STAR BEATS OLD BOYS

Southland Times, Issue 23183, 26 April 1937, Page 9

STAR BEATS OLD BOYS

Rugby Matches On Saturday POOR FOOTBALL IN BAD WEATHER BLUFF SCORES FIRST WIN The third round of games in the Galbraith Shield competition was played in bleak weather on Saturday. A bitterly cold wind swept Rugby Park throughout the afternoon, and rain, hail and sleet squalls made playing conditions extremely unpleasant. There were few spectators at the park, and die football they saw was no compensation for their braving the elements. Good Rugby was conspicuous by its absence. It was almost impossible to play good Rugby, and it is doubtful whether the Southland Rugby Football Union acted wisely in deciding that the fixtures be played. There was much adverse comment by players and spectators on the decision. Invercargill maintained its unbeaten record by narrowly beating Pirates, Star sprang a surprise by defeating Old Boys, and Bluff secured its first win with a victory over Marist. Results were: Invercargill 10 v. Pirates 8 Star 11 v. Old Soys 6 Bluff 12 v. Marist 5 INVERCARGILL v. PIRATES A field goal potted by Mehalski gave Invercargill its win over Pirates. There was very little between the teams, but Pirates failed to turn the wind and rain to full account and thus lost opportunities. Each side scored two tries. One was converted for Pirates, and Invercargill’s extra points came from the potted goal. A fine example of opportunism was seen by the spectators in this game. When “no-side” was sounded the ball was still in play, and Pirates was awarded a penalty in front of Invercargill’s goal. Tinnock kicked the ball which went wide of the posts, but fast following up by R. Ward enabled the Blacks’ to score a try at least two minutes after full time. McEwan made no mistake with the kick, which brought Pirates’ total to within two of that of Invercargill. The scorers were:—For Invercargill, tries by Henderson and Scott, a dropped goal by Mehalski; for Pirates, tries by Spence and R. Ward, a conversion by McEwan. Invercargill was without the services of the George brothers, who were under the impression that the matches were postponed. The teams were: Invercargill (Blue and Black): Ruff; Henderson, C. McKenzie, Sutherland; Blue, Mehalski; J. Purdue; Lester, Sutton, Bannantyne, Roberts, S. Purdue, Scott, J. Dunstan, I. Wilson. Pirates (Black): H. Barnett; Rattray, Pickering, W. Spence; Calvert, H. Peddie; Fraser; McEwan, Tinnock, Amos, R. Ward, Woodford, Bridgman, Knight. Invercargill played with the wind at its back, and twice in the first five minutes of play long kicks enabled it to set up attacks on the Blacks’ line. The backs were finding difficulty in handling the greasy ball, but they persisted and one movement saw the ball go through the chain to Henderson, who dropped his pass when in a good position to score. The Blues made good use of the wind and for five minutes on end had Pirates constantly defending. Sutherland and J. Purdue worked the short side on the left flank, but once again faulty handling spoilt a good chance. Pirates was penalized for off-side play and a good attempt to goal by McKenzie struck the upright and bounced back into play. There was a scramble in front of the posts, and a smart heel by the Invercargill forwards gave the backs a chance. The ball went out to Henderson, who scored as he was collared on the line. The kick at goal failed. Invercargill 3, Pirates 0. . Pirates was penalized and Mehalski made a good attempt to goal from the side-line. The Blacks were finding the wind and rain very difficult to play against, and with half the spell gone had been for the greater part in their own twenty-five. At this stage heavy sleet and hail poured down and good Rugby was out of the question. For the first time in the spell, the Blacks carried play deep into the Blues’ half, and Spence and Pickering were in position to force home the advantage. A dropped pass at the critical moment, however, ended a bright movement in adverse conditions. The Blues were soon back into Pirates’ territory and after a melee in front of the Blacks’ goal Mehalski picked up the ball and dropped a good goal with his left foot. Invercargill 7, Pirates 0. Just before half-time a loose rush led by S. Purdue and A. Scott resulted in the latter scoring as the ball was dribbled over the line. The kick at goal failed. Invercargill 10, Pirates 0. Second Spell The wind was stronger than ever in the second spell, but the Blacks were unable to turn it to account and Invercargill more than held its own. The exchanges were more even, however, and Pirates had its chances. Barnett was given a chance to goal from a penalty and failed, and Mehalski, for Blues, tried to drop another goal. His kick went wide and Pirates forwards rushed play upfield. Invercargill found relief in a force-down. Spence and Rattray made determined attempts to get over Invercargill’s line and after several scrums on the line the ball was heeled smartly and Spence went over on the short side for Pirates’ first score. It was a good try. McEwan failed to goal. Invercargill 10, Pirates 3. Pirates’ forwards were more than holding the Blues and in the following exchanges the Blacks had much the better of the play. Fraser was prominent in getting the ball out smartly to his backs and in one movement the prospects of scoring were bright when Peddie mulled a pass. Peddie made amends a few minutes later by cutting through Invercargill’s defence and sending the ball in to his forwards with only the Blues’ full-back to pass. Still another good chance was lost by bad handling. Hail and sleet showers swept the ground and the players found difficulty in keeping their feet. In the final stages of the spell Pirates attacked strongly and kept the Blues penned on their line. Ruff, J. Purdue and A. Sutherland saved well for Invercargill. Just on “time” Tinnock missed with a penalty for Pirates, but R. Ward raced after the ball and beat a defender to the touch-down. McEwan goaled. Invercargill 10, Pirates 8. Mr J. R. Bell was referee. STAR v. OLD BOYS Star sprang a surprise on Old Boys by holding them against the wind and turning round at half-time and making most of the play. It was a patchy game, but Star’s tactics were profitable, and could the Whites have finished off some of their work, they must have won with a good margin of points to spare. Penalty goals played a big part in the

