The Rugby Game

Evening Star, Issue 23675, 7 September 1940, Page 2 (Supplement)

The Rugby Game

In Scoring Mood. The 1935-36-37 All Black forward Tori 1 Reid scored four tries for his team, M.A.C., in a club match on a recent Saturday. M.A.C. are bracketed with Tech.-High as winners of the NapierHastings championship.

Son of All Black. On the ball all. day and standing out as one of the most promising members of the Southern pack against Varsity A was I. Douglas, a promoted junior, who also showed a lot of dash in the loose. This youth impressed considerably, but subsequent inquiries revealed that there is nothing surprising about this, for young Douglas is a son of “ Jimmy ” Douglas, the old Southern and Otago forward. “ Jimmy ’’ represented Otago on 14 occasions in the 1912-13-13 seasons, and was a member of the New Zealand team which toured California under the captaincy of Ales. M'Donald in 1913.

Captain in New Role. It takes a good footballer to settle down in an unaccustomed role, but with his side up against it on Saturday Gavin Murray, the Taieri skipper, came through with a first-rate game in the pack. Murray, who is a strapping fellow and one of the solidest threequarters in Otago, notched a couple of tries. He went across from a scrum for his first, and later battled out of the five-eighth’s tackle and went past the full-back to score his second try. Murray leaves for camp shortly, and the Taieri Club will miss his services, for he has been a great club man and one of the most dependable players in the side. Primary Schools Rugby.

In Mr R. M. Thomson Auckland has a very keen follower of secondary and primary schools Rugby, and I have to thank him for forwarding a copy of the programme of the Northern Roller Mills’ tournament for primary school teams. He has seen the tournament on four occasions, and has been amazed at the high standard of play shown by the s’onngsters. The games were played at Eden Park from August 19 to 23, this being the sixteenth annual competition for this shield. Besides teams _ from Auckland, players came from Waikato. Thames Valley, South Auckland, and Waipa, the competition being open to any Rugby Union district in the Auckland province. Since 1926 it has been a condition that Auckland schools enter three teams. The final resulted in a win for the Auckland North team, which defeated the Auckland Central team by 25 points to 3. All Black Reappears.

One of the forwards in the Army team that beat Wanganui a fortnight ago was G. B. Purdue, a member of the All Black team in 1931 and 1932 and a Southland stalwart for several seasons. He is a brother of Syd. Purdue, who has played in the Southland pack for several seasons. Wellington Championship Final.

One of the decisive factors in Athletic’s defeat of Wellington in the Wellington championship final was the superiority on attack of their rearguard, admirably served first by Mollier, the hooker, and then by C. O’Halloran, the half-back. O’Halloran went one of the most impressive games this season. He was particularly conspicuous in the first spell (says the ‘ Sports Post ’). In almost direct contrast to his play in the match against Hawke’s Bay the previous week, he ■whipped the ball out smartly, and on very few occasions only did. the ball go to the five-eighths off the line. He was solid on defence, and his potted goal was a fast, neat piece of work. In replacing Eric Tindill—in England with the Second Echelon—O’Halloran has been invaluable to Athletic this year, O’Halloran previously played for Petone. It will be recalled that several years ago he suffered the loss of some fingers on one hand, but he has played a lot of good football since this accident, which would have been sufficient to deter many others from continuing in the game.

Classy Full-back. One of the players who impressed most in the All Black trials last season was the Taranaki full-back Johns. Ho was one of the most promising fullbacks encountered by the Otago team during its northern tour, and from all accounts he is showing no loss of form this year. Ho apparently did a great job when Taranaki defeated "Wellington by 11 points to 9 last Saturday, for a Wellington writer had it that he “ came out of the match tagged as one of the finest full-backs in the country to-day. In the tough spots of the second spell he was better than Dance, and his work throughout was distinguished.”

