RUGBY FOOTBALL

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXXIII, Issue 22481, 27 July 1936, Page 13

RUGBY FOOTBALL

JUBILEE TBOPHY GAMES OPENING OF COMPETITION PONSONBY DEFEATS GRAFTON The .first series of matches in tho second round of the Auckland Rugby Union's senior championship competition was decided on Saturday afternoon in fine weather and with the grounds ■ n g 00 (l order for play. The first round of the championship hnd been won by Ponsonby, which thus gained the Galla)icr Memorial Shield. Saturday's matches were the first for the Jubilee Trophy. There was quite a good attendance at Eden Park, where three senior matches were decided. The principal attraction was the meeting of Grafton and Ponsonbv. The former was the only team to defeat Ponsonby in the first round, but it was nuablo to repeat tho performance ,on Saturday, the Gallaher Shield winner having an advantage of eight points, at the end of an interesting match. Manukau created a surprise by defeating Grammar in a fast, open game in which the winning team's forwards claimed an advantage. Marist scored a comfortable win over University on >'o. 2 ground, being too good ill all departments. Technical had a similar margin at the exjiense of North Shore in a game played at Devonport, while Otahuhu accounted for Training College after an interesting contest at Sturges Park, Otahuhu. College Rifles had a bye. Following were the results of the matches: — Ponsonby, 22; Grafton, 14. Manukau, 8, Grammar, 3. Marist, 33; University, 11. Technical, 29; North Shore, 11. Otahuhu, 12; Training College, 6. AN INTERESTING MATCH PONSONBY TEAM'S SUCCESS The fact that Grafton was tho only team to defeat Ponsonby in the first round added interest to'the meeting of the teams on Saturday last. On account of ability to secufe greater possession of the ball in the scrums, Grafton had slightly tlio better of the first spell although the score at the interval was g ij in favour of Ponsonby. Both sides had missed a number of opportunities, and when the teams changed round it was still problematical as to which would eventually win. The second spell, however, saw Ponsonby definitely in charge and seldom in danger of defeat. The winning team appeared to tire toward the end, but it had a comfortable margin in its favour at that stage. Ponsonby scored first at the end of 10 minutes play. Fraser made a nice opening with a dash down the right wing and he in-passed to Hay, who outpaced the opposition. Hook converted. Within the next five minutes, Pearman, for Grafton, and Hook, for Ponsonby, kicked penalty goals. The infringements were similar in each instance, the five-eighths being caught standing in positions in advance of set scrums. A. try to Grafton followed. Killeen picked up the ball in the open and ran up to Hook before passing to Dick. The Ponsonby fullback made a fine effort to check the Grafton wingor, but was not. quite successful with his diving tackle.

