THE LEAGUE CODE

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXX, Issue 21517, 14 June 1933, Page 16

THE LEAGUE CODE

TARANAKPS GOOD SHOWING GREAT DASH OF FORWARDS AUCKLAND THREEQUARTERS After a period of 19 years a Taranaki Rugby League team made its appearance in Auckland on Saturday and created a very favourable impression. It was by no means disgraced in its defeat by a 6ide which had considerably more experience in the code. The greatest feature of the game was the splendid play by tho Taranaki forwards. Time after time their excellent dribbling rushes, in which fine control of the ball was shown, completely nonplussed the Auckland team. It was a method of attack rather strange to the code in Auckland and its success is fully borne out by the result. With the exception of Hassan, halfback, and Laing, fullback, it was very obvious that the Auckland rearguard did not relish going down on the ball and through this defect Auckland often lost yards and yards of ground. It was a different story, however, when the visiting' forwards attempted to pass tho ball. Too often the pass was much too slow and at times illdirected. Auckland was thus able to turn defence into attack. On some occasions the passing was very crude. At tho same time what the forwards lacked as a passing combination was more than fully compensated for by their dash and team play in the loose. The manner in which they kept together, their fast following and splendid tackling had the Auckland team continually worried. It was apparent that with more experience in the finer points of the codo the forwards would have como'etely overshadowed tho local pack in all departments of the game. Backs at Fault With better, support from the backs Taranaki would have carried the day. It was difficult to understand when Auckland was repcatedl.v hooking the ball from the scrums why the visiting backs stood so deep as if in an attacking position. This allowed the Auckland inside backs plenty of room to work in. Even under this handicap the Taranaki forwards did their work so well that they frequently bustled Erimble. first five-eighths for tho local team, into errors. After half-time there was a great improvement. The backs had evidently been instructed to play up to the Auckland rearguard and they carried out their task very successfully. Still receiving great support from tho forwards the team played much better than in the first spell. At half-time Auckland was leading by 21 points to 5 and the success of the methods adopted bv the Taranaki backs in the seoond half is shown by the final score. Playing with the sun in the first spell Taranaki failed to take anv advantage by using the liicrlj kick. Priar. the fullback, was very much at fault in this respect. He showed that he is a powerful kick with either foot, b\it repeatedly chose to give a "grubber" and on more than one occasion was fortunate to get out of trouble when bis kick was charged. Tn soite of the fact that the Tarar,alri forwards lost possession of the ha l ! in scrums thov gave backs r>lontv of opportunities by their fine "lav in tho loose. However, as a comhi'nntlon the vis'tinc rearguard was not impressive. The fivo-e ,<T hths were too *lfnv in moving and as a result the fhreequarters were considerably hamnerod. Positional Play Bad The positional play of the visiting team on tho whole was bad and in this they have much to learn. There were occasions when a high kick straight down the line would have proved advantageous, but instead players elected to kick to the open side when the backs were hopelessly out of ola^e. Great credit for Taranaki's display goes to the forwards, who were superior to the Auckland pack, except in scrummaging and passing. The whole set played so well that it is scarcely fair to discriminate, but Jim and Jack McLeod were always to the fore: Frascr, Lex Lewis and McDonald, who was in fine form, gave valuable support, while McLeav showed a liking for the open play. There were times when the last-named kicked too hard after good control by his confreres in dribbling rushes. A very fine impression was created by Cowley, at half. He got the ball away smartly, and on one occasion when in Auckland's twenty-five, he was unlucky to have the ball knocked from his arms after beating the defence. His defensive work was of a high standard, and he frequently caught the eye for his determined low tackling. The five-eighths, Arnold and McLeggan, were not a happy combination, although the first-named did good individual work and his try was a good effort. McLaggan, especially in the first spell, let his opponent, R. Smith, through to make openings by not coming up to his man quick enough and then making a poor effort to tackle. C. Hunt, centre and captain of the team, played a solid game throughout both on attack and defence, and was quick to turn mistakes by the opposition to advantage. Both tho wings, Hall and Lewis, showed determination in going for the line when an opportunity came their way, while their tackling was sound. Lewis, who was injured near the end, had a tendency to take his passes with one hand, and on one occasion this cost his team a try. Except for trying the "grubber" kick too frequently, Priar, tho fullback, played a very sound game. Auckland Forwards Although overshadowed on the whole, the Auckland forwards held to their task well. They certainly learned a lesson in the art of dribbling from the opposing vanguard. Laird and Satherley were outstanding for allround play, while Campbell, hooker, was far more prominent all round than usual. Clarko and Leatherbarrow were always in the thick of the fray, but Lawless was much too frequently found [ out among the backs, instead of doing his share as a forward. A great disappointment in the Auckland backs was Brimble, who has shown good club form this season. 1 Ho repeatedly dropped his passes and upset tho combination of the other hacks. A fine game was played by Hassan, the Auckland captain and halfback. It was just as well for Auckland that ho was in the team, as his value on defence was far above that of any of the rest of tho, backs. Smith, second five-eighths, gave an v improved showing, and List, centre, played his best game this season. Where Auckland was definitely superior was in the threequarters, Bright and Turei. Both showed speed above tho average, enabling them to finish off passing movements in spectacular style. Turei showed great accuracy in his centre kicks, which often puzzled Taranaki, and led to at least two tries. Except for failing to get his kick in quickly on occasions, Laing played well. Pie had a hard day on defence and never failed. He has developed a bad habit of trying to attempt too much when faced by opposing forwards.