scoring. Wesney kicked two for Old Boys and Mattingly two for Star. Bailey scored a try for Star and Mattingly converted. The teams were:

Star (Navy and White). —E. Cockroft; T. Riddell, H. Giller, H. Morris; J. Miles, H. Frampton; J. Watson; J. Mattingly, R. Agnew, J. Bailey, H. Cruickshank, C. Wilkinson, L. McColl, McKenzie, Smith.

Old Boys (Royal Blue). —W. Hislop; G. Macdonald, N. A. Mitchell, C. Milne; A. W. Wesney, N. Polson; T. A. Smiley, R. Marshall, J. Dennis, K. R. Chestermann, P. L. Lynch, G. Liddell, A. Strang, W. L. Crawford. The Play In the first quarter the Star forwards dominated possession from scrums and rucks, and thus were able to make most of the play. They found the elements a big handicap and some kicks lost rather than gained ground. Old Boys’ backs used the wind. One kick by Chesterman gained about 70 yards. While the ball was reasonably dry the backs opened up the play, but there was rarely any danger of tries being scored in a passing movement. Star was forced down, and later Mitchell, who was showing up in individual bursts, looked dangerous until he was well stopped by Watson (Star halfback). A minute later Macdonald was given a rim on the left flank, but Cockroft (Star full-back) was equal to the demand and brought Macdonald down with a deadly tackle. For 10 minutes Old Boys attacked strongly. Mackie was the next to threaten the line. He, too, was stopped in time; then , a Star back was penalized in front of his posts for standing off-side and Wesney opened the scoring with a penalty goal. Old Boys 3, Star 0. The conditions were very unpleasant and play, which had not been good, deteriorated conspicuously. Mattingly attempted to goal against the wind and failed. Several long kicks by Old Boys’ backs went over Star’s line. The judgment of the backs was at fault and Star easily got out of trouble. There was an absence of combined play, the players preferring to boot the ball hard and risk the results. Wesney drop-kicked a penalty goal and brought Old Boys’ total up to six just before half-time. Old Boys 6, Star 0. In the second half, played on No. 2 area, Star played with the gale at its back. The Star forwards quickly settled down and bustled Old Boys, whose chief weapon of attack was individual effort. Mattingly opened the scoring for Star with a penalty goal. Old Boys 6, Star 3. There were several stoppages for injuries. Smiley retired and was replaced by W. Fleming. Star had much the better of the exchanges, but occasionally an Old Boys back would break through and raise hopes. Mitchell put a lot of dash into his running and once looked like getting through. Star’s tackling was solid, and played a big part in its win. Star came back and another penalty gave Mattingly his chance to equalize the scores, which he did. Star 6, Old Boys 6. The final quarter was fairly exciting, particularly as the prospect of the defeat of Old Boys developed. Old Boys made several breaks and failed to force home any advantage, and within a few minutes of time Frampton was prominent in taking play to Old Boys’ goal, where Bailey was handy and fell on the ball as it rolled from Frampton’s grip. Mattingly converted and the game ended with the scores: Star 11, Old Boys 6. Mr M. P. Sheehan refereed. BLUFF v. MARIST Bluff’s tenacity in the second spell gave it an advantage over the Marist team. With the wind Marist shaped well and it appeared that the Greens might hold Bluff. Marist led for twothirds of the game, but tired against the hard rushes of the Bluff forwards. There was very little bright play about the game. The scorers were:—For Bluff, tries by Ballantyne (2) and Heads (2); for Marist, Ramsay scored a try and Baird converted. The teams were:— Bluff (Red and White): G. Silvester; J. Ballantyne, L. Nixey, T. Heads; D. Hamilton, C. Mason; E. D. Calder; J. Burke, B. Crawford, W. Robjohns, T. West, N. Cooper, S. West, R. Urwin, J. Hamilton.

