THE FOOTBALL SEASON.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XLII, Issue 12968, 11 September 1905, Page 3

THE FOOTBALL SEASON.

' '•AUCKLAND !V. THAMES.'' THAMES WIN BY SEVEN POINTS TO SIX. ' ' [FROM Otfß, OWN CORRESPONDENT.] ■ : ThaMSS, Saturday, The return football match, Auckland :v. Thames, was played at Parawai yesterday afternoon. Since the Thames " teps." vanquished the chosen 15 of Auckland a few weeks ago the return match had been th»" constant subject of conversation here, and-consequently when the hour arrived for the event to take place several thousands of enthusiastic supporters were on the field. The Wakatere brought some 451) passengers from Auckland, most -of them old Thames enthusiasts. Although outwardly the ' Thames supporters made no attempt to conceal the view . that. the local team would'win, yet there was,an undercurrent of feeling that, as the ground was in perfect order, and everything favourable to a ; fast game, the' Auckland backs would prove too; many for the Thames backs. < The result, therefore, to some extent came as a pleasant surprise, and .the Thames team is to be congratulated on - its well-merited ■ victory. The teams .Were as follower- • v Auckland (blue and white): Fullback, R. Magee; threequarters; Gerrard, O'Meara, Twiname; live-eighths, ! Todd; half, Young; wings, Tyler, Doran;. forwards, Herring, Dunning, Francis, McGuire, Trevarthen, Marshall, Eaton. Thames (bltfe and black): Fullback,. Duftv; threequarters, Quartermah, Newdick, J. Houghton; fiveeighths, < Winder; halt, A. Houghton; wings, McCollum, Baker; forwards, White, McKeown, MeDuff, Dunlop, ridge, Dobson, Hayward. Young captained the visitors, and McDuff the local team. , .1 • '> i THE PLAY. Thames having won the toss, the ball was set rolling ,by. Francis. Dufty returned with a fine kick, and a line-out followed. From the throw-in the Th lines forwards secured the ball, and keeping it at their feet bore. down to the Auckland 25." Here :!Coung. cleverly marked, and centred the ball, finding the line at half-way. Francis headed a loof -rush, and offside v play on ..the,- part of Thamej gave Auckland-a' free kick. 'A line-out in the local 25 followed, Autridge securing the ball, and, v hacked up by flbyward, and Dobson, carried the'ball at their feet into the Auckland 25, but overrunning the leather resulted in offside play, and ;>•»* |crun>? was formed;,--, Give-and-take play of an { uninteresting nature followed, , until A. Houghton marked. Dufty' had a kick at goal, but the attempt, although a good one, failed in its object, and Auckland forced. Eaton kicked off, and Qjartcrman returned with a fine line kick. From the. line-out Thames secured the - ball, but were penalised for lying on it, and a free kick for Auckland brought the ball Into neutral territory. Auckland gradually worked, their way up the field with a series of scrums and, line-outs. Twiname made a fine run. In chase of. the ball from a long kick by Francis, and;was within an ace of scoring, but the referee brought him back for a knock-on. The Thames forwards, who were playing a splendid game, pushed their way down the field, and as they neared the Auckland touch-line the excitement grew Jo fever heat. Gerrard came to the help of hi? side, and securing the ball kicked Into touch, Some : scrummaging took place in. Auckland's 25. Here Trevarthen was penalised for offside play, and Dufty taking the kick, landed an unmistakable goal, amidst intense cheering: .Thames 3, Auckland nil. The Auckland forwards, headed bv Francis, Trevarthen, and Eaton, soon rushed the ball to ' the Thames 25. From a line-out Tyler stele a march, and quickly bouncing the ball into play, streaked down the line, and neatly transferring the leather to Francis, enabled tho latter to score an easy try. The kick at goal did not increase. the score: Thames 3, Auckland 3. Until the spell ended the game'; lacked interest, too scrum work and little or no back play : characterising the play. With a change of ends it was expected that Auckland would show to greater advantage, and the visiting backs especially were looked to to make things merry for the-local players. However, the ; second spell was if anything less interesting than the first, and not until fire minutes before the cell. of time i did the Auckland men do anything worth noting. Then, however, it was too late. Dufty opened the second spell by setting the ball into play. Thames getting offside, Auckland were awarded a free kick, and steadily worked their way up the field. \Todd marked, but failed to find the line. J. Houghton returned, and the Thames forwards worked the ball down the field. Offside play on