Rugby Football.

Free Lance, Volume VII, Issue 341, 12 January 1907, Page 20

Rugby Football.

The South African team have finished then- tour of Great Britain and Ireland, and have done fairly well. At one time it was anticipated that they would get thiough their series of matches with a better record than the "All Blacks," for they were unbeaten until they played theii first international match, and toad won all their games' by good margins. Scotland stopped their series of successes, and, although they defeated Wales — over which victory many New Zealanders "whooped" for joy — and Ireland, their match with England endied in a draw. The final match of their tour was the most disastrous one of ail, Cardiff triumpihinjg over them to the tune of 17 points to nil. - Miany people "pooh-poohed" the idea that the "All Blacks" were a stale team when they were defeated) by Wales, and .averred that the argument that tihe New Zealanders had been ,asked to play too many matches was only in the nature of an excuse for the defeat. That there was much reason for these two arguments is proved! in the case of the South Africans. A team that could diefeat Wales should not have been, if fit and well, vanquished by Cardiff. The records of the "All Blacks" and the South Africans in the matches played by the respective teams are as follow : —

New Zealand For. Agst. Devon . . 55 4 Cornwall . . . . 41 0 Bristol .. ..41 0 Northampton ..32 0 Middlesex . . . . 34 0 Durham .. ..16 3 Fhe Hartlepools . . 63 0 Northumberland . . 31 0 Gloucester . . 44 0 Somerset .. . . 22 0 Devonport Albion . . 21 3 Midland Counties . . 21 5 Surrey . . 11 0 Slackheath ..32 0 Dxford University . . 47 0 Cambridge University 14 0 Richmond . . 11 0 3edford .. . . 45 0 Scotland .. ..12 7 iVest of Scotland . . 22 0 Ireland . . 15 0 tfunster .. ..33 0 England . . . . 15 0 Cheltenham ..18 0 Cheshire .. ..34 0 Yorkshire . . . . 40 0 kVales .. .. 0 3 3-lamorgan . . 9 0 Newport . . . . 6 3 Cardiff .. . . 10 8 Swansea . . . . 4 3 France .. . . 38 8 East Midlands . . — - — lent . . . . — — South Scotland . . — — North Scotland . . — — Dublin University . . — — [yancashire . . — — Cumberland . . — — Sdonmouth.. .. — — [ilanelly . . . . — — Bth Africa For. Agst, 22 6 9 3 9 0 22 4 44 0 23 0 14 0 29 0 33 0 24 3 29 0 0 6 15 12 3 3 34 0 11 0 6 3 8 0 0 17 59 6 37 0 21 0 32 5 35 5 28 3 11 8 21 0 17 0 16 3 Total Points . . 868 47 692 87

The Ne<w Zealand team played 32 matches— 3l wins, 1 loss; South Africa, 29 matcheer— 26 wins, 2 losses, 1 draw.