Rugby Football

Dominion, Volume 21, Issue 241, 12 July 1928, Page 8

Rugby Football

By

"Five-Eighths ”

CAN ALL BLACKS TAKE SECOND TEST?

RANFURLY SHIELD PROSPECTS

SOUTH AFRICAN FIXTURES. ' July 14—Rhodesian Fifteen, at Bulawayo. July 21—South Africa (Second Test), at Johannesberg. July 25—Pretoria Districts, at Pretoria. ■ July 28—Orange Free State, at Bloemfontein. INTER PROVINCIAL FIXTURES. July 18—Wairarapa v. Canterbury, at Christchurch ■ (Ranfurly Shield). July 21—Wairarapa v. Southland, at Invercargill. Bush v. Wanganui, at WangaJuly "tf-Wairarapa v. Otago, at Dunedin. Julv 28 —Wairarapa v. South Canterbury, at Tlmuru. Tho African Tour. Well, our Rugby representatives arc enjoying a glorious holiday in South Africa. The warm-hearted people of the Union have t)iken them to the national fireside, and are showing them just what genuine South African hospitality can mean. The All Blacks enjoyed a day’s hunting near Bloemfontein last week, and bowled hartebecste and springboks over id true sportsmanlike style. The Now Zealanders are now away up at Bulawayo, the capital of Rhodesia, and no doubt they will have a “go” at bigger game before leaving the equatorial province. Incidentally, they will view the magnificent Victoria Falls on the Zambesi River while in this region.

The Most Dangerous Big Game. But the most dangerous animals the All Blacks will have ,to meet ip South Africa will bo neither hippos, rhinos, lions, nor tigers. Far more dangerous than these are the genus homo of that country. • Fireworks at Kimberley.

The crowd which assembled at Kimberley on Saturday to see tho game between the AH 'Blacks and the representatives of the Northern Districts must

have enjoyed a rare treat. Both sides made tho game open and played to their ' backs. Why is it that all matches cannot bo played under these conditions? In the good old days crowds in New Zealand used to be roused to transports of delight by brilliant passing movements by the backs. How is it that we so seldom have a chance to cheer nowadays? Perhaps it is because the backs are not with us to-day. They perchance have departed with the men who could push in the scrums and drop goals from the field.. Anyhow, I envy the crowd who saW the game at Kimberley on Saturday. Would we had all been there to see Rushbrook score his two sensational tries,' particularly that second one, when he raced away from the centre mark to beat six men in succession to score. This is the best of a Rugby tour; it gives every member of the team an opportun- . ity to prbvc his worth. You can’t keep a good man down; and the Wellington College old boy may yet be apprised at his true worth by the selectors. Anyhow, he did not develop a limp, as Ifobilliard and Grenside did in the first Test match]. A Great Full-back.

Lindsay, the Otago University representative, continues to add to his laurels at full-])ack for the All Blacks. The cables tell us that he let Todd and Dobie past him for tries on, Saturday, but the cable man does not say how it • came that the men in frout of Lindsay came

to'let these men slip through their fln——gers. True, Todd’s try was the result of intercepting a pass from Sheen to Lucas, which only goes to show that New Zealanders will have to be careful how they toss the ball about in Africa. With greyhounds standing on their toes, long transfers only invite trouble. This Todd must bo able to travel fast, as he outpaced our fellows twice.- ,

