FOOTBALL.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LVIII, Issue 17843, 26 July 1921, Page 7

FOOTBALL.

THE RUGBY GAMENOTES AND COMMENTS. The Springboks play West Coast at Greymouth to-morrow, and Canterbury ai Christchurch on Saturday. With such unfavourable weather con ditions, added to the greasy nature of the centre of the playing area, good football was not expected on Saturday, but to the delight of the large number of spectator!! who attended at Eden Park, a very interesting game resulted between Grafton and College Rifles. That the better team won on the day will be acknowledged by all, though College Rifles at times showed much better and finer football than did their victors. As usual the College Rifles team were slow to get moving, and were fortunate in not having two additional scores : registered against them. Nicolas was a thorn in their side, his dashing play smothering ; many an attempt of the College Rifles backs . to clear their line, and it was refreshing to see this forward do this so repeatedly. He j must be in great form to keep up his dishes j so continuously. The brightest piece of ! work, which just failed in its objective, was tho Passing bout from Muir to Grierson. to j Laxton, and again to Grierson. the handling ! of such a wet and heavy ball being very I fine. The score gained by Grafton in this 1 spell was due to the fast following up oi ' Nicolas, who smothered Filling's poor at- ' tempt to field a long kick, and Gasparich, taking a quick advantage, passed out to ' McLeod, who had only to ground the ball between the posts. College Rifles put ; through some pretty but ineffective passing, 1 gaining very little ground by their efforts., ', while Grafton, recognising it was not the day for back play, kept the ball down and urofited thereby. Bright Passing Bout. On opening up the second quarter the College Rifles put a little more vim intc j their work, and kept the Play on Grafton's I side of the line. Hirst showing out promin I ently on several occasions. Muir was alsc | playing a very solid game, getting through the heavy ruck by some good head work j As in the first quarter, Nicolas was responI sible for spoiling a lot of the work of these two players. The brightest and probablj j one of the finest passing bouts witnessed or j Eden Park occurred halfway through this ; spell. Hirst failed to field a very heftj | and high kick by Findlay. and let Graitor into the twenty-five. The ball went oul | from the thiow-in. Hirst secured and went j for what at first appeared a run by him. eelf- -Just as he was apparently on the point of kicking he turned his head anc tound support with him At the right moment he shot out to Muir. who camec j on till meeting opposition, and transferrec j t*> Grierson. who in turn passed to Laxton the latter scoring. It was a perfect bout full of judgment, and the try was well de I served The evening up of the scores pui \ new life into College Rifles, and with sonit ' good forward footwork they had Grafton de fending hard, but Pindlay was very safe anc ■ rarely missed getting an effective kick inte i touch. Nicolas, heading a Grafton forwarc rush, worked the ball back to College Rifle! quarters, and it required strenuous work tc i" stave them off. However, the ball goi i among the College backs, and Gaspancl j smothering Pilling allowed W. Lamb te j obtain possession and score. Nixon convert I ing. The second half was fairly evenb i contested, each side scoring a try. Th< i Grafton backs threw the ball about witf. ; much more confidence, and good passing resulted on both sides. In the Grafton team. Findlay played e very sound game at fullback. freauentlj getting his side out of difficulties-, Thompson and W. Gasparich were the pick of the threequarter line. The former has plentj of pace and played a good defensive game when required. He put in some very useful sprints during tho afternoon, and was unlucky not to score- M.. Lamb and E. Gasparich were also prominent. Uf the for> wards, Nicolas was the best on the ground. and played a sterling game. He followed up well, and some of Grafton's points were due to' his excellent work. Nixon, J. Gasparich, McLeod and Hansen were alsc conspicuous. In the College team. Hirst, Muir, Laxton ! and Grierson were the pick. They combinec excellently, and despite the greasy nature i of the ball, gave a display of handling thai I would have done them credit on a fine day i Pilling was not a success as rover, and die not handle the ball too well. Lane Mc Innes and Gallagher were the