was little that Hornby could do to stop the flow of points. For the first quarter Hornby could do little wrong Some fiery and aggressive play kept the students under continual pressure, and, coupled with their opponents complete disarray brought Hornby two tries in rapid succession. Once the change came however, Hornby was caught very much beneath an avalanche. The students transformed themselves up front, relentlessly pressuring a weakening opposition. In this department Hornby could not match the aggressive power and cohesion of their opposites. In the backs a similar pattern followed; here Hornby gave University A far too much liberty. Bill Anderson has the ability to be a fine crash tackler, but this was revealed only fleetingly on Saturday. All too often he and his colleagues held back, waiting for the arrival of the talented and speedy backline that they were up against. Nonetheless, any side deserves credit for going 10 points up against University A, and Hornby owe much to the effort of Graham Gossett who won a great deal of clean line-out ball, and Gary Cook who managed to secure a number of valuable tight-heads. For University A, the goalkicking of Doug Heffernan was impeccable, while Craig Shearer showed he has lost none of his attacking abilities. In the forwards John Edmondson led by example, transforming a losing pack into an unbeatable one.

Points are:— D F A Pts W L Univ. A 8 0 0 146 61 16 Chch 8 0 0 130 60 16 Marist 7 0 1 180 51 15 Linwood 6 2 0 134 70 12 H.S.O.B. 5 3 0 117 78 10 Albion 5 3 0 100 83 10 New Bri. 5 3 0 79 64 10 Belfast 5 3 0 103 76 10 Shirley 4 4 0 71 60 8 Subs 2 5 1 71 79 5 Syd. 2 6 0 85 132 4 Line. Coll. 2 6 0 50 89 4 Burn. 1 5 2 46 91 4 Hornby 1 6 1 50 160 3 Mer.-Pap, 0 7 1 31 129 1 Univ. B 0 8 0 42 172 0