FOOTBALL.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XLIV, Issue 13454, 3 June 1907, Page 8

FOOTBALL.

-DISTRICT CUP COMPETITION. WINS FOR PARNELL, PONSONBY, AND CITY. The best weather experienced since the opening of the football competitions under the auspices of tho Auckland Rugby Union prevailed on Saturday, when the first round was completed. Little or no wind blew, the • - grounds were fast, but not hard, and in good ...order, and except the glare of tho sun; which affected some of tho players in tho handling of the ball, ideal football weather prevailed. At Alexandra Park there was only ' a fair attendance, principally owing no - doubt to the counter-attraction of the races. On No. 1 ground a good exposition of football was given between Parnell and Newton. ■ Tho wearers of the maroon' surprised their ' most sanguine supporters by inflicting the substantial defeat of 24- points to nil on Newton, who ' were looked upon to win. Ponsonby*. romped over Grafton on No. 2 ground to the tune of 56 points to nil. - At North Shore Ci£y' added another victory by " defeating the home team by 19 points to nil. No interest was taken in the match, but there was a good attendance at the firstgrade junior match, North Shore .V- City. Neither junior team had been defeated up till Saturday, but the home team avenged the defeat of their seniors by defeating the City juniors by 3 points to nil. ' PARNELL DEFEAT NEWTON. FINE, OPEN, FAST GAME. (Parnell, 2+ points Newton, nil.) [Parnell, on their display of the previous Saturday, were expected to put up a fine, open game, specially on- a dry ground, but few thought them capable of defeating Newton so handsomely as by 24 points to nil. In the first half Newton played with . - the sun in their face. From,tho kick off a ■ lot of neutral play followed,' the spectators anticipating' at this early stage a close game. Play was in midfield when Fox secured, and .tho ball was sent to Stuckey, to Todd, ■to Twiname, and then Smith, the latter being thrown . out in * Newton territory. The maroons secured from the line-out. _ . Fox •""again commenced an attack, passing to Stuckey, who gave to Todd, and 1 Hogan, on the wing, securing, daßhed in and scored a try in the corner. Todd failed with* the kick: Parnell, 3; Newton, nil. _ Almost immediately afterwards Fox was given the ball by the forwards, and he, Stuckey, and Twinamo made a fine run, the latter making most ground, and scoring behind tho posts. Todd was successful with the kick: Parnell, 8; Newton, nil. Newton now, for the first time, had Parnell defending in their 25, . but Fox made a smart mark, and found the --lino at the-centre. • -Noon- again attacked, IX biltjbad maao&ivsfing by the forwards lost ~ them the ball, which enabled Parnell to attack. •" Twiname kicked to near Newton's ■i . line,: where, from a . scrum, Fox secured, and getting round the pack trickily dived over the line. "Todd converted an easy kick: 13: Newton, nil. The wearers of the -red and. white livened up considerably after these onslaughts, but they could not pierce the defence, faulty handling ;in a couple of instances losing them good chances. H. Row© made a fine run through the Parnellites to the fullback, but not being supported nothing was gained, Fox, Stuckey, Twiname, Smith, and Hogan were conspicuous for several pretty passing rushes, the maroon forwards generally smothering tho Newton pack, and then giving the oval to the backs. Newton were compelled to force. lA little later, from a mark, Farrant found the line inside Parnell ground. From the Parnell retaliation, • -Rowe made another fine run, but, Crawford . failed-.to take an ,easy pass. Rowo wheeled round, secured again, and kicked, but Cleave stopped a determined rush.- From.' near - the half-way line Stuckey secured , and kicked hard."* " "Todd galloped after the. oval, and Crawford missing badly the- ball_ went over tho * line, and Todd was there in time to 1 ..xojre. - .His kick, at goal just- failed, -the .'**■ leather 'striking the post: Parnell, 16; Newton, nil. The maroons attacked to halftime, -the-only interlude .being by Wolfgram,..who. shone, out with a good run. With' th'<> sun behind them in the second, half, Newton wore expected to dor better, as both sides opened up the game. -' Roberts was brought J." up wing-threoquarter, and Crawford placed fullback for- Newton. The red and whites set up a valiant attack, and . had play under Parnell's goal for some time, ; when Twiname relieved with a good line kick. Newton were apparently not to b® denied, for tho vanguard, headed by Winters, made a dribbling rush to Parnell s ground. "' From a line-out Gray secured, and • passed, to Rowe, but Wolfgram': missed his pass, and the effort was nullified. Parnell were kept on the defence for , some time, '■ "'the maroons ' displaying -their.:•'defensive powers creditably, but bad judgment on .the part of Newton again lost them opportunities. Parnell, however, were forced to save, and the ball went into touch-in-goal, in succession. The Parnellites found an opening, and quickly had play in ' Newton's-25 by .smart handling of, the ba11.., Todd cut in, " and securing, the ball in tho midst of the opposition made'a clever, dodgy run, and grounded the ball behind tho posts. He also added'the major uoints: Parnell, 21; Newton, nil. Finding that they could not . ,pierce J the Parnell defence, Newton appeared to lose what , cohesion they had left. . Todd had an ineffectual shot at goal. NewtoD dashed • away to the other end of tho fiald, and Rowe kicked, but too hard, Par- ... Nell saving. . Newton -tried hard to score, " but the attack was patchy; and Hogan saved in' the nick- of time. Wolf gram and Twi- " name exchanged kicks. > The latter shortly afterwards secured, and racing down the - afield kicked to Crawford, who fumbled - badly, and before he eould secure the oval Twiname was up to him, kicked . the ball over tho line, and scored. Todd failed with the kick. Desultory play mostly followed to the call of time, Roberts, for Newton, and Walsh; Stuckey. and Kinder, for Parhell, showing out with short rushes. ' .