best of the forwards. Grammar School's Victory. The greater portion of the game between ' Grammar School and Marist Brothers wai rather dull, but the conditions were ai. against good football, portions of the gTOunc being ankle deep in mud. Up to the end oi the third quarter Grammar School were playing the better game, the work of theii backs being fir cleaner than that of theii opponents. Their tackling was very sure, and they combined well, while the Marist backs were inclined to get out of theii places and wander all over the field. In the last quarter the Marist forwards asserted themselves, and (completely dominated play, all their points being gained in the last 20 minutes. On the general run of play, however, Grammar School deserved their win. for their work was better finished ' than their opponents' Peebles, the Grammar School fullback, ; was cot too safe, the greasy ball seeming to beat him at times. Goodwin and Williams, the two wing threequarters, were conspicuous for strong running, while V. Badei ley, in the centre, played a very sound j game. The manner in which he took the bail was all that could be desired. Wright, : at half, was the best of the backs in the : Grammar team. He played a fine game, , frequently stopping some very dangerous I rushes and making some splendid openings. 1 He got the ball away smartly from the pack, and altogether put in some valuable work. L. Kronfeld made his first appearance this season, and played wing forward, but he was obviously not in form. Taylor and Arnold were the best of the van. Owing to a strained knee C. Badeley was unable to play, but it is anticipated that he will be able to take the field next Saturday. I In the Marist team Docherty played a good game at fullback. Mailqy, centre i threequarter, was noticeable for some fine ! kicking and tackling. Thomas played a I splendid game at five-eighths, and his work | was nippy and clean. He was the only i back on the side who showed judgment in ! his kicking. Brady at half was good, while j of the forwards Courtney, McDonald, Casey, and Culpan , were the pick. Ponsonby-Newton Match. The match between Ponsonby and Newton was far more even than the scores indicated. The latter team was strengthened by the inclusion" at five-eighths of McLean, New Zealand representative forward, and played perhaps their best game this season. Their forwards held their own throughout, and had the better of the scrums. Earl getting more than his fair share of the ball, but he was not supported by the backs, with the exception of McLean, and many chancer went astray. Newton adopted a different formation from what they generally play, their team comprising two wing forwards and one five-eighths. This seemed to give the forwards an advantage, but weakened the combination of the backs, the threequarter. line being too far away from McLean. In consequence De Senna,' in the centre, was unable to take the passes ] cleanly, and frequently had to wait for the i ball to bounce, which allowed Ponsonby I to come through and break up the combinaI tion The Ponsonby backs showed far more I pace and judgment than the Newton reari guard, but as their forwards were beaten in the scrums in the.early stages they did not j set the same opportunities as their oppon- [ ents. The Ponsonby threequarter line, Rowe, I Lucas, and Hobscm. played well, Lucas j being the best of the trio. He made some good openings and potted a very fine goal. : Gillespie, at fullback, made no mistakes, and carried out his work well, while he played a good defensive game when occasion arose. Donovan and McManus, at fiveeighths, were fair. Pitman was good on defence and stopped some very_ solid rushse bv the Newton forwards. McWilliams. Prentice. Righton and Pardington were perhaps the best of a hard-working pack. was the outstanding player of the Newton backs, and scored their S points. Had he been adequately supported the total ■would have been considerably larger. Halliday and Wilson, threequarters, played well, while Earl, at half, was particularly good. Smith, the fullback, was a poor substitute for Booker, who was not available owing to illness- Of the forwards, Kelly, Thomas, and Murrell were th© most prominent of a fine van. The Next Draw. Grafton and Grammar School Old Boys will meet at Eden Park No. 1 next Saturday and another most interesting game should result. These teams have been close together in the championship table since 1919. In that year College Rifles won, with Grammar School second and Grafton third. Last season