Two Canty All Blacks in reserves

Press, 5 September 1980, Page 24

Two Canty All Blacks in reserves

By

KEVIN McMENAMIN

Canterbury will have not one but two 1980 All Blacks in the reserves when it meets Manawatu in a .national championship rugby match at Palmerston North tomorrow. Steve Scott, the replacement half-back for most of the season, will be joined in the reserves by Richard Wilson, whose future with Canterbury might well be in jeopardy. After his unhappy game against Bay of Plenty on Wednesday, Wilson has been replaced at full-baek by his Christchurch club-mate, Robbie Deans. This will be Deans’s most important game to date for Canterbury. He made four appearances, all at first fiveeighths in lesser matches last . year and made his first ' national championship ap- j pearance this . season at full- . back against South Canter- , bury last Saturday. . The chief Canterbury selec- , tor (Mr Gerald Wilson) said < last evening that it was the < lack of confidence evident in j Wilson’s play on Wednesday j that had cost him his place. “Richard is going through i a rough patch at the moment, 1 but I’m sure he will come I through it. We just feel that ( Deans is playing with more I authority. He had a very I good game last Saturday in r spite of the fact that he was i suffering from a heavy cold.” t

One other change has been made- in the team to plav t Manawatu from that which 5 beat Bay. of Plenty, Keiran Keane returning' at second 1 five-eighths and Paul Molloy t shifting out to centre. Both . Keane and Molloy. . who suffered a. groin injury f on Wednesday, were in doubt , yesterday, but they each pas- . sed a fitness test last even- . ing and will take their places i in the touring party. The Canterbury B centre. , Steve Hansen, has been placed on standby. Canterbury is .taking 21 players on its northern trip, which in addition to the Manawatu game takes in a championship match against Hawke’s Bay next Tuesday. Apart from Victor Simpson, who suffered severely bruised ribs on Wednesday and is unlikely to play for some weeks, the only members of the squad staying behind are Dale Atkins and Rod Latham. Latham has been snapped up by the Canterbury B selectors and he will be a reserve for the B team’s game against Otago B at Lancaster Park tomorrow. The side to play Manawatu is: Robbie Deans; lan Mather, Paul Molloy, Randal Scott; Keiran Keane, Wayne Smith, Gary Barkle; Peter McLaren; Doh Hayes (captain)/ Jock Ross, Graeme Higginson, Barney Henderson; Murray Davies, Murray Hall, John Ashworth.