Lowe wary of league trophy opponents, Warrington

Press, 10 January 1987, Page 20

Lowe wary of league trophy opponents, Warrington

NZPA staff correspondent London The former New Zealand national rugby league coach, Graham Lowe, is on the verge of a major success in Britain with his Wigan side but he knows Warrington will be a tough obstacle in the John Player Special Trophy final on Sunday morning New Zealand time. Mr Lowe told NZPA yesterday Warrington will put up a “very physical” fight for the trophy, which is rated second behind Wembley’s Challenge Cup in prestige for Britons. “Warrington intimidate a lot of teams, but they will not do that to us. They are a very physical side well led by the former Australian test player, Les Boyd, but our forwards have been standing up well.”

Mr Lowe has the veteran leader, Graeme West, and Dean Bell teamed with him at Wigan while two more Kiwis, Kevin Tamati and Joe Ropati, play for Warrington. The sides for the final at Bolton in Lancashire were not due to be named until after last-minute training. Ropati, man-of-the-match against Leeds last week-end, has impressed Warrington supporters since joining the club. Tamati was missed when he and West were penalised with two-match bans for separate incidents that kept them out of the John Player semi-finals. Tamati, who has. propped for New Zealand, is hooking between Boyd and another Australian, Bob Jackson. Mr Lowe is expecting a

“good wide running game” in the final, partly, he said, because the 76-yard wide Bolton soccer pitch is a couple of yards further across than other league grounds. Warrington go into the match with the better current record. It has an undefeated ran of 14 games and beat Wigan twice in the league this season, although the second victory was a close one at 6-4. The Kiwi rugby league wing, Dane O’Hara, needs just two tries for a career total of 100 with his British club, Hull. The New Zealander made his debut for Hull in September, 1981, the same day as the centre and compatriot, James Leuluai. Another Kiwi, Gary Kemble, was at full-

back. The O’Hara try British fans remember best was when he scored at Wembley in 1982 to equalise against Widnes and force a replay for league’s most prized trophy, the Challenge Cup. His most prolific season was 1984-85, when he scored 22. and this season he has 12. This season he scored a hat-trick in the second round of the John Player Special Trophy when Hull beat Blackpool Borough 48-22. • A former Manly-Waningah (Sydney) and British Test forward, Malcolm Reilly, has been named Great Britain rugby league coach. Mr Reilly, aged 38, takes over from Maurice Bamford, who resigned because his wife is seriously ill.

Mr Reilly, who has coached a top English club side, Castleford, since 1974, has been given a 19-month contract which expires at the end of Britain’s tour of Australia and New Zealand in August 1988. The former Kiwi coach, Mr Lowe, had been touted as a possibility for the job in one report in New Zealand. However, the British league spokesman, David Howes, told NZPA: “There was no way we could have a New Zealander in charge of the British team and talk about patriotism. “It would have been impossible for Graham to coach Great Britain against New Zealand in 1988. "We should welcome overseas coaches but that is as far as it goes,”