Lindsay, however, must have played a great game at full-back on Saturday. On one occasion, when defending, fie grabbed the. leather on his own goal-line r and found touch at halfway. He landed

two penalty goal?, converted Ttush- • brook’s first try, and started the movement which led to the Wellington man’s second try. As if this were not enough, he rounded off an afternoon’s strenuous work by dropping a magnificent goal from 40 yards out. Considering that no Test match players appeared with the Northern Districts’ fifteen on Satur- ' , ..y, it is clear that South African, Rugby is on a high plane at . present, and all the talk we heard about the weakness of South African football must have been so much camouflage. An ■■ experienced Rugby follower remarked (he other day: “The South Africans are slim people; be sure the New Zealand team was not invited tb visit them until they were thoroughly ready to receive us.” , In any case, the South Africans have waited patiently for seven years for “The Day," and now the day has comeAnd the Springboks, under.the advice of Theo. Pienaar, who captained the South African team in New Zealand in 1021, have thoroughly organised for this great Rugby clash with our fellows. Pienaar, on his return to bis own Country, bluntly told the Rugby Union that it New Zealand were to be beaten on the football field it could only be accomplished by thorough organisation. The South African Union wisely took Pienaar’s advice, and under his direction , it has organised as it, or any other country, not even excepting New Zealand, z has never organised before. It had no fewer than 62 players assembled for the trial games. This is the only sane and proper manner in'which to! prepare for Rugby campaigns. The Home authorities may decry Rugby camps, but in a, vast country such as South Africa, they are . the only means by which players may bo . brought together to acquire the essential combination which spells success. ’ ■'-We arm still hopeful that our fellows will at last strike All Black form, but we now know full well that they will never pile up the cricket scores they did in Great Britain in 1905 and 1924. Few of the games in South Africa will bo easy ones, as was made abundantly clear at Kimberley on Saturday. . _ . It will be an occasion for national rejoicing it our fellows can draw level with ihe South Africans by winning the second, test at Johannesburg on Saturday week. The Wairarapa Boom.

Old-timers are fond of writing about the light of other days, and recalling the time when Wairarapa was a power in the Rugby world. We know nothing about that halycou age, but we can seriously assure all veterans that at no time in her past, history could Wairarapa muster anything like as strong a team as she possesses to-day. It is not too much to say that Wa|rarapa has one of the best, if not the very' strongest fifteen in New Zealand at the present time, and they may very easily regain the Rapfurly Shield, which they lost last season to Manawhenu.a. Wairarapa defeated Hawke’s Bay at Nqpier on the King’s Birthday, and they again lowered the Magpie colours at Masterton on Saturday last, when they won by the substantial margin of 13 points to nil. This was a sterling performance when it is remembered that Hawke’s Bay fielded a rearguard which comprised Yates at full-back, Huxtable, Blake and Law on the three-quarter line, South and Bennett as iuside backs, and Setford at half. Yet this strong back division , was. not allowed to notch a solitary > point on Saturday. . ■ Strong buck nml forward. Wairarapa dominated the game.. .Quentin Donald and “Bull'’ Irvine, the 1924 hookers for

the All Blacks, gave the Wairarapa backs plenty of the ball, and Cooke. Stringfellow, Cundy and Jury had a held day. . . .. ~ Wairarapa have a most promising lullbuck in Roach, who landed a nice field goal against Hawke's Bay. It will be remembered that this speedy custodian scored a try for Wairarapa against Hawke's Bay in the same match a year ago, when he, followed up fast and caught the defenders napping. Wairarapa Will meet Manawhenua at Palmerston North to-day, and will then 'head south and tackle Canterbury tor the Ranfurly Shield at Christchurch this day week. With three representative games to' give them combination, Wairarapa should prove dangerous chailengers, aud the holders will be for tunate if they can stall off this desperate sortie on Wednesday next. Canterbury Preparing.

Canterbury arc not treating AVairarapa,lightly and have wisely set about organising for the tussle. In a lowu v. Country match the husky country forwards recently made the city vanguard look like Canterbury lambs. Ibe Canterbury Union then 'wisely* <1 cc . l< to plav a trial match on Saturday last, which‘led to a great outcry about niterfeting with club games. It does not matter greatly whether the AVce-AAaws or the Whoo-Whoos win the senior championship of. Christchurch, but it does matter a good deal if Canterbury arc beaten in their very first effort to defend the Ranfurly Shield, winch. they won for the first time from Manawhenua last season. • ~-;n It is pretty certain that Harns wi fill the full-back position, but there will be keen competition for places on the three-quarter and five-eighths lines, oteo has mefided his broken collarbone, and he and Hart, Galbraith, Dorreen, Oliver, and Calder are all in the running as threes. ~ , . , , M. L. Page, the well-known crickete , is stated to be a'certuiuty tor the haltback position, but the task of finding suitable defensive men for. the five-eighths line is giving the selectors some concern. Grant is considered to have a good chance., Taranaki in the Boom.

