THE LEAGUE CODE.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXVIII, Issue 20869, 11 May 1931, Page 11

THE LEAGUE CODE.

BETTER STANDARD SHOWN.

MARIST BACKS PLAY WELL. DELGROSSO IN GOOD FORM. A better standard and moro combination was shown fa the Rugby League matches at Carlaw Park on Saturday by the winning teams and jthere were many bright Hashes in Ihe principal attraction between Marist and Ponsonby. For a start each side seemed afraid of the other, but after the players settled down some splendid back movements were witnessed.

Ponsonby lost some great scoring opportunities in tho first spell, but credit must bo given to the Marist players for their quickness in turning to advantage any mistakes by the opposition. Marist started off in a manner which suggested it would quickly pile on the points. Ponsonby rallied, however, and held the territorial advantage during the spelL Even well into tho second spell it seemed any side migh£ win. Clever anticipation by Brady, who intercepted in a Ponsonby passing rush and made a brilliant run from which Batclielor eventually scored, brought about tho turning point in the game. Marist. was the better team and thoroughly deserved its victory. It played throughout the second spell one man short and the loss of Clark from the pack was a severe one.Clark was playing a fine game in the forwards, but when Carter was injured he was transferred to wing-threequarter. The forwards of each team were evenly matched, but the better combination of tho Marist rearguard carried the day.' Batchelor was right on form and was tha best of the threequavters. Brady brought off several clever moves and in company with Brisbane was a solid proposition for Tonsonby, both on attack and defence. Hassan played a good game at half and made several piercing runs through the defence, which gained yards of ground. At times, however, he held on a little too

long. Campbell, at full back, was safe but was hampered in the second spell

through an injury. The Marist forwards were a fairly even set and gave splendid support to the rearguard. Outstanding Players. Two outstanding players among the Ponsonby rearguard were Delgrosso and Angelo, at fullback. The former played half in the first spell and five-eighths in the second, but in either position he did great work whether in making a clevei 4 ' opening or in repulsing attacks by the. opposition. On his form on Saturday Delgrosso showed that he is still one of the best players in the code. Angelo had plenty of work to do and came through with great credit. His handling, kicking arid tackling were of a high standard and he often ran up and set his backs in motion. _ Thompson proved a clever player in either the half or fiveeighths position. The Ponsonby vanguard tackled well, but did not handle the ball with the same precision as the Marist set. Lunn was always in the picture and was unfortunate to have to leave the field near the end with a broken rib. The match between Devonport and Nowton was very tame except in the second spell, when the- Devonport backs were associated in some bright play in which Seagar and the O'teary brothers were prominent. Newton confined itself chiefly to spoiling tactics and attempted little in the way of combined movements. This in a large measure accounted for the lack of spectacular play. The Devonport pack was without the services of A. Scott, who proved such a capable leader the previous Saturday and his services wero much missed. Hunt, who replaced Casey in the forwards, was prominent in the loose and also proved useful on defence. The Devonport forwards were a light set on Saturday and more weight will be required when the team meets Marist or Ponsonby. Improved Form,

Richmond showed improved form and rather easily beat City. Weak tackling by both backs and forwards was City's downfall. Time and again the Richmond backs simply ran past their' opponents and made the movements look easy. Ihe rear division made the most of the attack, and some really good passing bouts were witnessed. But .-or splendid tackling by Davidson, the score would have been larger. The City captain was the only player to take his opponent low. A feature of the game was the fine \ backing up of the Richmond forwards. The pack was allowed a lob of latitude in offside play, from which the backs benefited. The forwards handled the ball equallv as well as the backs. City's pack did not put enough dash into its play. The rear division, has possibilities, bub the ball will need to come from the scrum quicker. Reynolds was too slow and the five-eighths, Iverson and Davidh.cn, were frequently caught standwill prove a hard team to beat in dry weather conditions. For the winners Lee, at fullback, gave a sound display. He is an ideal custodian and only needs to improve in placing his return kicks to make them more effective. Dunne played a fine game at second eighths and made several openings, resulted in tries. The wings, _Pe'J and Patterson, infused plenty of dash mto their play, especially the former. Prentico and Davis combined well, -while Agnew did good work behind the scrum. lawless stood out. as the best forward on the ground. _ The Richmond forwarl has pace and is a splendid handles . Ritchie and Telford were also prominent Iverson and Davidson were the only City backs to show form. City should keep the pair in this position. both McLaughlin and G ; Perry tackkdpoovy. Munce played a fair game on the wing. Clark and Watene played good games among the forwards and Forbes worked hard. __