RUGBY COMPETITIONS

Taranaki Daily News, 18 July 1930, Page 13

RUGBY COMPETITIONS

SATURDAY’S PLAY REVIEWED HATCHES .IN SOUTH TARANAKI. KAPONGA AND OKAIAWA DRAW. Failure to take advantage of a territorial superiority maintained practically throughout the first spell, and the effectiveness of Kaponga’s defence, led to Okaiawa having to concede a draw to Kaponga on their own ground on Saturday. Time and again their supporters looked for the scoring movements that would give them an advantage over their opponents, but their own faulty play and . the solid defence • of their opponents kept them from crossing the line. : Back rushes were as little effective. ..either breaking down before the ball • . passed, the inside backs or being frns;trated by deadly tackling. ■ No doubt the absence of Dave Johnston 'made a /great difference to the team, the play . 'of .the' inside backs being, lamentably weak; '. - • ‘ ' The- position was almost, reversed in ■ the. second spell, when Kaponga, playing with the wind and sun, held a territorial advantage over their opponents, though they did not exert the .pressure that Okaiawa did in the first- session. “ Some of their concrete rushes in both i back and forward divisions were worthy _ of tries, only- the stern defence of Okaiawa keeping them out. Their try at . the' end of the second spell was a welldeserved effort and showed what a dan- . gerous forward pack Kaponga . really < are.- Again the inability to finish .off ' their movements was demonstrated when, like Okaiawa in the first spell, they let a number of scoring chances ' go to waste. The result of the game, considering - the . determined way in which both teams made effort after effort to score, ' speaks volumes for the. solid defence shown on both sides. Williams proved very useful as Kaponga’s last line of defence, and outshone' Okaiawa’s custodians, first Murdoch and later Ngaia. Paterson extricated his side from a number of dangerous situations, and. Hainmersley, ■ Jef- ' coate and Dawson were as good as the opposing forwards would allow them to be. Murphy, Gardner and Free were about the best of a hard-working pack • of- forwards, amongst whom Espin did . not shine as prominently as usual in ’• the loose. Twist was very useful as rover. With Dave Johnston out of their ranks, and harassed by the bustling opposing forwards, Okaiawa’s backs : - lacked brilliance,- Cameron and Mur-, doeh. making probably the best showing. James performed well in the face of the opposing forwards. Of the Okaiawa pack R. Clarke and Guy were most prominent in a hard-working crowd.HAWERA TROUNCE ATHLETIC. While it was for the most part a forward scramble the game between Hawera and Athletic at Hawera was relieved from mediocrity by an occasional Hashof’’bright hack play. It appeared in the first half, which ended 13 to nil in HaWera’s'favour, as if Hawera would compile a cricket score against their opponents. But on the change over Athletic put more vim into their play and no further score was recorded. At times, especially during the second spell, play became unnecessarily hard, and two players at least were fortunate in being allowed to remain on the field. It was noticeable that one or two players showed an inclination to play the man instead of the ball, and consequently the feeling between both sides was rather too keen. The all-round superiority of the Hawcra team was made evident in the first spell, cohesive play leading to < openings which were taken advantage, of. "Poor tackling, surprising in the : . Athletic team, allowed Hhwera to..penetrate. the defence and the' first try came when Malcolm secured in a line-out and ran through the backs to score- • near the posts. The South Auckland player, Crothy, is an acquisition to the Hawera team, his versatility being in the two trice he scored, one when he secured from a melee and literally hurled himself, over t'he line, and the other wlien .'ho'received'the' ball after a beautilul’ipassing rush and in a: fast, swerv-. ' Ing‘rbri/hran’ round the Athletic team io sSdre'-iii .a good position. The-try'was as an oasis in the desert, probably the most specfalular he has scored, in Taranaki this.' season. With the exception of Chee vers, the full-back, each Hawera back handled the ball faultlessly. The movement was started ■by .Spence Anderson on one wing, the i ex-New' Plymouth High School boy, , .dashing up the line before inpassing to • • the half-back, Riley, who sent it on to his five-eighths, each running straight before transferring to Hunter, the Ta- , ranaki representative, at the critical ■ moment, threw a snappy pass to Crothy, the winger, with a great buret of speed, outpacing the opposition to score. Naturally the crowd was delighted, for it' was a brilliant effort—football as it should be played. But the pity of if was that it was only tried once, the team lapsing into. the. abominable prac- . tice of kicking: into touch to gain the coveted few yards.. And it was not surprising to hear a spectator remark: ‘'You’ve, shown us you can do it,. Hawera, can’t, you do it again?” OPUNAKE BEAT PATEA. Though productive of bright incidents " the game between Opunake and Patca •• was rather disappointing, both sides seeming a little over-keen to take the lead in the championship. The first spell was marked by an inordinate amount of fumbling while both sides were ; offside. Play improved in the second ' spell, with some fine forward rushes by both sides. ■■ High lights of the game were Peterd son’s display at full-back for Patea, ms ’kicking duel with Harrison, Robinson s - .’."try and R. Hohaia's field goal. Playing with the wind in me first • J "-period Patea had the better of matters. their forwards shading Opunake. There was not much between the teams teni- --- tonally, but Patea always looked more dangerous when close to the lino. Knocks-on at critical moments saved Opunake. After the interval Opunake began to assert a superiority which ■grew more marked as the game proceeded. The Opunake forwards were largely ■ -responsible for their team’s win although they gave away many penalties for off-side. They held the strong Fatea. pack well, and in the loose were always dangerous, J. Lusk and Conroy showing ■-up. - prominently. •' Gulden and Bodge hooked iwbll,<.<fgr.ving their bacKS'

