THE WEEK'S RUGBY.

Timaru Herald, Volume XCVIII, Issue 18084, 11 June 1924, Page 4

THE WEEK'S RUGBY.

(By “ Toucliline.”)

NOTES AND .COMMENTS

THE PREMIERSHIP

Point and Celtic are at present at I the top of the tree in the ,jumoi .lag ; competition, with 9 points each, Zm- i can being with 7. I E In thothn.. grade, Geraldine, with 10 points, ha. e established a use nil lead, their nearest competitors being W'asiidyke and Celtic, with 6 apiece Tomuka load the field in the fouitn rrrade with 10 championship points, but Star (81 have played one game less than tho country team. Point hold the king position among ' the fifth graders, having 8 points to , their credit. Celtic, ,-AVhtf "Iraye - " had" a bye, are next with 5, and Star third with 4. . . . ! Drawn games were a rarity last season, but!* they have been unusually prevalent this year. . It is reported that the receipts at the tournament were not much more than £2OO. For an eighteenpenny gate this looks a small return for such a big crowd as thronged the stand unci embankments. There we're nearly thirty scrums m the Star-Celtic match last week. Application of; the advantage rule might have resulted in a faster and more.open game. *' Zingari and Old Boys, the leaders in the premiership competition, are scheduled to meet on Saturday; -and ifi'-tlhe weather remains fine, there is a prospect of a record gate. : There was a good deal qf„ illegal tackling in tho; Old Boys-Waihi gafiie last week, and ■' the spirit which should characterise play was not-verypstrqngl/' in evidence! ,V/\ . v . # - ■The New!) Zealand team to visit New South Wales, is to sail from Wellington for Sydney, on June 26. Twenty'-thrbo players have been selected-to .make tHp trip. Tho whole All Black team is to sail‘from Wellington, fop England, cn July 26, but .if arrangements- can "be made, a match will be pluy'ed at;' 1 Palmerston North prior to its departure., A suggestion has beeri.'injade thUi during the-approaching tour of Britain the New Zealanders should-l'discaid Dm

wing renvara as a concession to English opinion. The Winger,,' it; .has'been claimed, will be unpopular inMhe'Add; Country and it is asserted that the 1 tourists will be better received if they do without him, though none of tho j antkwingers offer, jiny,, ,suggestii>ii-.-*s' > f to tvhat is to he done with him. j Actually all that is necessary is to do ' as the English do and dub the spoiler ; a rover. Gallahor's unpopularity with ’ a section of the British public was duo I to the effect he produced on the op- 1 posing backs, and so far from crying I out for thp abolition of .the wing iffalf, * many Home clubs have -; played Vneunder some title or other since Gallaher’s day. As recently as *]ast , son a writer in one of th&chief English J , E P O i papers ascribed the 11011-success °f »* ales in the international series, to feet that they played no rover. < Star juniors have a unique record ! this season, being still., undefeated -vet j never having won a 'game. Their I ; ngWe?. .are- as.JoHowsPlayed 4, won j J a"Mhlt'' 3 4, - : Poiiits'fo'r B/’pbirtts [ ."ine representation of , tho provinces in tno JNetv Zealand team is as louows: Ha wice s Day 6, . oain;oi bury'.tj,. Vyaumgton d, Auckland it, ; Taraiiaiii . d, Vvairarapa z, Southland' 2, ' Otago T Soutb Canterbury t, vvesc Coast l Bay ol Bienty i. 'lhe. iNorili island ; supiies lx oi ,iue party/ ana Tffe.bffupi Stewart and Craven were absentees lrom tne uid Boys pack ihsu ween. Craven will resume command oil Sacurclay next, but Siewart jias. been advised -to rest..Bui ■aiiicie lor, a tewW vvedits longer,- a shgiifc' spminer which*:- ’ was sustained h}./me'.trial .at' Invercargill "had scarcely'“Been 'overcome 'when a kick on the weak spot in the island game caused Stewart's retirement two or three minutes berore the call- ol time. . d-; j The decision ,of tfea. Nevy Zealand ! selectors mo., having been announced, the press propagandists have turned .their: atteiu.u., t</ criticism off,the' worn of the septette.,. The prevailing note is one;bf ’disSittisfa’ctibn—at’tlie'exclusion of players in the home town of the particular writer, 'there is, however, a consensus of unbiased opinion that . certain .of -t .-chosen,': especially"in . the .back du. v ,.«^^iLyis. t reason'..to;;gqm ■- gratulate themseivess oil their luck, and one particular in which the criticism of the methodsdof :.the selei tors appears to be justiiieff js,-tfi.e, varying -treatment accorded ' to tl iff brent - players, in me trials—some men who performed quite respectably weredropped after one game,’while others wliu d pocly were given three •'or : < ‘ . irtpupities to play themso.. hi. 'seems to be fjiirly . .evident that there ivas' a strong desire to put Perry in the team as captain, and it took four inditfereut displays to make the selectors pass him over. One.of- the. forwards, it is alleged, was favoured by one or two of the selectors for policy reasons,- add liad only to do tolerably well to secure a. place/ The surprise of the whole buiness is -the partiality shown to young and inexperienced backs from Canterbury, and the poor representation given to Otago. When the team returns it will probably be found that, as 'happened m>,:l9oOi there have b§en,.a ; fe\y. pas.sengeys, but the side , should win ■ nearer -all .its games. A , satisfactory feature of.the business is the exclusion of some of tho “shiners” who let tho Dominion clown against the Spring-

