RUGBY IN THE SOUTH

Hawera Star, Volume LI, 25 May 1932, Page 3

RUGBY IN THE SOUTH

SATURDAY’S SENIOR PLAY TALL SCORES AND WIDE MARGINS COMMENT ON PERFORMANCES. Tall scoring and decisive n?srp*jns characterised the fourth of the South Taranaki senior Rugby econo- t;tion on Saturday, and in cousequei.ee the general standard of play was i ot up to expectations. ATHLETIC’S POOR TACKLING EASY WIN FOR OKAIAWA. Considering tho weak fifteen fielded by Athletic, no surprise was occasioned by Okaiawa’s win to the tone of 23 points to nine in the match at the Hawera showgrounds, in fact with the score of 20-3 at the end of the first spell a runaway victory seemed certain. In the first quarter of an hour Athletic more than held their own, but from then until the last twenty minutes an unchecked roc set in. One of the main factors contributing to the defeat was an exhibition of appalling tackling, with the frequent spectacle of several players in succession failing to ground an opponent. On repeated occasions the Okaiawa inside backs cut through the defence with ease because of the weakness of the tackling, and several scoring movements could have been frustrated if the tackling had been effective. With Okaiawa at full strength an Individual comparison of the teams would be invidious, hut the display given by the Athletic hacks warrants comment. Dym-ond alone seemed to he the only hack ranker playing up to form, and both on attack and defence he was clearly outstanding in his side. The Athetie hack combination has at times shown ability to produce sparkling football and its inconsistency seems to point decidedly to a lack of combined training, while the complete reversal -of form since the commencement of the season also appears to indicate that such is the case. The forwards' showed to considerable better advantage, Robinson, McLean, Tippet and Baldwin making the most of every opportunity. T. Robinson Ngaia and D. Johnson again showed their sparkling versatility on attack, with Robinson as the pivot in practically every back movement. In the forwards, Ike, R. Clarke and Preston played consistently well particularly in loose rushes, and were the mainstays of the red and 'black shock division. PATEA DEFENCE BUSTLED SURPRISE VICTORY TO WAIMATE Many Rugby supporters who witnessed Saturday’s match at Patea have asked why Waimate’s victory by 20 points to 6 should he termed a “surprise. ’ ’ The surprise was not so much the points scored or Waimate’s reversal of form as the inability of the Patea backs to make the most of their opportunities. They were superior in passing rushes when once in possession of the ball from set- scrums, Edwards, Petersen, Paterson, Hu rail ui and Grotty all handling faultlessly. Wainiate lias two wins and two losses to its credit, having scored 54 points in all matches this season as against 40 by opposing teams. Behind the Patea scrum Gudgeon gave his outside backs prompt service,: but trouble with his knee, which was injured the previous week, caused his early retirement. The full-back, Zimmerman, went to half and Hurley took his place. Towards the end of the game Edwards left the field with a head injury and Gudgeon was recalled. Patea, therefore, was represented by a comparatively weak team and it was the back division that suffered through frequent misunderstandings owing to the reshuffling of players. Huranui played a vigorous game and scored one try, the other being touched down by Zimmerman. Couch was good in lineouts, but some of his play in the loose did not return the best results for the amount of energy expended. The Patea pack hooked the ball well and heeled it well from the loose scrums. Petersen had no luck with his place kicking. F'or fully tw-o-thirds ol‘ the game Wainiate charged up the field in scrambling play, making sudden efforts to break through their opponents’ defence, with considerable sucess. It was these sudden dashes on the part of all the backs —Rei, Hill and Mercer (three-quarters) and Whalen and Shaw (five-eighths)—that completely bustled Patea and threw their defence into confusion. The majority of tries, however, were from individual effort as distinct from team work. McKay, as in previous matches, was the mainstay of Waimate’s defence, for without his services the position of the teams might easily have been reversed. Tries were scored for Wainiate by Murfitt, Whalen, Rei, Hikaka, Heneri and Shaw.

KAPONGA v. ELTHAM KLTHAM’S SOUND FORWARDS. The game between Kaponga and Eltham, played at Kaponga was by no means’ a [brilliant exhibition of the Rugby code. The greasy ball and wet ground militated against orthodox back play and any attempt at passing usually resulted in a knock-on or loss of the ball thi’ough failure to bold it. With the exception of Paterson’s doubtful score in the first spell, all tries came from the forward divisions, the general tendency being to keep the ball low, and this play provided some exciting dribbling bouts, the most notable of which being that by E. Gargan, who came out of the ruck with the ball at boot to dodge his way for 30 yards right through the opposing backs and across the Eltham line where his fast following * team mate, Thoumine, had only to drop on the hall to score.

With the exception of Paterson, who was patchy, the Kaponga hacks handled confidently. Williams, at full hack, was exceptionally safe in this respect and saved his side on several occasions bv taking the ball from tbe toes of the Eltham forwards. Whalen, at

half, also handled well and his quick transfers from the scrums were in direct contrast to the hestitant manner of his vis-a-vis, Groves. Holiaia and both Cuffs played excellent games, hut were rather inclined to get rid of the hall too quickly and before they had properly drawn the defence. Of the towards F. Gargan, Sutton and .Murphy wepte a “trio of -con(sistent hookers and gave their backs tho greater share of the hall. Gardner and Thoumine are a pair of fast forwards who stood out conspicuously right through the game. McDonald was not particularly lm spiring on the day, although on two occasions he extricated his side from dangerous positions with heady line kicks. The Eltham three-quarter line were not able to get going at any part of the game and never looked dangerous except when Prince made a great run along the line. The five-eighths Page and Townsend were the stalwarts of the defence, especially the last named, whose readiness to turn defence into attack was one of the features of the match. The tackling on both sides was •poor generally. the exception being Trolove .who never failed to get his man in the correct manner. The Eltliain vanguard comprised a splendid pack who compared more than favourably with their redoubtable opponents. Of the set of hard working, fast following forwards, Trolove, R. and F. Boconk and Anderson stood out prominently.

OPUNAKE-HAWERA MATCH

GREENS TOO. SUPERIOR

The Oipunake fifteen were in their best form this season in then- victory over Hawera by 22 points, to six. Their forwards worked like Trojans right from the outset and they played considerably well. The amber and black pack stood up to them very well for the first spell, when they were slightly favoured by the wind,' but on the dhauge over Hawera could do but little against the strong dashing forward attacks and crumpled nip. before the onset of the green pack. The two Lusks were on the ball throughout and Bd)b> Dusk fairly played himself into the South Taranaki team. Of the res-t the Dudleys were the best, though all played well. They will be a hard task for. any team in the competition. The Oipunake backs played a, more open game- than usual and, getting the ball more than their opponents, they made good use of it. The half sent out his passes well and the ball came out to the "wingers in good style and Spence and ’McCallurn made the most of every chance. They both played with fine dash and showed much cleverness in their work. Casey, behind the scrum, was consistent.

The Hawera pack, a young combination, stood up well to their doughty opponents for the first half, hut in the second spell were mainly overwhelmed. The Hawera backs generally did not tackle well, Hunter, Ekdahl and Bishop alone taking their men, and the forwards in consequence got little support. Murphy, Gibson and Beauchamp showed up well in the first spell but they had few openings afterwards. Ekdahl made several really wonderful dashes and on two occasions went through on his own, to beat nearly all the opposing hacks. Hunter played a fine game, but seems out of place as an inside back. At fullback Bishop played a plucky, determined game and showed the best collaring among the backs.