a very fair percentage of the ball. Harrison went fairly well as rover, his powerful kicking being of great value to his side. He and Peterson vied with each other in shots at goals from penalties from great distances, neither having luck with- fine kicks. R. Hohaia went well at half-back, getting the ball away cleanly to his five eighths. At times when Im was pressed he exploited a spectacular dive pass to good advantage. His field goal at the conclusion of the game was a smart effort, Patea forwards submerging him almost as soon as he received the ball from the scrum.

Robinson was disappointing in the early stages, running too obliquely-—a fault shared by his partner, C. Hohakt. The ball seldom got past them. Robinson’s try, when . be bashed through the defence close in, was reminiscent of Mill at his best. McCullum, the centre, dropped a number of passes but Bo water on the wing piny cd good football. McDonald was a shaky last line of defence.

'Peterson played a magnificent, game at full-back for Patea amt did not make a mistake all day. His tackling was deadly, his gathering of the ball sure, and his line-kicking practically perfect. He had two shots at goal from over the half-way line, neither being-straight, in front, and missed by the narrowest of margins. _ The: attacking units of the Patea rcJii-guard 'were disorganised by the loss of Joo Crawford‘early in the first spell, and his injury probably meant the difference between victory and defeat. In. his absence Zimmerman was the shining light, making some brilliant runs ami defending resolutely. Hurley got through a lot of hard work at the base of the scrum. Wherever forward play was hardest there was Paten’s stalwart W. Baldwin, working like a trojan. The whole Patea pack went well in the first spell but were beginning to-fade as the game progressed. Wills led them in some fine attacking movements and, playing at wing-forward,' the Taranaki representative . tooka lot. of stopping. ’THRILLS AT STRATFORD. It is doubtful whether Old .Boys forwards will again play .such a fine game as they did against Stratford. It has to bo remembered that the splendid Stratford pack was also on its metal and was playing to a pre-decided system, yet the men in white held it throughout the greater part -of the game and, moreover, held it longenough for Olson to get the ball away to hie backs. The Stratford vanguard displayed a remarkable aptitude for hindering its opponent’s play in two directions and it seemed to know at- once which to concentrate upon. From one .scrum it would break up with lightning-like rapidity and move forward as a mobile, loose unit with Young and Smith as the • centrepieces, while from others it would adopt the flying wedge formation and push to split Old Boys into halves. In both- movements the Stratford men succeeded, but often the very impetuosity of their rushes defeated the. purpose and the ball was over-run. Nevertheless, it was great football and time after time Olson cleared in the very nick of time. Often he was swamped, and the wave of red and black .forwards rolled on down- the field, blotting out the men who would stay the advance. On: these occasions the public was treated to the inspiration of Mace and Galbraith, who gave brilliant exhibitions in gathering up the ball and making snap kicks to safety right under the feet of the onrush. In this capacity priar also delighted spectators. One of the features of the match was the great offensive made by Stratford about 12 minutes from time and after Old Boys had scored its try. The red and black forwards literally hurfed themselves over the opposition and were still going great guns at the finish. They dominated play, sending in rush after rush, only the quickest of quick line kicking saving the . defence and giving.a respite to the white forwards. These players to a man went down to the attacks, but the weight and vigour were not to be gainsaid and Fryday's try magnificently rounded off a period of the finest forward endeavour ge.cn in club football this year. When the ball, left Collins’ boot, in the effort io convert it. was sailing true, for its mark but curved in mid-flight and passed just onlsjde the post.. Whether ic was a twist in the kick or the effect of the wind is. still being debated in Stratford. Selector Guy must have been impressed by . the match he saw at Stratford on Saturday and it will be interesting to sec his choice of the next representative team. Owen seemed to be having a day, not exactly off, but rather below his usual standard. On the other hand, players in line for selection such as Medley, K. Fookes, Friar and Galbraith among the Old Boys splendid back line and Bond, Lehmann and Fryday in the Stratford pack and -Perry, the outstanding Old Boy forward, all played at the top of their form. Hunt will have to look to his laurels io retain the full-back position for the public was treated to very impressive displays by both Collins and Priar. Priar played a spectacular game, but this typo of defence is rather too risky for a Taranaki crowd. He chose to take the 'ball bn the full running at 'speed and invariably ho did take it, but had he missed his team would have been in immediate difficulties. Collins, bn the 'other hand, seldom had to move ‘more than a few yards to field short or medium kicks, and from his ■general style of play"seemed to possess an uncanny anticipation of the source of impending trouble. But didn’t he seem slow when chasing a ball! There is one fault with the Old Boys pack as demonstrated in the match on Saturday. They are too apologetic in tackling. A little more vigour in tackling would have stood them in good stead during the concluding stages. What a splendid rear-guard the Old Boys team possesses, especially in the combination of the three-quarter line! The backs tlrny fielded last Saturday were up to provincial standard and played the game the football public loves best. What though a tew passes were dropped and a few unduly delayed! It was the thrill of the backs that so delighted the crowd, the willingness to take a risk in the confidence of their own ability, to depend upon fleetness and skill "rather than strength and stamina. Let the public be given more enterprising back play and there will bo no squeal about falling gates, TUKAPA’S NARROW WIN,

After a game which began under good conditions but ended in rain and mud Tukana beat Star on Saturday by three points to nil. It was not particularly a good: exhibition of''Rugby but- it 1 had ■its' interesting : «nd'-exciting Incidents. From the start Tukapa‘shotted great-

