THE ALL BLACKS IN FORM

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume LXX, 14 September 1936, Page 4

THE ALL BLACKS IN FORM

AFTER the first Rugby Test at Wellington between the visiting Australians and New Zealand’s representatives, the opinion was freely expressed that the All Blacks’ live point win would not have been secured if the element of luck had not favoured them. There is no doubt that New Zealand was fully extended

on that occasion. Australia was the first to score, and led at half-time. The visitors repeated that performance on Saturday when the second test, played under ideal conditions at Dunedin, was described as “a game brimful of thrilling incident.” The thirteen to eleven points advantage in the first half at Carisbrook, was welldeserved on the play which the Australians, as usual, made fast and open. The second spell witnessed a complete change. The All Blacks linked up better, excelled the visitors in brilliant breakaways, and within fifteen minutes had entered upon a sequence of scores which added 27 to their first half tally of eleven, while Australia, despite valiant efforts and numbers of splendid attacking movements which they were prevented from finalising, : ould not improve upon their thirteen. \s the Australian captain said, the New Zealanders had demonstrated undoubtedly that they were the better team. And he paid the tribute: “No team in the world could have beaten them to-day.” “New Zealand absolutely outclassed us,” was the frank admission of another prominent visitor. New Zealand’s captain probably went to the other extreme when after expressing pleasure at having won, he said, “Luck came our way and we managed to sneak home.” Satisfaction with the All Blacks’ victory does not blind us to realisation of the fact that the Australians are worthy and formidable opponents. The winning of the Bledisloe Cup in itself is of less importance than the improvement of the standard of play in our National field game and the encouragement of healthy rivalry. New Zealand’s success will no doubt inspire confidence regarding prospects in future engagements notably against the South Africans next year —but it would be a great mistake if confidence developed into swelledhead cocksureness.