FOOTBALL.

Otago Witness, Issue 3112, 5 November 1913, Page 54

FOOTBALL.

NEW ZEALAND TEAM IN AMERICA Wednesday, November 5. —Santa Clara. Wednesday, November 12.—U.S.C. Saturday, November 15. —All Stars.

RUGBY.: Br Fell Baoi. Since last week's notes appeared the New Zealand team in America has played only one match. This was against Nevada University at Reno, where tho divorces come from. The New Zealanders, so the cableman states, were unaffected by the high altitude, and played remarkable football. Wo Now Zealanders cannot imagine a New Zealand football team being affected by anything over much, certainly not by conditions. Reno’s altitude would make no difference to the New Zealand team that one can imagine, and the fact that they defeated Nevada by 55 points to nil supports tho belief. On Saturday last the New Zealand team was to have played tho third test match against California University, but, owing to rain, the match had to be postponed. Possibly arrangements will be made to play tho match on another date. The phenomena! scores that tho Now Zealanders have been putting up in California suggests that the improvements in the football of tho Californians have not been so marked after ail. Tho influence of the old American game, where strength and not alertness and agility played such a prominent part, has evidently not been got rid of. The" American tackle would be effective enough, but the quick New Zealand passing would leave the defence standing, and therein I fancy is the real weakness of tho American teams to stop the Now Zealanders scoring. That will-o’-the-wisp fly half back of the British team of 1904, Percy Bush, whose lightning pot shot against combined Otago and Southland on the Caledonian Ground will be remembered when other things are forgotten, has returned to Cardiff (Wales), after a couple of seasons at Nantes (France). Bush has come out of his retirement, and is again playing for Cardiff. In the opening match of that club against Ponarth a week or two a.go, Bush played a fine game. One report says; ‘‘He had been manoeuvring for a drop goal for some time, and from a line-out Green shot it across to the little man. Bosh dodged a couple, and, coming round with a swerve on the left, dropped a beautiful loft-footed goal.” The sincere sympathy not only of “Rugger” men, but of the whole world of sport, will go forth to Mr George Harnett (manager of the British Rugby team on the

New Zealand tour of 1908) and his wife :n the sad bereavement they have sustained by the death of their daughter. It was only a few years ago that they suffered an equally severe loss. Of the half-dozen classy ex-Otago University footballers who "raced the London Hospital team for the past four seasons, only one —W. C. Hartgill—remains in the London Hospital fifteen this season. L. G. Brown, the Oxford captain and international, is playing for London. L. M’Apes, the Cambridge forward, is this year’s captain. Among the backs, which used to include Alan Adams, Palmer, and Macphcrson, of the Royal Blues, not one of the old brigade is noticed. W. A. Stewart, the Tasmanian sprinter, is in the London three-quarter line, and is said to be the fastest back playing the game. The playing grounds upon which the Now' Zealanders won their first three games in California are entirely devoid of grass. The hard surface is lirst broken up with a light harrow to a depth of perhaps two inches; sometimes it is watered before a game, but, if not, the dust rises from scrums and rucks so thickly that nobody can see the ball, and play is often stopped for a few seconds before the players can bo sure of its whereabouts. At the Californian University grounds the wooden galleries all round provide seating accommodation for over 20,000 people. Last year at the inter-varsity “big game” 22,593 paid 42,000 dollars to look on at the magnificent struggle which ended in black slush and water. At Stanford University, situated in the centre of a huge area of private land, one mile from Palo Alto and about 22 miles from San Francisco, they have the finest football fround in California. The grass is soft and thick (its only rival in the West is at Reno in Nevada), and the playing area is prettily encompassed by tiers of sc-ate rising to a height of 40ft above the ground. When filled with an excited mass of people, these seats seem highly unstable, and even dangerous. There is a large number of female students at each of the Universities, and they display the keenest interest possible in the doings of the teams. The Stanford girls arranged many pleasant evenings for the Australian team when they, were on the Campus last year. The kicking, handling, and tackling of the Universities (it is from the two ’Varsities that two-thirds of the Californ’an representatives will be drawn) are high class, and individual brilliancy is noticeable all round; but when it comes to an organised position their timing and backing-up of positions are rather weak, and as a' result excellent opportunities of scoring are lost for want of support. The Australians taught them a good deal about the brighter scientific s : dc of Rugby, and stuck out for the open, attractive style of play, although they lost, or rather sacrificed, two matches in so doing. No doubt the “All Blacks” will do even better, as the Americans will probably come out and attempt to play a brighter and more concerted game, instead of the heavy, bustling, spasmodic one as of yore.

NORTHERN UNION OFFERS. LONDON, October 30. The Sportsman says that E. J. Batchers and Percy Baker, three-quarters in the Devon-Albion Amateur Rugby Club, have refused sensational offers to join the Northern Union code. A club in Yorkshire is understood to have offered Butchers £IOOO and an appointment at £2OO a year. NEW ZEALANDERS’ TOUR. NEW YORK, October 30. At Reno the New Zealanders defeated Nevada University by 55 points to nil. The visitors were unaffected by the altitude, and played remarkable football, scoring continuously. Only once was their goal imperilled. Nevada opened well, but rapidly weakened. SAN FRANCISCO, November 2. The match between New Zealand and California University had to be postponed owing to rain. NORTHERN UNION TOUR. LONDON, October 28. The Northern Union has decided to offer an increase on the last tour’s terms to 26 players. Houghton of St. Helens) and Clifford (of Huddersfield), the managers of the last tour, have again been invited to arrange the tour. ' October 29. The Northern Union has appointed a special committee to arrange a tour under the auspices of the New South Wales Rugby League. Only the cream of the best teams will be sent. The Northern Union is commissioning the shrewdest judges to report on the whole of the players within the union, and will subsequently arrange a series of practice matches to select 26 men, so as to have two members for each position in the field. Preference is to be given to men with the cleanest records, off the field aa well as on it.