AUCKLAND IN FORM.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXVI, Issue 20343, 26 August 1929, Page 14

AUCKLAND IN FORM.

THE REARGUARD TOO CLEVER VISITING FORWARDS SUPERIOR. FAULTS IN POSITIONAL PLAY. The Auckland Rugby League representatives showed improved form against Canterbury on Saturday and had little .. \ * difficulty in winning by a wide margin. r J lie backs gave a splendid display and outclassed the opposition when it came to unorthodox football. Pace and clever support of the player in possession gave the Auckland rear division a decided advantage, and tries were made easy. Canterbury did not have tlio collective speed of its opponents, who were moving fast when receiving (lie ball. The local forwards showed improved form", especially in scrum work. Tho visitors' forwards maintained their southern reputation of being solid players, keen in the loose and powerful in scrum work. Canterbury was slightly superior in (ho forwards.

Tho first half was well contested and for a time Canterbury looked likely to mako a good game. The visitors did some splendid work in tho early stages, but faulty handling, which marked their play throughout, held up scoring movements. Auckland turned two bad mistakes into tries. The Canterbury Five-oighths. The five-eighths, Amos and Spillane, combined effectively and sorely tested their opponents, Delgrosso and Seagar. With more support to these players Canterbury might have been equal at. halftime. The visitors' defence fell away soon after play was resumed and the. local backs, playing fine football, completely outclassed Canterbury. Tho reverse and scissors passes wero frequently attempted between Delgrosso, Seagar and Brisbane with good results. '1 ho challengers showed little knowledge of positional play and in this respect their weakness was more noticeable. Their play was disappointing in comparison with their earlier efforts. Few expected Auckland to win so easily, but the local team, especially tho backs, played as a fine combination. It was a pleasing rovival of tho representative football displayed several seasons ago. Jt would liavo taken a really good thirteen to extend Auckland on Saturday's form. Gregory at Fullback. For Auckland Gregory played a fino game at fullback. The Marist player is undoubtedly suited to this position in big football. In the second half he repeatedly ran the Auckland backs into scoring positions, and was actually in two movements which resulted in tries. List showed more determination than in other matches and played really well. Carter got few opportunities, but did some useful work. If he could handle the ball with more certainty Brisbane would bo one of tho finest centres the code has produced. Ho marie several great openings, but dropped passes when tries were made easy. Delgrosso was the pivot of Auckland's attack, and ho did some brilliant work. The Auckland captain, however, has a tendency to hold on to tho ball too much. Seagar was a disappointment. The opposition effectively checked his "dummy" pass.

Shortlawl lived up (o his reputation as a clever halfback. Tho ex-Maori representative gave easily his best display since joining tho League code, his work on attack being smart and effective. The Auckland forwards played better than in previous matches, the front row being more solid in scrum work, while tho inclusion of Pavno gavo the pack better support. In the loose tho Auckland vanguard knew too much for Canterbury and good individual efforts resulted in the backs scoring tries. All the forwards played well, with the exception of Ruby, who was not fit and could not do himself justice. Francis was, perhaps, the outstanding forward. He was fast' in tho loose and a splendid tackier. O'Brien and Moisley proved good scrum forwards. Payne fully justified his inclusion and scored two good tries. Pascoe was prominent in tho looso and gave Auckland a fair share of tho ball.

The Visiting Players. Davidson made a good impression at fullback. The Canterbury custodian kicked powerfully and with good judgment. The wings, Mackie and Staplev, missed many opportunities of scoring owing to bad handling. Both have plenty of pace. Spillane played a fine game at centre and later at five-eighths. He has an elusivo side-step and several times easilv beat the local backs.

Amos, in spite of an injured ankle, was the best of Canterbury's backs. He made several beautiful openings and was prominent for sound tackling. Sanders played a good game on attack, but waited frequently for tho interception. The halfback, O'Connor,, only a reserve inclusion, played really well. Ho made several nice openings and defended ably. The Canterbury forwards worked well as a pack. Mayne, a first-year representative, made a good impression. Spencer was perhaps the best forward, while' Dodds gave him excellent support. Green hooked consistently and played well in the loose. Woodgale and Minnard were also prominent.