SENIOR'CHAMPIONSHIP MATCHES.

Dominion, Volume 1, Issue 242, 6 July 1908, Page 4

SENIOR'CHAMPIONSHIP MATCHES.

; The. senior;championship matches werere-' - : ' turned \ .game;Petohe%, : on , :: the AthlGticV:Parkyon ; r^,tvpry'heavy ground,' jand in' the presence' of : over,2ooo Spectators.: The game .was exceptionally' fast; in view of ■ : the wretched conditions,; and resulted in ia ; somewhat unexpected win for . Athletic. Tho day's fixtures nnished.as, under:— ■ Athletic (19). defeated Petbno (9). ' . i Poneke (37) defeated Southern (3). . Oriental (12) defeated Old lioys (0). Melroee (24) defeated Wellington (5), , St. James (29) defeafcd.-Victoria Col. (0).; POSITIONS OF THE TEAMS. i •W W . . • - .• ."r-Ul. rU o .*.• ~ ' **-»' 3 . r .; : " O ; . . - £ -P -P' C ~ a S .s .2. ? fP .<■■ O 0-. O. J3 ■ P-i: VT : P ..P*. Pt o '.' Melrose . 1... 9.8 6 1 144 14 ; 17 Oriental ... 9 7 1 1 GS 33 15 . Poneke. ... ... 9 G - 2 1 103 5G 13 " Petono .... . >:. 9 5.. 3. .1 134 54 ; 11. St. Jnmes ... 9 4-' 4 1 02 59' 9' : Athletic ... 9 4 -1 1 93 "43' '9' • Old Hoys ... 9 3 6 0 42 140 G •Wellington. ... 9 1 6 2 37 78 4 Southern ... 9 2 7 0 34 133 ; 4 .Victoria' Col. ...' 9 1 S , 0 ,25 135 2 ATHLETIC V. PETONE/v, ■ Tho gamo 'between* Athletic and Potono- • provided one of tho most interesting cori- • tests seen this season. Tho first spell;'was,; . .. practically speaking, all in favour ofj Athletic, whoso' forwards played a, dashing; game, and over-ran Petono repeatedly,' whilst the backs also played exceptionally well. .The town team piled, on 11 points be- ■ foro .half-time against 3 scored by Pctone. The suburban raon put up,a big fighfc;in tho second term, arid pressed Athletic repeatedly,' but towards tlio close of 'tho game Athletic again asserted themselves, and, sweeping all beforo them in their vigorous dashes,, left tho field eventually with 10 points in hand. , Play oponed moro or less, evenly, and then the Athletic-moiy made three separate as- , saults on the Pctone line, but Peteno cleared each time. A smart dash by Richardson and a rush led by Wilson ended similarly, and Magill and Hardliam then headed a Potono rush into Athletip quarters. The ball.-was carried across tho front of tho posts, wliero • AV. Ryan sent' it on .to Green. ' Tho littlo half-back put in a short dash, and transferred to House, who handed on .to J. Ryan,, who scored" at the corner. No goal resulted. ■' Tho Petono men charged again, but a forco down was the only result. After this tlia Athletic forwards attacked in tho Petone twenty-fivo for ; a'' considerable'tifn'o,'and Kivell had an unsuccessful shot at goal from ,; a penalty kick. Athletic kept up a strong attack, and harassed'tho Petono. rearguard. : repeatedly. Moro than onco they were almost over, but a good, although fruitless, pot at goal by Gordon raised tho siege. The towh men returned to the attack, and Gordon ai/4 Murray following up fast smothered

