RUGBY TRIAL MATCH

Taranaki Daily News, 2 September 1929, Page 4

RUGBY TRIAL MATCH

A TEAM DEFEATS B.’S TWENTY-NINE POINTS TO 9 RAGGED MATCH AT HAWERA MATCH WITH CANTERBURY TARANAKI TEAM SELECTED in a ragged match played on a perfect afternoon at Hawera on Saturday, the Taranaki A representative Rugby team debated the B team by 29 points to 9. Several replacements were made during the match to give the sole selector (Mr. VV. A. Guy) an opportunity of trying out different players, and the Taranaki representative team to play Canterbury at Stratford next Thursday was subsequently selected as follows:— Full-back—Collins. Three-quarters—J. Crawford, H. W. Brown, K. Fookes. Five-eighths—Johnston, Owen. Half—Tui Robinson. Wing-forward—Guy. Forwards —Espin, Walter, McLean, Ike, Williams, Murphy, W. Robinson. Emergencies—Backs: Watson and R. Hohaia. Forwards: S. Gargan Wills.

The following players were not available:—Baldwin, Kivell, Smith, C. Brown. As a match, Saturday’s exhibition was ' a distinctly disappointing one. To a certain extent this .was only what one would expect, owing to the fact that there was no traditional rivalry at stake as in past matches, and the fact that the teams were changed from time to time. In addition, public interest in the game was very small, and the teams did not have the usual support of par- - tisan barracking to spur them on. I’iom the spasmodic barrack that did occur ■ from time to time, which chiefly took the form of derisive laughter at any serious mistakes made by the A team and enthusiastic applause for any success achieved by the B team, it seemed that the preponderance of opinion amongst the onlookers was in favour of some changes being made in the personnel of Taranaki’s first fifteen, POOR DISPLAY OF HANDLING. Apart from these factors, however, and in view of the good weather conditions and the fact that the players were contesting their rights to places in the first fifteen, the handling of the ball was poor, especially amongst the backs. Combination was conspicuous' by its absence, and with half a dozen players shouting instructions and advice to one another towards the end of the game, football occasionally merged itself into a cheerful rough-and-tumble. In view of the form displayed, taking into account also the form of recent previous matches, the choice of the selector for next Thursday’s match is certainly hard to follow. It is hard to understand, in the face of the general opinion amongst Rugby followers that the inside backs were the greatest weakness, why a good, five-eighths should be selected to play on one wing, why a good wing- three-quarter should be sent on to the side line, why a first five-eighths should be asked to play in a new role as half-back; and meanwhile the inside backs remain unchanged. THE RIVAL CONTESTANTS. For .the position of full-back the only two seriously considered applicants are Collins and Hunt, both of whom figured . in the trial game. Hunt had much the heavier task of the two, and did it well, though he was bustled once or twice. It is doubtful, however, whether Collins could justifiably be dropped in favour of Hunt. As a centre three-quarter Hunter did good work. He did not, however, showout as he did in the match against Rangitikei at Eltham, probably because he was not allowed to, and his chance of a place in the A team was practically nullified through having as his vis-a-vis a player of the experience and present standing of-. H. W. Brown. The arrangement of the rest of the hacks, however, calls for comment. It cannot be denied that Owen and Johnston are not the men they were. Owen has not the nippiness and quick dccisioif so necessary in a first five-eighths, and Johnston is- one of the weakest links in the combination, not because of his individual merit, which is recognised, it because he breaks the combination. He is a very hard man to follow, and not all the years during which he and Brown have been playing together have taught them to combine effectively. On Satur- , day his handling left a lot to be desired. It does seem strange that K. Fookes, admittedly a first-class second five-eighths who struck form late in the season and is hardly likely to have lost - it, should be relegated to the wing three-quarter line, and a fast, strong and reliable man like Watson dropped into the emergencies, while the team is crying for a change of five-eighths. THE HALF-BACK POSITION. C. Brown’s defection left the selector a problem in finding a half-back, but it seems a risky experiment to plunge Tui Robinson into the position after he has been playing five-eighths all the season. Granted lie scored a delightful little try from the half-back position on Saturday, but it remains to be seen, apart from anything else, what will happen if he gets a superior pack up against him. Both ho and the Ilohaias have demon- ’ strated their worth on attack, but whether they are equally as valuable in the face of a gruelling battering is another matter, as people will say who saw the recent match between Taranaki F 3 and Wanganui at Wanganui. R. llohaia was perhaps not up to his best form, and is rather lacking in experience, but it seems a move of doubtful wisdom to go over his head, and pass by all the other half-backs in the laranaki senior competition as well, to give the position to Robinson. With tho retention of Guy as wingforward there is bound to be some disagreement, for many have held that S. Fookes is a better man, but on Saturday’s form Guy deserves his place. Fookes is a faster man, more hustling, and a quicker and more effective opportunist, and gets out amongst the backs with greater celerity. On attack • id n better rover. But he has ygt