NOTES

The !'. improvement shown by Parnell over their display of the previous Saturday (which was; good) was very considerable, and this, combined; with a dry ground, en- -'• *■■• abled them to play the- best exhibition of football seen this : season': : From the begin : ning the game Was made open, and this suited, Parnell's ",. comparatively light, but fast, team. The maroons', combination in attack and defence was all through admirable, and they were never lacking in the . following up. -Each man appeared to play J hie, hardest.\ -The display of NcWton.-lon the other hand, was a good deal below their previous: exhibitions, and was disappointing ;;f ,in the extreme. A team must know that * without combination most of their efforts would not bear fruit, and this was amply demonstrated on Saturday. With a couple of notable exceptions, the handling of the ; , ball by Newton was faulty, especially in the rear pi vision, while the forwards played in a- very spasmodic manner. For Parnell, Twiname was the most prominent, his initiative and dash being good. Todd also played well, and Stuckey and the other backs were in their right places. The pack played admirably, Kinder, Walsh, and Bamford ' showing out" most. • Of the Newton team, H. Rowc was easily the most prominent, and Wolfgram showed out occasionally, " ; while Roberts was sound. Winters and Trevarthen, of the forwards, deserve mention, but the latter did not show the way as he often does. \ ;. 1

i CITY DEFEAT NORTH SHORE. I (City, 19; North Shore, nil.) The City-North Shore match was played at Dovonport in the presence of a small attendance. The Shore team played with the -™ "stiff at their backs in" the '-first half. From r the kick-off the Shore , backs indulged in. a, ("■ passing -bout, but the City forwards inter-1 i cepted and carried play to within a few yards of the Shore's line. Offside play allowed the Shore to get temporary relief. I The wearers of the red and black with a ■■■'■ ■ *■ " 'find" dribbling' rush brought the play , back to Shore's 25,' where the ball was sent.into 1 touch. The line out resulted in Millar gain- » ine possession, and with a good kick play | was transferred to midfield. The City forI; .. ... wards, made a sprics of.attacks, and D. MilI ler, . the. home team's- fullback, extrioatcd ( his'side from danger on more than one oc- [ . V casion by his splendid kicking. Offside play : - cave City a free kick, and S. Magee made K" ' an unsuccessful shot at goal. The game at ! this stage was uninteresting, the ball being K * kept in touch near the' Shore's 25 for some i time. From a throw in the City team be- < : - r c€.me aggressive, and a forward rush headed ■> .<by G. Tyler enabled Mcllhouo to secure, | ftiid be gftjidyjg it Pft to S. Magco en^owQ. i - r

