Rugby youth Grounds soft, but playing chance seized

Press, 27 April 1983, Page 37

Rugby youth Grounds soft, but playing chance seized

Junior rugby players were perhaps a little lucky to get action on Saturday, after so much rain fell on Christchurch during the week. However, it stopped at the right time. With most grades beginning their competitions, the chance to play, and to open the season proper, was seized eagerly. The fields at North Hagley Park, which are liable to cut up badly after rain and a succession of junior games, had soaked up their moisture surprisingly well. By the end of the morning, there was still a reasonable sole of grass on the area. The surfaces were a little too greasy to be ideal for attacking play, but the slight softening of the turf meant that youngsters could launch into tackles with confidence. One boy who stood out for the quality and power of his tackling was James Brandt, from Medbury's seventeenth grade side. Brandt, a wing, and the smallest lad in the team, is rated its best tackler, in terms of both spirit and technique. At first five-eighths, Henry Blakely has a grasp of' the game two or three years beyond his age. The captain, William Sellar, in his second year in the grade, always plays a good, honest game in the pack. Medbury’s opponent on Saturday was Parklands, captained by Dean button. Stefan O’Neill, Troy Carlaw and Paul Ramage had good games along with Philip O’Neill, who is small for this grade. North Hagley Park on Saturday was the venue for a large number of seventeenth grade games. For Suburbs A against Sumner, Darren McLauchlan played well at half-back, while Richard Taylor impressed as a sound forward who uses his weight to advantage. Aaron Podmore, a Canterbury representative last season, is also showing good form. For the Sumner side, Rich-

ard Hill scored an early try, and Samuel Bradley showed signs of developing into a fine player. Todd England and Jamie and Peter Paynter are promising. Linwood B made a strong start to the season with a 40-0 win in the grading round, and the side was ahead, 10-0, early in Saturday’s match. Glen Delaney, Jeremy Tinker, Craig Hider, Scott Coutts and Kenya MacDonald make up a willing pack while, behind them, Jason Gwatkin is beginning to develop his halfback’s skills. Greg Robinson, a representative player last season, is the leading back, soundly supported by Matthew Cameron, Jason Spicer, Dwayne Coker and Grant Ripley.

In section ll' of the seventeenth grade, Merivale-Papa-nui was down, 6-0, early to New Brighton, but the side was playing with spirit. Keith Richardson shows strength and skill in the front row, while Wayne Burney is a good second five-eighths. In section I, Linwood A had a grand tussle with Christchurch. Dallas Hibbs and Shane Dickinson were outstanding in the forwards and Peter Currie and Adam Parker shone in the backs. The team, as a unit, was performing particularly well.

For Christchurch, Dan Rivers distinguished himself with a fine, corner-flag covering tackle to prevent a try. Nick Sissons and Stephen Marshall performed well in the backs; while Hayden and Lincoln Sharp and Michael Abbott had good games in the forwards.

Nearby, Shirley and Sydenham clashed, with Shirley’s Hamish Binnie, a prop, and the inside back pairing of Nick Hounsell and David Matthews showing promise. Sydenham has three newcomers this year who look likely, Brent Hawes and Craig Fisher from Dia-

mond Harbour, and Alan Baxter, who has shifted from the West Coast.

Hornby’s Rodney Phillips has shown exceptional earlyseason promise, and has been made captain of the side. Gareth Stiven is a good tight forward and Aaron Winter is developing at half-back. Further out, Mark Geenty and Brent Carson are showing improvement, with the support of the rest of the team.

Marist’s Joel Martin and Adain Summerfield were among those to score tries against Hornby on Saturday, and Guy Ramsay showed a great turn of speed on one wing. Jamie Winter played well and Chris Mercer and John Bruce are other promising lads. In fourteenth grade play, Albion met Medbury, Belfast met Marist and MerivalePapanui met Linwood. Albion’s Duane Major, Michael Olds and Paul Vernal are looking promising, while Jason Hamlin is on top of his form at this early stage. Brent Hansen, in his first season of rugby, is a big boy with great potential as a forward. For Medbury, Dan Chaffey and Edward Blakely were hard-working forwards with Richard Joyce playing well off the side of the scrum. Robert McVicar made some good runs from first five-eighths. With some boarders having long week-end leave, Medbury was short of three regular players on Saturday, but the side kept trying hard in spite of trailing 0-22 at one stage. Belfast, a team of relative lightweights, was striving mightily against a heavier Marist, and was only four points behind, at 8-12, at one stage. The side’s female player, Jodie Tucker, scored two tries from the left wing. For Marist, Jason Kennard had a good lock’s game and Tim Hannan performed well off the side of the scrum. John Thorn, the hooker, and Hamish Ellis, the half-back, are players with potential.

Linwood’s fourteenth grade side has been formed very recently from a variety of players who missed selection for other teams. The makeshift combination did well to hold Merivale-Papanui to 8-4 at one point, with Dean Taylor playing very well at second fiveeighths. Unless he can gain dispensation to play at this level, Taylor may have to move up a grade. Brendan and Jason Beyers, and Danny and Murray Marquet gave their best, along with Jodie Squires and Wilson Hipango. All of the players were keen, each doing his bit. Leigh Gibbard played well in the forwards for Merivale, and was rewarded with a try. Gary Coles also shone in the forwards, and Christopher Ford made some good runs on the wing.