Ponsonhy increased its lead shortly after play was resumed. Hook kicking a penalty goal and Knight scoring a try which Hook converted. Some minutes elapsed before Pearman scored a nice try for Grafton. Taking the ball on'the blind side from his halfback, he made a sharp, strong dash and went over the line with Hook holding him. Thea Ponsonby added two tries. Hay made the opening for the first, enabling Dow to score near the corner. The second was scored by D. Solomon after he and his brother bad tricked the opposition with a short interchange of passing. Shortly before time Dick made a good run down his wing before passing in to Pearman, who scored. Xcale converted, but time did not permit Of Grafton making up any more leeway. Both packs of forwards played well. The Ponsonby men hunted together well and this made their rushes hard to stop. F. Solomon again played as rover and in such capacity was a thorn in the side of the opposition. All the members of the pack were prominent at various stages of the game. The absence of Frankham, who was nursing an injured leg, compelled a rearrangement of the inside backs. D. Solomon played half and Fraser and Jamieson were in the first and seconn five-eighths positions, respectively. Solomon played a very fine all-round game. Although' Fraser had not the nippmess Jamie3on he did very well in his new position. The threequarter line displayed rriucn dash. Hook gave another excellent exhibition of fullback play, his fielding of the ball at times being brilliant, while his kicking and tackling were both of a hign standard. , . . . Tho Grafton forwards were playing just as strongly at the finish as at the opening .of the game, and it was no fault of theirs that the score went against them. Pearman and Killeen were always dangerous at fiveeighths, the first-named especially playing sound and dashing football. Dick was always looking for opportunities, and he did s 2 m ® great defensive work, his saves in the first spell being excellent. Neale played well at centre, being prominent on attack. Stewart, the fullback, was inclined to delay getting in his kick on occasions. Mr. J. G. C. Wales was referee. , TECHNICAL TOO STRONG NORTH SHORE LACKS COHESION More thrust, better handling, and superior following-up gave Technical a comfortable win over North Shore at Devonport in a game that never produced more than an average standard of football. Toward the close, when North Shore played with better cohesion and greater dash in an attempt to pull the game out of the fire, there was excitement enough, but never any sustained incisiveness in the play. North Shore relied on the efforts of one or two of the backs, who sometimes tried to do too much and ran away from their supports. ' The forwards worked hard and rucked better in the second half, but the Technical pack kept lower and gave their backs more of the ball. It was noticeable how many times the ball went out to the Technical wings when the North Shore defence was at sixes and sevens, with the flanks drawn in toward the centre. At halfback for North Shore, A. Salnt„v got through a tremendous amount, of work ami passed out quickly and neatly, greatly assisting C. Jesstip to accomplish many of the feats which earned (he appreciation or the crowd. When the ball went out toward Hie wings the passing was often done when the man with the ball was standing otill or running sideways. North Shore had speed pnousrh to do more than it dirt. The forwards played gamely and worked hard? hut Technical had their measure. Technical made the most of Its opportunities and beat the other back line badly 11me and again. A feature of the game wits 'he number of tries scored by the wingthreequartcrs. On the left wing Lash scored three times as the result of good movements by the backs and be finished them with determined running; nnd on the other win? Byerlcy scorer! twice. Once more be showed a great turn of speed and plenty o* determination. Reid, at halfback, played with excellent judgment and his passes were well-directed and smartly sent out. Of the forwards, August and Apps wero solid and with the others followed up very well and. were responsible to a large extent for tho confusion Dial sometimes reigned among the North Shore backs. » Technic,il's iries were scored by Lash (3), JHyerley Reid and McAdam, and Lash converted four. For North Shore, A. Sainty, Massey and Jessup scored tries. Waters converting OHO. r - V Kecfti was referee.

WIN FOR MARIST SUPERIORITY IN BACKS FfUn U ,B , e;,r .'y stages of Iho match on tho p » r k No. field it was apparent that in?,! Sl i -V ', w '"' a considerably weakened tho of backs, would be unable to cope with fimi sl P art movements of the .Marist combina--111 which Curtayno, Cooney and Logan lhnnn.k OI ?i 2 w '"' <?reat effect. Even alpnr/! ! ,! ero was B«ch a substantial differin in " . Sfor cs, the match did not lack anpn .^ S i as ,),ay was always fast, and Rent's W many excellent combined movenlM^i r ,i" V , tllp sot " on <' spdl Marist cominJ i superiority in the backs, rffn't.J • University made several good cries during the spell, it was completely

outplayed in this department. The same railnot bo said of the University forwards, who, led b.v Drake, Davidson and Thomas, played very sound football against a heavier pack, which pushed them off the ball in the scrums and which had the advantage of greater height ill the line-outs. The University pack showed good teamwork and determination in several times battling its way from mid field right to the opposite goal lino, where, on each occasion, it was somewhat unlucky not to score.