M.; Ryan; Jnit Petono cleared, although only ,to seo tho Athletic moil como on once more. This timo they:- had moro success, Poolo scoring under tho posts. Gordon's kick went over ono of tho posts. Athletic were fairly on tho warpath by this timo, and charged With''renewed vigour.to an accompaniment of delighted shouting from their supporters. Fotono, relieved tho pressure on their line, and appeared' to bo holding tho opposition fairly- safevabout the twenty-five, lino, wlion Gordon got possession, and, dodging under tho arm of ail opponent, mado a pretty opening for Evonson, who took his pass nicely, .and, after • running round tho opposition, scored. Kivell failed to convert. A short rally by 'Petonb''.was succeeded by another 'Ath'lctic<assaulty i '!vliich ended in Richardson ■making a cleyoiv opening, and, patsing to Clark, who .'sent"tho ball on to Evenscn, tho latter scoring undor tho posts. Gordon converted. " Play continued in favour of Ath- , lotjc, a; brilliant;forward rush placing them on tho Petono ' lino within a couple of minutes. ..Hero El'cnson had an unsuccessful shot at goal-from a penalty kick. Tho balance <jf, tppiWSjlJi tho exception of two dashes' by 'Petone, was in favour of Athletic, but half-time' was called without fur-

ther scoro. . ,:.Oiv. resuming;''.Potone sot to work with a will, and, ;carrjed ;-fjho war into Athletic territory, '.and, clo^Qr,to tho lino. Green, Ryan, House/ and Instono combined in a'promising passing rush, but tho last-montioncd player spoiled; Two—moro rushes by Potone followed, Instono kicking the ball over tho dead ball lino frpjn the second dash... ■' Tho suburban men charged agaiii, and Joo Ryan went within an acp of scoring, Athletic: getting out of a'tight corner by sheer good luck.':. uVi.Thcro'.'Avas only ono team in it at this st&gef Petono having things all their bwn'Avayt biit'-'despito rush after rush they could- : iibt' break 'down the . last, lino ,of ;tho Athletic defence. * At last. a , sudden change cqmo—Athlotic; were defending ■ near their own. lino ..when _they broke away down tho field; in a. brilliant loqse .rush ,in. which; $cll;,Wilson, Murray, and Osborne, •figureiramongsti-others. Tho assault took Potono.by .surprise, and the ball after traversing tho lerigth< of the'field was grounded ;6vei'Hb'o' ; lin f o''b > v:' , Bell. No goal'resulted. Pc- • tone''triok" the''upper band again 'from 'tho kick out, and after a short attack' Allan mado Sn/openirig which/allowcd Magill to divo over I .'tiie,Uho;,',;M.- J Rya" failed with the kick. A minute- : or" two' later. Petono again scored, House c'rossingitho line as the result of a good rush and Hardham. M. R-yaii . : agam.yfai!e(l with the kick. The subteam continued-to have all tho best of"tho play,' ! and kept plugging away to wipo off '.the. deficiency;, but although close on. .several'occasions,. they,.could not cross tho line. ; Towards "tho end of tho game Athletics asserted, themselves,'and-put in some excellent' work, and before the whistlo blew Osbcrno registered another try, as the.rc',Bjilt;qf cleyer opening, made by l'oolo.' Gor--'dbh* convertfecl,' and the. game ended' ' v '» ••• 19 " Petono - ... ■ *;.. 9 • "iMr,^P;-'Mackie r was referee. "" >J " : "PONHKE v. SOUTHERN. ' Little-,or no ..interest was. taken in tho Poneke-Sbulll'ern gamo, which resulted' in a runaway, victory, for Poneko by 37 to 3. Tho Southern, forwards made a fairly : good showing ; at,/times, .but there was . no comparison .between-.the>baQks. Poneko scored. 14 points in thofirstHalf,and 23. in the second, besides which they threw away another dozen or so points?'iSomCfbf tho tries were 'the result-ofi.-gdod iworlvjs'-and others wero simply tho - fiiult-' of•;*t-he. ; 'oppbsition. ' Southern mado a number.of'-Thovfroi less''serious"'invasions on tho'Porieke linef'and should havo put on a few .more points,, but their - best, efforts lacked finish. "Jusi'on,the call ;of timo, J, Campbell notched their ono and only try. Tries wero scored for Poneko by tho following -/Flanagan (3), : Tobhill, Hunter, Tresis; Tilyard, O'Brien,Mitchinson, "Gardiner, .and .Mentiplay., Rush and Briggs converted one each. Tho filial totals wero:— Poneko "v";;;'-:'". ... " ...37 Southern..., .... ■ ,/ ... 3, * Mr/,J.- Condor-was referee. .' ORIENTAL v, OLD BOYS. ' The matdh'b6tfreeft c Qriental and Old Boy's, played at Petono, resulted in a win for tho former-by .12 points, to nil. .Immediately after, tho Sturrock commenced a rush for -Oriental; aud Patterson saved by kick-. ing- but yards from'tlw line. Tho ball .. was 1 thrown' in to. Hceqitni'/wbo ran across and scored near tho corner. Vcrcoo missed the posts. - From tho drop out Oriental returned to,';tho attack :with, a forward rush, and M'Leod, securing the leather about fivo yards l 'frb'in.'Aho. line, scored, an easy try. Old Boys appeared to ;bo-- waiting for tho referee's whistle,on this occasion. Vercoo's kick'was agaiii ''unsuccessful. Uio play continued'mostly in tho Whites' twenty-five, and about half-way through, the spell Higliet got tho ball from the scrum and' sent. it on to M'Leod. to Gibbons, to Sturrock, to Mays. The latter scored behind tho posts, but Vorcoo' "was ' unable" to convert. . The'" Whites l then madci,®; good rush to their opponents'' '•lino,'. but ii! pla J y''rclurned up field again. , Marchant, for Oid ! B6ys, had-a long shot at goal from a freo kick, but tho ball fell' short. Oriental. then commenced to attack again, and in stemming ono of'their forward rushes tho 'Old •.Boys'..full-back was .penalised; 'and Vercob kicked a good goal. Half-timo'was xalled i. 'shortly-: if ter. '.