That Taranaki is still on the Rugby map it proved at Hawera on Wednesday last, when it. defeated the chosen of Wellington by 9 points to 6. Neither side was at full strength, 'but the Taranaki forwards turned the tide in the countrymen’s favour by snarkling well in the dying stages, M. Brown, the 1924 AU Black, is back in form, and notched a good try against Wellington. Taranaki will play Waikato at Stratford to-day, when they should register another victory. ■< A Good Team.

Ponefcc is firuily entrenched on Hill Senior A, and it will be a well-equipped force who will dislodge them. Of the eleven games played so far this season, the Red and Blacks have won nine aud lost two. ' They owe their position to their forwards, who are without question the strongest and best pack in the competition. They also owe a very great deal to their able leader, Jack Shearer, who, at all times, not only sets his men a shining example, but gives optical demonstrations as to how things should be done. No forward in New Zealand can dribble as the Ponekc captain can, and does. He keeps wonderful control of the ball, and is dangerous every time he gets the ball at his toes. Not only eau he dribble, but he has surprising pace, and keeps his wits about him all the time. Right at the start of the game, an Athletic forward broke away with the ball. Shearer not only pulled him up, but actually snatched the leather out of his hands, and set sail in the. opposite direction. On another occasion, Keenan, the Athletic full-back, was manoeuvring for a pot at goal, when Shearer pounced upon him and averted the danger. This is the vigilance which prevents points being registered against your . side. Jack Shearer sebred two tries on Saturday. the second by a brilliant run down the liite, in which he swerved, dummied, and sidestepped in a rinluncr which would have reflected credit on any three-quarter in the competition. He scored three tries on Saturday, landed a penalty goal, and converted one of his own tries. Backing up their ’ captain well were Pickraiig, Peterson, Jessup, Sly, Organ, and Pearson. They make up a great pack. ' . , Athletic were soundly beaten by 2-> points to 6,;and deserved the talc which befel them, as the Blue and Black backs would not go down to the rushes, and the forwards stood 100 bolt upright in the rucks. ! ;■ ■'

•The display by both sets of backs was a long way below what one would expect from two of Wellington’s leading teams. The simple’explanation is that backs of class were not on the ground, and judging by the showing made by the Wellington representative team at. Ilawera on Wednesday last they are not in’the city. Students in Form. Fortune is still favouring ’Varsity with her smile, and the students gained a conclusive victory over Wellington -on Saturday. Led by Voice, liathgeii, Stanley, and McLean, the Yellow forwards played their usual energetic game, but they were unable to blanket .the fast and elusive Green backs. Williams, Ramson, and Brown in the students’ threequarter line are all fliers, and Mackenzie and Malfyoy made the openings required. Of the opposition rearguard there is little to be said./ Jaggers isatin excellent half-back, and, working behind the heavy Wellington pack, fed his backs quite well. Combination was lacking, however, and the versatile Julian at wing-three-quarter saw little of the ball in attack. The insides showed a tendency to run across, instead of drawing their men, and the wings when they did get the ball, had no room in which to work. It is nigh time that someone other than McLean had a share of place-kicking. The big rover hag an erratic boot at the best of times, and too many certain points are lost in this department. Those kicks at close range, especially, would be better given to a more accurate if less powerful marksman. Eastbourne Coming On.

