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Seasonable Sports

LEAGUE FOOTBALL 'BRUNNER’S p.OOD -SHOWING The match between Brunner and Marists on Sunday Was a good draw card, as the defeat of 1 Nelson Creek by the former team, aroused more than ordinary interest in Greymouth, and half Brunner made the trip to Wingham Park. It was not to be expected that teams so early in the season would be capable of handing but the finer points of the code, but certainly also, it was an unexpected l surprise to see two teams enter into, and maintain (throughout play, such a determination to secure victory as was manifested by both the- Marist and Brunner Clubs. For any, and the number would be few, who visited the Park in anticipation of witnessing a match providing a scientific display, the game was a failure. But to ninety per cent, of the onlookers it provided ninety tense moments of interest, with Brunner hammering at the Marist stronghold determined to break through, hut opiposed by an equal determination on :the pant of the greens' to hold them out.

As an exhibition of the code it was (nothing to enthuse over, but as an exhibition of whole-heartedness on the Jpart of the players- of each team to 'give of the best that form would allow,dt was a splendid' game. Lost opportunities were contributing •factors to Brunner having to leave the field sharing honours witli Marist, but lost opportunities are. not deserving of sympathy and a Repetition of such in all probability result in defeat ilext time.

If ever a team played a defensive -game worthy of recognition, that team is Marist. Handicapped' by weight, and obviously by form, on Sunday they withstood tire incessant battering by Brunner in the second half, and failed only on one occasion to keep their 'line intact. Then, when the scores were- evened, up; the thirteen which, had up, till that time had their backs to the wall during the second spell, came away ■ in a spirited rush which was almost paralysing to Brunner for the greens swept all before them, and it was in the last stride before crossing the lien that Anisy was overhauled and brought down hard six inches from the touch-in-goal.

1 ■ Doogan showed himself to be a great player, and what was bit as important, a great leader. He inspired his team by his consistency, and no other player on the field covered nearly as much ground to such good purpose as Doogan. Wherever there was for defence, wherever an attack was under way, and whenever a player in possession required backing up the Marist captain was there, tackling solidly, •handling beautifully and ever ready to assist towards victory for his side. He is fit and. well, and has only to keep going along the lines of play he produced on Sunday to be a serious contender for Australian honours. His play won a round of applause from the numerous spectators on several occasions. > O’Connor and Casey were responsible for some very sound play, especially the former who demonstrated that he has lost none of that quickness behind the scrum which stamped him as a good half-back last year. On defence O’Connor can always be relied upon to stand up to the most severe of attacks, and a little bit of jostling from -the other side does not worry him. Broom was weak at first-five-eighth, he invariably failed to move away before the opposition were down on him, and when he did evade them his passing to Doogan was erratic, the ball being thrown high out of reach of the latter player. Broom may improve with a game or two but if he does not, then Marits will be handicapped in the back line, and that’s where smooth running is essential.

Hurst was good in patches. He has the speed but could practice handling the ball with advantage.

Anisy, as usual was most reliable, and is going to be the representative winger.

Coulson, fit and well, played an outstanding game among the forwards. Last .year he was not consistent. It is hoped he will be reliable this season, as Marist are weak in the front division.

Dunn played solidly all through and is again heart and soul in the code. Parsonage staged another come-back ■.and came through a tremendous amout of work with credit. He did not get his fair share of the ball, but the reason for that was due to the Marist team being pushed off it by their heavier opponents. Matthews at full back is good. He handles a ball as well as any other playei’ in the code, and he uses judgment in kicking. . With, the material available for improvement, Brunner will be a difficult team to defeat in the senior grade. The back line was not’ over strong on Sunday, but the presence of Thomas will make for a noticeable improvement. Bernard at half, came through his work well, and was a reliable substitute for O’Connell.

O’Connell was safe at full back, and won applause with Iris accurate,, line kicking.

Dunn was a hard toiling forward and was the best of a good sixtette. L, Hunt is keen, and has the makings of a good player. A little too confident in his abilities, as yet, but otherwise he showed promise. Wallace is a speedy winger but is inclined to over-run the ball. This fault lost him twB good scoring opportunities on Sunday. He handles and kicks well, and was the most promising player on the ground. Hatton impressed as a good hardworking forward who has plenty of toe and handles well.

While the public were keenly interested in the senior match at Wingham Park, there was a game equally as interesting and certainly more spectacular being played on the adjoining ground. The Third Graders, Marist and Blackball, showed plenty of form, especially Marist, and combined with a superior knowledge of back play, secured them a decisive victory over the heavier but less experienced Blackball thirteen.

There are two or three players in the Marist. Third Grade team who could teach several higher grade players some points about the code. Behan, Lord, and Roberts, are three of them. Behan finished up the game with

RUGBY football.

PLAY ON SATURDAY.

