THE INTERPROVINCIAL FOOTBALL MATCHES.

Otago Witness, Issue 1449, 30 August 1879, Page 19

THE INTERPROVINCIAL FOOTBALL MATCHES.

(fkom odr own oorbespondent.) Chbistohuhch, August 24th.

The first match of the football tournament took place on Saturday between Canterbury and Otago. The iocalc was Mr John Anderson's paddock, in Barbadoes street, but ercept that the Club were enabled to charge for admission, there was nothing gaiaed by the alteration. The grouutl was rough, and we*, and by no means in f tvour of good pay, though with a littla expenditure tui«t could eas-ily be remedied. Considering thit this was the first time the public had bden askeJ to pay to witness a football match, thtra was a good attendance, a large number of ladies being amot.g the visitors to the ground. There was also a good attendance outside the ground, and a* the fences w<>re not in particularly good order, many wera unable to redst the temptation to fclip over when they tl otuht no hostile eye was lookiug on Otago «oa th» toss, and chose the wettern goal, from which a el-ght br^eaj woe blowing, and aboat 20 minutes to 3 the game began. Nehher T. S. Baker nor BUniersley played for Canterbary, and ti>e>r pho.a were tilled l.y EL Stringer and W. Ports. The two teann were ranged in. the fallowing manner :— OTAGO. Backs, M'Lean aud Luke ; qaartfr-bacfce, M array (captain), Ni rthote, am Htinitrtoii ; half-back, Oargill; f>r wards Auatiu, Gibbs, MiuV, M'Kinnon, Keid, llobb, Sidgh, Sn.dgrass, Wyio. CAtiTEBBURT. Backs, R^insju nu«» CotterM ; qaa-t»>r-backs, And-iS'it and Wai. String* v ; »ju.Jflitcks, M'Curdel and (V^i^j forwwvs, H. Stringer, Bo!t>n, Melton Lawin, W. Potts, Gngg, S vi h, Pisk'-riutf, Fild. Mr Nev lie umpire j for Otagj, and Mr Evans for OanterDury, and Mr llariuau acted a* time-kseper. j The game was played ii fmc a pells rf half an hour each. Molten kek-ti «ff far Cantsrbury, and the ball very f{uicld/ went out of touch. In throwing it out lVlelton peat it too fir, nnd Hamertoat?ofc it w-ll (!u»n fcot^e reds* go*l (the Ocago colours bu'ug blur) before he was SiOjjp'd. .Some dribbling, in which Grigg vas o n*i»icuou3, recov-red tua position, hue iii« Otag> in=>n were Hoc to be denied. A. Kscirama^e ou the n >rth wide > f the gco iwi gay » Murray a chance, if wkica he availed hiaiself,

and ha had almost reached the goal line when Cotterill collared him. There wa* some loose play, and one of the blue forwards passed the ball back rather hastily, and gay<s the Canterbury forwards a chat. c 3 of extricating the game from such close contiguity to their quarters. Cargiil and Murray between them helped the ball back again, and the blues working extremely well together, and helped by tbe slight breeze which lasted all the afternoon, c infined the game mostly to the eastern half of the ground. Their bacl-olay wfs exceeding smart, whili the Canterbury backs seemed unable to get hold of the balL Hamerton, who was doing the work of- any two men, made things extremely merry for his opponents, as his wonderful smartness and expeditious kicking kept them col stantly on the move. Having sent the ball over the Canterbury goal-line, it was kicked out ; and M'Cardell, for the first time, had a short epin with it, ending by going out of touch. The rods brightened up, and for a short time kept the game nearer their antagonists' goal than it had been, but it was soon shifted to the Canterbury end. Hamerton had a shot at the goal but missed it, and a nice piece of passing back took the blues dangerously near thegoal again; but thanks to .Field, the scene of action was shifted farther away, immediately after which the first spell ended.