the part of the blue and whites gave Duftv another shot at goal. The kick fell short. The Thames rearguard livened up, and .A. Houghton secured from the line-out, but hung on to the ball too long, and lost his chance. For upwards of a quarter-of-an-hour a aeries of scrums and line-outs took place, almost in the same place, the ball scarcely travelling five yards in either direction. The. monotony was getting wearisome, when McDuff, the local skipper, got away, and bowling : over one or . two of his opponents, was thrown put of- touch at the corner flag. From the' line-out Houghton marked, and Dufty made another attempt to increase the score, but failed. For some time after the kick-off the play was confined to the Auckland 25. The Auckland forwards broke through with a rush, but were stopped by Newdick, and a free kick against Thames for offside saw the ball out at the halfway flag. From the line-out the ball travelled to the Thames 25. Houghton relieved with a smart run along the line. Newdick marked, ; and Auckland returned with a long fruitless kick, forcing Thaiaes. From the kick-off , Twiname returned, and Auckland found the Thames line. From a scrum Young secured, the ball from the blind side, and while the local forwards were waiting its appearance he transferred it to Gerrard, -who dashed across the line. 1 The kick at goal failed: Auckland li, Tlioraes 3. Auckland kept up the attack, and Thames appeared _ lacking in their usual dash. Francis marked in Thames 25, and found the line at the corner flag. Houghton came away with a splendid. dribble, and relieved in fine style, to the intense delight of the Thames " ban-ackers." The game centred in Auckland's 25, and Newdick securing the leather, potted a pretty goal, amid wild enthusiasm: Thames 7, Auckland G. , The Auckland backs, who had up to this stage * played disappointingly, began to assert themselves, and kept up a continuous attack on the Thames line. The defence of the local men, however, was equal'to the occasion,-and despite the determined efforts of the Auckland < players to cross the line, they were - unable to .do so, and the game ended ,in a win for Thames by seven points to six. Mr. P. Flynn, of 'Paeroa, controlled the game. His decisions were entirely free from partiality, but his strict interpretation of the laws of the game prevented anything in the way, of fast and open play. SUNDAY-SCHOOLS' LEAGUE, Alexandra v. Edwin: This game was played on the Domain, and resulted in a win for Alexandra by three paints. S"\ Ctafts, who was . responsible for Alexandra's . try, was the best back on his side. The game was a fast and interesting one throughout, but the Alexandra forwards had the best of the game, while the Edwin backs showed fine defence behind . beaten forwards. 0. James (Edwin) was the best back on the field, and deserves great credit, fur the splendid game he put up, being the youngest and lightest player ■in the grade; Hill, Webb, F. Brett, C. Brett (Edwin), J. Montague, Carey, and Barrett (Alexandra), played well.*. [V - %■ V ARRIVAL OF THE AUSTRALIAN. TEAM. The Australian Rugby Football Team arrived at Onehunga by the Takapuna yesterday. They were met, by officials of the Auckland Rugby Union, and driven to the city in drags. More than one of the visitors bore inafka of the strenuous game played against. Taranaki. several in . particular , appeared to have been , well knocked about. A DRUIDS' MATCH. (Auckland 8, Paeroa nil.) The Auckland Druid Lodges played a match against the No. ', 10 Goldflelds District (Paeroa) Lodges at the Metropolitan Ground on Saturday afternoon. The teams, attired In lodge regalia, were conveyed to - the ground In drags, headed by a brass liand, and a great deal of interest was taken in the turn-out. ' Shortly after three o'clock play was commenced, and it was at once seen that the teflu's were fairly evenly matched. The Auckland players, however, managed to secure a try just before half-time, while the visitors had placed no points to their credit. Shortly after changing ends the Auckland team secured another try, which was converted, and the score stood: Auckland eight points, Paeroa nil. No further score' . was . recorded, though both teams worked hard. While it was evident that the Auckland team were the heavier of the two, there was no doubt that the Paeroa team played excellent football, and did their ut- • most to avert defeat. VOLUNTEER RUGBY UNION. First Regiment Auckland Mounted Rifles v. No.3 'Native., Rifles: Won by the Mounted : Rifles by default. First Regiment Auckland Mounted Rifle?, v. Engineers: This match was arranged on the*ground, both teams having won their matches by default. The Mounted Rifles won by 15 to 5. For the winners, tries were scored by Bodle (3), and Holden (2). ■ \ No. D Co. G.A.V. v. Newton Rifles: This match resulted in a win for the former by 34 points to nil. Tries were scored by Edwards (2), Little, Patrick, L. Bickerton, W. Bickerton, and M<jIntyre (1 each); Edwards < converted three trie's, and Woodward, kicked a penalty goal, and Grace kicked a goal from'the'field. ' ' Engineers !