Fast Rep. Match At Park Drawn

Northern Advocate, 25 July 1938, Page 2

Fast Rep. Match At Park Drawn

Heavy rain during the morning fol- ] lowing a particularly wet week result- j ed in all Rugby football competition j games being abandoned on Saturday, i the only fixtures played being 1 ho son- { ior representative game between Wha- : ngax’ei and Rodney and the fourth j grade contest at Waipu between Wbn- | ngarei and Otamatea. On a ground that was saturated and j badly churned up. the senior representatives gave a fine display, Whangavei’s hacks being on good form and | making the play fast despite the heavy conditions. Whangarei led with points most of the way. but within one minute of time, when the score-boax’d showed 17 —14 in Whangarei"? favour, Rodney's forwards rallied in a final effort to slither ever and even tlxe issue. Both teams made the best of the ground and. under the circumstances, the game turned on was a far better display than the Maori trials held here last week. Scoring Opens. Whangarei. set the ball rolling with one or two fast back movements, but Rodney’s defence was particularly good. A free kick to Rodney brought the ball into Whangax'ei's zone before the latter's forwards, led by Whiteman and Callanan, began to show their merit. These two men, who, with Brydon, made the pace in the packs, soon had the leather on Rodney’s line. Smith, Whangarei’s half-back, tried to dive over, but ran into Rodney's forwards. Roos. first five-eighths, kept with him, however, and succeeded in Smith’s tactics by nipping through to score right between the posts. His kick was a certainty. Rodney’s forwards, led by Watson, took charge for Bell to secure close on Whangarei’s line. He sent out a fast pass to Tuohey, Rodney’s outstanding back, who found an opening in Whangarei’s back-line and scored in a handy position. Adolph evened up tlxe score. With five points each secured in the first 10 minutes, play became very fast. Rarity and Rika, Whangarei’s second five-eighths and left winger respectively, featured in a brilliant movement, putting Whangarei within striking distance. From Smith the ball went to Roos. to Rarity, the latter giving a low pass to Shortland, who had no chance of taking it. A free kick for Whangarei followed, Roos raising the flags from what appeared an almost impossible position.

Backs Shine Out. Back movements followed in fho wake of Whangarei’s forward thrusts, and Rodney found its defence tactics tried to their limits. Rodney retaliated, however, the forwards taking the ball into Whangarci territory in a fine dribbling movement led by Dunning and Munro, who were playing excellent football. Munro and Taylor. Whangarei’s full-back, had a wild race for possession behind the line, Taylor forcing down for a 25 kick a split second before Munro reached the ball. From a scrum the ball went out, per medium of Smith, Roos. Rarity and Shortland, to Rika in a bright movement which saw Rika beating Bell and Sharp, and scoring in magnificent style on the corner. Roos’ attempt, from an awkward angle failed, and Whangarei led 11—5. Adolph missed an easy opportunity a moment later when Rodney was awarded a free kick right in front oi the posts and only a few yards out. When Smith picked the ball from a scrum in the next half-minute, however, Bennett made no mistake with the kick, to bring the scores to H— 8. The Second Spell. Rodney's forwards lost no time in attacking in the second spell, Dunning coming through well. Ass.sled by Munro, he led the forwards across Whangarei’s line, where Munro was accredited with a try. Bennett missed his kick from directly in front of the posts, and the score was 11 11Almost a similar occurrence, this time in Whangarei’s favour, followed immediately, when the whole of the local pack piunged over Rodney’s safety zone in a big mi'x-up. From the heap Callanan was elected the scorer. Roos failed to add the extras. With the field becoming rapidly an unplayable quagmire, forward tactics predominated. Callanan dribbled through for Whangarei. setting the forwards in motion. He took possession, beat Sharp on the line and forced near the posts, Rons failing with the kick. Only a few minutes remained for piny, when Rodney's forwards again came into the picture, cutting through WhangarcTs backs, who could do little in the swamp-like mire, and allowing Walker to dive over the line to scoie. Bennett missed from an easy position. Last-Minute Try. Whangarci seemed destined to wm the day when the clock showed only two minutes for time. Slithering through the worst parts of the field, with Whnngaroi's backs vamiy trying to hold ground, the Rodney pack again took charge of the ball. Dunning breaking through on his own to score a well-merited try. Adolph's kick from a likely position was disallowed, and the game ended less than a minute later with the score-beard reading 17—17 Mi Mormon carried the whistle.