’ Teddy Roberts weqrs a bright smile these days, and he has every reason to be satisfied, as Eastbourne are doing really well for their first season in the senior A ranks. They were badly beaten by Old Boys in the previous round, but on Saturday Old Boys had to play all they knew to make a draw of it. This shops the marked improvement. Eastbourne have made of late. To win three matches in a row, and then hold Obi Boys to a draw is creditable form indeed, Oriental Fighting Hard. Oriental continue to win matches, but they have had some close calls lately. Following their defeat by Eastbourne last Saturday, they had to clap on the pace at Newtown Park ‘ to get home from Marist by 8 to 6. It was only tfie superior condition of the Oriental forwards which saved the day. Marist do not deserve to win matches, as it Is clear that they pay little or no attention to training. They have quite a good side, but no matter how good a team is individually it will never set a fire goIng with broken bellows. Petone Hard Pressed.

Berhampore fully extended Petone on Saturday. Pickering early put heart into the hillmen by dropping a neat field goal, but the villagers then took heart of grace, and eventually wou a hard-fought contest by 10 to 12. Thomas was in treat niejs for the Dark, Plues, scaring t.KQ

tries, while Spence and Lambournc also Crossed for Petone. Deere scored for Berhampore, and Pickering, who also landed a penalty goal, converted the try. Call For Help. A member of the Marist senior Rugby team, J. McDonald, had the misfortune to break a leg in the match against Old BoyS. .-McDonald is a married man with four- children, -and will bo incapacitated for about two months, during which time he will receive only thirty shillings a week from the Rugby Union. To assist his dependants, the Marist Club is holding a dance in St. Francis's Hall on July 25, tickets for which are now available at 2s. 6d. each. This cause should appeal to all supporters of the game.

Hard Knocks. . A Paekakariki corres, undent writes: — “Perhaps you did not intend to convey a rather ; nasty slur on Mr. Kilby, halfback, ~’hen you quoted instances ■of hard knocks on other players' in other tours. It is really a question <of what part of the anatomy is knocked—and how knocked in certain positions. Again, there is a certain elehicut of luck about it. How about some of our boys that went to the war and returned whole—sheer luck I A few reverses in New Zealand football is good, as we us a people are apt to get ‘football proud,' which is a very bad thing. Please do not. think this is a personal matter; I do uot know any of the touring players. 1-n my youth I was a very keen ’football fan.’ and walked miles to. sec a good match, and am still interested, although unable to attend matches.” Rival Selectors.

“Hawke's Bayite" writes: “If my letter in last AVedupsday’s “Dominion” solicited a laugh from ‘Old Player,’ T am sorry I cannot return the compliment concerning either of ’his little flutters, but ignorance is no Joke, and I am sure no one even smiled at ‘Old Player's’ ignorance which was shown in his letters, He has uudiiobtedl.v n tine stock of proverbs, and both of them which he quoted I agree are very sound, but do not apply in this case. Abuse js no argument certainly, hut is this not a case of the pot calling the kettle black? ‘Old Player’ has certainly put forth no arguments (let alone sound ones). The ‘Johannesburg Sun,’ whose reporters ai'e eye-witnesses of each AU Black match, are high in their praise of Nicholls and were very much surprised at his noninclusion in the first Test team. Surely ‘Old Player’ must admit that this proves that-, his ideas concerning Nicholls are ridiculous. In the' niatch against Northern Provinces on Saturday the: players (Lucas and Sheen), who nre idolised by ‘Old Player,’ performed in no vvay to merit their inclusion in a Test team. I still maintain that Johnson, is the best inside back w’ h the All Black#, although he, like the others, did not playup to his true form against the Springboks. ‘There arc.none so blind as those who won’t see,’ however, and it is quite evident that ‘Old Player’ comes under this category. He sees the rest of New Zealand admitting that South Africa beat us fairly iu the first Test, but he will not admit it and makes a lot of •ridiculous suggestions of what might have happened.”