In order to obtain practice in Ins now position. Hush vacated his fullback role in (lie second spoil and moved up to centrethreoquarter. where he is to play in tho Auckland team's first match, against Canterbury on Saturday. His defence was impregnable, although ho received little support from the flayers about him, whilo in his few chances on attack he always ran hard and straight and was exceedingly hard to pull down. McCarthy, who went from wing to fullback, gave a good account of himself. He handled safely,, tackled low and was always in correct position. At times his line-kicking could have been longer, this boing duo to punting too high. Curtayno, Cooney and Logan wore the crux of the Marist attack and all played splendid games. l!ell-Booth, on tho wing, was another who was outstanding, especially on attack, where ho made many dashing bursts down the sideline. The Marist forwards all worked well. McGrory, Hadley and ltutlei showed up for bright play" in tho loose. Tries for Marist were scored by Logan ('-), Curtayno, Cooney, McUugh, Ilardy and Irvine, Cooney converting two tries and Curtayno one. Cooney also kicked two penalty goals from handy positions. For University, Davidson and Thomas scored tries. Bush converted one try and kicked a penalty goal Dr. Briggs was referee. AN EVEN CONTEST MANUKAU DEFEATS GRAMMAR After holding o slight territorial advantage in both spells against tho heavier Grammar team, Manukau scored a well-merited win in a bright and evenly-contested curtainraiser game. The winning team's backs gave a much improved all-round display and its forwards, with McQuiro hooking the ball from a very large percentage of the scrums, more than heal their own against tho Grammar pack, which played without sparkle or zest. In some measure Grammar's defeat can ho attributed to the play of McKay, at first fiveeighths, who was right ofT form. In both spells he kicked far too often and his kicks were seldom well .placed, being repeatedly taken on the full by a Manukau back. When he did not kick, McKay attempted to cut-in, but not once was he successful with this method of attack. Had ho sent tho ball briskly out to King, who was always dangerous on attack, and the other fast Grammar backs, tho match might have had a different ending. The two smallest backs in tho Manukuu team gave the best exhibitions of the game. Ono was Littlejohn, fullback, whose defence was always very sound. He remained cool under pressure and was several times applauded for kicking clear from a tight corner. His magnificent flying tackle of Flott, when the Grammar wing, travelling at top five yards from Manukau's line, appeared certain to score, was a highlight of the match. A newcomer behind the Manukau scrum, Longley, gave a very promising display. At times he was inclined to lose touch with his supports, but otherwise he gave a firstclass exhibition, especially on defence. Anderson, at centre for the winning team, was another who showed up well with his determined straight running. He scored Manukau's first try after taking a long, high pass from Brimble, which cut out his second fiveeights and found tho opposition out of position. In the five-eighths, Brimble and Stono were steady on defence, while occasional cuts-in and short punts by both players frequently placed the winners on attack. Pepper was the best forward on the field and his hard tackling was a feature of his play. Ho was well supported by Smith, Wiklund and Pearce. The Grammar fullback, Stott, played a very safe game, but did not exploit the kick-into-touch rule all day. He gave the impression of being just a little careless in all his work, and his display lacked the finish of a first-class fullback. The outstanding Grammar back was Flett, on the left wing, who ran with great determination and was unlucky not to' score on more than ono occasion. It was only the hardest tackling on the part of Manukau which kept him from crossing. King, at second five-eighths, handled poorly at times, but otherwise gave a good display Fletcher, at centre, was seldom in the picture in the first spell, but his play brightened after the interval. He paved the way for Grammar's only points by shouldering tho ball out of Anderson's hands and then dribbling it to the goal-line, whero King picked it up to score. The losers' best forwards were Knight, Don and A. Brown, the latter being especially prominent in the loose. For Manukau tries were scored by Anderson and Smith, one being converted by Wiklund. King crossed for Grammar. Mr. D. V. Moore was referee.