At the beginning of the next spell it looked as though Canterbury was being gradually overmastered, for the blues quickly worked the ball up to their goal, and caused great excitement by the determined efforts they made to carry tho ball over the goal-line. Anderson made a couple of useful runs, but to no advantage; and Cargiil had a pot shot at the goal,, which he missed. Milts carried the ball through the reds, and within a foot of the goal line was just prevented scrambling over. A scrimmage took place, and there was great ex citemeot and cheering from the spectators, many < f whom wore the Otago colours, with the ball almost touching the line. "Now or never" was Otago's chance, and desperately the two teams worked. , Luck was against; the Southerners, and they failed to force the im« • penetrable phalanx of the reds opposed to them, though Sleigh almost made up for it by kicking the ball under the bar between the posts Af car that the Korthorn men bore tbe opposite ranks back until they threatened their goal Pickering made a capital run, and Cotterell f ollowing it up with a slashing kick, dr jvc the ball over the Otago goal-lin*. The ball was resumed,, and a blue making a drop-kick, was charged by Milton, off whom the ball rebounded, and rolled out of touch near the goallino ; and the reds, pursuing their advantage, thr^w their adversaries into some disorder, so that Lewin very nearly managed to dribble j the ball over the mucb. coveted lice. Hamtrton and Snodgra^s both tffacted some nice 'run?, but the ball was dribbled back again, and Aude son made a dart with it, and was collared by Murray close to the goal line. Another tough scrimmage caused some fun, but it coded in nothing more than the termination of thesp»]l.

Milton lifted the ball well at the kick-off, and the Liusshad totoucn it down in 6elt-defcnce. Tee advantage was only moment&ry, as after a scrimmage the ball was kicked behind the Canterbury goal. It was brought out and speedily returned, M'Lean making an excellent ruo, and passing most of the reds. Hamorton now made himself particularly obnoxious to the reds," kicking tue,ball on. After M'Lean was collared, he followed up, and again getting hold of ir, made an excellent attempt to gei through ths reds. A minute or two afterwards he all but kicked a gaol, the aim of the Otago backs being apparently to get a goal by means of a pot shot ; a feature of the play which the Canterbury men were eventually obliged "to iinitite. Some scrimmaging folio *ed Hamerton's attempt, »nd Sleigh coming through the players dribbled ihe ball through the goalposts, though heoouldnot touch it down. M'Cardell ran the ball up the ground a bit, but Mills by an equally effective Bpurt jot it back again. The latttr, with Hamertou, Murray, and Sleigh, gainnd repeated applausefortheir distinguished, *nd thoroughly de«r\ed it Sleigh again Ind the ill luck to kick the ball just under the tar of the goal, ■ but close enough to make the adherents of the red aad black shiver. Matters wera getting decidedly warm f. r Canterbury, and considerable relief was felt when Anderson made a fine run well into the centre of the ground, which, followedwell up, took the ball to the western end. Thence Cargiil made a long drop, and Cotteri 1, kicking a'onj the turf, laid the goal op«n to the blues, four or five of whom were in. advarca of the rest of thfl rerfs. Millp, however, slipped with the ball, and Co'teril succeeded in kicking out of touch. Cargiil tsoou »fc»r nearly dropped a goi>l; )>ut nothing further eventuated .before t hr ri ell p^dfld. , In the last spell Canterbury, having the wind, were expected to get the best of it, and perhaps score; but though they forced the blues back st firrt, the latter playe'l up plnckily. and were not to be cowed. M'CarrMl made an excellent drop-kick, which lauded the ball over the Otago goal -line, but it was Boon r^tu n*ri. Th<» spectators pot very excited at this stage, and pressed upon the ground a bit, but soon gave way aj?«,in. The Ofcaero men concentrating their energies, worked beautifully together, nnd preseutlv ha'i the bull up near tbe Canterbury goal. A num'^-r f soiimma.en followed, and Hamerton vpty nearly got ov*r the goal-line once. Luke and Cotterill did unmo nre dr'-p kicking, but did not alter state of thin,"»; and just a'ter th» K,il had been sent behind the red goal "no side " was called. Chaera were very heartily pivpn liy the t*o t^ama, and thus a secjnd lime the annual match has en -led in a draw, ihoug i (he Otago team had decidedly tha beat of the g*m^. Tre passing -back pliy gives them an aivan> taf«> «v»r Canterbury, w the latter have never taken ti it. *r,d their back-play was decidedly smarter. Tha f>rwards were very equally ra-t.-hM. MiDs, Mu>ray, Carg 1», Sleigh. "*ini]gras*, snd one or two •■>ther« whom I could not (itßfcirgwßb, but above %W, little Uamert i>, pl&yed beau' if oil v, and did a tremendous am jant of work for their ride.