er initiative and would have been unlucky to have lost, although the Star forwards put up a dogged fight and at times swept the Tukapa forwards to one side in devastating dribbling rushes. The Tukapa backs were as enterprising ns ever hut seemed io lack the necessary finish to cap good movements with tries. The Star rear-guard on several occasions opened out irfore attractively than hitherto this season and staged some pretty attacks which were stemmed only by sound defence. Guy at rover for Tukapa piayed a magnificent game both as regard effectively breaking tip any concerted play among the Star "backs and upon defence, often coming right buck to assist the three-quarter line in times of distress. When heavy rain made, the ball heavy and slippery, Guy broke away, ball at toe, time after time and his try waa ihe direct result of one such breakaway. Play had been hovering about mid-field when Guy came away from a scrum. A Star back kicked, to touch -but, from a melee following the lineout, Guy again received possession to force himself across for the only try of the day. In his foraging breaks from line-out and scrum he was' generally well supported by McNeill who played a sound game. Gayton gave one of his best displays io date and was in the thick of everything. This forward appears to be putting on weight and developing into a rugged battler. Shaw, Harvey and McLeod led the Star pack in characteristic manner and Meuli was especially useful at wing-forward. The Star pack seemed ■to miss the hard playing Clarke and, though every man played soundly enough, did not give as good'an exhibition as usual. Godfrey, the Star full-back, is improving with every game and on Saturday, in spite of a wet, elusive ball, extricated his side from some nasty positions with. . commendable .coolness and ability. Lealahd, Sampson and Billing comprised a good three-quarter line, being sound on defence, while Rothery played his usual plucky game. Boswell, again at half for Tukapa in ■the absence of 0. Brown, gave a sound and' bright exhibition. Many people would, like to see him always in the half-back I position and believe he is one of Taranaki’s best. Evans was sound but not at home at first five-eighths, while Dickson was again a weak link. Wyatt was the better wing and both Pettys played good games. RAIN SPOILS INGLEWOOD GAME. Unfavourable weather conditions marred the display of both teams in the Inglewood-Celtic match' at Inglewood, which resulted in a win for the home team by 8 points to 6. Undoubtedly Inglewood deserved its win, despite the fact that the majority of the back movements were poor, for the bustling pack kept Celtic penned to its twenty-five during most of the time. Though none was outstanding the members of the Inglewood pack formed a strong and efficient attacking force, which proved very useful in breaking up the attempts of the Celtic backs during the first spell. Dodd, Celtic’s full-back, was perhaps the best back on the field though