TRAINING COLLEGE FAILS OTAHUHU'S STEADY DEFENCE Greater opportunism and a steadier defence enabled Otahuhu to overcome Training College at Sturges Park by 12 points to 0. The scoro scarcely did justice to the efforts of Training College as it had a territorial advantage. Toward the end of the game, when it was six points in arrears, several scores were missed by over-anxiety and eagerness. On at least three occasions a Training College player knocked on tho ball when in an open position a short distanco from tho line. Three of Otahuhu's four tries were the result of opportunism and quick following up, tho play in each instance being carried from Otahuhu's half through tho brainy play of Hedge. Twice in succession he cut through and ran over 40 yards before sending his supports over. His third incursion ended in a punt through and the bounce of the ball beat the defence, for Brown to scora. Facing a bright sun Training College opened np with a strong attack and Haro narrowly missed from a penalty. Grant then knockedon when clear of the field and was later held up on the line. From a scrum Hedge received and made a brilliant cut' through the back-line for Brown to score from the resultant scrum on the College line. A rush by the Training College forwards found Beyer unable to field the ball and Mathieson kicked over and dropped on it for a try. Hedge then penetrated quickly and sent on to Pearson and Grant, who scored at the corner. A fast run by Brown after a long punt resulted in Otahuhu going further ahead. Training College maintained a steady pressure. Hare missing a penalty, and a forwkrd pass in front of the posts giving Otahuhu relief. At half-time tho score was:— Otahuhu, 0;' Training College, 3. Training College resumed strongly and Rogers gathered in a pass to run over from nearly midfield. From a set scrum tho Otahuhu backs- went into action and Grant headed for the corner. Hare grassed him a vard from the line, but with a rabbit-jump Grant touched down. A great assault bv Training College pinned Otahuhu to its twenty-five, but, in spite of fine work by Shaw and Grant, it could not. cap its efforts with a try. The final score was:—Otahuhu, 12; Training College, G. . w , Otahuhu's defence was sound, Moyle and Hedge covering up finely. Brown gave an improved display, his tackling being rcsoiutc throughout. Pearson and Grant combined well in handling. O'Neill r»nd Jones were excellent in forward raids, with Lilburne nnd Dodds revelling in tight work. The scrummaging, however, was poor, tho ball rarely being hooked cleanly. For Training College Dobbin Spittal and Armitage played good forward football. Silcock, at half, had a tendency to hold ovorlong to tile ball. Shaw, Fletcher and Mathieson gave good displays, while Haro was sound at fullback. Mr. E. J. Cichero was referee.

LOWER GRADE RESULTS Senior B Grade. —Suburbs, 40, Takapuna, O. Second Grade.—Trinity, 16, Marist, 3; Technical, 14. Northcote, 11; Suburbs, 8, Grafton. 5: Ponsonby, 8, Otahuhu. 3; Grammar, 29, Training College, 12. Third Grade. —Grafton, (i, Otahuhu, 0; Training College, 10, Waitcmata, f>; Grammar A, 27, Tamaki, 0; Grafton, 0, Manukau, 3; Manukau A, J4, College Itifles, 11. Third Grade Intermediate. —Ponsonby, 8, Marist, 0; Technical, 5, Farnoll, 0; Otahuhu, U,*" College Hides, 3. Fourth Grade. —Manukau, 23, Marist, 8; Suburbs, 38, Otahuhu, 5. Fifth Grade. —North Shore, 9, Tamaki, 5; Parnell, 11, St. George's, 0; Manukau, 3, Technical, 3; Takapuna, 20, Ponsonby, 0; Eden, 7, Marist, 0. Sixth Grade.—-Takapuna, 31, North Shore, 0; Suburbs, 40, St. George's, 0; Manukau. 0, Pan inure, 0; Eden, 8, Otahuhu, '(>. Junior Boys.—Senior grade: Suburbs, (i, Newton, 0; Eden, 27, Takapuna, 0. Intermediate Grade. —Newton, 0, Northcote 3; Manukau Colts, 3, Suburbs, 3; Marist, 19, North Shore, 0; Eden, 8, Manukau. 0. junior Grade. —Northcote, (J. Farnoll, 3; Eden, 4, Panmure, 0; Manukau, 23, Monte Cecilia, 0; Takapuna, 32, North Shore. 0; St. Andrew's, 53, St. Oswyn'n, 0. Secondary Schools.—Third grade: Mount Albert, 17, Otahuhu Technical. 0. Fourth Grade. —Otahuhu Technical, 31, Mount Albert Grammar. 0. Fifth Grade. —Otahuhu Technical, 3. Sacred Heart. a Sixth Grade.—Otahuhu Technical, 14, Seddon Memorial Technical. 0. Seventh Grade.—Otahuhu Technical, 0. Sacred Heart, 6.