• (No. ,4 Co. N.Z.E.V.), v. Submarine Minefs: The Engineers won by default, the Miners failing to put in a team. "A" Battery v. No. 8 Company G.A.V.: This match was played at Alexandra Park, being won by the " A" Battery by 18 points to nil. • Tries were scored by , Coghlan, S. Bennett, Wilkinson, and Ballantvne; W. Bennett converted three tries. The match was abandoned after 20 minutes' play. College Rifles v. Gordon Rifles: This match was played on No. 2 ground, and was won by College Rifles by six points to nil. Tries were scored by Sellar** and Dickeson. After a few minutes' play the Gordon Rifles retired from the field. ■- OTHER matches. Thames Old Boys (Auckland) v. . Rovers 11. : This match was played at the Thames, anci alter ■an interesting game resulted in a draw, -three points 'each.. Edwards scored for the Old Boys, and Jopes scored for the Rovers. Central Mission v. Red Rose: This match resulted in a draw, no score. • Nerthcote v. Entrican and Co.: A football match was played at Northcote en Saturday afternoon between teams representing Entrican, Ltd., and Northcote, the-game resulting in a win for the latter ■by six points to' three. Entrican's team obtained a goal from a penalty kick, while A. Hurley and Miller each secured c try for Northcote. 'St. David's v. Onehunga Presbyterian Bible Class: This match was played at the . Pah, and after a hotly contested game, resulted in a win for' the-Onehuuga team by seven points to six. For the/, winners, H. Perry floored a- try, and H. Watkins dropped? a goal from the field. George scored for the losers. JUNIOR MATCH AT GISBORNE. [11Y TELEGRAPH. — CORRESPONDENT.] , Gisbohne, Saturday. The return football match ■ between teams representing- Napier and Gisborne district schools was played here to-day in lovely weather. The game ended in favour of the local boys. by .15 points to nil. . ■, .

. VOLUNTEERS V. ALLCOMERS. ' ■ . ■ [JIT TSLBGRAPH.—OWJT COnBKSPOITDINT.J • » .Coromaitdei., • Saturday. 4 The Rugby Union football match, Coromandel Rifle Volunteers v. Allcomers, was played this after-' noon in Bates' paddock. « The game was very •loir throughout, the volunteers winning. by, six - paints to four. For the - Volunteers, Davie and - Sailor Brown each obtained a try, • and McDonald for the Allcomers kicked ; a . goal from .the;field, Mr. Wrathall acted as referee. t WAIHI BEAT KABANGAHASE. ; [BY TELEGRAPH.— CORRESPONDENT.) Paf.roa,< Saturday. ; The football match between the Walhi* and Karangahake teams was played this .afternoon at Mackaytown. Walill won by 11 points to' 4. A match was played at Paeroa this afternoon between . a team of wheelwrights, blacksmiths, and in-ill hands and a team of . allcomers. > The allcomers won by 18 points, to 6. • ' POVERTY BAT. DEFEAT HAWSE'S BAT. | £BY TELEGRAPH.— ASSOCIATION.] j ' V Napier, Saturday. The representative football match, Poverty- Bay v. Hawke's Bay, was played here this afternoon, I and resulted in a win for Poverty Bay by nine points to six. The winners played a rattling for-' ward game, but the Hawke's Bay backs were superior. For-Poverty Bay, Sherratt, Sharp, and Kowe scored tries, and for Hawke's Bay Munroe scored a try, and McKay kicked a goal from a penalty kick. WELLINGTON V. OTAGO. " ' ' A DRAWN GAME. [BY TELEGRAPH—PRBSS ASSOCIATION'.] Dunedik, Saturday. The match between Wellington and Otago was played at the Caledonian Ground to-day, In wretched, weather. Light rain fell at intervals during the morning, and just before the game started, thick, drizzlipg rain, driven by a strong wind, swept: •down the field, 1 continuing until play ceased. The ground was very heavy and greasy, ! and it was almost impossible for the players to keep their feet, while handling the ball was a matter of extreme difficulty. The game, which was witnessed by .about 4000 spectators, resulted in a draw, neither side scoring. ' In the first spell, Wellington, playing with the wind, kept Otago on; the defensive most of ■ the i time, but under the conditions a systematic • attack was out of the question, and the. visitors were dangerous only at rare intervals, though the home team had to force down on several occasions. Shortly before half-time the Wellington forwards got away, owing to Borne (the Otago