SPECTACULAR PLAY AT RUGBY PARK

Southland Times, Issue 23599, 29 August 1938, Page 4

SPECTACULAR PLAY AT RUGBY PARK

HAWKE’S BAY’S MERITORIOUS VICTORY

SOUTHLAND GOES DOWN BY 21 POINTS TO 15 In one of the brightest games seen at Rugby Park, and certainly the best of the present season, the Hawke’s Bay Rugby team scored a meritorious win against the Southland team, on Saturday afternoon. It was Hawke’s Bay first success against Southland at Invercargill. The scores were: Hawke’s Bay 21, Southland 15.

Southland opened strongly, and with the assistance of many penalty kicks was able to hold Hawke’s Bay in the first half. In that period Southland scored 12 points from penalty goals kicked by J. Ballantyne. Hawke’s Bay was a refreshened side in the secbnd half and scored 21 points while Southland added only three (another penalty goal by Ballantyne) to its total. The visitors played enterprising and spectacular Rugby and in the last quarter of the game ran the Southland team off its feet. The merit of Hawke’s Bay’s win lay in its wonderful recovery after being 15 points down soon after the start of the second half. Backs and forwards combined in movements which broke through the Southland lines time after time and it was obvious to the spectators that success must come sooner or later. There were times when the exchanges were thrilling, and not the least of some of the efforts were the dashing loose rushes of the Southland forwards and individual breaks by the backs. It was a game full of incident, and was full compensation for the drab displays which had been seen in other games. The enterprise of the Bay team was fully rewarded. It beat a team which played probably its best game this season, and on that form it must be regarded as a very strong challenger for the Ranfurly Shield id the match against Otago at Dunedin on Wednesday. Although beaten, Southland strove valiantly, and but for a falling off in persistency when the pace was hottest in the second half it may have won with something to spare. It was a new experience for the home backs and forwards to have so much running about at such a fast pace and it was only to be expected that they could not finish as strongly as a team used to the fastest of grounds and playing in conditions which practically were “made to order” for them.

A feature of the game, though not a happy one, was the big number of stoppages for infringements of the rules. Hawke’s Bay was penalized 24 times (14 times in the first half and 10 in the second), and Southland four times (three in the first half and once in the second). Thirty of the 36 points were scored from goals. The points were made up as follows: Hawke’s Bay, tries by L. Clothier and A. W. Bowman, two field goals by L. Bradley, a penalty goal by R. Fox and conversions by Bradley and Fox. For Southland J. Ballantyne kicked five penalty goals from six attempts.

FORMIDABLE BAY TEAM Comparable With Best Shield Sides FORWARDS FAST AND DASHING Apart from producing a type of Rugby rarely seen in Southland the Hawke’s Bay team showed that it has’ all the qualities of a great side, more or less comparable with the renowned Bay teams which beat off challenge after challenge during the 1922-1926 period when New Zealand Rugby was on a high plane. Last season Hawke’s Bay was universally accepted as the outstanding provincial combination in New Zealand; on Saturday’s play it would appear that once again it is going to be the leader in New Zealand Rugby. The visiting forwards played the type of game which made Southland packs of less than a decade ago such a strong force in the open game. They took risks, but their unusual mobility for big men gave them an advantage over the slower-moving Southland pack. The Southland forwards were not slow but they were unable to keep up the pace set by the Bay pack. They kept to good, honest scrummaging and took a full share of the open work whenever the opportunity presented itself. The results of this good scrummaging was reflected on the success of the first half when Southland won the ball from scrums and rucks. In set scrums Southland won possession 11 times to Hawke’s Bay eight. There were six scrums from which possession favoured neither side. The margin in Southland’s favour was not a big one but it showed that the pack in this important phase of forward play was able to hold its own with the Bay forwards. In lineouts Hawke’s Bay was more successful than Southland and won the advantage from eight compared with Southland’s five successes. Four line-outs were indecisive.

In the second half Hawke’s Bay gained an advantage in all departments of forward play except in loose play. Statistics taken show that Hawke’s Bay got possession from seven set scrums compared with Southland’s five, and from eight line-outs compared with Southland's six. Over both halves the figures favoured Hawke’s Bay by a small margin, and it was probably the small margin of possession which ultimately gave Hawke’s Bay its points advantage at the finish. HARD FORWARD BATTLE

As expected the packs had a hard battle. The conditions were favourable to Bay’s style, however, and in the open its forwards looked capable of scoring

tries equally as well as the backs. They handled well, ran strongly and appeared always to be in position to make play from a centring kick or to take a pass to finish off a movement.

