South beats Auckland in league

Press, 2 July 1979, Page 20

South beats Auckland in league

Auckland correspondent South Island triumphed over Auckland. 11-10, in the national inter-districts rugby league championship at Carlaw Park on Saturday, and the one point win brought back pleasant memories for Mr Gary Clarke, the southern coach. Four jears ago in a right game, Mr Clarke had rejoiced in another triumph at Auckland when his Canterbury team lowered the colours of Auckland in the Rothmans championship final. 15-14. South Island had a more experienced and bigger pack than the Aucklanders. This meant the visitors were able to screw the scram, use their big men. Mark Broadhurst and Terry Gillman. to punch holes up the middle and expose the deficiencies in Auckland's cover defence. The Kiwi second rower. Tony Coll, was the cool and competent general whose sharp plaj in. ipired the team. He set up the second of the sides three tries, scored by Barry Edkins. At hooker. Alan Rushion won the first half scrums, 9-6. from Murray Metzler, the New Zealand Maori hooker, and was on level terms after two scrums In the second half before retiring. He was under instructions to go off when his ribs. Injured in the first half, became too sore. Paul Truscott did not have quite the weight required of a prop, but was not outclassed by Netzler in the later scrums, going down 7-10 for the match total to be squared at 17-17. But if the South forwards

I proved the match-winners iEd-j r kins scored the winning try),| I their backs did not have the; e same class as Auckland's. n In a stroke of genius, Fred n Ah Kuoi was placed in the stand- • s, off nosition for Auckland in i- preference to the Kiwi incuma ...ni, uonn bmith. As well, Ahl ;- Kuoi was made captain for the t day, not. one suspects, without y some prompting by the national’ f selectors present in Auckland, i- In both roles, Ah Kuoi. w ho I jhas changed his mind about be-’ :-|ing available for the Kiwis, was 1 a | more than adequate. His com-| e; bination with Shane Varley lent c a breath of fresh air to the k Auckland backs who too often . this season have been struggling, a and his captaincy was refresh--3 Singly adventuresome. Only the resolute defence of i the South averted more tries) - than those scored by Olsen Fili- ■ . paina and Shane Varlej. e The South left wing. Robin . Alfeld. was well bottled up by Gre« Lowther and with Cliff i i Lenny on the opposite wing.' 1 made no more than a couple of’ -(sorties up the flanks. II Michael McEwen, the Writ 5 Coast lull-back, was strong and; • ever-ready to join a back move-1 -jment. hut was overhadowed by; , the utility back. James Leuluai.’ s | who showed great courage and! ! skill in taking the high ball asi 2 well as being an inherent parti iiOf the Auckland attack. d Gordon Smith, at half back. -1 and Lew Hudson—one conver-1 I’sion from three attempts—had 'good games. Smith may have s been slightly shaded by Varley. I

I but against the 18-year-old, Roni O’Regan. Hudson had the edge.! Bernard Green took his. [chances earned from being! ibrought into the side after the; I withdrawal of Mocky Brereton. His try was a gem. Green’s fellow' West Coaster, i Chris Menzies, showed his inI experience but also some potential before leaving the field with ’an ankle injury. He was replaced by Wally Wilson, and Rex DalIzell went on for Rushton. I South had the initial territorial advantage. Broadhurst making i the breaks. But with Alan Me- i Carthy and Lowther showing up, Auckland fought back and i Filipaina scored after 18 minutes from a break made by McCarthy. | Lowther converted for 5-0. Green scored his try in the twenty-fifth minute, but Hudson • i failed to convert. Two minutes from half-time. • Coll exploited the weakness on the Auckland blind side, and ( ’played the ball after Mr Wilson : had penalised Netzler for backI chatting. Coll made ground be- ; i fore unloading to Edkins w'hoh ’scored in the corner. Hudson again failed to convert! ; and the half ended with south ■ (leading 6-5. Auckland regained the lead nine minutes from the interval 1 [with a Lowther penalty from in ; 'front after a South tackler had ; I failed to release a held man 30 I metres from the goal-line. ' Six minutes later, Smith began , la run which ended with Edkins scoring his second try under the ! posts and Hudson converting. South held a four point lead 1

at 11-7 until the sixty-fifth mmute, when, from a scrum, McCarthy scooped up the »vcse cud and shot a less-than-perfect pass to Varley. He was most adroit in picking up the low ball to go over propelled by his momentum. Lowther failed to convert from the sideline. Dennis Williams came on in the last 15 minutes for Auckland, but the move was too late and the jubilant Southerners had won a well-earned victory. Barry Edkins scored two tries

• and Bernard Green one for • 1 South. Lew Hudson converted i one try. Auckland’s points came 5 from tries by Olsen Filipaina i and Shane Varley. Greg Lowj ther kicked one penalty and - conversion. t Gordon Smith won the South Island “man-of-the-series” award. i Barry Edkins was the Auckland - Rugby League “player of the ; day,” and Fred Ah Kuoi vftn I the Com trade international award of 8100 for the Auckland 5 “player of the match.’’