Marist (Green and Black): M. Ryan, N. Ford, D. Messent, A. H. Brown; P. Grace, T. O’Connor; A. Shepherd; G. Ramsay, J. Mcßae, R. Gerrard, J. Murphy, P. Maher, J. Newell, J. Garvey, N. Baird. Marist opened the scoring in the first quarter, a smart passing rush ending in Ramsay touching down at the posts. Baird converted. Marist 5, Bluff 0. Bluff’s backs got a fair share of the ball and they tried to make progress in passing, but good tackling stopped them. Nixey was prominent in side-line runs, and Grace, for Marist, shone in defensive work. There was little between the teams, but the wind gave Marist an advantage, althongh the Greens could not score more than once. In the second half Marist held Bluff for about 10 minutes; thereafter the Port men played up to the conditions, and with short dribbling rushes wore the defence down. Heads scored two tries in the space of a few minutes, the first coming from some smart passing which swung from one flank to the other, and the second following a kick over Marist’s line. Ballantyne scored the next two tries. None was converted. Bluff 12, Marist 5. Mr R. Murray was referee. SECOND GRADE STAR (3) vToLD BOYS (3) At Biggar street Star and Old Boys drew, three points all. The game was a ragged forward tussle. Star’s points came from a penalty goal, and Fearn scored a try for Old Boys. Mr C. C. Kenward was the referee. INVERCARGILL (24) v. BLUFF (0) At Bluff, under appalling conditions, Invercargill beat the home team by 24 points to nil. Mr J. Murray was the referee. THIRD GRADE PIRATES (5) v. WAIKIWI (0) At the High School Pirates beat Waikiwi by five points to nil in an even, but uninteresting, game on a very heavy ground. Jackson scored Pirates’ try, Beale converting. Mr G. Frampton was the referee. INVERCARGILL (6) v. OLD BOYS (0) In a fast game, under bad conditions, at Tweed street Invercargill proved too much for Old Boys and won by six points to nil. The advantage of the wind in the second half was one of the deciding factors of the game. Greene and Ferguson were the scorers for Blues. Mr H. G. Smith was the referee. COLLEGIATE (8) v. STAR (0) At Biggar street Collegiate beat Star by eight points to nil. Farmer scored a try, W. Giles kicked a penalty goal and G. Giles converted the try. Mr E. Barron was the referee.

HIGH SCHOOL (9) v. BORSTAL (6) At the Borstal farm High School beat Borstal by nine points to six in very unpleasant conditions. Borstal had the advantage in tight play, but High School’s passing was better. Cocklin and Muirson were prominent among the High School forwards and Fyfe was outstanding in the backs. Mr A. E, Austin was the referee.

FOURTH GRADE INVERCARGILL (12) v. OLD BOYS (0) At the High School ground the Blues beat Old Boys by 12 points to nil. Tries were scored by Haggerty, Thomson and Harris, Ramsay kicking one penalty goal and converting a try. Mr F. A. Cheyne was the referee. BLUFF (9) v. HIGH SCHOOL (0) At Biggar street, Bluff beat High School by nine points to nil. Tries were scored by Budd and Ball (2). It was a good game on a wet ground. Mr J. Aitken was the referee. TECHNICAL (15) v. STAR (6) At Biggar street, Technical College beat Star by 15 points to six. Mr B. Mitchell was the referee. COLLEGIATE (12) v. WAIKIWI (0) At the Waikiwi domain, Collegiate beat Waikiwi by 12 points to nil. Two tries scored by McManus and two penalty goals were kicked by J. Agnew. Mr J. R. Hanan was the referee. MARIST (17) v. BORSTAL (3) Playing at the Borstal Institution, Marist beat Borstal by 17 points to three. Tries were scored for Marist by Casey, Bassett, Gray, Murphy and Waddick, Bassett converting one try. Borstal scored one try. Bad weather prevented any attempt at back play and the game was confined to the forwards. Mr George Agnew was the referee. FIFTH GRADE OLD BOYS vTIIIGH SCHOOL High School defaulted to Old Boys. PIRATES (9) v. MARIST (0) Pirates beat Marist by nine points to nil on the South Domain. Mr T. Roberts was referee. Results of the Western District Rugby matches are as follows:— Senior.—Orepuki 8 v. Riverton 0; United 9 v. Waiau 0. The game between Ohai and Nightcaps was not played. Junior.—Riverton 6 v. Orepuki 5; Western Star 6 v. Ohai 0; Waiau 9 v. Nightcaps 0. NORTHERjTbISTRICT Results of the Rugby matches in the Northern District are as follows: — Country Pirates 6 v. Lumsden 5; Balfour 20 v. Waikaia 9. IN OTHER CENTRES CHRISTCHURCH Sydenham beat Albion 20-13. Sunnyside beat Linwood 22-13. Varsity drew with Christchurch 6-all. Old Boys beat Merivale 10-8. Athletic beat Technical Old Boys 19-11. CHOSEN BY CHAMPIONS . . . “O.B.” FOOTBALL BOOTS The Patented “O.B.” Football Boot has lightness for speed and strength and support for solid “forward” play. Worn by the “All Blacks” in Australia, England, South Africa and France and recommended by leading players. “The studs cannot hurt the feet” . . . 22/6. At Sports Depots or Shoe Stores, if unobtainable write M. O’Brien and Co. Ltd., Christchurch, for nearest retailers.— Advt