ability to take the ball at critical .times has cost him many a try and made all the difference between his present rating and that of a brilliant rover. As a protective factor he has not shown himself to be as good as Guy, with the exception that Guy’s tackling leaves a great deal to be desired, THE WING THREE-QUARTERS. J, Crawford, who has been selected as a winger, is sound without being brilliant, and on Saturday’s form could not justifiably be replaced by Evans or Ross. Evans did not have much chance, certainly, but Ross was found badly wanting on two occasions. Why Crawford replaces Watson, however, is a mystery. The forwards all worked hard, and those who were fortunate enough to gain places did so on merit. Walter was in good form again. Espin, Williams and Murphy must count themselves the fortunate trio of the pack, for there are many other notable aspirants for their positions, and the Opunake club might well ask: “Where are our representatives?” To say nothing of F. Wolfe. The teams for Saturday's match lined out as follow: — A TEAM. Collins. Watson. Brown. K. Fookes. D. Johnston. Owen. Dymond. > Guy. Walter. ’ McLean. Baldwin. Ike. Kivell. W. Robinson. Murphy. Emergencies: J. Crawford, D. Crawford and Williams. B TEAM. Hunt. • 0. Evans. N.. Hunter. Ross. C. Hohaia. Tui Robinson. ' R. Hohaia. S. Fookes. F. Wolfe. C. Wills. .C. Espin. J. Palmer. R. Clarke. ■J. Young. S. Gargan. Emergencies; D. Grant, Hammond, Howell, _F. Goodwin. A TEAM ATTACKS EARLY. The A’s played in the first spell with a strong sun in their eyes, but in spite of this disadvantage they assumed an early offensive. Owen made a faulty attempt to field the ball, but recovered well, and stabbed his way through to send Walter away with a rattling burst. Guy finished the movement by scoring an unconverted try fairly well out. Back came the A’s twice in succession, Watson capping a fine back movement with a strong run which was prevented from being trycrowned, only by a determined tackle by Hunt. The B’s took a turn, and three times came within an ace of scoring, chiefly owing to fast passing rushes amongst the forwards. C. Hohaia had a good but resultless shot at goal from a drop-kick, the A’s immediately retaliating with a great passing rush in which half the team handled. McLean topped the movement with a strong run and handed on to Guy for the latter to score an easy try under the bar. The kick was disallowed.