Grammar School won with I Grafton runners-up. At present Grafton are leading Grammar School and College Rifles by only 2 points, and if Grammar School can get their best team out on Saturday Grafton will find them a very difficult proposition. The other game 3 for Saturday next are:—College Rifles v. Marist Brothers, Newton v. University and Ponsonby v. North Shore. The grounds will be allocated by the Management Committee to-morrow evening. Though football is recognised as a strenuous game, a good deal of unnecessary force has been in evidence by some of the teams this season. This applies more particularly to a charging player, who so frequently plays his man long after the ball has left his possession. More often than not this is deliberate and avoidable. Eeferee3 should keep a keener eye on these players and igive a penalty. It is when a man's body has relaxed after taking a kick that the chajtnfw of a aerJosa acsidens may occur

from the full weight of hi* charging opponent, fjess of this sort of play would be much appreciated by both players and the public. IwM&nßt Brothers Old Boys senior team •will play at Waihi on Saturday. August 6. in the second grade competition the positions of the teams at the end of the fcrst round (nine games) was as follows:— Grammar School. 18 points; Ponsonby. 16: University 15; Grafton A. Suburbs. 10: gplke« Bifles. S; North Shore A. 4 : North Shore B. 2; Grafton. 0. Grammar bchool won all their matches, scoring 120 points against 11. *\?Z> e Portions of the leading teams in the trurd grade competition since the rearrangement was made is as follows:—Grafton. 4 Fv,wi. Technical Old Boys. Ellerslie. 2; College Rifles, Papatoetoe. 0: Tele<~ar>h SrtiS *• • W £ en e »">a&inß teamfw?re FvnLt agal °, st other' Grafton. Technical £wf e * an i . Pa P»t?etoe started with no P£ nt l thelr "edit. Grafton won their ™« Stt e t- Wiule Technical College won S™ff °?e- Papatoetoe was defeated £?™; o Ell .ershe and College Rifles were minus 2 points The former won two games and College. Rifles one. Telegraph were SS?h«.* ""St** *? d lost two St? ii.- 8 ?. that , they remain the same. «W£ p*^f d * grad * ? ateh between Ellerslie £?,!. p t , on J Saturday, played at VicJS" a f„ P * rt resnl - t<d m a ver y ke «° struggle. i,™JL? n K r t l ° rnm ? the tables on theiT op! abW wfr, Vk P ° mtS to *-t ver * comfort! ZZZ* j ame was characterised by good forward work and sure handling among WV b ?; C ¥ and extri £f^ h £+ a d « ;i ded advantage, which no doubt was largely responsible for their The Grafton and Technical Old Boys' third grade teams met on Eden Park on the .former winning by 5 points to 0. The Technical College pack played a good game but were out-manoeuvred by the nippy Grafton backs, who, by clever handling and initiative, secured a victory for Grafton. Grafton should remember that it is better to Piay Jbe ball and not the man. T& College Rifles-Post and Telegraph teams had a very even game at the Show Ground, the former registering a win by 6 points to 3. The game was purely a forward one. which just suited the weiehty College pack, who proved too clever for their Lighter opponents. A discussion took place last Thursday between the Management Committee of the ISew Zealand Rugby Union and the manager of the Springbok team. Mr. Bennett. The discussion was private. Interviewed later, a member of the committee stated that tho anestiou of the injured plaver was discussed The >>ew Zealand Union bnd recommended that, should a player be injured in the first half of a game, he should be replaced. Tha manager of the team intimated, in reply, tha,, orders had been given by the South African Board of Control that the rule in pra-ctioe in Ensland. that forbade the replacement of injured players, was to be strictly adhered toANSWERS TO CORRESPONDENTS. Barber Auckland.—Wellington defeated Auckland at Auckland, and also at Wellington. . " Toenail." Tokatoka — No. The fullback in the instance you mention is the only player who oan put the team on-side. UNDER LEAGUE RULES. NOTES AND COMMENTS. The Auckland team chosen to meet the Wellington League representatives on Saturday is a strong side that should bo capable of playing a fast, open game Flynn has. played a consistently good game at fullback for Maritime during the season He is very safe at? fielding the ball, and does not kick it to the opposing backs. In the threequarter line Woolley has properly been placed on the wing. This position should suit him admirably. Playing in the centre threeo.uart.er position he is apt