Rex Dalzell realising his rugby league potential

Press, 19 August 1978, Page 12

Rex Dalzell realising his rugby league potential

By

JOHN COFFEY

Parents and sports administrators who advocate that . youngsters should not be pushed into playing football at too early an age would receive ready support for their arguments from Rex Dalzell, one of Canterbury’s most in-form rugby league forwards. “Dad would not allow my elder brother, lan, or me to join up with the local club, Hornby, until we were 11-years-oid,” Dalzell said earlier this week. “It was a little galling at the time to see the other kids going off with their football gear on Saturday mornings, and my

father never told us of his reasons. But I appreciate his opinion now — a lot of those who started before me, including some who were schoolboy Kiwis, have thrown it in,” he said.

However, if the Dalzell brothers were late starters, they learned fast. Both lan (in 1964 and 1965) and Rex (1969) were chosen for New Zealand 15-years grade teams al annual national tournaments, and Rex advanced

to captain the New Zealand 19-years side to victory over the touring Penrith district XIII from Sydney. Dalzell had his initiation in representative rugby league with Canter-

bury B in 1973 and within 12 months had graduated into the top provincial combination. He has not always been a regular selection, but in recent months he has stood out in a Canterbury pack that has been most impressive. Versatility was one of the youthful Dalzell’s most obvious assets. He was a centre in the first XV at Riccarton High School — and attributes much of his development to the advice of the for* mer Otago, Canterbury and New Zealand Universities rugby back, Sam Leary, who was a master at the school — and when he scored two tries in his premier grade rugby league debut against University six years ago. But Dalzell’s football destiny lay in the forwards. From being a loose forward in his junior and intermediate grades, he has alternated between second-row — the role that he favours — and prop for the Hornby and Linwood clubs and Canterbury. “My style does not really suit the game of a tight forward, although I have been trying to perfect the skill of drawing tacklers and keeping the ball alive. It is not easy, and it has to be complemented by others positioning themselves to receive the ball. If there is no-one backing up, one can look an awful idiot,” Dalzell said. “I was watching the Australian prop, Artie Beetson, putting his teammates through gaps in a televised Amco Cup match last Sunday. He was simply magnificent — us mon tals can only dream of emulating that sort of distribution. “But Canterbury has begun to work together. It started towards the end of our home game with Wellington and continued in the second Rothmans fixture against West Coast at Greymouth. It is up to us to continue to improve against Wellington today and then get stuck into Auckland in the Rothmans final,” he said. Dalzell, like many other forwards, has frequently been pressed into service as a prop simply to fill a gaping need. The obvious shortage of front-row men has extended down from test level, with the result that Linwood’s two representative second-rowers, Dalzell and Paul Truscott, are more accustomed to being placed at prop and hooker, respectively, for their club. “There is a great scarcity of props. The game has opened up as a result of rule changes in recent years, though, and to a large extent teams can afford to use lighter players up front,” said Dalzell, who, at 1.83 m and 98kg, is no sylph-like figure. Still only 23 years of age, Dalzell has begun to display the benefits of the off-season that he spent with the English club, Warrington. under the guidance of the renowned coach, Alex Murphy, in 1976-77. “Murphy taught me . three things — to shut up and play the game, to keep the ball in motion, and to think harder so that I am putting the ball into a gap for someone else rather than trying to penetrate on my own,” he said. The results were not immediately obvious. Dalzell had a rather tame season last year after his return from England, and he considers that the staleness he felt has also affected the New Zealand test prop, Lyndsay Proctor, who was with another British club, New Hunslet, during the last southern summer. “It was not that I did not want to play. The actual football was still enjoyable, but 1 found it ■ *

hard to motivate myself at training. One needs to have a real summer with a bit of relaxation and maybe some surfing to keep in trim,” Dalzell said. On the verge of selection for Canterbury after some pleasing early efforts for Linwood this year, Dalzell grasped his opportunity when Alan Rushton was chosen for the Kiwi tour to Australia and Papua New Guinea. Dalzell has been a more commanding personality in each of his three appearances and has retained his place ahead of such a forceful contender as the New Zealand trialist, Mark Broadhurst. “Perhaps it is wrong, but I find that I am now more motivated to give of my best for Canterbury than for Linwood. I am really looking forward to the last two matches in the Rothmans tournament,” he said. No doubt Canterbury supporters will be hoping, with equal eagerness, that Dalzell retains his imposing form against Wellington in the national semi-final at the Show Grounds this after noon.