ATHLETIC SPORTS.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XXV, Issue 9094, 30 June 1888, Page 6

ATHLETIC SPORTS.

FIXTURES. Football. RUGBY. June 30 —Probables v. Possibles, at Potter's July 7—Warbrick's Native Team v. Auckland. August— Match with English Team. association. June Devonport v. Links. June —Wanderers v. Elleralie. FOOTBALL. Consequent upon the form displayed in the practice match last week, the Selection Committee have made several changes in the personnel of the Probable team chosen to play against Warbrick's Fifteen. In the forward division H. Poland has been substituted in place of M. Keefe, as the latter player has stated his inability to go in for regular practice. The alteration is beneficial, as Poland is one of the best forwards in the city, knowing the game well, and working with determination in the pack, and judgment in the open. The substitution of Mackie for Conway at halfback is, though to a great extent justified by the sleepy style in which the Ponsonby back has been playing for the past couple of weeks, rather hasty. No doubt Mackie played a brilliant game on Saturday last, bub i'j must be borne in mind that ho wa» fed better than any other back playing. Mackie has many points to recommenu .lis inclusion. His picking up is clean and sure, and he gets away very smartly, being also a good pass and punter, but bin great fault is in his defensive work, his collaring being poor, while I do not recollect seeing him play a brilliant game when pressed on a losing side. If he acquits himself as well to-day as in last week's match I shall bo quite satisfied of his worthiness of a place in our " reps." Speaking of backs, I consider that Arneil on his recent form well merits a place among the Probables at three-quarter, as in both foot and head work he compares very favourably with the form displayed by T. Brown in all his big matches or practices this season. Stephenson is another player wno has been treated in a somewhat cavalier spirit by the Selection Committee, inasmuch that though he was put down as first emergency, and showed himself to be in capital form in last week's match, yet Mackie is placed above him. Though not wishing to detract from the excellent work done by the latter, I am strongly of opinion that there was not such a difference in the play of the two men that Mackie should have been lifted right over the Ponsonby man's head, especially when it is taken into consideration that Stephenson has played consistently well both this season and last year, while until the last three or four matches Mackie has shown but "patchy" style. The contest for the two places of halfback should prove very interesting, as Elliott, Conway, Mackie, and Stephenson have all numerous qualifications to recommend them, and are sufficiently equal in merit to make the task of the Selection Committee (whose sole guide should be present form) a very delicate one. I expect to see the quartette at their best this week, and would make a suggestion that the sides be changed at halftime, so that both men on the Probable team would be pitted against each of the Possibles in turn. Let Stephenson play on the same wing as Mackie in one spell, and Conway opposite Elliott, while in the second term Conway and Mackie should oppose one another, and Elliott be confronted with Stephenson. In this manner a fair test of the capabilities of all four players would bo made.

The forwards as a team are a good selection, though one or two of the men have not shown up in late matches and Saturday's practice. The most conspicuous of these is Twiname, who has fallen into his old fault of shirking the exhausting work of the scrum. If he should shoV no improvement in to-day's match, I am of opinion that he might be replaced by Mills with advantage. One great defect in the whole division has, however, thrust itself upon my notice, and that is the exceedingly poor style in which the forwatfH take the ball. If it is thrown-in at a line-up, it rarely is caught cleanly, but is bounced from one pair of hands to another, and as often as not knocked on. This is frequently the fault of the thrower, who does not send the ball in to any particular player, as should be done, bnt casts it in at random, and chances that his own side may get possession. More often, however, the fault lies with those who attempt to catch it, who make one grab at the oval as it were, to stop it, and a second to grasp it. The same defect is seen even more glaringly in the futileondeavoursmadeby forwards following up to pick up. They put their hands under it and scoop it up in front of them, ind an appea- for thrown on is the result. This serious failing can he remedied by practice alone, find during the coming weeK those who form the forward division of the Prooaoie fifteen should exercise themselves in catching the ball in the air cleanly, and at the first grasp, and in picking it up smartly when kicked alone the f round either to them or in front of them. do not wish players to think that I advocate promiscuously picking up by forwards during the game, but many a hard-earned advantage is lost, and a try often missed by the failure of a forward to take the ball neatly when in his opponents' territory. In this particular too, I am advised, that the members of the Maori team are very apt, and any judge of football can at once see how dangerous a team of heavy forwards can be who make a practice of dribbling into their opponents' quarter, and then snapping up the leather to charge over the line. It was clumsy handling of the ball that lost us our first match with the Englishmen.

