Football.

Evening Post, Volume LXXIII, Issue 129, 1 June 1907, Page 14

Football.

RUGBY. fßr DBorKicK.J XEW ZEALAND TEAM IN AUSTRALIA. July 13— V. New South Wales, at Sydney. July 17— V. New South Wales, at Sydney. July 20— V. Australia, at Sydney. July 24— V. Queensland, at Brisbane. July 2? — V. Queensland, at Brisbane. Lost Saturday's games started on fairly firm ground, and finished on quagmires. The rain held off long enough to get people and players out, and then came on, gently at first, but soon in steady streams. The teams had about half an hour of decent conditions, and afterwards it was rather a case of "catcli-as-calch-can" with a greasy ball on a slippery ground. ORIENTAL v. MELROSE. It was expected that the meeting of Oriental and Melrpse would produce the kind of Dout commonly known as a "tight-go,"; but Oriental had all the innings, ilejrose sadly disappointed their supporters. The forwards, who usually command respect, were tired and disorganised, and the backs were very back numbers. Indeed, combination was not a characteristic of the Oriental attack .either. „ 'iSlaprdab" manoeuvres were the fayourite ones on each bide, and consequently the match was tiresome to watch. .The unexpected happened altogether' too frequently. Men had sudden inspirations, and tried to cdrve out careers for themselves without the aid of their fel-low-men, and they wero grievously disillusioned. However, there w ere times when the Athletic rear-guard — Roberts, Cleary, Mnthieson, Anderson, and Scott — co-operated iiu some good work. Some smart runs were done by Mathieson and Anderson. The "lone hand" in tho Melrose ranks was G. Spencer, who was as cool as the southerly. " His kicking w.is about the only iespectnble exhibition of punting on the pavk. His defence was weak at least once, when ho was badly beaten by Anderson. x ATHLETIC v. PONEKE. Athletics surpiised Poneke and the public. Tho blues showed a good deal of dash and some combination, but their opponents were comparatively listless and disorganised. Skelly, behind the Poneke pack, was a puzzle to his colleagues. When he had a good grip of the ball and the.sfleet Mitchineon, Wallace and others were waiting for a chance, tho half-back nou'Jd plunge into the mck, where he floundered hopelessly. When 'the I'oneke backs got fairly going? they "soenied to score comfortably. Thar thud try,' when the light was failing,, xfss the lesult of very pretty passing by Wallace, Instone, Mitchinsou, uuj Twohill. This score, and another a few* minutes 1-iter, showed that 'a team should never despair till "r.o-side" is announced. The score btoorl at 14-6 against Poneke, and Athletics were still going sliong. Thcie was a quarter of ,an h.our to go, the light was failing, rain was falling, but Poneke just managed to get 'the points requhed for a draw. 'Hie tries were got in batches of two by each side, thus.: — Athletics two, Poceke two (first spell) ; 'Athletics two, Poneke two. ' Atnletic3 had by far the better of the combat, and deserved a win. Wallace was tho mainstay of Poneke. Ho made the openings for at least two of the tri-ae, and all tho lime he was working hard. iu"Ueo also exerted himself cleverly and persistently. Evcnson was the most conspicuous man in the Athletic ranks. He was very sure on hb feet, and his handling was*very clean. Thic player's head has now" come into line with his feet, which aro very serviceable. VICTORIA COLLEGE V. ST. JAMES. This match was played at Miramar on No. 1 ground and tho play was fast and interesting during the first sp?U. In the second half the game was fnst enough, but tho rnin which had bsen threatening during the early stages gradually thickened and tho gam^ ended in semi-d;ukness. Consequently tho end of the gamo was characterised by passing in which the ball go* all tho best of it, and by forward rushes which always stopped short of tho goal line. None 'of tho three tries scored by St. James was the result of clean combined play, each being more or leso^ the outcome of a, scramble. Nevt-rthe- J less.St. James- fully deserved the points, for their forwards wcro keen and followed up well. Following up very oftr j looka like waste effort, but fast me l • with good heart will usually reap a harvest if they stick to it. The opening may come only once or twice in a game, but it makes all the difference to 'tho side. Wright's second try on Saturday ought to havo been stopped by two University men, but "they missed the ball .between them and Wright reaped the reward. The backs of the opposing teams wero fairly evenly matched, though the St. James full-back gained more ground with hLs kicks than any other man on the field. He took the ball safely and his lino kickjrg; was very good indeed. G. Bogle again proved the bright and particular star of the College. He got the ball very neatly from his 'feet, and ran passed and tackled well. PrendevHle's defensive kicking was good. The St. James forwards wore better than the Collpge men. They were fitter and had more dash. They repeatedly raised a siege and carried the war into the' enemy's camp, and it v/as at such timos.that the College forwards showed to least advantage. They failed to get back quickly enough to support their backs. '• The third try was the outcome of a good piece' of work. Warwick came through at> the head of a, forward .rush, found a gap in the College defence, ran to tho full-back, and kicked. The, rest was done by following-up. The other tries scored by Wright and Hope wero not spectacular! ' ' TU backs on bolk aides acmoJ to have a good deal of latent possibilities, but the St. James men, who secured the ball the more often from the' scrum, broke down at the crucial .moments. The Collego backs had to mako thejr own chances, and they usually came a trifle late. MISCELLANEOUS. When darkness .covered the Athletic Park .on Saturday, the players made a mystic kind of spectacle, and tho weirdness was increased by tho glow of matches,, behind the hands that were screening pipes and cigarettes along the touch-lines. While tho people in the stand wero • peering through the' gloom, trying vainly to get a glimpse of the play which was at tho far end of tho field, a flash of lightning clearly revealed the combatants for n moment. "Turn it on again," yelled a barracker; but Providence did not answer the prayer till about five minutes afterwards. Careless kicking gave Athletics a couple of tries against Poneke. Wild punts, near the defenders' line wore easily wnotherod, and the chargers in each case grounded the ball near tho posts. •Over-eagerness is a chronic nilincnt among the forwards of Wellington iis well a« those of other centres. A pack goes away in. a, brilliant rush,, gets the rnemy penned in n c-orner, then a heavy boot, noting under tho impulse of ti heavy head, shoots the ball over the lino, and tho opposition calmly forces