to try to beat one man too many, and sometimes forgets his wing man. Grey, at centre threequarter, is in his right place, but he must restrain his propensity to kick the ball instead of passing. W. Davidson should be seen to advantage as the other wing-threequarter. provided he is given reasonable opportunity. The team should be particularly strong immediately behind the scrum-with Wetherall and McClymont at five-eighths and Lang halfback. Each of the three is clever at handling the ball, and as a combination should give a fine exposition of the League game. The forwards are a good, even lot, possessing weight and pace, together with ability to take a hand in the passing game. Som©» good men had to be omitted from the team, but those who failed to find a place in .the combination to meet Wellington will have the opportunity of winning places in one of the teams that will majte the southern tour. The Auckland League has adopted a wise policy m providing outside matches for the players who were not chosen tor the tour to Australia, as many oi those who were not included in the team that visited the Commonwealth had almost equal v.iainis with those who were chosen. The Wellington Bepreseatatives. The Wellington League representatives who will meet the AucKiand League representatives on Saturday are expected to render a good account of themseives. The team is saicf to be by far the Dest League combination that has yet represented Wellington, the forwards being weighty and fast, and the backs both speedy and clever. A Wellington League supporter, writing to an Auckiandex, states that the forwards average 13ist. in weight, and are thoroughly trained and fast. I'he writer is enthusiastic regarding the form shown by Tetley, a wingthreequarter who is stated to be much superior to W. Wilson, who was included in the New Zealand team that visited Australia this year. Dobson, another of the threeSuarters, played for .New Zealand against ae Lnghsh League team at Wellington last season. Shannahan is described as the best centre-threequarter seen in Wellington for some years. The forwards, with the exception of Zimmerman, are new men, and are said to be much above the previous standard of Wellington League players- Harvey, 13st 71b, is Sft 10m in height. He was a Rugby Union representative forward Hedges, who is a fast, dashing player of a similar stamp to Harvey, previously played fpr one of the senior Rugby teams in Wellington. Coulter, 13st, is from Christchuich, and Williams, 13st, who is said to be a good hooker, is from the West Coast Haddock, 14st, played for the Petone Union last season. Of the other forwards, Pukatapu, 14st, is sft lOin in height, and Le Warne, 12st 7lb, is sft 9in. The Welliagton representatives will play a game at Hamilton on Wednesday, following the Auckland game. The game between City and Ponsonby on Saturday demonstrated what a small margin ol points there is between the senior in the .League competition this season. It also provided prooi that Ponsonby was extremely unlucky in having three of its best players included in the team that, visited Australia. The club was not sufficiently strong in piayers to provide fitting substitutes for the men who went away, and consequently had no chance in the club championship competitions. The presence of Meadows in the forwards and McClymont in the backs on Saturday gave sufficient ad(ditional strength to the team to enable it to hold its own with City. It is also a widely expressed opinion that if Deigrosso and A. McGregor had been fit to pl.iy. City would have suffered defeat for the first time this season. City's Form last Saturday. The City players did not show the combination they were expected to produce on Saturday. The heavy shower that fell at the beginning of the game made the ball difficult to handle, but still there was something lacking in the team work of the side. Good, clean passing was noticeable only by its absence, and the handling of the ball generally was not what is expected of a champion team. The players can do much better than they did on Saturday. Paki was a notable exception to the remainder of the team. He took the ball well either on the ground or in the air, and made some good openings for his side. His game again demonstrated that he is one of the best and most consistent all-round players in the League. The ball seldom went cleanly out to the wing three-marters. When it did B. Davidson on more than one occasion failed to take it. The passes were not given in the best style, but failure to