the latter to score City's first try. S. Magec notched] the major points: ; City," 5 North Shore, nil. % The play of the home team imroved somewhat. *< From a line out - Joyce broke away and , carried play into ; City's territory, whore IV. Little took, a mark, and the leather was „'. sent, into touch. Seeling secured possession from the kick out, and | he transferred to W. Tyler, who crossed the '■ line, but;a breach had occurred. From a scrum on the line Mcllhone got hold* of the leather and scored City's second try. S. Mageo converted: City, 10; North Shore, nil. . The City team were now having by far tho best of the game, and G. Tyler and W. Mackrcll dribbled the ball past several opponents and a try was only averted by D. Millar picking the leather up and kicking it into touch. The Shore forwards, of whom N. Todd and Marshall were conspicuous, carried play near City's 25, but offside play I penalised tho wearers of the green ana white. From a scrum the >City backs were given the ball, but a good opening was lost through Gladding failing to take a pass. Half-time bell sounded without any additional score. . - •--' ■ ■

The game had; not been in progress'long during- the second half when the City for-! wards rushed tho Shore's' territory, and Seeling getting hold of the leather it passed through several hands to Mageo, who registered another try. S. Magee made a good attempt at goal: City,; 13; Shore, nil. After tho leather had been set rolling Jackson i gained possession, and with a good kick 1 transferred play: to .City's 25, where tittle i saved end sent the oval into touch. From the throw in the City men got the ball, and a fine bit v>f passing on the part of W. Tyler, Mcllhone, and Little saw the latter cross - the. home team's line. S. Mageo made a good attempt at goal: City, 16 Shore, nil. ...1 he wearers of the green and white made several futile efforts to cross their opponents' line, but the defence was too solid. A good opening made by the home team I was spoiled by Jackson losing 1 the ball. I Mackrcll and Seeling then carried the leather into Shore's 25, and from a scrum City s backs were given the- ball. After a pretty passing bout Gladding outpaced the home men and crossed the line. S. Magee made a good attempt at goal from a difficult angle.- City, 19; Shore, nil. The Shore team began to rally and made things lively for the red and blacks for some time. Eventually P. Gorrard gained possession and transferred to F. Woodward, who dashed for the line, but be fell a little short of it. Shores. last opportunity of scoring was lost through failing to follow up. The bell sounded. shortly afterwards, leaving City victorious by 19 points to nil. '

