THE WELSH TEAM

Southland Times, Issue 22766, 17 December 1935, Page 7

THE WELSH TEAM

SATURDAY’S GAME TEN INTERNATIONAL PLAYERS W. DAVIES OMITTED (United Press Assn.—Telegraph Copyright.) London, December 15. The Welsh team to play New Zealand at Cardiff on Saturday is as iollows:— , . ._ Full-back.—V. G. J. Jenkins (Lon-don-Welsh). _ Three-quarters.—W. Woolier (Cambridge University), Idwal Rees (Swansea), E. C. Davey (Swansea), G. Il-Rees-Jones (Oxford University). Half-backs.—C. W. Jones (Cambridge University), H. Tanner (Swansea). Forwards. —A. M. Rees (London Welsh), J. I. B. Lang (Llanelly), G. Prosser (Neath), T. Williams (Cross Keys), T. Rees (Newport), E. Watkins (Cardiff), D. J. Tarr (Navy and Swansea), H. Payne (Swansea). All but Tanner, Williams, Watkins, Tarr and Payne are old internationals. The Times expresses the opinion that in view of the superfluity of mid-field backs, except the scrum-half, and the quantity rather than quality of forwards, the selectors might have gone farther and fared worse. Probably Tarr was chosen as hooker, but the selectors might have secured better results if they had picked the whole of the Swansea front row. Jenkins is liable to have serious off days. Idwal Rees is preferable to Woolier as a centre, especially as Wooller’s speed is better on the wing. Davey is an excellent tackler. Rees-Jones is slow from the mark, but is the best available other wing three-quarter. Cliff Jones’s experience and robustness caused him to be preferred to Tanner’s clubmate, W. Davies. His knowledge of Wooller’s play is valuable, but it is the forwards on which great responsibility rests. The Daily Mail doubts whether the forwards are capable of defeating the All Blacks pack, but Lang is in a class by himself for binding the scrum and lineouts.

NEATH-ABERAVON GAME “WRESTLING WITHOUT RULES.” HOME FORWARDS CRITICIZED. (United Press Assn.—Telegraph Copyright.) London, December’ 15. Tire Times severely condemns “the crude rough-and-tumble efforts of the Neath-Aberavon forwards in reducing the match to the low level of wrestling without rules,” although it admits that the All Blacks occasionally retaliated. It adds: “It would be a grave disservice to the finer side of Rugby to gloss over the unpleasant facts regarding most of the forward play and the laxity of control about the scrummage. If they occurred in the Welsh international, which is unlikely, it would be a calamity. Visitors especially from the dominions, arc entitled to something better than the scrapping, ungovernable mauling, offsides and illegal insertions of the ball which proceeded almost unchecked.” Mr Howard Marshall in the Daily Telegraph similarly criticized the players for wasting their energies in whirling their fists in private vendettas. “The referee might have had a word to say regarding the matter and he should also have been firmer regarding the scrum laws, especially in view of the fact that when a scrum-half puts the ball in to his own second row the game becomes a farce,” he says. Both writers applaud the New Zealanders’ play in the loose and also their magnificent scoring movements. The Times pays a tribute to the imperturbable efficiency of W. E. Hadley, which was an example to everybody.