fullback) falling, and they just missed scoring,' Eckhold forcing- in the nick of time. The conditions were reversed in the second spell, in which Wellington was defending nearly all the time. On a few occasions Otago looked like scoring, but something unexpected happened every time, and - Wellington, by good footwork, kept the line clear, ; although having to force several times. Taking the match on the whole, there was' little to choose between the teams, and the game, though somewhat uninteresting, was as good as could be expected, the play being fairly fast. The backs of both teams fielded the ball remarkably well, and the kicking generally was good, but attempts at passing , were not attended with much success. The Otago backs were more successful than their opponents in line kicking, frequently gaining long stretches- of, ground by their efforts in this direction. The Wellington forwards showed to better advantage than those'in the Otago team. In the scrums' the. visitors kept their feet better, and were successful in hooking the ball in a great majoiity of cases. Some very good loose work was done by the Wellington forwards, whose footwork and combination generally were very - good, being of. inestimable value in defensive play. The Otaito forwards, on the other hand, often overran the ball,'and ' thus lost favourable opportunities: of doing good service to their side. Both teams played■ better on the defence than in attack, and mistakes made by the attacking side were promptly turned to advantage by the; defenders. Two of ■ the play- i ers were very fortunate in not being ordered off the field for engaging in a scuffle on the line. Mr. Parry was referee. - ■.: ■ v-' vyTHE"ASSOCIATION GAME.' AUCKLAND V. TARANAKI. I ' A DRAWN GAME. The Auckland representatives met the Taranakl team on the Eden Cricket Clnb's ground at Kiagsland, on Saturday. .The spectators were rewarded with a fast And exciting, if not very' scientific, exhibition of 'the " soccer" code. ; The ' ground was very wet in patches, after the recent-rains, and this often misled players in judging the flight of the ball. Auckland had the best of the'game, and it was only the soundness of the . Taranakl backs and the brilliant exhibition of goal-keeping given by Frost which saved Taranaki from defeat. The teams were as under: Taranaki (red): Goal, Frost; fullbacks, Clark (captain), Bullock; halfbacks, Hartley, Lister, Heid; forwards, Anbury, Acklom, Scholeiield, Wilson, Prosser. Auckland (blue and white): Goal, Bayly; fullbacks, Ritchie, Webster; halfbacks, Meldrum (captain), Audinwood, Yates; forwards, Harvey, Flemming, Foreshaw, Clark, Dimmery. v ~ THE GAME. . Auckland won the toss, and elected to play With the wind and sun behind them. Soon : after the kick-off a good return -by Yates placed Taranaki on the defensive, bnt the attack was spoilt by, Dimmery getting offside. Good work by Audinwood set the Auckland forwards ' going again, and Foreshaw looked dangerous, but Frost came out and smothered his shot. A delay was caused -by Foreshaw colliding with Ambnry, who; sprained his ankle, and i had to leave the field, D.ugdale coining on as substitute. Harvey soon afterwards had a shot, which just missed ; the ; post. . From the goal kick Taranaki got away, with - a good rush, and a mis-kick by Webster ( was followed by Ritchie fouling Scholefield. The. free : kick was . well placed by S. .Clark, but ".hands" spoilt ; the attack, and the' ball was returned ;to the Taranaki 25, where Foreshaw obtained possession, and, beating the backs, shot a lovely goal: Auckland 1, Taranaki 0. ■ Encouraged by their success, the Auckland "if forwards got. away again, and Dimmery shot a goal, which was disallowed for offside. Scholefield was conspicuous by' a neat ' piece of play, and Wilson looked dangerous, but a poor pass gave Auckland the ball, and Meldrum relieved with a; fine ■ kick, and from Bullock's return Audinwood got posses-' sion, and sent in a hot shot, which was well-saved by Frost. After give-and-take - play ' between the opposing backs,' Bullock place*! Taranaki -on- the offensive, and Scholefield forced Webster to concede', a corner. The kick 1 was beautifully, placed, but Audinwood headed out. ''.' Dugdale got ' the ball, and sent a -hot centre * Into the goal-mouth, and Scholefleld, following up well, rushed the ball through: Auckland 1,- Taranaki 1. Spurred on 'by, the " barrackers," Auckland took ■up "the ' attack, and Meldrum tried a shot, which Frost cleared with difficulty. Neat play by Harvey, gave Flemtiling a good opening, but he spoilt, the chance, by kicking over the line, and half-time sounded with ■the score even. : ' ' ' ■In