.•'■>■ vK -A>, NOTES. '..■.. ' >.'■:' - - ' ■The game on the whole was of an uninteresting nature and one-sided. The Shore forwards were not possessed of the dash which characterised the City forwards. Notwithstanding the odds they had to contend with, the members of the marine suburb team, put up a plucky fight against such ft for[Combination. For the home team D. Millar played the best game, his line kicking being admired. G. Tyler, Seeling and Magee were the pick of the City team. "PONIES" OVER GRAFTON. (Ponsonby, 56 ; Graf nil.) -The-Ponsohby-Graf ton match, which was played on No. 2 ground, Alexandra Park, resulted in a very easy win for the blue | and 3.blacks.;; The : Grafton team was composed mostly of junior . players, and at no tune did they ever appear like scoring. The ball had only been in play ' a few minutes when Kenyon scored for Ponsonby. Cunningham converted. The Ponsonby backs began flinging ,' the leather about in good style, and it was not long before Kenyon again scored.- Cunningham failed to" add the major points, i Play was continually in Grafton's 25. v.Gillett potted a goal from the • field,- and then Wilson, Bater, Phillips, ( and Francis scored for Ponsonby, Cunningham, converting Wilson's and Phillips' tries.' Scores: Ponsonby, 28; Graf von, nil. Dillij more was the next to score, and inimediately afterwards Wilson added two more tries. Neither try was converted. The spell ended with the scores:' -Ponsonbyy, 34; Grafton, nil. Upon resuming, the Grafton forwards showed up more prominently, and bad passing by the Ponsonby backs prevented the blue and blacks from augmenting their j score. After about 20 minutes' play, Francis scored, near the corner. He failed to add tho major points.- Soon afterwards Francis again scored, rushing over the line* with four* of-the Grafton -backs holding on to him. Gillett failed to convert. Kenyon was the next to score. Wilson took the kick, but the; ball went wide. Cunningham and Bater scored "soon; afterwards, Cunningham adding the major points in each instance.' The game ended with the scores: Ponsonby, 56; Grafton, nil. .-..•.:, . ~r-\■::-'••: ,;. . notes. .' . , "■. : . 5 Grafton y only managed ;to muster 13 ! players. ■ Their forwards - worked hard throughout, - but any advantage they might gain was speedily lost\by; their backs. Mc-1 Gtrire and MacCormick ; were, perhaps,* the i best . of v tho / Grafton forwards, whilst Sutherland '■ was easily the pick of the' 'backs. For Ponsonby- Gillett was the most conspicuous, and he had a, hand in \ nearly every try scored." Francis and Nicholson were also prominent. Each member ofvthe pack, however,- played a good game, and they were always on the ball. Bater, Wilson, and Kenyon were the best of the backs. The goal-kicking of the Ponsonby team was exceedingly bad, for, of the 14 Aries scored, only five were converted. In nearly every' instance the leather was touched down near tho goal posts. OTHER GRADES. VNorth Shore" 11. v. City II.: North Shore won by 3 points to nil. • North Shore 111. v. City III.: A drawn game. • North Shore IV. v. City IV.: The latter won by 2l points to nil. "-■■',.'■..' Ponsonby IV. v. Grafton IV.: The former won by default." ,' '/ Sacred Heart " Old Boys" played the Three Kings Maori Boys at, the "Pah," Onehunga, and; after. a good game the Maoris won .by 8 points to 3. Mr. P. Keenan was referee. * .JTho public schools matches resulted ;as follows:— (50 points) ' defeated Norman School (nil); Ponsonby (46) defeated 1 Grafton (nil); Parnell (6) defeated■ Nel-son-street, (nil); Newton East (3) drew with Beresford-strcet , (3); Napier-street (6) defeated ' Pitt-street (3); Richmond Road (11) defeated Mount Eden (nil); Newmarket won by default from Ellerslie.

In the Catholic Sunday-schools League competition St. Joseph's beat St. Patrick's by 3 points (a try) to nil, after a well-eon-tested game. ; ■ •/".- ':.. ' '" .A, match was, played at Riverhead between teams representing Birkenhead and Riverhead, the latter winning by 14 points to 5. ' . ' ' • ■ ■;. . ' In the match Chelsea v. Otahuhu (played at Otahuhu), the latter won, after a wellcontested game, by 9 points to 6. ■ In the Secondary School Old Boys' Union competition University defeated King's College Old Boys by eight points to three. P. f Hunt kicked a fine goal from a try scored at the cornel. Mr. Craig was referee.

HAMILTON RUGBY UNION. [BY TELEGRAPH.—-OWN .CORRESPONDENT.] ~.,. ;. .' .... j Hamilton, Saturday. The. competitions under the Hamilton Rugby Union were continued. At the Frankton ground after a very close game No. 1 defeated Suburbs West by three points to nil, a goal from a mark kicked by Castleton just on the call of time. For No. 1 Deverv was the best back, and T. Moore and Harwood in the forwards played up to form. In tho juniors No. 1 beat Suburbs West by 15 points to three. Suburbs West seniors are improving every match, and their forwards are a good set and weighty. At Steele Park after a hard and' stubborn gamo Suburbs East played a draw with City seniors. For City C. Coote and Richardson, in the backs, and Keeley.in the forwards, were tho mainstay, whilst for Suburbs Prince, in the backs, and Dey, in tho forwards, were the pick. Ryan, on the wing, played his best game this season. City juniors defeated Suburbs East juniors by 14 points to nil. ' .' ' " " .

