FOOTBALL

New Zealand Times, Volume LXXI, Issue 4467, 21 September 1901, Page 7 (Supplement)

FOOTBALL

By “Touch.”

There is much to be said in favour of the suggested representative fixture for future seasons between the champion teams of tho North and South Islands. Hitherto the reckoning by which it has been decided which was the champion team of the colony has necessarily been an involved and unsatisfactory process, in view of tho fact that Auckland, Taranaki, Wanganui, etc., seldom now meet with Otago or Southland. last soar son’s results were most involved. Auckland beat Wellington by 14 to 4, Otago and Auckland played a drawn game, and yet Wellington beat Otago by 8 to 6. Wellington and Southland played a drawn game (3—3), and yet Otago twice beat Southland by 7 to 0 and 17 to 0 respectively. Wellington beat Christchurch by 10 to 6, although Christchurch beat Southland by a 3 point margin. Tho whole subject as weighed by.present standards is as fluctuating as political prosperity. Therefore the suggestion to play in future a game between the North and South Island best teams is to be commended. There may still be some difficulty in placing the -best team of each island, but certainly not so much as exists with present conditions. The generous offer by tho Earl of Ranfurly to donate a challenge cup for competition between the two teams referred to should go far to establish the match indicated. It would undoubtedly be tho most interesting contest played in the whole of any season. Auckland has oneo again demonstrated the superiority of a provincial team over one representative of'a town.

Saturday’s, game was a good “go” mos* of the time. The northern forwards put up a far better game than that which Auckland criticisms had led us to expect. They played a solid, hard game, and although on the loose they were generally beaten by Wellington there was net a great deal of advantage for the local Bcrummerg. In the first spell the Auckland ruck twice “got all over” Wellington before the game was tea minutes old.

The backs of Auckland were a speedier set_ than ours were, and it was the same light facility that made the difference of three tries to one. Wellington put'in some very sound defence, bub two cross country gallops in the last eight minute® of the game put up the two tries by fairly outrunning opposition.

Asher was the pick of -the Aucklahd bunch. He seemed to have an indiarubber body mounted oh spiral-spring legs, for he knocked off some tacklers with great facility-—and hopped around others with seemingly wondrous ease. Buokland was speedy and sure. The run across from one wing ’to the other to take a pass after he had started a passing charge was a fine piece of generalship which fully deserved the resulting try. Kiernan wa* another light of Auck. land. His passes were low and rapid—r the ideal pass for a scrum half, in fact; His kicks also were very good, especially so when aimed for the touchlihe. Both Kieman and Asher might have been put in the late New Zealand team with advantage to it—but strange to say their union' did not even nominate them.

Smith, who was • suffering from an injury received'when playing for New Zealand a fortnight back,- did- not show to bis usual advantage. t Cunningham and Tyler were the most prominent of the Auckland pack. The Wellington backs made no serious mistakes, but. they lacked the dash necessary to rush the game to victory. Wood was the most prominent player for Wellington throughout the game. Wrigley showed very sound defence. Wallace was very resourceful. He did a great deal of smart rush-stopping, and played with judgment all through. Slattery was fair on attack but weak in .defence. Bow did some good work early in the game, but he was not prominent thereafter." Gage did acme very fair passing, but he did not get down to rushes as in the earlier days he vu wont to do. His kicks lacked their one-time vigour also. G. Spencer did some good work at full back. His old fault of being leisurely, however. got his side into trouble on occasions. Sutherland, the Auckland full back, performed very creditably, lie is esteemed to be a very nervous player by critics of the gumopolis. If 8 0, he certainly showed none of it on Saturday. The spectators were violently Wellmgtoniau or Aucklaudite (according to fancy) daring the progress of the game. There was little cf. the impartial applause apparent which has been freely forthcoming at eveiy other interproviuoial and intercolonial game played in Wellington this year. It is satisfactory, in view of this, to notice that the best of feeling prevails between the two teams.