Former North Island Star Reappears. Colin Le Quesne, one-time North Island, Hawke’s Bay, Wellington, and. Manawatu Rugby representative, can still turn on a very fair game (says an exchange). He appeared the other day for the Saracens (the counterpart of the Auckland Barbarians and similar organisations) against Central Hawke’s Bay. He was the' outstanding man on the field until a knee injury reduced his capacity and compelled him to move from five-eighths to full-back. He provided the sensation of the match by landing a running field goal from just inside halfwav. It was an effort, incidentally, which caused his retirement. His knee refused to stand up to further strain. Le Quesne was generally considered unlucky to miss All Black honours. At his best he was a very capable back, dogged unfortunately almost throughout his entire senior career with a succession of injuries.

His Last Game. Arthur Collins, of Taranaki, one of the very best Rugby full-backs New Zealand has had in the last decade, though recognition of this fact was rather tardily accorded him, has played his last game. This, anyway, was his announcement after appearing for Clifton A fortnight ago. Collins had a long representative career for his province. Ho was the last line of defence for 11 consecutive years, a record of service for Taranaki exceeded only by A. Bayly, A. L. Humphries, and H. J. Mynott, One of the highlights of Collins’s career was his appearance for Taranaki against the 1937 Springboks. Earlier in the season he had been critically ill with pneumonia, and to all intents and purposes was apparently finished with football, at least for that season. But his recovery was

Notes Mnd Comments

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extraordinary. He came back, whipped himself into shape, and went a fine game against the South Africans. Collins was in two New Zealand sides, those of 1932 and 1934. He was never a spectacular player. But he was extremely sound in all phases, so sound, in fact, that this to some degree induced a lack of full national appreciation of his ability (says a northern writer).

Canterbury Half Retires. The Christchurch Athletic Rugby Club’s senior half-back, W. F. Clark, who gave some fine performances for Canterbury in 1933 and 1939, has retired from play. He hopes to still help the Athlethic Club, however, in the capacity of a coach. Clark, whose retirement is brought about through injury, was half-back in the Christchurch Boys’ High School first fifteen in 1931 and 1932, when the side was unbeaten for two seasons in succession. From 1933 to 1936 he played for Old Boys, after which he transferred to Athletic. On entering grade Rugby in 1938 he was_ chosen for the Old Boys’ senior team with seven other members of the 1932 High School team.

Trentham, Team’s Success. The Trentham Army team has had considerable success in matches _ played against representative sides in the North Island. Of five matches it has won three, drawing in one and being defeated once. Praying against Wanganui, at Wanganui, Trentham was successful by 15 points to 9. The team beat Manawatu, 18-14, and Wairarapa, 8-5. It drew with Hawke’s Bay, 16 all, and was beaten by Wellington, 19-17. For Air Force. The Pirates Club will miss the services of Charlie M’Gill, who left during the week for Harewood, where he is to be attached to the 'R.N.Z.A.F. For the last five or six years,_ “ Mac ” has been trainer ol the senior fifteen of the cluh, in which capacity he has done valuable work. .This year he occupied a similar position with the Otago team, and for many years past has had a lot of success as a trainer of track athletes. The Pirates Club tendered Mr M'Gill a farewell on Saturday night at their club rooms, and the president (Mr J). M. Spedding) referred to the excellent work he had done for the club for many years and the way he had always carried out his duties as trainer of the senior fifteen. Messrs C. A. MThee (club captain) and L. Giles (coach of the senior team) endorsed Mr Spedding’s remarks. Not Fnished Yet. Any suggestion that he might have finished with Rugby for all time was refuted recently by J. M. Taylor, Wellington, New Zealand, and ex-Otago full-back. In a recent game Taylor, while playing for the Wellington Club, suffered a fractured cheek bone. The injury is healing,' but. of course, it meant his withdrawal from Rugby for the remainder of the season. The Wellington Club was unlucky to lose Taylor’s services at a critical stage in the season. He was replaced in the fullback position by Hall, who was good up to a point, but did not inspire the confidence of Taylor, nor did he kick with the great power of the All Black full-back.