THE ROTORUA MATCHES. [BY TELEGRAPH.— CORRESPONDENT.] Rotorua, Saturday. The.Rotorua Rugby Union cup, matches were continued to-day in glorious, weather, there being a large attendance. City croated a surprise by defeating Ka'hukura'" by 12 points to six. City-ran all over their opponents. City's score consisted of. two tries and two penalty goals, and Kahukura's of one try and . one penalty goal. Waikito defeated Whakarewarewa -by eight to nil (two -tries, one converted). : In the junior grade Wbakarewarewaand City drew,(three point.!! each). The local union play their first representative match on June 15 against Matata, at Rotorua, when two visiting teams meet two local teams. ... ' " A Referees' Association has boon formed at Rotorua, with Mr. 1 J. W. Webber as president. ■-.;,.-' • ';V, ,'■';".' , ■,

THE GAME AT PAEROA.

APPOINTMENT OF COMMITTEES AND REFEREES.

[BY. TELEGRAPH.— OWN CORRESPONDENT.] Pabkoa, Saturday. The Senior football match at Paeroa today was between West and Suburbs. • It was an interesting game, resulting in a win. for Suburb* by six points to nil. For thinners kicked a penalty «al-nd^uku-fcai obtained a try. Mr. A. E. gclder was referee The junior match, between West and East, was'won by West by six points to nil, Chamberlain and Whitmore obtain-: ing tries.' Mr. ■ Hutton was referee ; At a meeting of the Goldfields Referees Association at Karangahake last- night officers were appointed as follows; -Management Committee, Messrs. Carve, McWhirter {Waihi), Evitt and Fie.d (Waikino, Douglas and Johnson (Karangahake), Hutton and " McCloughled; (Paeroa)- secretary, Mr Field; chairman, Mr. McWhirter; examiners, Messrs. Garvey, Evitt, McWhirter, , and Price. ' '.' >, ' , .. _ Referees for the coming representative matches were appointed as follows:-June 15, Paeroa v. Waikino, Mr. Douglas; Wailu v. Karangahake, Mr. Price. June 22, Karangahake v. Paeroa, Mr. McWhirter; Waihi v. Waikino, Mr. Fielder.

WAIHI UNION COMPETITIONS. [BY TELEGRAPH.—OWN CORRESPONDENT.] . Waihi, Saturday. The Waihi Rugby Union cup competitions 'were continued to-day, the senior con : test being between the Mataura and Waihi Club fifteens. The Mataura men got to work quickly and worked the leather well into the blacks' territory, where a penalty against the defenders gave Kneebone a shot at goal, but he failed to pilot the ball over the cross bar. Faulty handling by the. reds backs on resuming enabled Waihi to get beyond the half-way peg, but the red forwards swept the ball back at toe, and their opponents being penalised Binns tried at goal, but without success. When the leather came into play the Waihi pack broke away, and Binns failing to pull the blacks up they got well- beyond the Mataura 25 peg. Back came the Mataura forwards, and the backs getting possession Dance shot the ball along to McDermott, who cut in cleverly and then passed to Johnston,, A score looked certain, but Johnston failed to take the pass and) the "chance was lost. A few seconds later Johnston broke away again and drop kicked at goal, but the kick was unavailing. The black forwards then took a hand in the deal, and the reds mulling the ball Waihi got well down, and Mataura being penalised they had'a shot at goal, but without result. The reds were, however, not to be denied, and two or thro© powerful forward rushes had Waihi in difficulties again. McDermott improved matters, and the ball was right on the blacks' line, but a force brought relief. A few minutes later half-time sounded with the ball at the half-way flag and no score. On changing ends Waihi became aggressive, and getting into tho reds' 25 had a shot at goal from a penalty, but this proved pointless. Then Foster chipped in and looked like scoring, but he had the bad luck to: knock on at the critical moment. \ Tho blacks continued to press and the backs began to handle the ball a bit, Foster making a nice dash, but finding no one on hand to take the pass when the chance to score came again. The blacks made a determined effort and Kneebone crossed the reds' line, but only to be called back for a forward pass. Ultimately the reds pushed the opposition back into their own ground and got right up to the goal line, but a penalty gave the defenders relief. , The Mataura forwards were playing well together, and once more they took the leather over the blacks' line, where Johnston ! fell on it, drawing first blood for Mataura. The shot •at goal was pointless. A few minutes before the' call of time Waihi carried tho ball across the reds' line, and faulty play by the defending fullback allowed them to equalise the score. Rogers, who followed fast; was the one to fall on the ball. , Tho _ kick at goal failed. Tho bell almost immediately sounded. The game' thus ended in a draw, .n

