INTERESTING STAGE IN HOCKEY COMPETITION

Southland Times, Issue 24144, 5 June 1940, Page 10

INTERESTING STAGE IN HOCKEY COMPETITION

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By the defeat of Central by Civil Service on Saturday and Collegiate’s win over Old Boys an interesting stage has been reached in the men’s hockey competition for the Doublebee Cup. Collegiate and Central are now on level terms with eight points each (four wins and two losses), and Civil Service, with six points, is also in the running for the championship. Civil Service, incidentally, has played one game fewer than the leading teams. There have been several surprises in the competition thus far and with little between Collegiate and Central as far as ability is concerned the contest for hockey supremacy should be keen and interesting from now on. Civil Service and Central staged one of the best games of the season at Queen’s Park on Saturday, Civil Service having much the better of the exchanges in the first half. Brighter hockey was seen than in most of the previous games and it was pleasing to observe more accurate passing and better positional play. C. Gray, who left hockey for a time to take up the golf clubs—and performed with credit in the new game—has justified his return to the hockey field by good displays in both matches. On Saturday, and the previous week, Gray showed himself to be a good scoring forward and he was an undoubted asset to the Civil Service side.

H. Gray is another who distinguished himself in the Civil Service forward line on Saturday. He played a great game on the left wing and his crisp, clean shots were a feature of his play. He has a good turn of speed and his knowledge of tactics, especially when tackling an opposing player, make him a valuable man in any team. N.Z. REPRESENTATIVE PLAYER A player who made his first appearance for Civil Service on Saturday was T. Turbitt, a New Zealand representative player. Turbitt gave a glimpse of his hockey prowess in the forward line where he gave a good exhibition of clean hitting and accurate passing, combining well with the rest of the forwards. A teacher in the Riverton district, Turbitt came from Blenheim and previously played for Marlborough. At one time he played for Training College, Dunedin. Because of the distance he lives from Invercargill it is understood that he will play only once a month but Civil Service players will no doubt hope that he can turn out more frequently. PROMISING YOUNG PLAYERS Although Central has lost a good man in K. Lythgoe and may soon, it is understood, lose the services of W. Semmens, another of its stalwarts, there are promising players still in its ranks. Lowe, Fyffe, Kclman and Gunn, all of whom are comparatively young players, have shown themselves capable of good stick work and impress as being full of promise. A. Osman, Central wing-forward, improves with each game. He has plenty of speed but has not yet fully mastered the stick; this awkwardness can be overcome by practising wrist shots and the wrist will become supple in time. McMillan gave a good display in the back division for Collegiate against Old Boys on Saturday. His passing was accurate but he must learn to get rid of the ball more quickly. He has a tendency to fiddle about with the ball and this hesitancy or “jugglirig” of the ball is often fatal. Checketts, full-back for Collegiate,

CENTRE-FORWARD

POSITION OF TEAMS

played a good defensive game on Saturday and has justified his promotion to the higher grade. As in the previous games this season D. Davidson showed himself to be the outstanding forward in the Collegiate side. He is a prolific scoring player and secured four goals for Collegiate in the second half of the game against Old Boys. One of the best features of his game is his habit of following up the ball after executing his shots. He is not satisfied with providing openings; without being a selfish player he chases the ball and, more often than not, succeeds in shooting it into the net.

Old Boys was a greatly improved side on Saturday. As a new team, it is not expected as yet to win its matches in the senior grade but the right spirit is there and the players are enjoying their games. They were able to give Collegiate some anxious moments and showed by their attacking rushes in particular that they are quickly learning the game and moulding themselves into a hockey combination. THE FINER POINTS In the following article M. N. Masood discusses some of the finer points of the game, points that could be studied closely, especially by the newer players. Back or reverse shots.—These should be resorted to very infrequently and in rare circumstances, as they lack the finish and sting of the “right shots.” Even a first-class left-wing is expected to make a turn and hit or pass the ball on the “right shots.” Every shot of agood player should be well thought out and accurate; with back or reverse shots a player, however good, cannot be sure of these two essentials. A tap with the reverse stick proves as effective as a fine dribble, but a player should practise it well before he uses it. Dhyan Chand is master of this. His tap to his right-in with the stick reversed very frequently passes a defender unchecked and proves very effective in changing the direction of the game. BACK PASS DESCRIBED The back pass is given by the right or reverse stroke and is very effective in freeing a player and in changing the direction of the game. The execution and effectiveness of the pass depend upon perfect understanding and anticipation between the two players giving and receiving it. It should, however, be resorted to only at intervals and on suitable occasions. Too much indulgence robs the game of its speed and forward play. A left-in nearing the edge of the striking area and finding no opening for his dribbling or forward play can very well pass to his halfback or centre-half. The principle to be observed in using this pass is, that if you find no opening for forward play it is better to pass the ball back than give it to an opponent. “Back pass” is a fine tactical move if employed suitably and opportunely by the player concerned.

Stopping a Ball with Hands.—On bumpy and uneven grounds hands are very useful in stopping the ball, but on good, level grounds this practice should be discouraged as much as possible as it retards to a certain extent the flow of the game, and gives a touch of dullness or slowness to a game which should be fast and exciting.

The following table shows the position of the teams, in the senior com-

petition:— P. W. L. D. Pts. Ch. Pts F. A. Central 6 4 2 - 35 16 8 Collegiate Civil Ser6 4 2 - 29 15 8 vice 5 3.2 - 23 16 6 Old Boys 4 - 4 - 7 37