Great Display by Southern Pack. Conditions were of the best when the teams took the field for the long-awaited second-round tilt between Varsity A and Southern, the ground being very hard and fast. For many years past games between these teams have been among the highlights of the season, and the match on Saturday provided an encounter well up to the standard of the great games of the past, the display being easily the most specticular seen on Carisbrook this season. With scores fluctuating in remarkable fashion, enthusiasm and excitement ran high, and interest was held to the final whistle. On form this season Varsity were the favourites for the game, and Southern were faced with the necessity of registering a win or being eliminated as championship contenders. It was obvious under such conditions as those which prevailed that the game would be a test as to whether the concerted work of the Southern forwards would be sufficient to offset the pace and brilliance of the University backs.

Once again the Southern side rose to the occasion, and their 18-14 win was due to the outstanding play of the pack, supported by a solid if not brilliant back lino. It is often debated whether a good pack or a strong back line is the better asset to a side, and Saturday’s game indicated that a solid, all-round forward side was able to offset the advantage possessed by the opposition of speedy and resourceful backs, the advantage of possession of the ball being the deciding, point. Southern showed a complete reversal of first-round form, for in the previous meeting of the teams they were beaten for possession in front and the backs were overwhelmed.

Owing to the inability of Roy Nieper (captain), and Tony Black (vicecaptain) to play because of injury, the Southern side was captained by Russell Edwards, and his play throughout provided that inspiration which helped the Southern forwards to master the opposing pack. Edwards’s play was outstanding and his aggressive tactics

The whole pack gave Edwards admirable support, givuig easily their best display in the last two seasons. H. Holley and H. J. Tyrie stood out above the others because of their vigorous line-out play and the manner they used their weight and strength in bursting through! the Varsity pack. 'lyric was also prominent on defence, where his pace frequently allowed him. to get back in time to tackle one of the Varsity backs when danger threatened Southern. T. Wallace was up with the play all day and showed plenty of dash in the loose. G. M'Donald, who took the field with a troublesome log injury, retired at half-time and was replaced by C. Quaid, The strenght of the Southern backs lay close to the scrum, S. Robert, D. Trevathan, and A. Edwards proving a sound trio. Robert is now playing with judgment at the base of the scrum, duo to the fact that he has played fairly consistently this season. He varied iiis play well aud his defence, which has always been an outstanding feature of his play, was again good on Saturday. The two tries which ho scored were the result of quick opportunism. Trevathan. was solidity itself, and though his work on attack did not have the same thrust as Berghan’s, in the other departments he more than held his own, while his well-judged kicking was of great assistance in Southern’s endeavours to master the Varsity pack. Trevathan. had four pots at goal and all but one went close. The effort which decided the issue was a rattling good one, and probably occasioned no surprise among the spectators, for it was the most likely thing to try at that particular stage of the game. Allan Edwards, one of the most promising inside backs in the competition, played soundly, and his try was a particularly fine individualistic effort. Churchill, at centre, was disappointing, and he was frequently caught

in possession by Jones, while his tackling lacked the determination necessary to stop a hard runner like Jones. The Southern wingers, Irvine and Milburn, had limited opportunities on attack, as it was obvious that Southern were endeavouring to secure their points closer to the scrum. Though outpaced by their vis-a-vis, Irvine and Milburn tackled soundly, and only on two or three occasions did the Varsity wingers succeed in getting past them. Although he did not display his top form, E. Bolton, at full-back, undoubtedly saved the game for Southern when he was successful in preventing a try after Berghan had made a strong break and attempted to draw Bolton to give his support an unopposed try. Bolton rose to the occasion, however, and succeeded in forcing Berghan to pass, then tackling the other man. .The Varsity team owed their defeat to the fact that their forwards packed too loosely, which enabled the virile Southern pack to pour through on to the Blue rearguard. Tactically, the Varsity forwards wore at fault, for with such a resourceful line behind them they should at least have endeavoured to hold the Southern forwards and force the opposition to make more use of their backs. An improvement in this direction might have been looked for after half-time, but_ the second spell was merely a repetition of the first. One Varsity forward who put all lie

had into the tight work was V. L. Smith, and consequently he was not so prominent in the loose as usual. Had some of the others emulated his example there might have been a different result. The diminutive hooker, C. N. D. Taylor, worked with a will, but while A.G. Harper and P. F. Foote opened up play on occasions, tho Varsity pack lacked' balance, having too many players who wore looking for opportunities in the loose instead of concentrating on stopping the Southern van from penetrating. L. H. Simpson had a big day behind the Varsity pack, but he came through it well and made one or two splendid bursts from the scrum which had Southern busily defending. Trevor Berghan was the most thrustful of the University backs, making some splendid runs, one of which culminated in a run-away try by Jones. Berghan was always dangerous, and the duel between Trevathan and the Varsity first five-eighth was one of the most interesting phases of the game, honours being fairly easy from an all-round point of view. Of the others, Dick Skelley. at second five-eighth, was the most impressive. and he was solid on defence and also showed considerable thrust on attack.