the second half Harvey went- ou the wing In Flemming's place, and' the Auckland' 1 attack was much stronger. The forwards got away from the kick-off, and the -Taranaki; backs were kept busy, but their clean kicking was a feature of the game, A * penalty against Audinwood brought relief, and Scholeiield nearly scored, Bayly being ! forced over the line with the - ball. : : The corner kick was well placed by S. Clark, and 1 Bayly fisted out splendidly, and good work by Audinwood took play to the other end. A good , run down the line by Harvey resulted in a corner, which Ritchie placed right in the goal-mouth, Frost clearing well, and a minute later saving a hot shot from Harvey. Auckland returned again to the attack, but Foreshaw speilt a good; chance by kicking wide. The Taranaki forwards got. away, and looked dangerous, bnt were well stopped: by Webster, and J. Clark tested Frost with a hot one, which was well stopped. Bullock relieved the attack, and a mis-kick by Ritchie gave Wilson an opening, but he headed over the line. " Hands" against Meldrum gave Taranaki another chance, and Scholefield and Acklom both sent in ' good shots. Yates and Audinwood brought relief, and J Dimmery was conspicuous by a couple of good runs, a splendid centre, however, went begging, and his second attempt, a hot daisy-cutter, was saved by Frost getting his foot to it just in time. A minute later and Dimmery again sent Frost '.is hot shot, which proved fruitless. Goad kicking by S. Clark gave Scholefield a chance, and he took the ball down the field splendidly, but Ritchie relieved with a kick into touch. Good head-work by Audinwood gave the Auckland lorwards a good opening, and handling in the penalty area resulted in a penalty-kick to Auckland. Meldrum, however, »hot wildly over the bar, to the relief of the Taranaki supporters. The game now became very fast, the ball travelling up and down'the field with great rapidity. Dimmery and Harvey both put in a couple of good line' runs, but Frost" saved magnificently, and was loudly applauded for his sterling defence. : Foreshaw collided with a Taranaki back, and sustained a nasty out over the eye, whilst Dimmery was bowled over by. S. Clark just as he looked dangerous. > Relief came by J. Clark fouling his brother, and Scholefield caused Bayly to handle. The Auckland custodian sent well up the field, and a judicious centre by Audinwood resulted in exciting play in the .Taranaki goal area, but Bullock got in a good kick, and time sounded with play in neutral ground, without, any addition to the first half score. NOTES. *' The play of the Taranaki boys came as a surprise to the spectators, especially considering they had been beaten at home by two to nil by the Corinthians' touring team on Thursday last. Their defence, however, was very sound, and. their escape from defeat was largely due to the fine display by Frost In goal, and the sound defence of S. Clark (an old Auckland player) and Bullock. Their halfback line was weak, and the forwards lacked combination; Scholefield, however, played a splendid game, and was the best forward on the field; had it not been for the attention paid him by Audinwood, the result of the game would have been very, different. The Auckland '(representatives played disappointingly, and it is doubtful it the Association made the best use of the material at their disposal. Bayly, in goal, was not troubled much, but was sound when called upon. Th» fullbacks were weak, and compared : unfavourably with the opposing ones. Webster was the best of the pair, Ritchie having a tendency to kick into touch when pressed instead of beating his man and returning the ball. The halfback' line played well, Audinwood being the most conspicuous of the Corinthian trio; ; Yates and Meldrum were \ery. sound on the defence, " bat kicked too hard, sending the ball to the Taranaki backs instead of feeding their own forwards. Dimmery was the pick of the Auckland forwards, but spoilt himself in the first half by his old. habit of getting offside. He had hard leek on several occasions in not snoring. Fsreshaw had an off-day; his goal-was a neat piece of w.ork, but he was handicapped towards the finish by a nasty, blow on the head. ' Harvey did better in the second half when he changed places with Flemining, a Junior, who was r making his debut in senior football, but . who was hardly up-to rep. form. With a -little more combination among the forwards, and more accurate shooting, Auckland would have Won,easily. Seeing that the game has ' .only just started in the district, Taranaki are to be, congratulated,*;and will no *«nbt prove for- J midable rivals in future seasons, : . : r.,.-p ;