OTAGO ONCE AGAIN.

NZ Truth, Issue 877, 16 September 1922, Page 7

OTAGO ONCE AGAIN.

—-Wellington's Plucky Battle, . :. : If Otago can prevail against Southland to-day the team will have established the enviable record of' having won 7,M11. its representative matches of the season. '. But, an a team, Otago will- have ,to give a better'- display than that given against .Wellington on Saturday last. Comparatively a second grade team, the boys from the Capital' City gave- -the- redoubtable Otago m^n a "shako," although they failed, by a good margin, to overtake the. total "of p.pints piled up early I>yHhe home sicls.- .. . •■■■ i Altlmu-gh ■■defeated- by 27 points .to 18, the';;hon.ours of the game were with Wellington, and not a few of the 10,000 spectators present would have been pleased to see them snatch a victory. ...--. .- .-» ■ Otagro is m the 'happy position of having- almost ; *wo teams of .■ nearly representative strength, and while Saturday's.^selection was not. the : best tjiat could have been, made, ; yet 'Wellington were up against almost the identical combination which had defeated Southland so decisively- the previous week. But, of thfe. selection more anon. , '„ ■. ; " ,■: ... • The first spell Iwas pretty, onesided, the Otago men ' seeming to •have things ■ very much -their own way. > ,A:nd yet their work left a great deal to; be desired.: Still; when the half-time whistle : sounded they had a lead of 22 points to 8; but m the second spell the Wellington, men playing with , much : dash, added 10 points, , to --their total, while . , . Otago could; only ;;, secure -an additipnal- 5. \ "Resting pn their oars" was the remark of a prominent Otago Rugbyite, but, that was "a11... moonshine. Otago „ werer. sorely, pressed. 1 after ten ; minute's of; ; the second half had gone, and,yG,rily- inability.. to take advantage-of-'{i-'Ctheft. chances offered "prevented Wellington : from increasing - their score 11 :; very. 'considerably. -This; of course, may be accounted for by the fact that it. was .more or less of a "scratch 1 ' team; but the team did not by any. means disgrace its prpvinoe. '•..:. . "-....