Boss Jones, at centre, was always dangerous when opportunities came his

way, and his strong running frequently tested the Southern defence. Jones may not have the finish that has been associated with some University centres, but undoubtedly he has the ability to play Rugby, and he should acquire the necessary polish in the next season or two.

J. W. Green and N. Lino were speedy three-quarters, and Lino proved a very capable substitute for Peterson. Both were dangerous when in possession, and it says much for Milburn and Irvine tliat they were able to hold them in check for most of the game. T. Kawe was sound at full-back, his kicking being well directed.

Game of Many Mistakes. The Pirates-Zingari-Richmond game provided the worst display of football seen on Carisbrook this year, both teams being lifeless and devoid of method. Pirates certainly had more finish and were better able to take advantage of the opportunities which came along. The forwards gained possession from the majority of scrums and rucks, but the backs so often fell into mistakes and did so niueh aimless kicking that much of the advantage of possession was lost. A. A. Parkhill worked well in the tight and was often noticeable for his efforts in the line-out play, and of the younger brigade, Lanauze and Williams frequently showed out. The Pirates half-back. C. Hawkins, was too prone to turn when giving his passes, and this no_ doubt hindered the movements of his outside backs. The position was aggravated by the fact that W. R. Campbell, usually so resourceful, unaccountably chose to kick repeatedy rather than endeavour to give Fraser and Remain a chance to make play for the wingers. The Zingari forwards adopted spoiling tactics with a good measure of success, and easily the most outstanding player was L. Pollock, who was well supported by V. Short, with R. White showing out in the loose. The Mason brothers were undoubtedly the most impressive of the Zingari backs, and on one or two occasions the veteran, A. H. (“ Bunny ”) Rapson. made good openings. W. Mason is a thfustful and determined runner, and with more opportunities would he a dangerous attacking fiveeighth. The play of the Zingari backs, however, lacked method. A. Mason, at full-back, was very safe and his kicking was well judged. Zingari’s points were, all registered by him. consisting of a field goal and a penalty goal. More Poop Football.

There is little worth recording regarding the play in the match between Union and University B at Logan Park. It did not reach even the usual cnd-of-the-season standard, and there was every indication that the players had no great interest in the game or in the result. Maybe, the absence of Silver has taken the shine out of Union, and maybe the B’s were less on their mettle because Steele was away.

The day was warm, but, as our American friends would say, the play was “ not so hot.’’ Indeed, it would be straining the point to name any member of either side who played really good football. The two full-bacfks. Freeman and Beetham. were sound enough and kicked fairly well, but, then, there was nothing to stop them doing so. The Varsity wings. Garth (in High School colours) and Mottram (with no number) showed speed but little Judgment. Two or three other players on either side who wore no numbers, or the wrong colours, or both, and for that reason are not deserving of mention, sparkled up occaionally. The tackling, however, was largely of the neck-hold variety; the rucking was mostly scruff and scramble; many of the scrums collapsed, and the passing rarely got the side anywhere. Both halves, by the way, appeared to have a craving—or Cravening—for the dive pass, but, generally speaking, the dive was executed much more effectively than the pass. Union won by 9 points to 3, only because of the lamentable weakness of the B’s, who, as usual, made several alterations in their team at the last moment.