Bowman’s stature and his dash gave him prominence among a pack of first-

class forwards. He also gained prominence by consistently infringing the rules. He was penalized several times for off-side play and failing to observe the tackled-ball law.

O’Brien and Wilson played soundly, and showed surprisingly smartness in breaking round the scrum and forcing J. Purdue into giving snap passes, and sometimes in kicking the ball from Purdue’s hands before the latter could get the ball away. Reid was prominent in line-out work and Hannigan and Dallimore were always up with the loose breaks.

The long line-outs adopted by Hawke’s Bay were effective in giving possession to the inside backs. More than once Bradley (first five-eighth) was able to start a movement going in midfield by this means. All the > visiting backs shaped well. They used their pace and kicking ability and often drove Southland back with long kicks well placed away from Ballantyne or the Southland wings. None of the Southland backs could match the fastest work of the Bay backs, and because of this the kicking tactics, particularly. when Bay was on defence, were highly successful.

Clothier’s try was a smart piece of individualism which appeared to catch the Southland backs off balance, and Bradley’s field goals once again showed what a good goal-kicker can do with opportunities. R. Devine, at centre, was off colour. Had he been able to link up as well as the other backs Hawke’s Bay’s score might have been larger. BACKS COMBINE WELL The rearrangement of the Southland backs, caused by Grace’s retirement through injury, made for good combination. Before that the backs had played well, just the same, and noticeable improvement was seen in the play of R. G. Mahony, at left wing, and A. G. Sutherland, at second five-eighths.

A. W. Wesney played prominently in both centre and first five-eighths positions, and had J. Purdue been able to reproduce his best form it is possible that Southland would have scored tries. Purdue appeared to be bustled by the quick breaking of the Bay forwards and several times lost possession through indecision. He was the only Southland back who did not play up to form, and was overshadowed by the work of Clothier, the Bay half-back. Lack of support, or lack of intuition as to what to do with the ball when the defence had been pierced again cost Southland probable points. First Grace, then Wesney and Sutherland made grand solo breaks which should have been capitalized. Sutherland’s run was a brilliant one and was worthy of five points. He failed to sense the support which was offering, however, even though' yards behind, and spoiled a dazzling run by going just too far on his own. Apart from this Sutherland played good football and fully justified the confidence placed in him as an inside back.

Ballantyne was well tested and generally displayed soundness. He made minor mistakes more because of the liveliness of the dry ball than anything else. His goal-kicking was magnificent.

All of the Southland forwards earned praise. Metcalfe led the pack in dashing style and probably played his best game for the season. He got plenty of support from the others, particularly in the loose breaks which gave the crowd some thrills.

