Wallaby trouncing highlights test shortcomings

Press, 14 August 1978, Page 28

Wallaby trouncing highlights test shortcomings

From lIM DONOGHUE in Palmerston North for NZPA Mighty’ Manawatu highlighted some alarming Wallaby shortcomings in trouncing the tourists, 20*10, at the Showgrounds oval, Palmerston North.

The former All Black | flanker, Kevin Everleigh, and]' his Ranfurly Shield holdingi team reduced the pride of] Australian rugby to an ordi*[ nary-looking side in the j final quarter a week before j the first test. The win was a decisive as the three-to-one try-scor-ing margin indicated. It wash gained largely through the; effort of a forward pack) which humiliated its inter-! national opposition in rucks|i and mauls and more than! held its own in the set pieces. ] With a plentiful supply of j ball the home side’s back line, with Hugh Blair on the; left-wing in scintillating'; form, took the game to the; Australians right from the ! opening whistle. If not for some desper- i ation defence by Bill McKid. in the Wallaby mid-field and i Paul McLean at full back! the winning score could well!; have been more. Ironically Manawatu ob-1 viously expected the Wall-ii abies to win the bulk of line-out possession. I The flanker, Terry Clare, |j was stationed among hish backs for the throw-ins of the hooker, Peter Horton to I stifle the “willie-away” and ( back-line attack movements i which rarely eventuated. By i

i the end of the match he was [wasting his time. I Manawatu’s line-out men, Gary Knight and John Love- ! day, wore down their opponents and equalised the pos- | session gained in this department. But the Wallaby i lock, Peter McLean, had a I slight edge over his line-out ! opponent, Wayne Green. The “man-of-the-match” | I half-back, Mark Donaldson | must have set the alarm i bells ringing n the Wallaby camp by completely out- ! playing the No. 1 contender, (Rod Hauser. The pair scored identical i tries by diving into the op-[ i position scrum once the | pack had been pushed back I over the line from loose;head put-ins. But that was 'where the equality ended. Donaldson, with Eveleigh I hard on his heels, hounded I the hapless Hauser into a | nightmare performance. Manawatu’s final try, scored by Green, was a direct re- [ suit of this merciless pair’s | intervention. i Consequently the Wallaby back-line languished unemployed without ball “in the I wings.” While Eveleigh, Terry Clare, and the No. 8 Geoff Old, arrived at the breakdowns en masse their Wallaby opponents were often

conspicuous by their ah sence.

■ This was particularly the case after the No. 8 Mark Loane, was forced to leave the field with a pulled hamstring in his right leg in the fiftyffourth minute. All round it was a supreme effort by Manawatu. [The side proved it has the 'depth to plug the gaps left by the injured Alan Innes, Doug Rollerson, Ken Maharey, and John Callesen, who were all an integral cart of the shield defending machine last year. Australia will undoubtedly [take greater application into next week’s test than was evident on Saturday. Shaw’s men will be given a final chance to iron out the problems before the test against Counties at Pukekohe tomorrow. Loane was replaced by Keith Besomo, who played out the match at lock with Garrick Fay, while Peter McLean went to the back of the scrum. Scorers: Manawatu 20 (Hugh Blair, Mark Donaldson, Wayne Green tries; Mike Banks 2 penalties and a conversion), Australia 10 (Rod Hauser a try; Ken Wright 2 penalties). Half-time; Manawatu 10, Australia 0.