The match was late in starting, and there were several lengthy hold-ups for more or less minor injuries. It may he gathered from all this criticism that this particular senior Rugby match was a dull, uninteresting, and altogether poor affair. And whoever gathers that impression from these notes will be perfectly correct. Alhambra Forwards the Deciding Factor. From time to time Alhambra have turned on displays that augur better things, and although Kaikorai fielded pretty much a “ scratch ” side, the hill team must have been given something of a shock when they were trounced by the ’Bamas to the tune of 17-3, this reversing the first-round result of 10-3 in Kaikorai’s favour. Alhambra owed the win to the concerted work of their pack and to the penetrative ability shown by B. Taylor and J. Broadfoot. Broad foot, usually one of the most reliable full-backs in the senior competition, moved up to first five-eighth, and, handling well and showing up on attack, was a decided success. He contributed 11 of the ’Bamas points before he retired injured, registering a try which he converted and kicking two penalty goals.

Brook Taylor, at centre, showed resource and determination in his running. The wingers, C. Seaward and E. Holy, showed up in some good runs, Hely notching a try. In an even pack, M'Donald, Treewick, and Hansen stood out.

The Kaikorai team was at sixes and sevens, the forwards playing very loosely—a fault which has been too noticeable this season—and the backs sadly missed the resourcefulness of Spiers, the first five-eighth, who was uuahlo to play. Calder, at second fiveeighth, rarely showed up on attack, and his defence was much less impressive than usual. J. Laurenson, the half-back, had few opportunities to open up the game. The Aitken brothers were the pick of the forwards, but apart from their efforts the packing of the hill forwards was very poor.

Taieri Lose Opportunities. Although there was a lot of scrambling play when Taieri were at home to Dunedin, flashes of bright bade play relieved the monotony of things somewhat, Dunedin’s win being due to better use of the opportunities that came their way, though, as the 14-12 margin indicated, there was very little in it..

Two of Dunedin’s tries were individualistic,efforts by M. Spillano, who was the best back on the ground. On one occasion he intercepted a pass from M'Oartney to Wilkins in the Dunedin twenty-five, and racing through the de-

fence he caught the Taieri full-back, C. M'Leod, out of position to score. The other try came when a clearing kick by M'Leod did not find the line, and was fielded by E. Black, the Dunedin full-back, who ran up and sent on to Spillane. With the Taieri backs again out of position, the Dunedin five-eighth was through the defence in a flash to cross again. Spillane was always looking for openings, and he and A. Manion showed S.n excellent understand-, ing of each other’s play, linking up well. The Dunedin backs handled more surely than Taieri, and their passing was crisper and better directed. G. S. Reynolds, the speedy winger, was dangerous when the ball came his way, and he scored a good try from an opening made by Spillane. Black, at full-back, was more uncertain than usual. The Dunedin forwards had a hard afternoon’s work in coping with the Taieri van, but in the line-out play C. Collett showed to more advantage than any of the others. P. Treacy was prominent in the loose, but did not put his usual ginger into the tight work. So far as tho plainsmen were concerned it was a game of lost opportunities, dropped passes proving very costly. The only backs to impress were W. Johnstone (second five-eighth) and S. Whitson (half-badk). Johnstone made some good openings and got through a lot of covering work. Whitson gave good service from the base of the scrum, made one particularly good break which should have ended in a try, but Wilkins drooped his pass and lost a certain try. The Taieri’ forwards were on top for most of the game, hut lack of finish by the hacks nullified much of their good work. W. Bissett. R. Barnes, and J. Blackie were a hard-working trio.

Army Team and Territorials. Dunedin clubs were well represented in the senior game at Christchurch last Saturday between the Army and the Territorials, when in one of the most exciting games of the season the Army team won by 19 points to 17. Facing a 9-0 deficit at half-time, the Territorials quickly set about to overtake the Army team in the second spell and ran up 14 points before Army realised what had happened. Garrett kicked a field goal to make the score 14-13, and when Polhill scored Army had regained the lead by 16-14. It was not all over yet. however, as the Territorial backs scored again, but with the score 17-16 against them Army worked furiously, and were rewarded with a last-minute try by J. Tappin, the former Alhambra player. Considerable penetrative ability was shown bv the Territorial five-eighth, Swale, who formerly played for Training College here and before that for Southland Boys’ High School. A member of the Territorial pack was Laidlaw, the ex-Pirates forward.