RUGBY FOOTBALL.

Sun (Christchurch), Volume II, Issue 377, 26 April 1915, Page 2

RUGBY FOOTBALL.

i THE OUTLOOK BRIGHTENS. I I No 0110 expects the new season in Rugby football in Christelmrch, which opened last Saturday, to bo as interesting as previous seasons. The conditions occasioned by the Avar have crippled the clubs. But there are indi-: cations that the season will not be as uninteresting as the pessimists prophesy. The first' senior matches of the season have produced two drawn games, which indicates-' that some of the teams will be fairly evenly matched. In the other two games the scores were rather onesided, but the play was open, with plenty of passing among the backs, and it promised interesting llugby when the | awkwardness and individualism which always characterise the earlier grtitieM of a new season have Worn off. Merivale and Linwood. Even as .late as the day before the;! matches. several of the clubs were uncertain concerning the personnel of their teams, so it . was not surprising that there were many differences between the teams which had been selected and those which - actually took the field. Of the teams which played at.l .Lancaster Park, Merivale was the only: one. which ..was' free from last-Minute' changes.. The club's selectors had, learned'" earlier that W-. 'Menzies XvOuld' not be able to turn out for the first; .match, and. so they had chosen A'- Mackintosh, of last year 's : junior fifteen, tjO, '|»lav asMock '' against LirnVood. There; were several' late charig'Cs hi the Lih-: wood team. As was anticipated, E. Haughey and G. Gail dwell were absent.: Dixon, Hi junior who had been selected l tf6r : the'position of full-back, was also! ; '"' l J; Prosper was 'then placed' in; the fe'ain,'as' full-back, vand another man WliO' haif jiot been included in the team' chosen for the match was placed in the three-quarter line. lie was. W- Williams. Hobson went pp to five-eighths,J and G. Egan played as half-back instead of five-eighths. W. Shaw, who had not intended to play, was pressed into service in the pack again, and J. ITarvey was taken out of the pack and tried as wing-forward. However, Harvey's desire for work found him always battling in the midst of the for-. ,W{<!s.%•! a,n,d. so . .another. change, which iput. .IjT,a,rj\'(>y back ..in .the:..scrum, .wad triftdowdurjng.. the. game. . . ' Dashing; but Awkward Forwards, . :: :A. toiw just about represented the merits of the two toaijis on; the play: Linwood had a little .the.better of the I.plhy iii the firWt half; MbriValfe the be't : ! rer of' the 'second half. The Linwood [forwards averaged a little more in j height arid weight than the opposing | vanguard, ' and they played with moi-6 dhsh'while their condition lasted. But they lacked combination and were less skilful as a pack than their op<pouents, and so much of their dashing work was ineffective. Their backs were not experienced enough to give them efficient .'support, and were also, as a rulei, inaec.urace in their handling and kicking of the ball. : Extra responsibility was thus thrust upon the green-and-black forwards, but their lack of co : hesion and skill prevented them from proving fully equal to it. The Merivale forwards had a little more combination and more versatility and resourcefulness, and their work was not so ragged, so that, as the dash. and vigour of their opponents diminished, they secured greater control'of the situation. Their backs, though mostly as young and inexperienced as Linwood's, had mor'e/ steadiness aiid a better grasp of the game than the Linwood rearguard possessed.. " The play was generally of a more 01 less Scrambling nature. •' The! varying angles at which the new ball bounced from the hard ground also contributed to this.' The principal impression left by the play was that if the Linwood practise adequately, and so acquire : combination and skill, . they should develop into, a pack which will, be hard to-beat, while Merivale should; develop. into a fairly well-balanced team with a : fairly good, pack and a fair lot of backs. Each team, however,, .need's a '.'general" in its backs.- • A : Fast, Clean Game. The few spectators who Wert' iliter-, e'sted iii? the Old Boys-University match must have felt quite satisfied with theirafternoon's . football. ' Both teains. played a clean, fast game, and opened; |it Up at; every opportunity. It is yet ['rather fearly in the season to expect | jgoOd combination, but, the showing made by,the backs'augurs' well [for futiu'e successes. Old Boysback's ' included fo.iir of last year's third-grade players, aiid that department was hot up to the. staiiilard set by their opponents.: J, behind..the scrum, played a ; good ga'nicS right through, and made numerous openings, but he received little or no support from the fiveeighths. When the ball did reach the ' three-quarters the rush was frequently spoiled .by high, wild passes. Boag was the mainstay of the backs, while. Nixon,, after the first quarter of an hour, played a safe game as full-back. All the members of last year's back team except Boag were absent on Saturday. Sime and Send were the best amongst a light pack, which, however, was good in the tight. The 'Varsity backs made a very good showing for the opening of the season. Tho.v made.the game oi>en, and at thuds gave a very fair exhibition of passing.Hanging on too long was a big fault;' Bossellman, at first live-eighths, was the pick of the ,rearguard, and from start to finish was the best back on the fielt-l. His dodgy run always seemed to noyplus/ his opponents, and while never appear-''' ing to hurry himself ~rt always beat, the opposing five-eighths. Scott, at half, threw the ball out well and 'initiated .'the. rushes from which most f the points were scored. McLeod and C'olthurf. boHi played good games on the wings. . McLeod was unlucky , iin: not scoring more tries than he did. He : gathered up .his passes well, but was too often hemmed in on the line. Cob thart's .speed stood him in good steads Ou one occasion he brilliantly picktjd up the ball from the loose while going at full speed, and got clean away, but was called back on account of a breach of the rules by another player. Young', as wing forward, was conspicuous, and at times took part in passing rushes amongst: both forwards ami bucks. The two jyacks were fairly even, .but

Old Boys" showed a slight superiority in the tight work. When the score was 11 —6 they 'had things all their own jyay' for a time, but 'Varsity rallied ftnd, with the wind behind them, carried play into' the white's' twenty-five, where they quickly notched another six points,, thus pUtti'ng the result beyond doubt. 'Vars'ity were frequently penalised, fully 80 per cent., of the free kicks going against them. Much time w'fis' lost in this match by, the ball being carried over the fence by the wind. On at least four occasions* both balls were out of the ground, and play had to be stopped' till they were recovered.