The West Coast Rugby Union has every reason to feel more than satisfied with the showing made by the teams under its control on Saturday, on tho official opening of the 1930 season. The form shown generally was quite up to expectations, in the first of the competition games and indicated that much may be expected of this season’s Rugby in club games, and as a natural consequence in representative fixtures of which there will be plenty in a month’s time. Bright sunny weather favoured the day, and' the grounds at the Park were in tipton order, almost as good as grounds could be expected to be, but for a little too long covering of grass. The teams are still at an experimental stage, and may be so for a few weeks. Lack of team work, caused by the trying out of new players, particularly m back divisions, were the main grounds for criticism, but these factors become less noticeable as training is intensified' and team practice is started. The good showing made by the new teams Cobden and Rivals, was favourably commented on by all critics.

Of interest too, was the playing for the first time in competition games of- the old kick-into-touch rule and the mark rule. It needs a critic with, a wide Rugby vision and experience of play under both rules, to gain an adequate. idea of the way the game is likely to be affected by the reversion, and particularly at a stage when the players themselves are not quite conversant "with the working of the rule. It was noticeable during the games, that little use was made of the possibilities of the old touch rule, and that it was perhaps misused greatly. This will lessen as the men become familiar witli the rule, and> the complaint that much time is wasted by its application —through a surfeit of kicking may soon have little foundation. For there were glimpses in the hack play of just how useful the old kick-into-touch may become without spoiling the trend of play. It also appeal’s that the full-back’s game is going to be made much more effective, and satisfactory for him. No longer will he dash up to the feet of onrushing forwards, pick the leather off the advancing toes in thrilling fashion, and kick quickly and mightily, only to find that he kicked a few feet outside his twenty-five and that therefore all his heroic work was for nothing. His kick will now earn him something, and he will be encouraged to dash occasionally into the play and assist in turning defence into attack, as a first-class full-back can do.

There should be little misunderstanding about the mark rule, which states that a player when claiming a catch must make a marjc with his heel, for the New Zealand Union has ruled that a fair catch can only be allowed when the player claiming it has both feet on the ground and claims the catch by making a heel-mark. The United-Rivals game on Saturday, although the slower and less interesting of the two games on the Park, was productive of good forward play, and worth watching in 'view of Rivals’ debut as a new senior team. Little was known locally of the new combination but enthusiasts were impressed to see old stalwarts such as Schist, Pfahlert, and Houston leading the Hokitika men. The United set of forwards may be claimed to be as good as any irt the competition, and outplayed the Rival eight. Their back men, some of them new to the team, did not impress as an effective scoring machine, owing mainly to faulty handling, excusable probably on account of the earliness of the season and bad positional play, this being due to a disparity in the speeds of the backs. J. Guy was tried out as half, and for a promoted junior did well Arthur Baldwin and Walton, were the five-eighths, and impressed only occasionally, although Walton was very sound, producing better form than his last year’s play. A, Baldwin missed a season through injury to an ankle, and seems to possess the qualities of an enteiprising back, which together with good defensive play, may develop furthei and make him a first-class club back. F. Baldwin, on the wing, played several games senior last season, and has speed, can kick well, and as a junior was always a successful winger. His handling on Saturday, however, was disappointing. Alan Kennedy played at only fair form in the centre-three-quarter position. Forwards who among others were prominent, were Rathbun, Saunders, iFergusson, and Moff it. Jenkins, last year’s half and five-eighth, was tried out as full-back and’ gave a sound exhibition altogether. He made good use of the old kicking-into-touch rule. United backs will be strengthened with the return of E. Bunt, a prominent player. Gal-

three tries to his credit, and the second one he notched was the result of a fine dodging run which carried him through the entire opposition, not a resisting hand being laid upon him. He gives every promise of developing into a first class footballer.

Lord went over the line in possession on no less than four occasions, and made the Blackball defence appear to be very weak. This player uses his head, and is another who should rise above the ordinary club standard of play. Roberts is a versatile half-back, and gets the ball out with great rapidity. As a place kick he is much above the ordinary. The Blackball team showed lack of form, and after the first spell, did not apparently take the game seriously, as they talked almost continually, and what is to be deplored, used language -which was to say the least —indecent. This could be plainly heard by those standing on the side line, and as there were several women present, it is difficult to account for the referee taking, no action to put an end to such base talk. This is a matter on which the Management Committee might well issue a warning, for a repetition of such conduct will not long be tolerated by the many hundreds who attend Wingham Park, and other playing grounds —to witness football, not to be forced to listen to the offensive expressions such as used by the Blackball third grade team last Sunday.

