REP RUGBY

Hawera Star, Volume XLVII, 29 August 1927, Page 3

REP RUGBY

TARANAKI TOURING TEAM. LOSE GAMELY TO CANTERBURY. SOUTHERN RACKS IN FORM.

(By Telegraph —Special Reporter.) CHRISTCHURCH, Aug. 27. In tlic .presence of a crowd of 10,000 spectators at Rail caste, r Park, Canterbury and Taranaki met in a match which was bright and interesting throughout. Canterbury won the toss and played with a stiff breeze in their favour in the first haif, though they had to face a trying, sun which was less of a handicap to the visitors when the change oveir took place. Both sides made attempts to open up the game, but deadly tackling broke up movement .after movement, and the tries scored were of the opportunist type, more than the result of concerted and well developed attacks. The score of 17 points (five tries, one converted), which Canterbury made against Taranaki’s 8 (two tries, one converted) was not a true gauge of the merits of the teams, as the visitors were distinctly unlucky on several oeacsions. Canterbury forwards, though good, had nothing on the Taranaki pack, which showed them many points in packing round in tight work, and also in dribbling. They were also quick to. smother the inside backs. Morey went, down very gamely to stem the rushes of the Red pack. Taranaki’® chief weakness was in the three-quarter line, which was not of the same class as that of their opponents. Both on attack and in defence, RobiJlia.rd and Steele were much more dan-i gerous and effective than Dinniss and J Medley, though ' the Am,her wings were j by no means poor. They were up < against better and more experienced men. Petty opened rather weakly for him, but unproved and became very popular with the large crowd. The game was played in beautifully fine weather, though the ground was a : little slippery and on the heavy side. The teams were :

Taranaki (Amber and Black). —Petty, Medley, Brown, Dhmiss, Johnston, Owen, Morey (half); Dean (rover), WiELs, Murphy, Walter. O’Keefe, 'Ward Robinson, Young (hookers). Canterbury (Red and Black). —Hair riiss (full-back), Robilliard, Carleton, Steele; iLilburn, McGregor, Dailey (half); Scrimshaw (rover), White, Jeffries, Pickering, Alley, Godfrey, Clarke, Burrows.

In the first bout the visitors were penalised and Dailey found touch well up the line. The first scrum went in favour of the Beds and they penetrated the Amber territory, where' Dinniss was smothered with the bail. It was kicked through too hard and reached dead ground. Dailey marked the kick off and also a return kick by Owen and in turn Johnston marked Dailey’s kick. With the exception of these incidents the early stages of the! game were contested between the for- 1 wards. Dailey and McGregor set up an attack, but when Morey and Owen ] stopped them, the Amber backs got going iand Dmnias was side-steppiing nicely when he slipped. Dailey then punted down-field and the forwards followed up well. Alley and White being' in the lead. From a little outside the' Amber twenty-five Eobilliard made a run and kicked, but sent the ball tooi far and Petty forced. Brown dropped, out and then the Red forwards eamej with a great burst iand Scrimshaw andj Alley raced over together, the latter 1 appearing to score, but the Ambers were awarded a, free kick for an. in-

fringement in the process. The visitors followed up this advantage and Johnston, Brown and Medley were associated in a bright move which carried play to Red territoiry, where the visiting forwards charged with great dash and were neatly over, but Alley cleared, from a. scrum at midfield; Dailey sent the Rods away through McGregor, who took his pass badly, but Cast'leton and Robilliard went away together till Brown and Money checked. In the next- i nstant the Ambers I had forced again. From the drop out I the Amber forwards tore away and

being well supported by the backs, who came into the movement, they went within an ace of scoring, Medley being brought down from behind when within a couple of yards of the line. The Reds then charged down field and

Petty failing to take the ball on the full placed Taranaki in trouble. Brown got back and recovered possession, but was able merely to boot to touch. From the line-out the Ambers got possession and Medley broke away to near the half way line. Canterbury maintained the pressure and Steele was making a. dash for the line when he was heavily grassed by D'inniss. Hard scrummaging in Taranaki’s quarter saw McGregor kick from the loose and send the ball over the line for Medley to force. A scrum following the drop out was cleverly screwed by flic Ambers and Wait! was, responsible lor at fine piece, of footwork: dribbling for -about twentyfive yards through the opposition. Scrimshaw led a terrific Red rush, which carried play close- to the Taranaki, line.

