BRILLIANT FORM

Southland Times, Issue 21773, 30 July 1932, Page 14

BRILLIANT FORM

ALL BLACKS IN QUEENSLAND. "ROSE TO HEIGHTS OF SHEER GREATNESS.” It is reported by a special corre-. spondent that in their first match in Brisbane the All Blacks, playing one of the strongest sides ever fielded by Queensland, gave further evidence of marked improvement. They outplayed the State side in every department of the game, and their display was classed as brilliant—equal to that shown when they defeated New South Wales on the previous Wednesday. Critics admitted that their first estimate of the qualities of the side were sadly astray. Those who predicted better things were vindicated. The All Blacks to-day are hardly recognizable as the All Blacks who met New South Wales at the outset of the tour. They have been revealed as a fast, eager combination, and it is evident that their manager has been able to work wonders with them.

Against Brisbane the team worked like a machine, and except for a few brief periods Queensland were completely outclassed. Their margin of 20 points clearly indicated the extent of New Zealand’s superiority, and it might easily have been greater. The decisions of the referee were not all that could be wished for, and lost New Zealand the addition of at least three well-earned points. That was when Manchester went over in the comer with two Queenslanders hanging on. Steggall, the Queensland full-back, had fielded a rolling ball, but BullockDouglas, following up his own kick, pulled the full-back away. Manchester was there to pick up the loose ball and go over. His handling of the ball was as clean as could be wished, but the referee ruled a knock-on. Individual Form.

Solomon, a failure in the first match and excluded from the first test team was an outstanding figure in the Queensland match. He showed his true form when he met New South Wales and went one better in Queensland. He was here, there, and everywhere, always ready when openings were made and more often than not he originated a movement. He was the idol of the Brisbane crowd, just as Porter used to be the idol of the Sydney crowd. Steere was another man who gave the Brisbane crowd his best. Towards the end of the second half he was injured and had to be carried off the field. He received attention on the line for five minutes or so and then, to the accompaniment of cheers, he dashed back into the fray apparently as fresh as ever. It says a great deal for his stamina, for at the end of the game he said he scarcely remembered the incident. Barry, Cottrell, and Hore all did their jobs well. Ball showed any amount of nerve and initiative on the wing. He was favoured with more chances than was Bullock-Douglas, but the latter’s try, which was the sequel to a scintillating passing burst between the backs and the forwards, was the gem of the match. It would be unfair not to give all the forwards credit for a share in the magnificent victory. The pack was an excellent one. Bright and Open. Among the New Zealand backs Page has shown the greatest improvement. His penetration paved the way for many a New Zealand rush, and he and Innes were two of the stoutest defenders. Once again Kilby led his men ably, and was always handy whether in defence or attack. He secured the ball more often from the scrums and line-outs than was the case in Sydney, and he was invariably quick to whip the ball to the supporting line. Some of his long passes were brilliant and, moreover, they were just as brilliantly taken. The crowd was thrilled time and again by the manner in which the All Blacks threw the ball from one to the other and cheered when the ball was kept in play inst~ad of being kicked out. After the first game in Sydney the manager said that he was disappointed at the amount of kicking into touch, and it was evident that he had coached them carefully in the way he would have them go. The All Blacks are so fast that they can make up the ground by other means, and the Australian crowd appreciate their bright, open play. Ashes Looked Good for N.Z. It was perhaps unfortunate for Queensland that their two most brilliant men, Lawton (the Australian captain) and Steggall, the full-back, did not display that brilliancy which marked their first test game. It was evident that Lawton missed the two test veterans, Malcolm and King, with whom he had played in big football for so many years. On only two or three occasions did the hopes of Queensland supporters run high, but they were doomed to crash as swiftly as they had arisen. Surely and systematically, leaving nothing to chance, the All Black forces replied in a manner which left no doubt as to the team’s quality. Many times in the second half the All Blacks rose to heights of sheer greatness. The forwards, virile and tenacious, were more often than not irresistible. Except for brief periods when the Queensland forwards broke away, Queensland were outclassed. There was not a passenger among the tireless New Zealand pack, and on that form it was recognized that Australia had little chance of winning the ashes. JUNIOR JOTTINGS AROUND THE GRADES. (By “The Scribe.”) The main attraction of the season for junior footballers was the game between the Town team and the Central District junior representatives on Saturday last. On paper the town team appeared to be a formidable combination and many exponents of the code were experiencing no little difficulty in estimating the number of tries the Town team were going to score. Contrary to expectations this laborious computation was unnecessary as the Central juniors proved hard “nuts” to crack, and on the day’s play the Town team was fortunate to win by the margin of eight points to three. The muddy ground militated against a sparkling display of Rugby, and although the Town backs received a plentiful supply of ball, their efforts proved fruith : against the solid tackling of their opponents. Spectacular as their passing might appear, time and time again the home team were driven across the field, oft times losing much valuable ground, Wesney being the only back who endeavoured to straighten up the play. The Country forwards outplayed their opponents, particularly in the loose, and had they received the support from their rearguard, which their efforts merited, Town would have been beaten by a substantial margin. In comparing the teams Purdue scarcely enters into consideration, as he had little work tackling or kicking during the major portion of the game. Yet when he was called upon to stem the “tide,” he accomplished his work in his usual finished style. The Town wing three-quarters, L. Henderson and G. Baird, showed more pace than their immediate adversaries, but their handling was not all that could be desired, and many good opportunities of scoring went begging. Baird seemed to be looking for someone to pass to instead of giving those determined runs which characterized his play earlier in the season. Lyall Henderson streaked along the touch-line in one good dash but did not give his opponent Leith many anx-

