MODERN PLAYING TACTICS.

Hawera & Normanby Star, Volume XLII, Issue XLII, 23 June 1923, Page 3

MODERN PLAYING TACTICS.

ENGLISH STANDARDS. ' CRITICISED. I Some Interesting reflections on pre-sent-day jsVcVluUrds of English Itugby, by that well-known writer, b\ J. feetlicks, who deais especially with. £he modern tendency of backs to develop kicking into touch, will be read with . interest in New Zealand, especially by jbb,os? who favour the limitation of the • lime-finding, by means of the amended ' rule. He says : — i "it is highly satisfactory to know ( that Ruiiby is flourishing exceedingly, and is being played to-day in districts where hitherto it has been unknown. The Quantity is all right, but what of the quality? The standard of play generally not as high as it was before the war. It is true that the England fifteen has, out of sixteen post-war matches, won thirteen, drawn one, and I.lost only two. Admittedly that is a '"gpjendid record, but one fears that it does not represent the strength pi English Rugby generally. The national side has been blessed with the possession of several stars, such as W. J. A. Da-vies, at his best the incomparable, G. A. Kershaw, on£ of the greatest' scrum halves iv the history of Rugby, C. N. Love, W. W. Wakefield, A. T. Voyce, and one or two- others. But the j rank and file are of very different clay, ] and it would bo a difficult matter to j select a second .England fifteen which could hold a candle to the one that has so worthily won the crown of the nations, i Game Faster and Cleverer. ' j "We all know that the game is changing, and unquestionably in many respects for the better. It is faster, cleverer, more open, and the day of the ox-like forward whose single talent was that of shaving, often long after the ball has gone, has passed for ever. But even though, forwards be as speedy and as clever with their hands ns-tnree-qiiarters are supposed to be, solid scrummaging, like "good length bowling, is still a wonderful asset,.and brilliance must not be cultivated at tjie expense of genuine hard work. Forwards cannot all* be Wakehelds or Luddingtor.s, but they aui at least follow the example set by thosp- and other super-men, who can always be rel'ed upon to- do"lheir share of the work, and a bit more. "Something of the same sort may be observed in the case of the outsides of to-day, who are too prone to adopt the 'chucli and chance it' method which they have occasionally seen succeed. It has also failed many and many a time, but its devotees conveniently forget its failures. ' Soundness is still an .essential of first-class ltugby, which is the reason why those astute judges of the game, the English selectors, have passed over more than cue player high in popular favour. And who shall say that they have not been justified? Kicking Overdone. "There is not the least doubt that kicking is now much overdone by many !of our hacks. The attack punt does come off now and then, as on the law of average it is bound to do, but how often do we see a promising attack spoilt by a kick into touch, or, worse ' still, by an aimless punt forward, which any opposing full-back worth his salt will return with heavy interest? Kick-

ing into touch is a most valuable ac-, coiiiplishment, and as practised by the -Lngiisii captain, for instance, nas worn down many tine packs, but id does not lead to tries. Duvies at his best never overdid it; lie was always on the look- j out for a. chance of scoring. lint ins ! would-be imitators kick when they can gain a little or nothing by it; indeed, merely bring their attack to a tame conclusion." Jbrains on the Rugby Field. I "The aim oi: the Rugby player is to score tries, and il that is kept in mind many of the modern heresies wiil automatically disappear. Hard tackling, fitraifrht-runnmg, and going for the iine will always win matches, and it young players would only impress these points on their minds, our Kugby would soon show a. big improvement. They form the reason for England's success during the last few years, and they will soon bring any club to the top or the tree. Perhaps the best way to dismiss the subject is to insist that the first and last essential in llugby football, given the necessary physique, is—brains."