down. This generous method of allowing a defending team to get out of a difficulty may be seen any Saturday at any of the grounds. 1 have to acknowledge receipt of a ropy of the New South Wales Rugby Union annual, a solid little volume comprising 284 pages of interesting football matter. » Commenting on the North Island team ths Taranaki Herald says the team selected is, despite the absenco of tho names of Auckland players, a strong one on paper. The backs should give a good account of themselves provided tho forwards aro able to hold their own. Ci. • Spencor, the full-back, is said to have been reproducing his old form this s?;ison. He is a good kick and collar, and his inclusion was not unexpected, although there were many who had thought that Hardgravcs would have bo?n preferred to him. Wallace and Mitchmson know each other's play, and both uro in tip-top form. Roberts, Mynott, and Hunter, thiee "All Blacks," can play into each other's hands so well that much may be expected of them. Dive is in good nick, and the three-quarter line could not perhaps have been improved even had selectors had tho Auckland material to work upon. Tho same may be said of tho half und -five-eighths. As to the wing forward, Gaorge Gillett would no doubt have been picked had he been available, but in Colman wo balieve the North Island will have an excellent substitute. Ths forwards are a fair lot. HIGH-TACKLING. It is considered "low" in this ago of politeness to tacklo low. Thersforc few men will stoop to conquer nowadays. They believe that an opponent's legs aro beneath their dignity, and therefore •they study the top of his jersey when they desire to arrest his progress. Tho p-tudy is harmless. There is an entertaining flourish of arms, which tickle the man with tho ball, and he pursues his way smilingly. It is a common spectacle, this display of wild arms grabbing handfuls of air near a man who is -on the run. Sometimes, when his engines aro only half out, ho can easily steam through a whole team that trios to bring him low by high-handed, quixotic, windmill tactics. Generally ho evades tho clutches that are extended for his nock, jersey, shoulder?, cars, back hair, whiskers, and other parts of his top hamper but sometimes the fingers make fast on one of ths features mentioned. But the ball is forgottan by the aggressor. Tho man in possession merely wriggles, sheds a little_ bit of his jersey perhaps, and is off again. If the modern players will persist in high tackling they should go for ths ball rather than the man., There is often no great advantage in stopping a, runner if ho is permitted to cojnfoitably pass to a suppcrtor. It is the simplest thing in the world to knock the ball out from the crook of a man',s arm. A sharp thrust vertically, upward, or downward, preferably downward, is all that is required -It is so long since "collaring low" .has been in general practice that there aro probably nutny who hardly know what tho words mean. They would be charmingly surprised by th? delights of bringing a man down by the legs if they would Only give this stylo a trial. Tho best way is to get close up to the iunnor, but to refrain from tackling him on the front. This would only invite a bump on tho lip or oyo or a buffet in tho epigastrium. It is' advisable to diw at the runner on ths Hank, ju?t whsn ho is skipping past. Tho tackler's arms should encircle tho hips, clap legs together and calmly await development*. They arc not long coming. The man' with tho ball sinks rapidly to earth, and his bump on ths ground is emphasised by the burden which he has been obliged to carry. This iB a very legitimate hard tackle. The fleer is not hurt, but ho is con'vmoed that he has betn brought down. Tho collarer, howovor, is quite fresh. He has fallen on a, nice cushion, and is able to pny attention to the ball, in which tho former carrier hns lost interest temporarily.