Tough league games ahead

Press, 7 September 1989, Page 40

Tough league games ahead

Canterbury’s representatives in the national Lion Red rugby league tournament will encounter Auckland opponents should they succeed in their first-round fixtures on September 17. Addington, the Canterbury No. 1 qualifier, has a home game against the winner of the OtagoSouthland play-off that day. The second Canterbury side, Marist-Western Suburbs, travels to Greymouth to meet CobdenKohinoor. A guide to its prospects should be gained on Sunday when Cobden-Kohinoor challenges Addington for the Thacker Shield. It would be a big

surprise if Addington faltered at the first hurdle against a minor league opponent. But it would then be required to travel to Carlaw Park and play Auckland Nd. 2, the loser of Sunday’s Fox Memorial grand final between Northcote and Mangere East. Marist-Western’s quar-ter-final is at home, but against Auckland No. 1. If Northcote lives up to its favouritism in Auckland, the Marist-Western players will be pitted against one of their former team-mates, Mason Fisher, as well as Marty Crequer and Robert Moimoi, whose first representative football was played in the

South Island. Canterbury clubs, have had only modest results in previous tournaments. However, if both Addington and Marist-Western toppled their 1 Auckland rivals they would clash in a semi-final on October 1; The Wellington clubs', Wainuiomata and Upper Hutt, have similarly been seeded in the same half of the draw, ensuring that two sides from one province cannot meet in the final. Last season’s finalists, Te Atatu and Glenora, were among the casualties in the Auckland competition. The draw is.— September 16-17 — north-

em zone, game 1, Waikato v. Northland; game 2, Bay of Plenty v. Auckland 1; game 3, Auckland 2 y.Midlands; game 4, Taranaki v.'Gisborne East Coast. Southern zone, game 5, Wellington 1 y. Hawke’s Bay; y game 6, West Coast v. Canter>bury 2; game 7, Canterbury 1 ji v. Otago or-Southland; game f-j;8, Manawatu v. Wellington 2. y .‘/September 23-24 — quar-ter-finals, game 9, winner game 5 v. winner game 4; game 10, winner game 3 v. winner game 7; game 11, winner game 8 v. winner game 1; game 12, winner game 6 v. winner game* 2. September 30-October 1 — semi-finals, game 13, winner game 11 v. winner game 9; game 14, winner game 10 v. winner game 12. October 8 — final, winner game 13 v. winner game 14.