Nine Shield challenges accepted

Press, 26 October 1982, Page 40

Nine Shield challenges accepted

By

JOHN BROOKS

A confident and generous Canterbury Rugby Union has thrown down the gauntlet to fellow New Zealand unions by drawing up an ambitious Ranfurly Shield programme of nine challenge matches for 1983. Faced with applications from 13 unions, Canterbury officials have accepted challenges from the five first division teams scheduled to play on Lancaster Park next winter and four second division sides, all from the South

Island. Only Wellington, which accepted 11 challenges in 1921), has had a bigger shield list for a season. There have been just four other instances of a holder taking on nine rivals in a year, one of them being Canterbury in 1954. The challenge list should bring widespread satisfaction, except, perhaps in the Seddon Shield region, which does not have a representative among the aspirants. The challengers include the present first division cham-

pion, Auckland, the former shield holder, Wellington, and all three Hanan Shield teams. South Canterbury, North Otago and Mid-Canter-bury. Other challenges have been awarded to Manawatu, Hawke’s Bay, North Auckland and Southland. The unsuccessful unions were Taranaki, Otago, West Coast and Nelson Bays. The shield season will be divided into two distinct periods, said the president of the Canterbury union. Mr B. J. Drake, in announcing the

list of challenges yesterday. The first period will be between July 20 and August 14 and will contain five matches, the first four on Wednesdays to avoid interference with Christchurch and country inter-club competitions. The second period will run from September 10 to October 1, after the All BlacksWallabies test in Sydney, the inter-island match and the Christchurch club final have been played. The last four matches, which are all against first

division teams, have been built into the framework of Canterbury’s national championship commitments, which involves trips to Waikato, Counties. Bay of Plenty. Wairarapa and Otago. If the red and blacks survive the gruelling season, Lancaster Park patrons will have seen the equivalent of two full All Black teams in the ranks of the challengers. Canterbury's last full season as a shield holder was in 1970, when, despite the absence of six men with the

All Blacks in South Africa, it resisted eight challenges. The list of challenge matches is:— July 20 v. North Otago. July 27 v. Southland. August .3 v. Mid-Canter-bury. August 10 v. North Auckland. August 14 v. South Canterbury. September 10 v. Hawke's Bay. September 17 v. Wellington. September 24 v. Auckland. October 1 v. Manawatu.