lagher, the new half, will probably Ije tried'out on Saturday. It was not easy to judge ot Rivals possibilities on their first game. Then team includes several promoted juniors, and seems to be in need of solid team training. Their showing, howover, considerably impressed critics, and: their games with other teams will be .watched with interest. T tey aie under' the capable generalship of M. Houston, ex-Excelsior back and a wellknown representative player. _ Cobden’s win was a distinct triumph of superior training, and on these grounds alone, the young band of football adventurers deserved the win in their first game as a senior side. They have been training solidly for weeks and towards the end of the game, had! Stars beaten on form. Only a “greenness” inevitable in such a young team and the inability to f.nish off the long series of assaults made on Star’s line at the end of tho second spoil The game was decidedly inter estin'g from beginning to end .although Stars had secured a- substantial lead in the first, spell, showing that with training they are capable of holding a more solid team than Cobden. It seemed questionable whether Cobden would be able to sustain their vigorous play until the end, but they dominated- play in the final stages, witli the exception of one great Star rally. Stars fielded several new mon. Seebeck, ex.-Magpie and Brunner half, was behind the scrum. H. Miller, who played for United last season, has joined the Star pack for a few games before his departure for Wellington. C. McGinley and J. O’Donnell were promoted juniors whose play w.as up to the best- McGinley played, at full-back,, and worked hard throughout tire- game. Talbot was a. comparatively new forward who was prominent. in the scrum, as was S. Meredith, while Furness played a good open game in the pack, although apparently not, in form. The find of the season seems to have fallen to the amber andblacks, in their new wing, Johnson, w.ho gained three -spectacular tries. His great speed easily carried him past a fairly weak opponent, and he made the best of his opportunities. If.he can retain that standard of play, he will be watched closely by representative feelectors. Arthur Fong was as usual the pick of the backs, and his generalship kept the Starrearguard working. His sure handling and kicking and grasp of the trend of the game were evident at all times. Prominent among the Cobden men were Rimmer —a. new half from Christchurch, Taafe, Sharp, and N. Eggleton,. backs, and. F. Eggleton, M. Mead, and. Keith in the pack. The inside back line was working well during, the. game but as yet the wings are a fairly weak point.

On Blaketown’s form against Kiwis on Saturday this speedy Greymouth combination appears, to. be playing their last year’s spectacular game, and will certainly bo- up with- the top teams in the competition if form is maintained-.: The team- is the same as the 1929 runners-up. in the competition, with- but few exceptions. Negrr, Lemin, and: Mason were three of a fine set of backs, while Bell —a new forward—■ and’ DUnshea, another packman, returned temporarily to the Blaketown fold, from Christchurch, W were with Nealq and Shannahan, prominent forwards. Outstanding in the Kiwi side were Hay McKenzie, a newcomer to Coast football, M'cCleary veteran half, Stopforth, and Stevens, also backs, and Kelly, Hagar, and Lane in the pack, the first-named playjug a good game. Brunner’s easy defeat at the hands of Excelsiors cannot be take at its full-value, because one remembers that during last season in one game against the champion Excelsior side, Brunner held them, to a very close margin. An interesting point in connection -with this game was the fact that J., King and.- Alex King played for Excelsiors, contrary to the Union’s rule that a man must play for a. team in the district in which he resides-. The Kings reside in Greymouth. It remains- to- be seen whether Brunner will enter a protest at to-night’s Union meeting.

JUNIOR FORM.

The- first junior game of the season, between United and Blaketown was also productive of good football, and it seems certain that junior Rugby is going to provide interesting competition. The Blaketown team was the weaker side on Saturday from the point of size and experience, but nevertheless showed that they have the material for a solid, team. United men were individually in the limelight!, and have some of the finest material possessed by the club for many years. Their handling was inaccurate and combination almost entirely lacking in the early stages of the- game. But speedy backs ami grafting, forwards should enable this fifteen to mould into fit opposition for any of the other junior teams. They are in the happy position of having three or four players too many, and each man has to take a turn at standing down. Some prominent men on Saturday were Wilson (whose great speed enabled him to score frequently) on the wing, Garth at half, M. Smith in the inside back lines and Shuttleworth, Tennent. and Kyle in the forwards; ■ L. Wilson is an elusive winger with as much speed as any man in the junior competition, and although his football experience has extended over a comparatively short time, he is shaping well for higher grades Sloss is another United junior with plenty of speed, but a hanging-on habit which must be overcome, if he wishes to become, as he could, an important unit in his side. Tennent is an ex-Technical High School player, who was unable to play last season through a footbail injury. He is in good form, however, and is one of a fast and promising pack. Blaketown have had to field a good many young players without perhaps the requisite experience for junior play. Under the circumstances their showing against United was a fine one. Olsen was the team’s mainstay, and was particularly prominent in defensive play. Blacktopp (a good forward), llton (who secured a good try), Collins, Kelly and Interman The lastnamed is a keen player, but, lacks form, Wraight also played well.

SOCCER.

NOTES BY PISTOL.