make the h»< use of opportunities is apt to be expensive to a side. The forwards played a hard game, with Hawkes showing up well in most of the attacking worK This player has thoroughly earned his place in the representative team. His form in the club games has been consistently good throughout the season. Townsend has also been responsible for much good work, and his game on Saturday stamped him as a more than useful forward. The New Zealand representative League team will play a match to-morrow at Hamilton against the South Auckland League representatives. The League game is said to be flourishing this season in the country districts, and an excellent side has been chosen to meet the New Zealand team. The members of the latter team will leave for Hamilton by the Thames express to-morrow morning at 9.15 a-m. Mr. William Ross, well known in Eugby League circles, and a member of the executive of that, body, recently underwent two serious operations in a private hospital in Auckland. The first involved the loss of his right leg. Despite the severe ordeal through which he has passed, Mr. Boss is reported to be making a thoroughly satisfactory -if necessarily slow, recovery. His return' to familiar scenes in due course is looked forward to by numerous friends and weli■ftishers. AUCKLAND V. WELLINGTON. THE VISITING TEAM. „ A *?T esS . Association message- states that the following League team has been selected to represent Wellington at Auckland next Saturday:— A. Jessop, S. Brace, j. Shanahan, K. Thompson, Juchoiis, F. Nunn. J. Kruse. J Williams. H. Harvey. R- Shanahan. 0. Haddock. A. Le Wane, EL Zimmerman. Emergencies: A. Withes, W. Eedges. Reserves: Jacobecn, ProebsieL

THE ASSOCIATION GAME. NOTES AND COMMENTS. With threo matches to play before the championship i s decided, the Auckland Football Association's senior competition has reached a very interesting stage. Northoote are two pointa ahead of Huntiy and Ponsonby. but still have two hard matches to play against Huntiy and Y.iLC.A. The latter team fully extended Northcote in tie first round, and are improving each Saturday, while Huntiy have proved themselves very formidable A loss to Northcote will mean a play "off with either Ponsonby or Huntiy. Huntiy played their match away from home on Saturday against Northcote. on the Devonport Domain, and a fine game resulted in spits of the adverse weather conditions. Play was fast and full of incident. the result beiug in doubt right up to the final whistle, and the score of one sroal esch is a good indication of how the game went. In the North Shore forwards Pirrot. Alison, and Woolley were most conspicuous, while Haycock and Muirhead performed best in the half line. Caere, at right fullback. played his usual brilliant game, and Williams, in goal, saved many good shots. Hayes and Porteous were the outstanding players in the Huntiy forwards. They were ably supported by Lidcfle on the right wing, who played a dashing game and centred well. McNeil and Green wee responsible for some good, work for Hu«'.j at times. Allsop. in goal, was verv safe. Although the team from H.M.S. Philomel was beaten bv Ponsonby on Saturday by four clear goals, the game was by no means onesided. Ponsonby undoubtedly owe their success to their forwaids. who played well. Wallwork, as centre, and Ellis, at inside right, were a decided improvement, the former fully justifying his inclusion. Both outside men did splendidly. Siram'? goal being the result, of a brilliant piece of w; rk. Knott and Mitchell were the pick of the half line, while Roberts, at right fullback. played a particularly good game. Anderson, in goal, was very safe, clearins: repeatedly in a finished manner. For Hooper and Sexton played best in the forward line, which was not up to usual form Corbett. as usual, was the mainstay of his side, his play at centre half being a treat to witness. The fullbacks. Doree and Bailey, did some good work, but were handicapped by the srreasy ball. Bnttv, in coal. had a busy time and acquitted himself creditably. In the first half of their rnaich with Y.M.C.A. Old Boys, TCorthcote had much the better of matters. but the second half proved to be much more even. For Northcote, Tremain played a great game in the forwards, where he was ably supported by Wilson and Cross In the backs. Corrin and Exley. of the half line, both did well. Craxton was back to form, and defended his goal in a brilliant manner. For Old Boys. Henderson and Fiebig were the pick of the defence, while Millar was tho most prominent forward.