ON THE HOCKEY FIELD

Taranaki Daily News, 24 May 1934, Page 10

ON THE HOCKEY FIELD

PLAY THROUGHOUT TARANAKI

COMMENTS ON THE FLAY

INTEREST IN SATURDAY DIVISION.

part of the field of play, always provided ,of course, there is a clear space between the player who passes and the player who receives. You execute the push in this way. Bring the blade of the stick up to and placed directly against the ball, which; in most cases, is in front' of the player and moving away from him as he dribbles. Keep the handle of the stick well forward so that the stick is maintained in an up-, right position,: letting the right hand slip down. Then give a strong thrust to the blade. This is performed by the use of the right wrist, and the ball is then sent along the ground with a smooth roll, and the reception of the pass is thus made easy by the player to whom it is actually pushed. You cannot utilise the push stroke for long distances; it should be employed for short distances only. It is a most subtle attacking stroke, and of vital importance for half-backs to know

(By

“Sticks.”)

One of the most interesting features of the play in hockey matches at New Plymouth last Saturday was the performance of the Territorial- team. It was its first real try-out this season, weather affecting the attendance of players the first time and a default against Urenui being caused the next week through no fault of Territorials. For a young team the game played was promising. The defence was particularly strong, Holmes and E. Booth making a reliable pair of full-backs. In the half-line Westwood will and can successfully tackle anybody and R. Booth is a sound player at all times. He- has had no little experience of the game under good coaches. Richards made the brightest display of the game, and shows a great improvement on last year’s form. Two Territorial players, D. McLean and Treeby, are still on • the sick list, but may be fit to wield a stick again on Saturday. They are'both useful players.

Rivals’ players. The. return of J. Innes after a temporary incapacity through injury will be welcomed by Rivals. He is invaluable in the half-line. T. Ward is a useful player, and did good work on Saturday, but is developing a tendency to one-handed hitting that may lead to trouble. It is often useful to be able to reach for the ball with one hand, but the player’s control over the ball is weakened a great deal. Control over the stick is also weaker, allowing a greater possibility of giving “sticks.” Gibbins had an outing on Saturday, three of four goals coming from his stick, and several other shots of his missed the net by a narrow margin.

Urenui an Improving Team. After a few more games to give practice and confidence, Urenui should be a hard team to beat in the Saturday division of the competitions. The game against Wanderers last Saturday was not really as unequal territorially as the scores suggest. The visitors were defeated by a margin of three goals, but Wanderers did not have the game all its own way. In fact most of the five goals scored against Urenui were netted within the space of about twenty minutes when the New Plymouth . forwards held the ascendancy. In the last quarter-hour, for instance, Urenui was on the attack consistently and only a good defence and a little hard luck prevented a bigger score in its favour. The forwards are developing good combination, the R. Wilson-Blackburn-Sheard trio being prominent on several occasions.

Champion Taranaki Team? Page played his best game of this year’s competition on Saturday against Urenui, when an improved standard of play gave him a better chance of showing his skill. In rough, ragged play he seems far from happy. What has been seen, of his game this season shows him still worthy to lead Taranaki. P. Ewart is a Wanderers’ player who will almost certainly represent the province this year. His scores on Saturday were not merely good luck but the result of clever stick work. Groombridge played a good game, his work with Ewart and Tiplady being pretty to watch. With aggressive and well combined forwards and safe halves and full-backs Wanderers should be hard to match this season. The team is well balanced and is composed largely of experienced players. Its performance in the George and Doughty cup will be worth watching. Stratford Club Notes.

The best games in the women’s competitions were played last Thursday and as the day was very wet good hockey was not to be expected. In the senior game between Kaponga and Stratford Old Girls, which Kaponga won by one goal to nil, the Old Girls’ team played very well and was unlucky in not making a draw of the game. One thing this team must practice is to hit the ball hard and with direction. The players must also try to play with more combination. The junior game between Old Girls and Tariki, played at Tariki, resulted in a win for Tariki by five goals to nil. The Stratford team was unfortunate in being able to field only ten players. With a little luck the score might have been five goals to three.

Inglewood and Stratford. In the men’s senior game between Inglewood and Stratford at Inglewood, the Stratford team played first-class hockey and won by eight goals to nil. On the day’s play Stratford would have been hard to beat by any team in the competition. Its play was a treat to watch, the forwards time after time taking the ball down the field as one man. The backs were very solid on defence or attack. The outstanding players for Stratford were Hale, Irwin, McGillvray and Currie. Currie has gone to the forwards from the half-line, and seems to have found his correct position. McGillvray played a sterling game on the right wing. In the junior game between Stratford and High School B, which Stratford won by eight goals to one, School did not settle down to the game at the start and allowed Stratford to score several goals early. In the second half School played better hockey, but had no chance against the superior play of the Stratford team. Stratford players who shone were Bone, Skuse and Thompson.

Developing Good Strokes. Now that new players are settling down to the game and are becoming familiar with the elementary principles of hockey, they should be developing their stick-work. Good stick play makes all the difference between a good and a merely mediocre player. A player should have a knowledge of all the various strokes and when best to apply them. Two thoroughly useful shots are the push and scoop strokes—practically twins, except that the scoop lifts the ball into the air while the push enables the ball to be controlled along the ground. In circumstances where the scoop, in the lifting of the ball, is considered to be dangerous the umpire has full power to penalise.

The Scoop Stroke. To accomplish the scoop stroke you give an outward turn of the wrists which forces the blade of the stick under the near side of the ball and propels it to the right. The ball rises about knee high, and it is not an easy pass to intercept. It is mainly used to open up the play for the benefit of the right wing. Performed correctly, the ball should not rise high enough or travel fast enough to do any hurt. The scoop can also be used for scoring at close quarters by a forward. The “flick” is another name for the scoop, and it is a favourite method of passing by first-class half-backs, for it keeps an attacking line well on the move. Push Shot Expeditious. The push shot is utilised as the most expeditious method of passing from any