.In,,tlie:' se«md>-;3pcll Old Boys played much better,-'and got'.iii'somo -nice passing, while -Avory.'aiHl Drake among tho forwards kept "the Oridrit'al'Hcam very busy. Oriental.wero forced several times, but no points wero regis-tered-against them. About ton. minutes after tho resumption of play Vercoo got a severe tho face, and had to retire, Oricnta'l'T)laying on with fourteen, men. No .addition to tho Ecoro took placo, the garno ending— ' ' ■ : Oriental... t;. 12 points Old' Boys ... ... ... nil. Mr. J. Francis was referee. . MELROSE V. WELLINGTON. Mclroso maintained their lead in the senior clianlhionsuip Dy 'Deating Wellington at'Miramar'by 24 points to 5: Tho game resolved itself'into a contest between tho 'forwards, jnost of tho tries"scored being obtained from forward rushes or scrambles. Play was interesting enough' in the first half, which(jij'dwbwifeMpk'Wo loading by. a Binall margin. Tho scconcHspell, however, was a mere procession for' Slolroso. Except for the.absonco of Church, who was replacbd by Perkinson, Melrose played full strength, and :-My£ay' ; ' was"' missing from the AVellington .fifteen.

Shortly after tho kick-off by Wellington, play-was- taken-to tho Melroso twenty-fivo, whoro Wellington had two unsuccessful shots at'goal from marks. A'-determined rush by thO-iVlelrose'vaSguard transferred play to the other^nd'jf-,atld' J;, Spencer, feinting a . pass, dodgocit* oveif'andvdrow first, blood, for.- Melroso.:i?''&. converted — Melrose 5 points, Wellington nil. AVellington were put ! on. the.'defensive-again, but Abererombio saved by a 'good line-kick. Play was kept at 'haif-way fen- a time, but a splendid passing .movement,' iip'wliich all the Molroso backs took a hand, enabled E. Murphy to score. G. Sponcer failed with the kick—Melroso 8 points, . AVellington nil. Tho reverse infused -vigournnto; tho ;vAVellington men,.. who, kept : their opponents deffciuling. Sheridan had an unsuccessful shot at goal from a penalty; -Another penalty was given AVellington shortly afterwards right front of tho Melrose goal,.but. Malfroy'a attempt .was a .failliraPlay continued in Molroso territory, .Wellington . attqeking in a very aggrpssivo fashion, .and- from a scramblo Carey scored tlicir first try. Scllars added tho major points — Molroso 8 points, AVellington 5. Tho spell ended shortly afterwards with no further score. '

