TEAM'S PROSPECTS

Evening Post, Volume CVIII, Issue 98, 22 October 1924, Page 6

TEAM'S PROSPECTS

MANAGER AND CAPTAIN 1 INTERVIEWED.

Some of the English, newspapers have succeeded in getting Mr. S . g. Dean (manager) and 0. ,G. Porter (captain) to give expression' to views which they hold oE the All Blacks, and in the course of interviews both spoke optimistically * ?, H representative of "The Sporting Life Mr. Dean said that a comparison between the present All Blacks and the original team was'a difficult subject to epeak on with certainty. This could be 3aid, the forwards were faster, and handled beautifully in close passing while they had developed forward play considerably by' keeping the ball in play. Mr. Dean said that several of the original All _Black_ team think the present eombinatidn quite on a par with that of 1905. It remained to be seen if that opinion would be borne out by the play, but Mr. Dean was certain that the foir.wardfi were a pound heavier on aver-

age than the former team, and would turn out to be very good. He did not think' the difference of the rules under which the game was pliyed in New Zealand would affect the team very much. .

With regard to the individual players, he thought that Nepia, who, with Paewai and Mill, other Moiris, learned his football at the Maori Agricultural College, would prove a capable full-back, especially if he reproduced his New Zealand form. He was the only full back, but if he suffered injury, Nichqlls would take- his " place. The best place-kicks on the side were Nepia, Nicholls, and Brown. Mr. Dean said it was just chance that the captain of the team was again a wing-forward, Porter being, almost a last-minute choice, when it_ was felt that the captain should not be in the scrum.

On the question of wing-forward play, as demonstrated by Gallaher in the previous tour, and the possibility of arousing protest, the manager said that Porter would not play Gallaher's wingfqrward game, but would, after putting #he ball in, be in a similar position to our scrum 1 half. Porter was a great player with wonderful anticipation The forwards would pack 2-3-2, and the packs would be the same as before. Of the five-eighths, Mr. Dean said that in Cooke the team had a player as good, if not better, than Hunter. He was a player with a wonderful pair of hands, a beautiful swerve, and great skill in directing the way the attack should go. The captain was very sanguine as to the team under his command. He said they had a splendid lot of forwards, all heavy and fast, and good backs with safe hands, speed, and cleverness. But he realised that the team would probably not have so many easy tasks as their predecessors in 1905. To another Press representative Porter, commented: •'We have a great tradition to live up to,, and.l shall be satisfied if we do what the 'All Blacks' of 1905 failed to do, viz., defeat Wales. We are hoping- to end England's, wonderful Twickenham record. We have a, solid and clever" pack, and some promising young backs," and .we hope to leave behind the reputation of beins good spurts."