Spurred on by encouragement from the crowd, which was rather partisan towards the B’s, the latter swooped down on their opponents’ goal, and Tui Robinson made a pretty cut-in, leaving the opposing inside backs standing, and completely beating them for C. Hohaia to score in a handy position. The try. was not converted. The spell ended with a fast dash by the A backs which carried play will into the B territory. Watson received to cut infield and worm his way in a corkscrew run to the posts. Collins converted, and the whistle sounded with the score: — A Team H B. Team 3 CHANGES AT INTERVAL. Several changes were made during the interval. In the A team J. Crawford replaced Owen, Rowe replaced Diamond at half-back, and Williams replaced McLean in the forwards. In the B team Tui Robinson and R. Hohaia changed nlaces, the former playing half-back and tho latter first five-eighths. Hammond replaced Evans on the wing. The A’s opened the attack with a sweeping rush. The B forwards came back and the backs operated with striking force, but Johnston intercepted a pass and broke clean away. When faced by Hunt he passed to Brown, but the pass was forward, and Brown was recalled from an otherwise certain try. Again the B’s nearly scored, a strong forward rush carrying them almost ovei under the bar. From a scrum the B’s were penalised for offside play, but Clarke failed with the kick from the simplest of positions. The tide of fortune receded, and in an A passing movement Brown eut through the defence, giving Watson a clear run in for a try that was not. converted. In a trice they were at it again, and the A backs came up fast on the opposite flank, K. Fookes scoring a good try in the corner. Col-, lins converted, and the A team led by 19 points to 3. • NEAT TRY BY T. ROBINSON. Indecision on the part of the A backs let the B team away, and Ross was nearly over in the corner. K. Fookes was crowded over the line, and from the scrum that followed Tui Robinson waltzed round the sqrum to score a delightful try which was not converted. A few moments later the Taranaki selector (Mr. A. Guy) stopped the game and interchanged Tui Robinson and Rowe. The move was greeted with cheers from the side-line. In an A passing rush Hammond intercepted, and gained half the length of the field for the B’s. Robinson (A’s) was penalised for offside play and Hunt landed a good goal. The A’s, however, were in scoring mood. First Brown topped a passing movement, with a good try which he converted himself, the ball striking the cross bar and bouncing over, then K. Fookes received on the wing to make a fast dash down the touch line, eventually passing infield for Walter to receive in turn and score near the posts. Walter converted his own try, the ball, as in the previous case, striking the cross bar and bouncing over. The game ended with the score unaltered: — A Team 29 B. Team 9 Mr. L. H. Clapham refereed. TO KEEP IN TRAINING. In view’ of the fact that the A team goes on tour to the East Coast and at the same time the B team goes to Wellington, the selector desires the following players to keep in form:—

Grant, C, Hohaia, Lay, Diamond, Hammond, Rowe, Gudgeon. Forwards: Wolfe, Howell, Palmer, R. Clarke, Young, Goodwin, Fowler, Conroy, G. Baldwin, Clegg, S. Fookes, Sullivan and Hill.

INTER-PROVINCIAL RUGBY.

WELLINGTON DEFEATS OTAGO.

By Telegraph.—Press Association. Wellington, Last Night.

Conditions were ideal on Saturday for the Wellington versus Otago Rugby match won by Wellington by 18 points to 12. Play was fast throughout and to within fifteen minutes of time, even, with Wellington leading in points, it seemed as though Otago might win. Wellington led in the first spell by eight points to three. For Wellington Julian played a great game at half-back and scored three tries, one of which was converted by Ramson. Eivy also scored a try and Heazelwood, the Wellington full-back, potted a magnificent goal from 49 yards out.

The Otago forwards -forced the pace but the backs were unable to finish off. Tries were scored for Otago by Souter, McClymont and Wilson (2). During the last fifteen minutes Wellington seemed ,to carry all before them, although Otago even when headed never lost lieart. Elvy made good .runs down the line and Porter was always a thorn to Otago. HAWKE’S BAY BEAT MANAWHENUA AN INTERESTING GAME.Napier, Last Night. Hawke’s Bay defeated Manawhenua by 32 points to 19 to-day in a game which, although not brilliant, had its interesting stages. M. Brownlie made his reappearance for the Bay, signalising his return to big football by playing a splendid game. Play was confined principally to the forwards, where the Bay, by adopting short in and out passing tactics had the advantage. The visiting backs had better combination, were speedier, showed more initiative, and handled better. They were at their best in the first spell but in the - second Brownlie played wing-for-ward, his spoiling work preventing the opposing backs from swinging into action.