■ • THAMES FOOTBALL. [BY TELEGRAPH.— CORRESPONDENT.] ':"';.••. ■ Thames, Saturday. At Thames the first match in the second round of tho cup matches was "played this afternoon between the Suburbs and County teams. It resulted in a win for Suburbs by three points to nil. Both teams were somewhat weak owing to the absence of several leading players. The game was a very even one, the teams being well matched, and no advantage was gained by either side until within the last ten minutes, when A. Houghton crossed 'the line and scored a try lor Suburbs, which i was not converted. " The game ended with Suburbs three, County nil. The contest in the first junior division Was between City and County, and was won by City by three points to nil (a try scored by E. Constant, unconverted). / v SOUTHERN RESULTS. [BY TELEGRAPH.PRESS ' ASSOCIATION'.] . ; : ' ' -.' Wellington, Saturday. v The senior '"competitions i in Wellington were continued to-day, and resulted; as folMelrose (10) beat' St. James' (5); Oriental (15) beat Wellington (6); Athletic j (29), beat Victoria College, (nil). . ■■~ Ghristchcrch. Saturday. An inter-union match, Canterbury v. Combined Country, was played this afternoon, : and was won by Canterbury, whose backs showed better combination, by 16 points (two goals from tries and two tries) to nine (a penalty, goal and two tries). . . Dunedin, Saturday. The results of the football matches were:—Dunedin beat Alhambra by 8 to 3; Southern beat Union by 6 to nil; Pirates beat Taieri by 11 to 5; Kaikorai boat Port by 8 to 5; Zingari beat University bv 16 to 9. ■ :-"'■.-;:-:;■ ; \ ■ - • ' h. THE ASSOCIATION GAME. THE CHAMPIONSHIP COMPETITIONS. _ Tho championship competitions were continued as usual on Saturday. following are the results of the matches played: — ■--.... . FIRST GKAD£. . , Tabernacle v. St. Peter's: St. .Peter's won' by 5 goals to ?.. Corinthians v.. North Shore: Corinthians won by 6 goals 1. : Ponsonby v. Everton: Ponsonby won by 2 goals' to 1. The scorers were Ritchie and Howie for Ponsonby, and Skipper for Everton. "-. . '•' SECOND GRADE. Corinthians v. Olympic: Corinthians won by 3 goals to 1. Carlton v. W.Y.M.I. B: Carlton won by 4! goals to nil. •"W.Y.M.I. A v. Guild: -W, Y.M.I. A won by 3 goals to nil. . St. John's v. St. David's: St. John's won by 2 goals to 1. . North Shore v. Y.M.C.A.: North Shore won by 4 goals to' 3. Ivan hoe v. Ponsonby: Ivanhoe won by default. .- .."'•.'" '" ' THIRD GRADE. North .Shore B v. Y.M.C.A.: North Shore B won by 4 goals to nil. >- United y. Arawa B: United won by 6 goals to nil. ■■-■■.'■'..->.-■■ Arawa A v. North Shore A: Arawa A won by 1 goal to nil.