The games last week turned out just as expected. The game at Cobden was fought out in a keen spirit and the spectators were treated to a good ninety minutes’ play. The Blackball and Rewanui match ended in a draw, and Caldwell the right back of the home team was the outstanding man on the field. He "has only do keep on playing to form and the selectors can’t pass him for representative honours.

The Management Committee must be well pleased with themselves owing to the successful start of the third grade competition. In both games last week the youngsters put up a good display and it only needs the club officials to take their players and coach them in. positional play and the value of a first time pass As the season goes on I will have more to say about this grade. If there is one thing lacking in Soccer circles to-day on tho Coast it is the need of men. who can look and move ahead of the time. I would like to recall to all Soccerites the visit of Canterbury to- the Coast last year. When the speech making got going we had various officials of the code “pushing” for an annual game with Canterbury, and- by the speeches one would have- thought that if a- chance came the way of Westland to get the game they would have snapped the opportunity. Alas! my brother Soccerites, such is not the case. Everyone was pleased, to learn that Canterbury had invited Westland to; play at Christchurch on June 3; which was to be considered: by the Management Committee on Monday night, and this body decided to get more information concerning the match. Now, does it not look as if there was slackness somewhere. Could the Management Committee not have said yes or' no. It could easily have been yes, and stated’ the conditions. Instead they things easy and wait on everything being arranged for them. While all this "is going on, what, is happening on the other side. Wellington have, asked Canterbury for a match to take place in Christchurch on June 3 and did they let the grass grow under their feet swaiting for the Canterbury Association to forward on the-conditions of the match. Certainly not. Wellington stated their conditions, but Canterbury replied that Westland had first refusal' of the match and were waiting a reply from that Association, and if it was not favoured, the Wellington match would be accepted. How is the attitude of the Westland Centre to be taken. In the first place by “spouting” they will make every endeavour to arrange a match and when Canterbury reply in the affirmative the following season, the Management Committee say we will wait on- more information" coming to hand.. Now, if the Management Committee could not have stated i terms “Pistol” would not be writing, this, but when the opportunity has. come: they .seem to be going: to let it slip.. If they think, the occasion is too big. for them why not send word at once, and let the Wellington and Canterbury match proceed on that! date. The Westland Centre- is badly needing to take a copy of the other parent bodies in the Dominion as when one Association asks another for a representative match it is always replied to by a yes or no, and if in the- affirmative; the conditions of the match are sent along also.

While discussing the Management Committee, I would like- to bring before them a little bit of inconsistency on their part in. regard to the transfer system. A few. weeks ago, we had. two clubs applying for the transfer of two players- which was refused owing to the applications-not being in order. Last week, a. player was transferred, and his original’ club had never been- approached in the matter. An Association who. asks clubs to look after officials' better, • and to see that their grounds, are better marked out, are not setting a good example when they are playing “ducks and drakes” with their own rules. J. Berty (Dobson) was injured last week in the match against Cobden. Everyone wishes him a quick recovery and to see him back in his position in the team soon. Cobden last season was very weak in the half-back line. This season they have probably the finest club half-back line on the Coast in Bennett, Cameron, and- Cowe. Taylorville have never had' a playei in any representative match si?ice its inception two years ago. This season Taylorville have one of the finest teams on the Coast, and I would advise the selectors to have a look at Kitto and Glenn, who are both full-backs, also Glenn and Thomas, centre-forward, and outside left respectively of the Taylorville Club. On form, any of the four would do credit if selected for a. representative match. I have been asked if the Dobson Club have slipped in form since last season, In- my opinion they are not playing the same combination but as to their two defeats this season they have met improved teams in Taylorville and Cobden, and the standard of Soccer is fifty per cent better than last season. This I attribute to what seems as if Dobson has slipped back. The plaver I will sum up this week is Kitto, the right back of Taylorville. There are times when Kitto strikes me as a candidate for representative honours, and I would put him in the category of good backs though not actually distinguished. As a-matter of fact, Kitto is a beautiful kicker. He -els the ball on the instep and keeps The ball more in play than the average defender, however awkward the position he is in. He has the raking stride and is smart on the turn.. An outside forward will not try to beat him for pace along the touchline or to squeeze through, for Kitto watches the ball and not the man. He gives ouo the impression that he is covering the whole of the goal for he will go to over the other flank and give a. helping hand to his colleagues when least expected. A full back of determination' going the full ninety minutes. Has’ only one fault, and that is his hesitancy to tackle, but can make a quick recovery. Kitto is a tower of strength to the Taylorville Club and more should be heard about him if he practices a first time tackle. ,

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Bibliographic details

Greymouth Evening Star, 7 May 1930, Page 8

Word Count
4,200

Seasonable Sports Greymouth Evening Star, 7 May 1930, Page 8

Seasonable Sports Greymouth Evening Star, 7 May 1930, Page 8