CLEVER RUGBY

Evening Post, Volume CXL, Issue 127, 26 November 1945, Page 5

CLEVER RUGBY

BEST PERFORMANCE YET

(N.Z.E.F. Correspondent.) LONDON, November 24. Playing A OO per cent, better than m any previous performance, the N.Z.E.F. Rugby .cam beat England by 18 paints to 3 and provided 35,000 spectators at Twickenham with an exhilarating display of clever and spectacular Rugby. Both sides played fast, open Rugby, and the game was closer than the scores indicate, though the Kiwis definitely dominated the last quarter of an hour.

For the first time in the tour the New Zealand pack showed top form, and in addition to smashing rushes themselves, they gave the backs 60 per cent, of the ball. The backs started very nervously and scratchily, but settled down to play most enterprising football, with hard tackling which was good enough to smother up orthodox movements. The teams were:— New Zealand.—H. E. Cook; E. G. Boggs, J. B. Smith, and J. R. Sherratt; I. Proctor and F. R. Allen; C. X Saxton (captain); N. J. McPhail, F, N. Haigh, J. G. Simpson. A. W. Blake, P K. Rhind, E. W. Woolley, K. D Arnold, and J. Finlay.

England.—H. Pateman; D. L. Marriott, J. Heaton (captain), E. K. Scott, and G. Hollis; N. M. Hall and P, W. Sykes; E. Bole, H. F. Wheatley. G. Hudson. R H. Peel, D. B. Vaughan. G. A. Kelly, W. O. Hhadwick. and T. Price.

Cook's kick-off was returned by Pateman to Boggs. who was pushed into touch. The English forwards pushed into the Kiwi twenty-five, where the New Zealand backs started a passing rush. Smith punted ahead, and Finlay caught Pateman in possession. Smith fielded a weak clearing kick and ran over the line but was recalled for knocking-on'. From a scrum in the Kiwis' twenty-five, Sykes set his backs going and Heaton beat Smith badly before sending the ball to Hollis. who was beautifully tackled by Boggs. Hall missed a fairly easy penalty shot at goal A penalty enabled Cook to lift the pressure with a line kick. Proctor retrieved a bad pass by Saxton, but was caught in possession. ENGLISH PASSING RUSHES. The New Zealand forwards made a fine loose rush down the left line, and from the succeeding play Finlay and then Saxton made solo runs on the blind side. From a scrum the Kiwi forwards simply smashed their way to

the English line, Sykes relieving with a line kick. The English backs attacked, but-Cook gathered in a punt at full speed and lined while in a tackle. The English backs went away in a good

rush, but McPhail dropped back and marked a short punt. Good tackling stopped another good English passing rush, and then from a scrum the Kiwi backs had a run, Smith being caught in possession, and the ball kicked through to Cook, who won applause with a fine line kick.

From a scrum, Allen dummied and raced through a gap. Smith missed Allen's pass, but Sherratt picked up and went over. Cook converted. This was the first score in 30 minutes' play. New Zealand 5. England 0.

Play hung for a while round halfway, with the packs rucking very hard. From a scrum Saxton made a sensational run on the' blind side and passed to Allen, who was downed. The ball was toed over the line and Sherratt dived and just missed touching down. A minute later Cook kicked a fine penalty goal.

The spell ended: New Zealand 8 England 0.

From the kick-off after the resumption, Finlay hurled the ball more than. half-way across the field, Smith taking it and lining near the English twenty-five. Several line-outs followed, both sets of backs finding the tackling very solid. A line-out infringement enabled Heaton to kick a penalty goal. New Zealand 8, England 3.

A misskick by Pateman put the Kiwis on the attack, but the English forwards, who for a while had been looking as if they might take charge of the game, drove them back with a fine loose rush. Saxton, who was playing an excellent game after a shaky start, made a good blind-side run from a scrum, but could not get the ball away. Good tackling stopped an English passing rush, in which the ball went right along the line to Hollis. From the following scrum- Saxton started a passing rush, Smith shortpunting and gathering the ball again while running past the full-back. When overhauled by Marriott he passed forward to Sherratt.

N.Z. ATTACK MAINTAINED

Cook kept the Kiwis on the attack with a great line kick, and after solid tackling had stopped an English passing rush Finlay and Arnold broke through in a 30-yard run to the Eng-

lish lino. Cook over-kicked to touch-in-goal, but the forwards resumed the attack, Rhind making a spectacular break from a line-out to the- fullback close to the English line. In tackling, the ball rolled clear, and Simpson dived, but England just managed to force. *

Again the English backs got going, but Proctor intercepted, his pass to Smith being knocked on. The Kiwi forwards made &, good loose rush, and then Arnold burst away from a ruck in England's twenty-five and in a magnificent 20-yard run crashed through three or four tackles to score under the posts, Cook converting New Zealand 13, England 3 Good tackling stopped another New Zealand passing rush. Then from loose play Allen made a long diagonal run, reverse-passing to Sherratt, who ran right across to the other side of the field before being downed, and Boggs found touch with a long kick. Taking a penalty kick at half-way, Cook lined 10 yards from England s goal line, and from the ruck which followed the resultant line-out, Saxton slipped cleverly round the blind side

and passed to Sherratt, who sidestepped his way over, Cook converting. Play ended a minute later with the New Zealand Army team 18, England

The Kiwi forwards put up a magnificent performance against a very

fine opposing pack, and the backs showed much more variety and resource in attack than in previous games. The team's defence was appreciably better, and for the greater part of the game their play approached All Black standard.