ious moments. Leith by the way played first grade for Star last season as a forwar and for Mabel Bush has evidently impressed the Central selectors with his play this season. Another player from first grade last year was R. Dagg who, although down as an emergency, got a game and was outstanding among the country forwards. Dagg played for Kiwi last season and is a solid grafter. The Central forwards played the Ivor-Jones style of fast open play and overshadowed the heavier town pack in the loose. Towards the end of the second spell they hooked the ball on more than one occasion cleanly.

The outstanding back on the ground was A. Wesney. He was always where he was most needed, and his ability to cover up the mistakes of Nisbet and Fairweather saved the home team on innumerable occasions. His handling of the greasy ball was magnificent, while his rush-stopping and. tackling left nothing for the sideliners to grumble about.

At centre Fairweather gave a mediocre display. While showing flashes of brilliance on attack, the glory of his effort was negatived when it came to rush stopping and tackling, phases of the game for which he showed a particular dislike. The inglorious display given by Nisbet caused his stocks to slump. A player of whom big things were expected, he failed to produce his usual form and showed a disinclination _to barge in where the battle was raging fiercest. The all round brilliance of R. Henderson at half-back placed the seal on his already splendid record. He displayed remarkable alacrity in getting the ball away from the scrum, and his consistent accuracy permitted the Town rearguard to get under way on almost every occasion. The Town forwards compared favourably with their opponents, and although the visitors showed more dash in the second spell, the city vanguard at least held its own with the country exponents of the Rugby code. Functioning like a well-oiled machine, the Town hookers secured the ball from set scrums with the monotonous regularity of the seasonal rain in Southland, and had the backs been able to take advantage of this opportunity the score must have surely been, augumented. Perhaps the most conspicuous of the Town forwards in order of merit were: Knight, Foster, McKay, Willcox and Coumane.

Of the visiting team the crown of glory must surely go to Wishart. The Ryal Bush player gave the locals a taste of his quality, and his penetrative ability together with his directness of attack left the Town inside backs gasping on numerous occasions. The Central District full-back, Roff, was the “Rock of Gibraltar” personified, his solid tackling proving a stumbling block to the home team. The visitors three-quarter line was not impressive with the exception of Forde, who showed a nice burst of speed, but his opportunities were limited through the inability of the centre to handle the greasy ball. O’Connor at half was obviously beaten by the ground and was not up to the standard of his adversary, this partly accounting for the mediocre display given by the visiting rearguard as a combined unit. The pace of the visiting vanguard was a revelation, and certainly nonplussed the locals in the second half of an interesting game. It is hard luck for both teams that the ground was little more than a bog as it was quite evident that had the ground and ball been fit a very bright exhibition of fpotball would have been witnessed. Another meeting of these teams would be interesting.