Uu tuß Bear were a uttie bit UIUUI muaLD Til AiUtCU <•«.

u o ui«oU 1111 CU ll ICS IttuU UtJUDCI LUU.iI il o'-" 111 ““LL U CUliVeiloU Iij—UIIA lb is u»s ponma Ulul count, ivuU LUO JJIUOb COUiU UOl ulUmO iinyuuuy Out tuoinaoivos ioi' iiegiooiou oppui tuui•tios. ui ineL goai-ohOoviug • aepui uuoul. ijutj game tt&a. cUtiructouacu uy tim gUUU- alJU’lt VUi .WUiCil; 10 was pigyeu—ouci; utuioaiiiieiro'’ peiug 'Jjuioe aiuerem .trout ouat pre telling’on''.iSo. L grounu. ilio SUUbOiOUtO .Xiuoa UOU Cl'OppCd UR il) Luo Oui , .boys- '> ailu game, olio counory s Kipper, wiio was wituin ins legal nguts, being averse to the replacement of injured players auimg Uie game. The rules of itugby do lqx provme for substitutes, and auy ueparcuro i f dm the code- must, be made by mutual consent, it lias become customary to allow replacements up til halt time, and it might oe a good thing if the S.O.R.U. embodied this in tins rules governing its competition matches. Such a course Mould obviate periodical arguments on tlu point and Mould remove an often, times irksome responsibility irom the shoulders of captains. ... t ct : c3 Mainly owing to the spoiling tactics Bote fixtm'e n'ot ’ produK of hV tne Blue rearguard, • gave them more room, and tlve other lo pj.nts was aruolv the result of the? alteration. MaT.neson took advantage ot every op-noi-Lunitv that u-as ottering, ms ny nea tee- end of the game bemg an especially determined euorG iteaiy m ihe Old Boys’ passing lushes Mere initialed from oppooumtow «£Stea..a Witt S a very vigorous game• beott feTsellsons lS° Too much; latitude mng^atte! |tey the rss a^ss rrith ae public. the original all blacks. lions concerning United King■S'iu”S v Th“ AW bo fomul mthe following summary :-- 'lhe nai&cohfel»: o f 27 players (twft ,s cTh. a sail next month), Id backs ana t forwards, under the management of Mi G Dixon and the captaincy of . .he fee D (lallahcr. 3. Vuncu ucco/.j named the team as coach, but it is understood that he wasnotgiven full econo by a section of the players, in •team ■ lote-onlteone,-match pa .the, trißj thoughwas beaten by. a provincial fifteen in New Zealand prior to The defeat was sustained at the lianas of the Welsh international team—oi, as is now.- generally admitted, at the hands of the referee, Mho amved too late on tlie'.sceneto see a try scene j hv DeaiiS'tThe jjtVh&celectrified, football SuovSriSgfti%!d'iE<.u»i™ kr ;»SV tics arid combination, and.j,was,nevei m dangorij or-'defeijt, jUliid ovcl ., ; 'took -iW'oI near the end* of its itinerary, when the xnost uv portant matches were crowded /together. The names of the players, u mn their ages and approximate weigh s, were as/ fpllawa^Racks: W. J. Wajj. lace (27) T2.V,-E: ■T: Harper <2T)-12 ; /y E.''El’TWrith’^(Sd)'. 11. 10, 6-.