Molroso hail, matters all tlioir own way in tlib second half, their repeated onslaughts meeting with very weak responso. Shortly after the kick-out, G. Sponcer missed, an easy goal from a penalty, and AVellington wero forced." Melroso maintained their attack and Griggs broko away from a scrum ana .passed on to J. Spencer, who had only to 'touch/down to score, but the ball was cloverly knocked out' of- play. _ G, Spencer increased .Melrose's scoro immediately afterwards, however, by converting from a mark—Molross II points, AVellington 5. Up ami down play followed, but it was not long beforo Melrose had AVellington penned • on their goullino again, and from a long throwout Boa vis got over, and G. Spencer

mado no mistake with tho kick —Molroso 16 points, Wellington 5. Wellington took n turn at attacking, Murphy and Wilson being prominent. Tho ball was taken to the lino time and again, till G. Spencer relieved with a splendid lino-kick. Give nnd tako piny followed till Melrose set up a determined rush, and J. Spencer scored his second try for Molroso, George Spencer was successful with tho kick —-Molroso 21 joints, Wellington 5. Another try was registered by Molroso through Sheridan, tho Wellington fullback, failing to take tho ball. Adams followed up fast, nnd ran in practically unopposed. G. Spencer made a good but unsuccessful shot nt goal. Tho garno ended soon afterwards with tho score: — 1 Melrose 24 Wellington .... 5 . Mr. .Roberts was referee.

ST. JAMES v. VICTORIA COLLEGE. Victoria College were rather unfortunate in having to play on Saturday, as, whet with tho vapation and tho University tour to Aus-tralia,-tho majority of tlioir senior men wero absent. During' tho first snell they placed 0110 man short, besido which they had nino juniors in tho team. From the commencement of tho game,. St, James did all the. attacking... E. Roberts twice set tho ball moving in passing bouts, once to H. Roberts, and next to Baumgnrt, but though considerable ground was gained, no scoro was registered. For a timo M'Morran, Bogle, and Prendevillo warded yff tho inevitable try by useful line-kioking; then Fergusson followed up a good kick,'and secured the first try, which was neatly converted by Thomas. For a timo afterwards play .was oven, some dash-' ing work by W'ighton for, tho St. Jame3 forwards being the most noticeablo featuro. Thomas, from full-back, dashed through tho 'Green defence, but a timely tackle by Boglo up-ended him. A "few minutes later, howover, Warwick had crossed the Victoria College line. His try was -improved upou by Thomas. This was followed' by the Collego's best attempt to scoro, M'Morran missing a try by losing the ball when only a couple of yards from tho goal posts. Play again returned to tho Green territory, but a wellguided : forward rush saw it back in St. James quarters. Wright , and Perry- wero then prominent in carrying play back, and tho latter was rewarded by a score, which Thomas again increased. After some'attacking, in which Baumgart was prominent, and defending in which Prendevillo figured, the first spell ended—St. James, 15; Victcria College, 0. Scores in tho second spell wore prevented for a timo by good tackling by the Green backs, but the continuous attack was bound to find a weak .link, and boforo long a mull by Russell enabled Manning to score. For the first time Thomas failed with tho kick. A littlo later, Bruce touchcd down from a forward scramble, but Thomas failed to increase. Then' tho .College forwards took a -turn at attacking, and compelled their opponents to savo by forcing down. Prendevillo also put iii a good run, which was, however, fruitless. The Greens wero on the defonco again soon, and Baumgart scored a .try. wliich Neilson made a good but unsuccessful attempt to convert:. Another try was secured, this timo by Neilson, and Sutherland managed to convert. Play ended with'.St. James [still on tho attack, and tho score standing— ■•''St. James ... ... ...' 29 | Victoria College .... ... , ... 0 | • Mr. W. O'Connell was referee. •'*'