The game in the first half provided good hard football, with little back play, and was remarkable for the fact 1 that whenever the backs did get going a score was the almost inevitable result-. The second half was more open, the Bay backs making good use of the ball when it came their way. 1

-The first spell ended with the score 13 to 11 in Bay s favour. Tries for the leading side were scored by Steere, Smith and McMay, while Grenside and Setford converted one each. For Manawhenua T. Parata, Bull and Walker scored, one try being converted by Akuira Tries in the second half were obtained for Bay by Grenside (2), McKay, Steere and Wilson, two being converted by Setford. For the visitors Strange scored both tries and Tutana converted one. S. CANTERBURY BEAT N. OTAGO. Timaru, Last. Night. South Canterbury defeated North Otago in a return match to-day by 19 points to 10. The game was fast and open throughout,' but the home team dominated play till ten - minutes from time, when they eased up, the visitors securing two converted tries. In a junior match South Canterbury defeated North Otago by 14 points to 9. WEST COAST DEFEATS BULLER. Greymouth, Last Night. In a Rugby representative return match West Coast yesterday defeated Buller by 28 points to 13 under ideal conditions. Bright back play pleased a large crowd. The Coast backs were superior first spell, which ended with Coast in the lead by 17 points to 5. The visiting forwards attacked in the second spell, gaining two tries quickly, but then faded somewhat. WELLINGTON BEAT KING COUNTRY Taumarunui, Last Night. The Wellington B Rugby representatives defeated King Country to-day by eighteen points to six. The weather was perfect and the ground in good order, with a' large attendance. King Country held their own in the first spell, the score at half time being three all. In the second spell the visitors showed an all-round superiority and scored quickly in the last ten minutes. Wellington got the ball from most of the serums and their backs kept on har-ra-ssing the local defence until it broke down. For Wellington Hinton and Petersen (2) scored tries and Neal converted one try. Spence kicked a penalty goal and Coman potted a goal from the field. For King Country Roddick kicked a penalty goal and Burr scored a try. AUCKLAND PLAY CANTERBURY. WIN FOR NORTHERNERS. Auckland, Aug. 31. A representative Rugby match between Auckland and Canterbury, played at Eden Park to-day, resulted in a win for Auckland by 17 points to 6. Auckland scored three tries, two of which were converted, and Hook kicked a penalty goal. Canterbury scored two unconverted tries. Play was fast and exciting throughout and the final scores in favour of Auckland were by no means an indication of the play. For Auckland McWilliams, Minns and L. Dight scored tiies, two of which were converted by Corner. L. Hook also drop-kicked a goal. For Canterbury Manchester and Innes scoied tries. Conditions were ideal and there was an attendance of about 13,000 spectators. SEDDON SHIELD CHANGES HANDS. GOLDEN BAY BEAT MARLBOROUGH. Blenheim, Aug. 31. Showing superiority in both forwards and backs, Golden Bay, the challengers, to-day won the Seddon Shield, from Marlborough who gained possession of the trophy from Nelson last week. There was a record attendance and the weather was brilliant. Bay held the advantage in scrums and line-outs and had a much larger share zvf Bell Bay’s backs showed fair

combination, coupled with straight and determined running, though fast in the loose. Marlborough forwards showed poor control of the ball, while the backs were futile in the face of deadly opposition tackling. Clarke opened Bay’s score with a beautiful try from a passing bout, touching down between the posts. Wright converted and the half-time score was five to nil. In the second spell the challengers had the upper hand most of the time, N. Holyoake scoring an unconverted try. There was no further score, Golden Bay winning by 8 points to nil.

MANAWATU BEATS SUB-UNION.

Palmerston N., Last Night.

Manawatu defeated the Combined Orona and Te Kawau Sub-unions at Palmerston North by 24 points to 9.

REPRESENTATIVE RUGBY LEAGUE.

CANTERBURY BEATEN BY OTAGO.

Christchurch, Aug. 31.

Otago beat Canterbury in a representative Rugby League match to-day by 26 points to 18 after having rather the better of play both back and forward. The Canterbury backs showed little combination in the first half. The score see-sawed until at half-time Canterbury led by 13 points to 12. In the second half Otago combined much better ami had Canterbury on the defensive until the final whistle.

The scorers for Otago were RichMioks (3), O’Malley, Blazey (2) and Pearce. One try was converted by Pearce. For Canterbury tries were scored by Drury, Spillane (2) and Dobbs. Bond converted three tries.