RUGBY FOOTBALL.

Hawera & Normanby Star, Volume XLI, Issue XLI, 7 May 1921, Page 6

RUGBY FOOTBALL.

/ There is a very marked air of Keenness and enthusiasm in the rugger | ■world of Taranaki, iboth North and. •'South. Another good effect of the ■change in the has been that North and South meet in friendlyrivalry every week or two,, whereas, previously, the two played amongst themselves all the season until the end, ■when one'team from the South met one from the North. This was not good for football, and was not so good for the members of teams. Already, we feel sure, the good effects of the new scheme are being' observed. And they \iviir^be more marked as the season progresses. The change will also, we are convinced, be good from a representative point of view. It is also making rivalry more keen. So far the results have been in nearly every case very dose.

One of the aspects of football that needs and deserves the'utmost encouragement is the play of the public schools. Last year's competitions were air undoubted success, and were respon-1 sible for a lot of good play that proanises excellently for the^ future of the . game. The writer saw something o.t the final in New Plymouth, 'when Kapuni won the championship shield, and was much struck with the really^ good and clever play of some of the South■em ibacks. While the schools can get

iboys so keen and so able to play good •: football there is no fear for the future. > The president of the Union, with^that enthusiasm for the game which has, ..combined *with his organising ability, ■ ' jwon him the high' position he has ■achieved in the world of football management, has donated the .shield and will' be down at Kapuni on a day shortly to be arranged and will .present-the trophy to the winners. Enthusiasts in the district are arranging a social or smoke concert to celebrate ' the 'occasion. It. is a function that deserves ..the most cordial support, and will, we hope, be well attended. Keen interest is being taken by . Auckland University student footballess in the selection of the New Zealand University team which is to visit Sydney this season to play a..series of matches against Sydney Universities. The players are actively training, and ' <m the form shown in matches prior* to the team's departure the players will ibe, selected. There promises to be ,ieen competition for places.- The New Zealand team is due to leave Wellington on May 17 for Sydney. Three test matches are to be played against Sydney University^ a 'match against the Duntroon Military College, and a contest against a metropolitan team. The New Zealand team will play a jnateh against a Wellington student >Xlea*'n .- prior to its departure for Sydney. , Apparently (says an exchange) the selectors .appointed tby the South Africa n*«llugby Board not only considered present and last season's form in selecting the team ioxf .New Zealand ', but they have'also leaned towards"the players with big match experience.- The inclusion of W. H. ("Boy") Morkel, who played for Western Province in ihe Currie Chip in 1908, and for the first time for South Africa against - Smythe's team, in 1910, points to this; tut "Boy" Morkel is, not the only man on the side with representative experi- ■ - «nee. His cousin, Gerhard Morkel {full-back), is the other member of the ■ X team, who toured Great Britain in 191*2. This member of the celebrated family will' probably be entrusted with the goal kicks. Two of the other Morkels —Henry (wing three-quarter) ancl Harry (one of the big forwards) —also represented the Western Province in the pre-war'days, when in 1914 at Durban that famous centre won the Curne Cup for the tenth time. H. Scholtz and T. B. Pien^ar played for the Province for the first time dn 1914. Of the other Western Province men included in the team,*C. dv P. Meyer (wing th^e-quarter) was ■with tries and drop-^o.iiK the most prolific scorer in last year's tournament. J. S. Wepener (centre three-quarter), of Paaxl, a country district, scored four tries in the big game last year, and so did F. W. Mellish, of Hamiitons, the oldest club''in South Africa. From what records .that are ava liable, the team is, physically, quite as good as its predecessors^ of whom only three of the fourteen 'forwards wove Tinder 6ft., and the average weight ■was 14st. South. African wing three-quarters are generally of a heavy type, and in the international games of their tr'umphant tour of 1912 the "wingers" throughout averaged 13st 31b. Van Heerden and Henry Moorkel, the two wings in this team, are about that '■weight. Of the five Transvaal forwards chosen, Ellis, of the South African Eailway team (Johannesburg), was one of the most conspicuous players in the last season's inter-pro-vincial games, in which Transvaal lost only one match. - Our Okaiawa correspondent writes: Okaiawa journeyed to Opunake last Saturday, and s suffered defeat by the narrow" margin of three points. Okaiawa had/ all the best of the first spell, and had Opunake penned down prac- . tically throughout, but only succeeded in securing one try, which was gained by Laurent (not Hartley, as appeared in the report). They were certainly unfortunate in not obtaining two more tries. D. Johnston got over, but as 'there were two hands on the ball the" referee gave a five-yard scrum. A. Guy also crossed the line, but lost the ball, and Opunake forced. These two lads ar*e last season's..^ juniors. - The former plays a smart, lieady game, , but the latter, while full of dash, is

v lacking in head work, but with coachV "ing should develop into a good player. .<• The-Opunake men turned tlie tables on their opponents in the second spell. XJondition told its tale. The Okaiawa men were done, while the Greens were lull of go. Consequently Okaiawa, ex<cept for a brief interval, were con-' stantly on the defensive. Just before call or time they made a desperate effort to equalise matters, and W. Mar--tin was all but over. The Opunake forwards are not a heavy lot by any means, but they are fit. They generally lost the ball in the scrums, but made amends by their deadly tackling and dashing work in the loose. They have an exceptionally good man in the Tear division in Lusk. On Saturday he ■was the best hack on the ground. Dick Hoberts turned out for Okaiawa. Itß - head was all right, but his body was, not in condition, When it is he will he a great help to the local club. At- ' ' "kins played a fair game, his linelcicking being particularly good. It is some years since the writer was last on the Opunake ground. It was bad enough then,, but has gone from "bad to worse, and is certainly not a •-credit to Opunake. The ground was neither fenced nor marked, and the «pectators crowded on the field of play and also behind the goal lines. No attempt was made by the officials of the club to keep the lines clear. This is a matter which should be undertaken T>y the members of the club, and not left to the referee. The Opunake ground, besides being very unlevel, is covered with long coarse -grass and rushes, and on Saturday a man was -engaged mowing the latter. Visitors v considered that the Union should request tho Ominake Club to improve its yround. failing which n facetious gentleman --"ggested that fixtures at Odumke should hf> arranged for dnvs -when it is low tide, so that they could ha played on the beach.

By the irony of fate both the Opunake tries on Saturday were obtained by two ex-Okaiawa players, dairy Radford and Charlie Rye. Teams for Saturday, as printed last weeK, are always looked for with interest by all followers of the game, and it is up to secretaries of clubs to furnish correct lists instead of inserting fictitious names. There has been a gentleman named "A. Nother" figuring prominently in the lists supplied by one club for years past, and. last Saturday he was picked to play for i two clubs. \He is evidently not of much .account, for he i§ never mentioned in the reports of the matches, and has not yet gained representative honours. There is, unfortunately, a lot of betting going on over the matches againthis season. It is a matter for regret^ but to put a stop to it is apparently impossible. It leads to a lot of feeling. At Opunake on Saturday several of the spectators resorted to fisticuffs to settle their arguments. This y evidently pleased some of those "present, for one man was heard to remark that it was the best afternoon's outing he had had for a long time; he had seen a football matoh and four fights, and "all for a bob." ,„ „