There hae long been an unreasoning feeling between Auckland and Welling ton football partisans. It la high time, this was allowed to drop, and that the* kindly toleration which la extended to all other visitors should be applied to our northern friends. Among the play* era and officials of the two unions there i* the utmost good feeling, and it is much to he desired that in future years the Wellington public will emulate, this good example. “Fullback," of the “Otago Witness/’ hss a habit of scissoring items from this column snd prefacing them with the re* mark that they are “by a Northern writer.” “from an exchange," “by » Wellington writer,” and to on. “Fullback” is welcome to reprint as much as he likes from my notes, but he should have the grace to acknowledge the Source- In his budget for the wees ending September li he published three paragraphs of mine without once acknowledging the sooree, and on previous oeeaeiona be baa similarly erred. Verb, asp. ■ The defeat of.Tsranaki by Wanganui must come as a pet-baok to the quidnuncs who complained that the New Zealand Rugby Union’s action in giving the match against the New South Wales team to Wanganui instead of to Taranaki was the reason of the only defeat sustained by a New Zealand team at the hands of the visiting Welshmen. Taranaki, it will be remembered, wag asserted to be as strong this season a$ it ever was in the past.’- I have no desire to needlessly best a dead lion, but lest in future the mistakes of this season should bo again perpetrated I would point out ; that two men of the Xiraaald team were'included in the New

Zealand selection on the ipse dixit of a Taranaki selector. There ■ should be a stipulation made by the New Zealand Union on all future occasions that onlyplayers tried in the then current season’s representative games should be eligible for a New Zealand team. “Arawa” wyote of New Zealand football as follows in the “Sydney Daily Telegraph” of a recent issue: •—A marked change has been witnessed in the stylo of play of Canterbury teams of late years. The game once played by the Cathedral city men was of the kind that would be popular in New South Wales—fast and open: but the aggressiveness of the “man-eaters,” as a southern critic once termed the northern vanguards, compelled them to pay more* attention to the cultivation of more vigorous forwards. And now they have just beaten the northern men at their own game. A trim.and pretty player named Francis, one of the finest ‘‘potters” Maoriland has seen, wap. a Canterbury man. Francis made a great study of the valuable and attractive art of potting goals, and ho became so skilful at it (hat when his team got into an opponents’ territory the cry of the defenders was “Watch Francis.” He wanted watching, too, as he could gracefully send the hall over the bar from all angles and distances. Francis became, an expert in his line, as many famous cricketers have, by practising in the off season. Almost all through-the summer Francis, would practise potting goals over the roof of his home, the chimney generally being the. centre of the bar. When the winter came round Francis was in rare goal-potting form. Francis was of immense value to his side. Playing against Auckland once,, the northerners had scored three tries (three points), while Canterbury had not drawn bipod. A pretty little kick by Francis, and the score was three all, and so the game ended. A match can be pulled out of the fire quicker by a rapid pot than by any other means, and yet the art is neglected both here and in New Zealand. .

I have always had an admiration for “Ofi-side Mao’s” fine rhapsodical ruminations. Last week fie excelled himself in writing for the. “Wairarapa Leader” an account of a free and-easy game played in the Manawatu. Appended is the description: —‘'Last Wednesday the Wairarapa Thursday Junior Representatives journeyed to Palmerston North and played a match against the middle-aged bushwhackers and mortar men of Manawatu. The field was wholly under water during the game, and as neither side was amphibious a brilliant exposition was conspicuous by its absence.. At. tired in picturesque singlets—jerseys having been left in the dog-box at Masterton—the visitors created a decided impression on the spectators, j seventyfive of whom paid for admission, the three hundred others sitting on a sixfoot corrugated fence and having a free show. The referee’s rulings were reminiscent with the days of J. Caesar, and consequently the Wairarapa boys suffered. In the first spell Manawatu obtained a try by unfair means while the belated umpire was wading from a mudhole. The try i was converted, and Inter in the spell, W&irarapa attacking strongly. Bpackman kicked from a distance of twenty-five yards a poster. In the second spell two Wairarapa men had to leave to catch the train, one substitute. W. Grcube, going on in their places.- Groube scored the ojuy try for Wairarapa - after receiving the ball from White in a dribbling rush- The kick at goal failed and thus Wairarapa was defeated by 6 to 8. the came the men from Manawatu chawed the singlets of five wandering Wairarapians, and the visitors after the match were sumptuously entertained by the home team—each man paying tor his own drink. Coming down m the train the Wairarap* team presented Mr J. Wallis » silver-mounted pipe, iiiat to shew there was no animosity in haring led them to such a home of football incompetence and sterility.. In replying, Mr Wallis thanked the donors and said be was a Rugby enthusiast who alway* did bis best.