Daunting challenge for Alex Wyllie

Press, 16 March 1982, Page 16

Daunting challenge for Alex Wyllie

Throughout his playing career, Alex Wyllie relished challenge. The bigger the game the better he played and he never lost the virtue, common to his generation, of immense pride in wearing the red and black Canterbury jersey. It will be such qualities that will hopefully make Wyllie as successful a' Canterbury selector-coach as he was as both a player and a captain.

; on the half-back position, I although Glenmark's Bruce : Deans could keep Scott on I his mettle. , It is to be sincerely hoped that injury does not blight ; Wayne Smith’s season again this year. The best rilay yet to be seen of this talented first five-eighths and it could be on Smith’s shoulders, "-more than any other player, that Canterbury’s fortunes will rest this year. Robbie Deans, at full-back,

a big test for Canterbury. South Canterbury, at Timaru on July 14, will be Canterbury’s final outing before it begins its national championship programme against Waikato, at Lancaster Park, on July 25.

The other home matches, and dates, are Otago, August 4, Bay of Plenty, September 12, Counties, September 25, and Wairarapa-Bush, September 29. The date, however, that looms largest on Canterbury's programme this year is September 18, when it meets Wellington at Athletic Park. This will be a Ranfurly Shield challenge, providing, of course, Wellington still has the shield, and nothing would give Canterbury rugby a bigger fillip than for it to recapture, after nearly 10 years, the coveted log.'

After its worst season on record last winter, Canterbury will be eager for better performances this year, and in appointing him sole selec-tor-coach the Canterbury union is clearly counting on Wyllie to generate a new sense of purpose among the players. It might be wrong to expect miracles from Wyllie in his first season, but lie is a man of such forceful character that if anyone can arrest the decline of recent seasons then he is probably the man. There will certainly be a lot of interest in how he does fare. Canterbury’s, and Wyllie’s, problems have not been lessened by the transfer to the North Island of Graeme Higginson, one of Canterbury’s only two All Blacks last season.

is probably the only other back who can confidently count on selection and it will be interesting to see w’hat influence Wyllie will have on the. careers of such promising young players as Vic Simpson, Dale Atkins, who could go a long way as a No. 8 under Wyllie’s expert guidance, Albert Anderson and Craig Green. Canterbury faces a very full season, beginning with a game against Marlborough at Christchurch on April 21. This should help the side considerably in preparation for its home match against Queensland on May 2 and it would be a good omen for the rest of• the season if Canterbury’s run of losses to Queensland could be halted. Canterbury’s annual trek across the Alps to Greymouth is a little later this

The other away championship matches are against Hawke’s Bay (August 26), Auckland (August 29), North Auckland (September 1) and Ityanawatu (September 4), making this a very testing nine days for the team.

Nelson Bays will make its first appearance for many years (and the first, in fact, under this name) on Lancaster. Park on August 14 when it plays Canterbury in what will probably be a curtain-raiser to the first test against Australia on the park that day.

The other, John Ashworth, is expected to be available and if Bill Bush maintains his form of last year then Canterbury will have the nucleus of a good scrum. However, it remains to be seen how Wyllie rates the

year, on June 16, and a week later it plays Mid-Canter-bury, a team which Canterbury has not beaten for four years. The New Zealand Maoris will make their first appearance on Lancaster Park when they meet Canterbury there on July 3, and with Maori rugby, stronger than ever, and the incentive of a tour to Wales in October for the best'.players, this will be

The Wallabies will play three tests during their 14match tour and their lesser game venues include Timaru

other members of last year’s pack and whether he has replacements in mind. With Gary Barkle having moved to Hamilton, Steve Scott should have first claim

and Westport. " The New Zealand Colts will stop off in Greymouth and Ashburton in the course of their internal tour in June and July.

' > The inter-island match will be played at Wanganui on July 10 and there will be an All Black trial, for the Australian series, at Wellington on July 24.

The programmes have still to be finalised for Canterbury B and Canterbury colts, but they will have their usual quota of games.

Apart from the Wallabies. Canterbury will play host to a number of visiting teams. All Japan will be here to play Canterbury University early in May and a large party of Japanese schoolboy footballers is due towards the end of this month, and an equally large party, including three teams, from Seattle, is in Christchurch at present.

Visiting schoolboy teams are also expected from Aus- \ tralia and one match already 4 set down for Lancaster Park, j on May 22, is a “test” be- ; tween Australia and New ; Zealand at under-17 level. • But while the fixture list is , interesting and varied, the season will be judged largely ' on how Canterbury A per- ; forms. If Alex Wyllie can: impart to his men the re-) solve he had as a player.,' then better days must surely ' lie ahead, and, who knows. ■ this time next year the Ran- ‘ furly Shield just might be in Christchurch.