RUGBY IN ENGLAND

New Zealand Times, Volume XXVIII, Issue 6089, 22 December 1906, Page 2

RUGBY IN ENGLAND

(From Our Special Correspondent.)

LONDON, November 9. Having ©merged successfully from their first invasion of Wales, the South African, footballers resumed their conquest of the English counties on Saturday last, when they met and defeated the Gloucestershire fifteen by 23 points to nil. A victory for the visitors was a foregone conclusion, even though a number of their best men were given a rest that day. The county forwards, among whom were J. Bedell Sivright and J. L. Mathias, made a fair fight, occasionally bringing off some good rushes, but they were overweighted and beaten for cleverness in obtaining possession of'the ball. As long as Gloucestershire could keep the game close they did moderately well, but as soon as the ball was in the open, and it very frequently was, they wore clearly outclassed. Their,, halves, Niblett and Stephens, wore hopelessly weak, seemingly Unable to get at the opposing pair or open up the ga,me for their'own three-quarters, and the centres, Hyam and Wild, apparently wore afraid to pass, nearly always kicking when the ball came to them. As a consequence, the wing men, Hudson and Smith, both of whom have played for England, had practically no chance in attack, their work being restricted almost to defence. The South African back<» division gave an exhilarating display, Krige in particular being in brilliant form. : L. Le Roux, on the left< wing, • who, while not‘.so fast as Stcgmann or Loubser, is a very clever (lodger, scored three tries, and Loubser, on. the other wing, was much too fast for the home defence. The colonials ran up three goals (one dropped) and three tries, and could have scored more if they had wished. Nobody expected Oxford- University to stem the tide of South African conquest, and the result of last Wednesday’s match at Oxford, a win for the colonials by 24 points to 3, occasioned ho surprise. The South Africans scored on© goal from a try, one dropped goal, one penalty goal, and four tries to a solitary penalty goal by the ’Varsity. As usual, it was in the bpekplay that the disparity between the visitors and their opponents was greatest. The Oxford forwards got the ball in the scrummage oftener than the South African forwards, and they heeled it out quickly. Yet this distinct advantage was turned to very little account. It is true that' the first two or three efforts which the half-backs did make to. open up the game did not have a very encouraging result, but the policy might still have been given --a further trial with advantage. After half-time it was partially successful, and for several minutes Oxford made a determined attack on the South Africans' line. Had the Oxford backs been given more chances of attack in the earlier pert of the match, it is probable that the general standard of the play would have been much higher. The South Africans ■ soon discovered that' the opposition with which they had to deal was not of a kind to call out their very best efforts, and, when at last the Oxford attack did become a reality, the lead of 15 points which the strongerteam possessed was sufficient to prevent them being anxious about the result. That the South African forwards are not invincible the Oxford pack are the latest pack to prove. Only in two respects were the colonial forwards superior to their opponents yesterday—namely, in pao© and in the effectiveness of their short passing. Outside the scrummage there was little or no comparison, for th© winners were so easily the masters of the situation.