SIDELINES

Press, 22 June 1984, Page 11

SIDELINES

QUEENSLAND wrapped up the rugby league State of Origin series when it beat New South Wales, 14-2, at the Sydney Cricket Ground. Before 29,088 soaked spectators, the Queenslanders scored the only two tries — to Greg Dowling and Gene Miles — in the last 25min after a scoreless first half. Mai Meninga kicked three goals to one by Ross Conlon for New South Wales. Wally Lewis, the Queensland captain, picked up another "man of the match” award, and Meninga regained test selection for the second international against Great Britain at Brisbane next Tuesday night.

JEAN-PATRICK Lescarboura was not the only one to find dropped goals hard to kick at the northern end of Lancaster Park last week-end. In the two club matches on Sunday there were five attempts, including two by Marist’s drop-kick specialist, Greg Coffey, before the Burnside first five-eighths, Deane McKinnel, finally put the ball between the posts. This was McKinnel’s eighth dropped goal for the season, four fewer than Coffey has kicked.

THE ABUNDANCE of Auckland-based teams in the Rothmans Soccer League has produced, through a quirk of the draw for the 1984 competition, the ridiculous situation of Mount Wellington not having had to leave Auckland yet for a match. Its seven games have all been played in its home city, and indeed the Mount will travel out of Auckland just once in the first 11 rounds of the league. That momentous day is July 8, when it is obliged to play National Mutual Miramar at Wellington. The rub, however, comes at the end of the championship when, on the last three week-ends, the Mount must travel to Dunedin, Napier and Gisborne, respectively.

FRANK McMULLEN will be remembered by many rugby followers as the man who scored the lastminute try which, when converted from the sideline by Don Clarke, gave the All Blacks a draw, 11-all, in the third test against South Africa in 1960. But Mr McMullen also gained prominence later in life as a referee and he graduated to an international rating. Now, after some 30 first-class fixtures, including a test match between England and the All Blacks in 1973, he has retired from refereeing. He has been trudging to senior rugby matches for the past 31 years and now intends to become a selective spectator, still attending on Saturdays but maybe to club or secondary schools matches if he feels they have more appeal.