Dailey sent the ball from a scrum to McGregor to Lilburn, who crossed, but was held up and prevented from making connection. The five yards’ scrum went in favour of the Reds, but Alley kicked over the dead ball line and in

the next moment the Ambers had again to force. Canterbury were playing with great determination, making strenuous efforts to- score and the visitors were very severely pressed till Johnston got a good kick a,wav to the half- way ling. From here iq) good cross kick brought the Reds up to the Taranaki line, where Alley was held up from scoring. -From the five yards serum the. hall came out to the Red hacks and was shot with lightning sjK'ed, to 'Steele who bil l looked his way over, -kicking the corner Hag down in the process. Lilburn tailed with the kick. Canterbury 3 Taranaki 0

From the kick off the Ambers charged down ami Johnston, Owen and Brown initiated an, attacking move. The latter kicked lightly and S’cpnn show marking, checked the move. A

mark by Dinniss crippled another Canterbury move before it .bad gone far a,nd good following up by the forwards enabled Walter to smother Castleton’s kick. The rebound brought the visitors up to Canterbury territory. From the throw in the Weds got possession and commenced a good passing bout, but as the ball went right across the field each man was well tackled in turn and the move did not gain ten yards. A, great run bv Robilliard and Dailey brought the crowd to its feet as the latter streaked over at the corner, but the flag was up for a, step into touch. Robilliard had cleverly dummied and Dailey had beaten Petty. Dean and Petty were' in turn responsible for stopping determined attempts to break across and then Dean, Murphy and O’Keefe broke' away to near the halfway line with the ball at their feet.

Hie Reds charged back, but Owen .and Petty in turn went down to item the terrific rush, Scrimshaw, Alley and White led another rush, to near the Amber line, but Dinniss saved and from the throw-in Walter and Dean dribbled through to near half-way. A free kiok to. Taranaki saved the position and hafttune sounded when the ball went into touch, THE SECOND SPELL. Brown fielded the kick-off in the second half, and Harris’s failure to field well let the visitors through. They swarmed into the Red quarter, where | a great struggle under the posts took place. The Reds hooked from the scrum, and McGregor opened up, but Petty fielded well and .sent the ball back. Dailey received and, coming across, short punted, and Robilliard gathered in the ball to race down the line. He shook off Medley and Brown in succession, and also Petty -and Dinniss, who came across, and with a great dash he went over at the corner, having run from his own 25 yards line. Lilburn failed with the kick. Canterbury 6 Taranaki 0 From midfield just after the kick-off Ward came through the pack and broke away for a good opening, but Dean missed the pass. The Ambers then pressed hard in Canterbury’s quarter, and Dean fell with the ball just short of the lino. Taranaki won the scrum and Morey .shot the ball out, and Owen was held up on the line. Medley also made a dive for the line, but was grassed when a- few feet away. In the scramble which followed the Reds were penalised, and Blown had a futile shot at goal. The forwards followed up well, and in a. nice bout in which Wills, Owen, Medley and Ward figured the latter was forced out at the corner flag when a try looked certain. The Ambers kept up the pressure, and Canterbury were hemmed in for a time till Lilbum cleared to neutral territory. Petty came through \ with a useful kick and tackled Robilliard before he could get his Irick away. The game .swung across field and down to Taranaki’s territory, where Dinniss just got hack and .saved with a good kick to near half-way. The Reds made repeated attempts to open up the game, but a® fast as they got moving the tackling of the visitors broke up their attacks. The Ambers now made a gTeat .sweeping rush, and Harris was smothered by Robinson, who came up fast, and the ball was carried oyer for a. try by Walter. Brown failed to convert.

Canterbury G Taranaki 3 The Reds . immediately retaliated with a brilliant try scored by Dailey, I for whom an opening was made by an infield pass by Robilliard, who had shaken off Medley, only to be grassed' by Owen. Lilburn converted with a beautiful kick, making the scores: Canterbury ;.. 11 Taranaki 3 A quick mark by Dailey in handy position saw the half take a shot at | goal, but he missed direction. Some hard tussling took place’ on Taranaki’s 'side of the half line till Johnston | marked, and good following up saw the i Ambers' onoe more in Canterbury territory, where there was an exciting tus-l Isle in which Johnston had a shot at I 'goal from a mark. The ball struck the upright and fell in play. Following this the Reds got possession from a line-out, and Godfrey and Pickering | were associated in a 'bright move in , which there was Lsome snappy passing ending in a throw forward. ‘The Amjbers then swept down to the Reds’ quarter again, where another hard i tussle ensued in which the visitors j were somewhat unlucky. Morey cross kicked, and the van followed hard and forced their way over, O’Keefe scoring. Petty converted’. Canterbury H Taranaki 8 Within a couple of minutes the Reds were on a hard attack again, and Robilliard crossed at the corner, being well tackled a® he touched down. The extra points were not added'. Canterbury ]4 Taranaki 8