Crossman, Inglewood's elusive half, played an excellent game. Both sides deteriorated in rhe second .spell when the heavy rain caused the play to become very ragged. Inglewood used its forwards to advantage and though Celtic defended stoutly, was aide to keep on Celtic’s line for a groat part of the limo. Towards the end. however, Celtic rallied spiritedly and after piercing the Inglewood defence, Celtic hammered at the line in a series oi live-yard scrums until Coulton forecd his way over. INTER-SCHOOL FOOTBALL. NEW PLYMOUTH v. HAMILTON. SELECTION OF SCHOOL TEAM. . The New Plymouth Boys’ High School first .fifteen to play Hamilton High School at Pnkekura Park, at 1.30 pan. to-morrow has been selected as follows: Full-back, Bedford; three-quarters, Cook, Andrews (captain), Snell; fiveeighths, Law, Cato; half, Maslin; wingforward, Birch.; back row, Curtis, Maunder; side row, Dallison, Cave; lock, Lynch; hookers, Dickey, -Price. Emer«encies: Backs, Laurence, Fredsberg, Peake; forwards, Bryant, Hamilton and McCallum. Mr. A. J. Papps, the school coach, told the News last evening that three changes had been made in the team since it played St. Patrick’s College at Hawera. Law, who had been picked as half-back for that match but who was unable to .play through injuries, liad taken Peake’s place at second fiveeighths and should considerably strengthen School both on attack and defence. Maslin had been placed at half but if the day were wet and conditions unsuitable Tor open play, Fredsberg would probably again take the position behind the scrum. Cook had taken Laurence’s place on the wing and Curtis replaced Wylde-Brown, who was on the sick list, in the back rank of the scrum. The Hamilton team will arrive in New Plyinou this afternoon a/.d will be billeted with the local boys. From northern reports it is gathered that the visitors have a strong and fast foam. Mr. J. King.has been,appointed referee. HOUSE MATCH FIXTURE. Sargood's team to play Macky, ami Ross and Glendiiining combined 10uriide football match in New Plymouth in the week-end is as follows: Smith, Morris, Pulford/' Stevens, Plumtrce. Seohlo. Toomey, Roch, Dickson, Ealon. TEAMS FOR TO-MORROW. Eltham seniors versus Okaiawa noniore at Eltham: M. Patterson, M. Prince, J. Groves, D. Knuckey, E. Hughes, E. Townsend, L. Casey, A. S. Peiimall, F. Bocoek, R. McWilliam, C. Penniail, R. Campbell, IL Potts, R. Bocoek, R. TTolove, V. Anderson, II Elliott. • Old Boys seniors to play Star, at Pnkekura Park, at 2.30 p.m.: Priar, Webster, Brown, Fookes, Galbraith, Mace, Mason, S. Fookes, Frethey, Slyfieki, Deader, Luxton, Perry, Crawford, Clark, Olson, Rutherford, Beck, Scoblc. Old Boys thirds. Hetherington, Martin, Chisholm, Shaw, White, Budd, Allen, V’esti, Newall, Sheehy, Rutherford, Smith, Mace, Vcale, Gorringe, Rea, Thompson, McLean, Tukapa seniors v. Celtic, at Stratford: Petty (2), Wyatt, Evans, Dickson, Boswell, Brown, Guy, O’Dowda (2), McNeill, Collins, Bithell, Spcdding, Gayton, Southcombe, Hili.