^. -Smith., (33) ,11.12, H. Abbott (23) 13.0, *• Roberts (23) 12.4, R. S. Doans> (21) 13.4, J. Hunter (2u) 12.7, "• Mynott (29) 11.9, G. Gillett (.28) -13.0,: H, D. Thomson (24) 10.9, D, MeGreer of (23) 11,3. ' Forwards:- J, Gallalier (29), '13.0, W S. Glenn (27) 12.12, S. Casey (22) 12.4, A. -McDonald (22). 13,6, AV Johnston (23; 13.6, CisSeeiingf (22) , 13 - 7 / Nichol-' son (26J-,13110, uG. Tyler (26) 13.0, T. Corbett (25) 13.9, F -Newton .(Ay 15.0, F. Glasgow (25) 13.3, J. Q. Sullivan (22) 13.7, W. Mackre l -,( >3\ 12 7, W. Cunningham (29) . 11 -b Originally ,Pijly.26- players were chosen,.; bue - side embarked it - was; realised thai"- the; Selectors had made a blurider intpickirig Newton (Canterbury) as lock, and the veteran Cunwas added to the number, as; of popular clamour. Newton was practically, a passenger during ina trip 51 coiiplo of the other torwards' and one or two backs were found to be below the standard.,. &Tid were' seldom ' called upon, the result being 'that a heavy burden u-as thrown on about '22 of the players Gillett, was chosen as full back, but moi j. often acted as understudy for . Gal laher, at wing fonvard, and played at tlie side of the scrum after his i eturn home. The man who scored; most, points on the tout was Wallace, though Hunter notched the greatest number oi tries The speediest member of tho combination was G. W. Smith several times' amateur sprint and hurdle chain pion of,the Dominion, but Abbott was also a fine track runner. The backs averaged nearly a stone more than the 1924 rearguard, and their aggregate age was greater, but age did not prove a’serious disability, as Smith, who -.vonthe famous match: against Scotland, at Edinburgh, -was 33, and Mynott) and’ Stead were ; t\Vo of the oldest of tee party. Among the forwards the seniors were Gallagher and Cunningham; and iV was never suggested that either ol this pair should have been loft of homo. Various opinions n-ere held by tho players themselves concerning tho merits of tlie b^cks —T^alla-ce, Roberto, Hunter, Mynott, and Stead all had champions—but there was a majority opinion that Seeling was the topnotch fonvard. Seeling is now a boniface. in the Northern Union; territory in England, and Smith and Me Gregor also have become naturalised Englishmen. Johnston was another member of the team who spent several years in the Old Country. So far as the writer is aware, Cunningham mid

Stead wore the only W men who Ml ; Maori blood in their veins, and neither was a full-blooded native. The number of matches played on the tour (excluding exhibition games in hranee I ’ and America) was- dir- ef-wh*cb»BQ --werj 1 won, and one lost. The. aggregate ; points were—For 830, against 39.

to . u ■. o *&0 ci i, e M -p 5 a o rt •P o .2 c .9 q E te Q c£ £ Old Boys . Zuigan . . Star, . . 5 5 5 %'■ 3 2 1 ' 1 2 0 1 1 “87’ 56 75 37 40 29 ,; y 7 6 Celtic . . Waihi . . •5 5 2 T 1 1 2 3 61 30 51 67 5 3 lemuka . , 5 0 0 5 12 97 Q