7.h0 volunteers are going ahead in football. The City Guards play the Ponsonby Navals at the Surrey Hills to-morrow, the Newton Rifles will try conclusions with the " A" Battery, while the Gordon Rifles have arranged a match between teams captained by Leiutenants Buchanan and Fairs respectively. I am pleased to be able to inform the readers of this column that the Rugby Union, at a meeting held yesterday afternoon, have finally decided that there shall be no tour of an Auckland team to the South this year. When the first step 1 were taken towards the promotion of such a trip during the present season, I strongly pointed out that under the existing arrangements of fixtures, and the lost- by accident of our two best backs, it was very inadvisable to make the tour this year, and in this view I was upheld by the majority of the football public. Though I have not yet been informed of the reasons which caused the Union to come to their decision notwithstanding the strenuous efforts that have been made by several of its members to carry the proposal to a successful issue, most probably they were largely influenced by the unfavourable character of the replies sent by players who had been invited to go into practice. I also hoard yesterday that R. Lusk, our fullback, has been ordered to lie-up for a couple of weeks, owing to a seemingly slight injury to his knee, and if this report be true, it had doubtless considerable weight with the officers of the Union in causing them to abandon the tour. Altogether both public and players will be glad to hear that the trip has fallen through, as at its best it had but a doubtful chance of making a first-class record against the Southern provinces, while the club matches, which have reached a very interesting stage, can be played out without dragging the season right into the spring months as last year. By the s.s. Rotomalmna on Wednesday, four well-known footballers left Auckland for Melbourne. They were Joe Otway (Gordon), J. Patterson (North Shore), J. Hobson (Ponsonby), and G. Hill (Grafton). They are all good at the game, and should they all join the same club In Victoria they will prove a welcome addition to its forward division. I wish them the best of luck on "the other side," as I understand they have all cone over " on spec." Several secretaries of clubs have forwarded names of teams for insertion in this column, but were too late. All lists should be handed in not later than nine o'clock on Wednesday evening in each weak. CRICKET. The London correspondent, of tho Herald writes ass follows by last mail: — The Australian Cricketers seem likely to take the cricketing world by storm. We heard very poor accounts of them from the colony, and it v-,?& said :o be the weakest team that had over left Australia for England. But the colonials have won their first three matches, even beating Surrey, the crack county, and they will not improbably win ft fourth victory over Oxford University. The bowline of Ferris and Turner appears to be more than English cricketers can stand, and, until they get accustomed to

these players' style, they _ will probably go under before the visiters. After a few days' careful practice thy vising began their first match in England on Monday, May 7, against, a team which had l )ecn got together to meet them by Mr. Thornton the well-known old Cambridge bat, at Korbury Park, near Stratham, the seat of M VJ. W. Hobl)3, Mayor of Croydon, and a prominent member of the Surrey committee. Mr. Thornton's was a fairly strong eleven, including Mr. W. G. Grace, and the play was admirably calculated to enable the Australians to get their hand in. The match lasted two days, and resulted m a victory by six wickets for the Australians, the full score being:—Mr. Thornton's eleven, first innings, 144 ; second innings, 63. _ Australians, first innings, 133; second innings, 76, and six wickets to fall. The great feature of this match was the splendid bowling of Ferris and Turner, who fully .i_u.il;lukl tin prophesies of its admirers, that '.-he - ixth Australian team would contain surprise in the matter of bowlers. On the following Friday the visitors went down to Birmingham, and commenced a two days' contest with Warwickshire. This is a weak county this year, so it is not surprising that the " gumsuckcrs" knocked their opponents ; .bout a good deal. They went in first, and made 3-16 for the day's innings, the runs averaging 70 an hour, or more than one a minute. When the home team went in they only made 67 for the first innings, and 129 for the second, so the Colonials had a very easy victory. In the first innings of the Warwickshire Turner took five wickets for 34 runs, ]<erris the same number for 25 runs, both bowling and equal number of overs— 23. The visitors then returned to London, and on Monday met Surrey at the Oval. The crack county laboured under a certain disadvantage, in that two of its best men — Maurice Bead and Lohmann--had only arrived at Plymouth from New Zealand the day before, so they could not be expected to be in good playing form. Lohmann, moreover, was suffering from a bad foot, and had to leave the field before the match was half played through, while Beaumont, one of : u» - . rey s cleverest bowlers, had injured his&.gei and was thus unable to do himself jus' -je. Still, no one anticipated that Surrey would suffer such a decided reverse at the handy of the visitors. The Australians won the toss and went in first, making a total of 363 runs. McDonnell made 56 runs, Bannerman 43, and Turner, who had never shone as a batsman before, made the handsome score of 103. Surrey for its first innings only ran up s!t • and on continuing their play in the second innings failed to put up more than 120, thus leaving the Australians victorious by an innings and 154 runs, which is one of the most signal defeats English cricket has ever suf fered at the hands of the Australians.

Jason,