Scrimshaw added the next try almost immediately. The Reds' had rushed play again into Taranaki’s quarter ,and from a line-out they progressed further. Petty missed the hall in attempting to boot to touch and Scrimshaw had nothing to do but dive over to fall on the hall. The try was not converted.

The Amber® came to the attack again in the concluding stages, and a good passing rush wa® in progress when Brown had an unsuccessful attempt to pot. Play returned to midfield, where Johnston neatlv intercepted between Carle ton and Steele, the Okaiawa man cut away nicely and sent Dinniss awav, but the latter was grassed by Harris. The visitors kept up the pressure, hut were not able to imorove their position, and the game ended’ without further score, the tallies showing: Oanterburv 17 Taranaki * 8 Mr. Clarke was the referee. WELLINGTON TOO GOOD FOR, MANAWHFNUA.

(by telegraph—press association.) WELLINGTON, Aug. 28. Wellington yesterday defeated Manawheuua, the Ranfurly Shield holders, at Atheltic Park before a large crowd, by 23 points to 14, after a game in which the. visitors were disappointing, being outplayed by thg, Wcilliington backs.

Jade Shearer, for Wellington, gave a. line exhibition! of the lost art of dribbling. Kilby, the Wellington half, formed a great connecting link with ••lie hacks, setting in motion some spectacular passing rushes. Eilvy,- the Wellington winger, made many effective -run®, while .Nich-oll® played his usual heady game. The score in the first half was: Wellington 11. Manawhen.ua 6. Malcolm, the Wellington full-back, was often too dose up. and the ball therefore was several time® kicked over his head, making Mamawhenua dangerous. Mannwhemia played well only in patches, and the question everyone wa® asking was how they came to take the Ran furl v Shield from AVairarapa.. Tries for Wellington were scored by South (2), Pringle, Sven,son (2), Kilby and Elvy. Malcolm converted one try and missed five. Nielmlls missed one. Aides Mullins and Heat-ley scored trie® for Mann when na. and Brooby converted one and kicked -a penalty goal.

SFiDDOISr SHIELD MATCH. NELSON, Aug, 27. In perfect weather before 0000 (spectators, Nelson, retained the Seddon Shield against Marlborough- The ground was in excellent condition and the game

I commenced at a tremendous pace which j soon slackened, the Marlborough forwards taking control. I After 15 minutes’ play the Nelson backs showed form McGregor scoring in the corner. Nelson were penalised and Hiodson goaled from an easy position. The Marlborough forwards piedominated, Nelson scarcely being allowed to escape front its half for ten minutes. I Nelson took the lead with a scintillating movement Which absolutely over- . whelmed the opposition, Wallace scoring from near ha.lf-woy. Marlborough were getting the best of the scrums, but the hacks were unable to handle. Heed kicited an easy penalty goal for Nelson. Immediately afterwards Fowler made a. spectacular solo try. Philips made a strong run to the front of the goal, whence Connolly flashed over. Hodson goaled. The game lacked the usual blaze of excitement associated with the Seddon Shield matches. Mr Carson (Wellington) refcreed. WA IRA RAPA DEFEATS WANGANUI.

MASTER-TON, Aug. 27. Wairarapa defeated the’ Wanganui touring team by 20 to 11. The conditions were not conducive to good play, the ground being slippery, while rain fell at intervals, making the ball hard to handle. Wairarapa had much the better of the game, though the Wanganui forwards in the first spell had sightly the better of the exchanges. Wairarapa, however, adapted themselves better to the sloppy conditions, any any passing movements attempted were crowned with more success by the home side than they were by the visitors.

