FOOTBALL.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 16470, 5 July 1921, Page 7

FOOTBALL.

RUGBY JOTTINGS. Tho most interesting senior competition in New Zealand is undoubtedly that in Auckland, where there have been several surprising defeats lately. Now College Rifles and Grafton are leading with 14 points each, Grammar School, Grafton, and Marist have 12 points each. Up till a fortnight ago Grammar School were ahead and looked like staying there. In Wellington Poneke are moving further and further back. After an unbeaten run through eight matches, they were beaten by Oriental and then by Athletic. Petone have won nine matches out of ten, scoring 185 points against 67. Before the season is over they may play a match against Marists iq Christchurch. Kaikorai, top. of the Dunedin competition, have a great record :—Won 11 matches out of 11, scoring 172 points, with 42 against! They are reported to be playing fine, open football, yet they could not get a back in the South Island team. Next to them are Southern. Zingari, Alhambra, and Pirates, all about even Zingari bend the South Canterbury series with , 9 matches played and 8 won. Temuka have played 8 and won 5; Celtic 7 and won 4.

There is not a great deni of interest in the trial match. Possibles v. Probables, to be played in Wellington to-morrow, except in so far ns it affects the chance of any man for All Black honours- The really interesting part will be the selection of tbe first New Zealand team after the match by Messrs G, Nicholson (Auckland), A. J. Griffiths (Wellington), and D. Stuart (Dunedin). Air Stuart was one of tho selectors for the South Island team.

The omission from to-morrow’s teams of the* North Island wing three-quar-ters, Grierson and Aitken, has caused comment in some quarters. Aitken is considered to be a very promising player, far better than Steele. Ifwerson, playing centre for the Probables, is not long back from the League code, under which he enjoved several tours. His selection is not likely to encourage the average plaver. Murphy, fullback for the Probables, is a member of the Marists’ team, Wellington. He is reported to be a brilliant kick and a certain tackier. It is very likely that Roberts will play five-eighth in the* first test with Nicholls half. D. M-’Cormick will be lucky if he beats Badeley for the second five-leighths position.

NORTH V. SOUTH MATCH.

Comment on the North v. South match, played in Christchurch last Saturday, appears in tho “New Zealand Times ” :

“Taking the teams as a. whole, apart from any individual play, North was the better side, chiefly .owing to the marked superiority of the backs. It was for the most part a contest between the North backs and the South forwards.

“There were faults on both sides, which will need repairing in the days that intervene before the All Blacks are assembled for the titanic struggles that lie ahead, in the contests with the Springboks. The chief weakness in the : North back division, aside from its established superiority in the present match, was in the failure to attack straight down the field. The responsibility for this phase of attack is shared by the half, one of the five-eighths, and tho centre three-quarter, but the lastnamed has the lion’s share of it. Too often —almost without exception—the attack bored into the wings, with the result that the speed and tactics oi the men on the wing were hampered, and reduced in tlicir possible attacking powers. Roberts, leading the Blacks, saw the weakness in the first half, an.l took the best means he could of improving it, by changing Svenson and Algnr. The result was apparent, hut would have been even more effective had the opposition of the southern backs been stronger- In the forwards, defects were loss noticeable. The northern pack was tried out to its utmost against a forward division from the South Island that had the pace of threequarters in the open, and excelled an dribbling. In the scrum, the North Island pack lacked weight in the left side. This resulted in the pack being screwed, with a consequent loss of direction—and the ball. The North serum av'eraged 13st 121 b, and the South pack averaged 13sfc lib. There was no apparent difference in the quality of the opposing hookers, C-arrol lHughes and Duncan-Ellis. Why, therefore, did not the extra 111 b per man result in the ball going to the Blacks’ half more frequently? It was because of a weakness back of the lock man. *• The South backs lacked cohesion, pace and initiative in attack. They were weak, too, in defence. They had more opportunities for good tackling than, usually come to any team, but sure tackling was rare, even on the part of the full-back. The absence of Storey was keenly felt. Had the men immediately behind tho South pack made tho most of their opportunities, the scores, in the first half of the game, might have been reversed.” ASSOCIATION. MANAGEMENT COMMITTEE MEETING. The Management Committee of the Canterbury Football Association met last night The use of the night training ground for the. training of the seuior representative team v.as granted by the Canterbury Rugby Union. The offer was received with thanks. T)ie Referees’ Association reported that in future the referees would order off the field any player not in proper colours. Any team not supplying corner flags would lose a match. Permission was granted the "Western third grade team to play a match against Dunedin High School on July C), at Dunedin. The following teams -were selected for representative practice at Hagley Park to-night, at G o’clock: —A team: Dobbs, Jewell, Lindlev, Druri. Low, Newell, Yard. Colville. Barwell. Parsons and Shaw: reserves, Wilkinson and Hov. B team: Swift, Graham. Flood, M’Creanor, Mitchell, Simpson, Smith, B:=sett, Parle it, Norman and Kirk. SENIOR DRAT FOR SATURDAY. The senior draw for Saturday Is as follows:—St Albans A v. Rangers, English Park, 2.45jf>.m.; Western v. Corinthians, I.inwood Park, 2.45 p.m, : Sunnvside v. Crown, Sunnvside, 2.30 p.ra. ; Nomads a byo.