ALL BLACKS’ TOUR

New Zealand Times, Volume LII, Issue 12093, 21 March 1925, Page 8

ALL BLACKS’ TOUR

A'MISS IN CALIFORNIA, • DDE TO MISUNDERSTANDING. Many followers of Rugby in New; Zealand were surprised that tfleT'All Blacks did not Wive f 8; match * in;,CaHs tornia, having yecollebtions; of hotfr keen 1 the Californian. • bn the game, the previous tourtef New Zealand, there in 1913. an'd the success of the American team at the'Olympic Games.. Speaking on this point Ces 1 ladder told an Auckland “Star” reports! - that the All Blacks had looked forward to a game in California, hut that it'had not eventuated throns-fi.. a misunderstanding. It was difficult, for the travelling team, he said, to get ijOto proper*' communication.with the right people,' and in the course of ;their inquiries the All Blacks had got the information that the Stamford University team, which was the crack American team -that had wan the ‘ ‘warrld,’S ’championship’ ’ at the Olympic, -Gamea. was disbanded—according to the’ Vancouver people," who were tremendously keen to have the All Blacks as long as possible with them, and to play them; as frequently as possible, joyfully*arrangcd another match with them'. When the team got to San Francisco thev found that the Stanford! team liad disbanded, but had’been got together again, in anticipation of' meeting the Alt Blanks, and they were greatly' disappointed at having missed the chance ,oS a game with, the All. Blacks. It was rather, amusing, said Ces, to find that the average American really considered .the Stanford ■ team the “world’s champions” in Rugby. ' This opinion,, however, was not seriously held by the Stanford players themselves. A number of ’them made a point of getting- in touch with the All Blacks in San granciSco. and they exjiressed very that they had not -been able to got a game ;vi 1 h the New Zealanders, 1 stating that they had expected to learn a few tilings from the All Blacks. So far asf the playing cnlibre of America's Olympic. Rugby team was concerned, Ces irffentioned that the team bad three games against the Vancouver 'team before leaving for- Paris, and the first was' won bv Vancouver, nnd the other ,t\vo By California by very close margins. In view of the fact that the All Blacks heat Vancouver ‘by over SO points, it did look as if they, were likely to go dawn to California.