The first spell ended with the scores eight to nil in Wair&rapa’s favour, Faulkner and Cundy scoring tries, of which Cundy converted one. In the second spell Stringfellow and Parker (two) scored tries, and Cundy kicked a penalty goal. Ellery. Vangioni and Darby scored for Wanganui, Leahy converting one.

WAIRARAPA TOURING TEAM. MASTERTON, Aug. 28. The Wairarapa touring team, which leaves on Monday for a tour of the North Island, is announced as follows: Backs: Roach, Le Quesne, R. Booth, Stringfellow, Puller, Moore, Clarke, Hart, Cundy, Cooke, Hiroti Brunton. Forwards: J. Donald, Q. Donald, Irvine, Parker, Harvey, Reside, Reid, Pairbrother, Ward, McCarmont, Gray, Usslier.

OTHER REPRESENTATIVE GAMES. ROTORUA, Aug. 27. The Rotorua-Taupo combined team met the Auckland touring team at Arawa Park. The weather was, fine and the ground fast. The game resulted in a win for Auckland by 21 to 17. ' HOKITIKA, Aug. 27. The Canterbury Rugby representatives defeated West Coast under perfect weather conditions by 11 points (tries, by Ogier and Payne, one converted by Robinson, and a. penalty goal by the same kicker) to 6 points (a try by Frettas and a penalty goal by Bell). The winners’ inside backs were very nippy, and had the best of the loose play. The Canterbury score was all in the first half, the Coast scoring in the second half. The points are about a fair criterion of the play, though Canterbury made most of their opportunities. NAPIER, Aug. 28. In a junior representative match played at McLean Park yesterday, Hawke’s Bay scored an easy victory over Wairarapa by 27 to 3. Tim visitors displayed dash for the first ouarter of an hour, but after that Hawke’s Bay got 'into their stride and with superior combination rattled on

points. In the first half tries by Greig, O’Brien and Martin, one of which Johnson converted, gave Hawke’s Bay a lead of 11 points. The second half saw Martin, Botherway and Greig add tries, Johnson converting two and kicking a penalty. An unconverted try for Wairarapa was scored by John ston in the closing stages of the game.

OAMARU, Aug. 28. The annual fixture, North Otago versus Eastern Districts (Gore), resulted in a win for the former by 25 to 11. The game was fast and open, the forwards being well matched. The home backs were superior in defence and carried out many concerted attacking movements. Early in the game Walker scored for the visitors, Nicholson converting, but the home team soon gained the ascendancy, putting on 11 before half-time.

Tn the second spell they outplayed the visitors, adding 14 points to their fi. -For the winners, Clelland, W. Cameron , (2), Hopley, Loder (2) and Hubbard scored tries, Boroman and Hopley converting one each. For Eastern Districts Walker and Nicholson converting one and kicking a penalty goal. I N. MacDonald, the Eastern Districts ’ wing three-quarter, who was regarded as a certainty for the South African trials, sustained a badly sprained ankle and was carried ’off the field. Tn the Waitaki Sub-Union seven-a-side schools tournament at Georgetown, the junior competition was won by Windsor .and flie senior by Omarama. During the games a boy named Fnullcenor suffered concussion, and •one named Willetts had his collarbone broken. WELLINGTON, Aug. 28. In a trial game, a senior B team beat a senior A team by 17 points to 9. WANGANUI,’ Aug. 28. The inter-collegiate tourney opened ;on Saturday, when results were:— Christ’s College 12 v. Nelson College 0. Wanganui 38 v. Wellington 3. The tournament will be continued on Monday. Wanganui juniors 24 v. Horowhenua juniors 15.

AUCKLAND DEFEATS HAWKE’S BAY. AUCKLAND, Aug, 27. In a representative Rugby match today Auckland won 'its seventh fixture this season by defeating Hawke’s Ray by 26 points to nil. The game was fast and open throughout, both sets of forwards being conspicuous in fine loose rushes. The Auckland backs were much t-oo clever for the visitors, whose rearguard was not .impressive. The scorers for Auckland were Hook (3), Wanoa, Lucas, Hadley and Sheen (one each). Berridgo oonvei'ted one try and kicked a penalty goal. The weather was fine and the ground dry. N.S.W. TEAM IN FRANCE. BY CABLE—PRESS ASSOCIATION —COPYRIGHT. PARIS, Aug. 27. French ltugbyites greeted the New South Wales team on its arrival by tlio Ormonde at Toulon. The visitors’ physique greatly impressed the Frenchmen