Sherriffs again hooked well. To share the honours with a champion of the calibre of Dalton was a worthy achievement. Herron was prominent in most of the play and Crawford, the George brothers, Soper and Graham did their parts well. REFEREE’S FIRM STAND The referee, Mr R. W. Murray, is to be complimented upon the firm stand he took in controlling the game. Some of the visiting players and a section of the spectators did not appear to agree with some of his rulings. It would be absurd to suggest, however, that he went on to the field just to hold up the game as often as possible. It was to his credit that he made a game between two strong sides the bright one it was. It was no fault of his that the Bay players took liberties and infringed the rules so often. He could have been excused if he had taken even a firmer stand and ordered off the field any who continued to break the laws after being warned. The playing conditions at Rugby Park were ideal for fast and open Rugby. The ground was in splendid condition, the day was fine and sunny and a light easterly wind, although not hampering play, gave the weather a pleasant mildness which was enjoyed by players and spectators alike. There was an attendance estimated at 5000 spectators, including a big contingent from Dunedin. As a mark of respect to Mr E. J. Abbey Jones, a supporter of Rugby in Southland for many years,' who died on Friday, the flags at Rugby Park were flown at half-mast. THE TEAMS The teams were as follows:— SOUTHLAND FULL-BACK: J. Ballantyne. THREE-QUARTERS: C. Milne, A. W. Wesney, R. G. Mahony. FIVE-EIGHTHS: P. Grace, A. G. Sutherland. HALF-BACK: J. Purdue. FRONT-ROW: C. Soper, W. Sherriffs, C. George. MIDDLE-ROW: V. L. George, B. Herron, G. H. Graham, T. Metcalfe. BACK-ROW: W. L. Crawford. E. Calvert replaced P. Grace late in the first half. HAWKE’S BAY FULL-BACK: S. Moss. THREE-QUARTERS: R. Fox, R. Devine, E. Apsey. FIVE-EIGHTHS: L. Bradley, W. Palmer. ' HALF-BACK: L. Clothier. FRONT-ROW: E. Jackson, D. Dalton, L. Hannigan. MIDDLE-ROW: C. Wilson, A. W. Bowman, S. Reid, J. O’Brien. BACK-ROW: J. Dallimore. R. H. Ward replaced E. Jackson in the second half. OTAGO JUNIORS BEATEN SOUTHLAND WINS AT DUNEDIN VISITING FORWARDS PLAY GOOD FOOTBALL (Special to The Times) DUNEDIN, August 27. In a junior representative match between Otago and Southland for the L. S. Brooks Cup, played as a curtainraiser to the Ranfurly Shield match at Carisbrook today, Southland won by 11 points to six. While the visiting forwards were impressive, the backs did not combine so well and their handling wag faulty at times. Shirley, the Southland captain, played a useful game until his retirement with an injury received a few minutes before the final whistle. The teams were: SOUTHLAND.—Backs: N. Cockroft, C. F. Harvey, C. R. Spence, G. Johnston, J. Johnston, C. V. Shirley, A. M. Swale. Forwards: J. H. Sorensen, W. M. Weeds, N. McEwan, J, C. Pasco, K. Shirley, A. Baird, A. J. Parker, E. J. Anderson.

OTAGO.—Backs: R. Davis, J. S Shephard, U X. Kirby, O. R. Payne, B. Johnston, A. Rennie, B. Samson. Forwards: A. Mee, E. W. Pearson, L. W. Moore, A. Maslin, T. R.‘ Roydhouse, L. Aitken, C. H. Soper, A: A. McDowall.

Southland kicked off, a period of very uneven play being relieved by a bright penetrating run by Rennie, who was brought down well inside the visitors 25. Otago kept up the pressure and from a scrum on the Southland line, Samson ran round the blind side to •score. Aitken missed the kick at goal, making the score after five minutes of play: Otago 3; Southland 0. A few minutes later Otago was penalized out in front of its own goalposts, Shirley kicking an easy goal to bring the scores level. Southland was securing more than its share of the ball, but although the backs endeavoured to open up the game their passing seldom gained much ground. Offside play by a Southland forward just outside his own 25 enabled Rennie to kick a good goal, making the score: Otago G; Southland 3. Stung by this reverse, the visitors’ backs and forwards combined in a movement, which carried play to their opponents’ line, and from a scrum Swale set his backs in motion, P. Johnston scoring. Shirley converted with a grand kick. Southland 8; Otago 6. Then followed an attractive movement between B. Johnston and Rennie, who carried play between them deep into Southland territory, where a free kick brought relief to the Maroons Play at this stage was ragged. The handling by both teams was faulty. Payne made a fine run up the line, but was grassed a few yards short of the comer flag. The Southland forwards were beating the opposing pack in all departments, but the Otago rearguard showed more dash than the visitors. The score at half-time was: Southland 8; Otago 6 During the opening stages of the second half, Otago had Southland hemmed in its own territory and it was only strenuous defending that kept Otago from scoring. A high clearing kick by Cockroft changed the complexion of the game, and twice Southland was nearly over. Just as quickly, Otago retaliated, but many promising movements broke down through wild passing. Shirley, who was playing a useful game for Southland, made a clever opening, but he was not supported Some lively play followed, during which both teams took turns at attacking. The handling, however, was very poor. Following a loose scramble m Otago’s 25, P. Johnston forced his way over at the corner. Shirley missed with the kick. Southland 11; Otago 6. A few minutes later, Rennie, an Otago five-eighths, left the field with an injury, Fraser coming on to fill the vacancy. The final scores were: Southland 11; Otago 6 Mr S. Butler was the referee.