Tukapa thirds' v,. Old Boys, at. Race - course No. 2, at 1.15 :. Uardiiier, Knott, Sanger, Sorenson, ' Main, Williams, Me-

Given, Lock, Wallace, Lobb,' Wright. Neilson, Hall, Morris, Bayley, Lewis, Carter, Haines, Pickett. Tukapa fonrtn grade v. Star, at Racecourse. at 3 p.m.: Gunson, Lewis, Gardiner, Lobb, Alsop, Bradford, Gayton, Kai, Florence, Murdock, Koti, Martin, Hall, Greenlees, Fox, Tuvendale, Ballot, Neville. Tukapa fifth grade v. Star, al Racecourse, at 3 p.m.: Gruszning, Innes, McKinney, Roebuck, Bryan, Walker, Rea, Newel], Lobb (2), A T oullairc, Cattley, Barlow, Powell, George, Hutton, Tomms, McCoy, Courtenay, Edgecombe. Star A v. Star B, at Racecourse, at 10 a.m.: McLeod. (2), Wilkins, Bell, Fitzpatrick, Harvey, Crapper, Hoskin, Beer, Utiger, Forbes-Faulkner, Rich, Way, Payne, Smith. Sullivan. Star B: Ferry, Rothery, Crawford. Utiger, Bland, Brooks, Harris, Julian, Burgess, (Jomrie, McDonald, Perreau, McMillan, Baker, Hoffmann, Tippens, Hoskin, Skipper. Star seniors io play Old Boys: Harvey (2), Brewster, Shaw, O'Byrne, McLeod (2), Forlies-Faulkiner, Meuli, Rothery, Clegg, Kinsella, Lealaiid, Billing, Sampson, Godfrey. star fourth grade to play Tukapa, at Racecourse, at 3 p.m.: Bowen, Gore. Suin’, Parkin, McCauley, McFarlane, O’Doiiuoll, White, Nuttall, Cook, W 7 . Gore, Craw, 'kiker, Rutherford, Stroud, Cursons, Cropp, Grey, South, Batten. ‘ Star third grade v. High School, at Racecourse, at 3 p.m.: Plumtree, Burr, Kerr, Meale, Wcblrer, Simpson, Kinsella. Hagerty, Sampson, Early, Webber, Robinson, McLean, Kerr, Riley. Star fifth grade v. Tukapa, at Racecourse, at 3 n.m.: Bruce, Suhr, Rennie, Hookham, Clegg, Avery, Perreau, Stevens, Erb, Elder, Rankin, McKay, Sisson, Glengarry, Utiger, Millman, Gardner. Morris, Black, Richards, Coleman.