RUGBY.

Hawera & Normanby Star, Volume LI, Issue 9153, 27 July 1906, Page 6

RUGBY.

The Auckland City team had a fairly Buooassiul tour on the "other side," and are now returning; some of them to resume the game in representative fixtures and others to lay their) "togs" aside for * the season. j • * * i It is not generally known that the City team included two junior players — J. Magee and M. Fraser. • # * A junior team from the Bawera High School plays the Eltham School to-mor-row. • • • Endeavors are being made to arrange a match between the Hawera High School team and the Hawera. junior fifteen. , • • • The Jury Cup, competition in the Manaia district has created a great amount of interest. The Manaia convent team and the Kaponga school team aB winners of the respective divisions have played two of the three matches to decide the final. Kaponga won, the first match, bnt last Saturday the Manaia boys retrieved the defeat, winning by 26 to 0. Another game — .the final — comes off shortly • * * ■ J The Eltham juniors consider their chance for the cup to be pretty good. They were somewhat lucky in beating Hawera last Saturday though they had the better of the game. Hawera did not seem to find their feet till late in the game. The Hawera backs' play was a terrible mix j up. Whenever tne ball went that way j there was a painful succession of mulls and fumbles, off which a iieally good forward team would have scored repeatedly. Two new players will be tried in the ' Hawera junior team to play Kaponga to-morrow-—Te Beamie and TorpenEow ' * * • I ■ The victory of the Taranaki team over Wanganui was expected. ' j • • * l The Wanganui forwards- were a fine set and beat their opponents 1 . The cry all over Southern Taranaki is that Baker ebould not have been omitted from the touring forwards. No doubt this opinion is a conrect one. On the day of the trial match he vrys hardly up to rep. form — owing, probably, to having spent the previous night dancing. On that day's play alone Ryan did not justify his subsequent inclusion in the team. Yet he was selected; presumably, on his play in other matches. The same treatment might have been applied in Baker's case. A forward of Baker's daeh and intrepidity would put Me into the others. But his disinclination to shove in a scrummage might have told against him. • • • Colman played a fine game at wing-for-ward and the selector (Ma- A.' Bayly) is said to have remarked that he considered torn t-he best winger in New Zealand— a a tall order; but perhaps the remark was never made. However, Colman is undoubtedly a very fine player in the position named. • • * The back combination of Taranaki towards the end of the game was splendid amd great things may be expected from our rear division. • • • The match against Otago to-morrow is expected to be the 'hardest of the southern tour. The three University three-quarters who have been playing together for three •eaaons are much boomed., but they will bave something to play against. Taianaki will only have one day to Tecuperate from the sea and rail trip and will therefore pJay under a big disadvantage. i