LEAGUE RUGBY.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 16495, 4 August 1921, Page 3

LEAGUE RUGBY.

league view of the SPRINGBOKS. AUSTRALASIAN TEAM. (By “ SCRTTM-OBT.”) Tlie heavy stain which fell in the forenoon. last Saturday quickly decided the question of tHo iHjstp-om-inont of fixtures when the Match Committee met. Considering the state of the Sydenham ground no regrets were expressed by the players at the postponing of the Senior club final between Sydenham ami Federal.' As it is current talk that the shrewd heads are favouring the Federal prospects the yellow and blacks must have been training hard, with the object of again securing the premiership. The Sydenham supporters are just as confident as their opponents, and this bespeaks a hard game. With the conditions existent last week many of the League followers found their way to Lancaster Park to witness tlie rival code .Rugbyit-es at play. According to the views of a band of League players, the groupd conditions were not nearly so bad as when the Knglish and Xow Zealand League teams played at tlie Park twelve months ago, but there was a great difference in tlie play and the abilities ol : the players. Tlie local union forwards were considered as not being up to the standard of form shown bv tho League forwards of both sides, though C. Murray was sorted out as a great leader and the best forward on the ground. They gave him great credit as a heady player. Leans, the lull-back, also came in lor favourable comment. 'Tho big blemish in the minds of the Leaguers was the speculating kicking indulged in. Disappointment was expressed at the display of . tlie Africanders, who- were heralded as a great side, hut the critics on tlie bank expressed the opinion that only Tindall and Strauss would get- a place with a first-class League team, and . that the forwards were altogether too y slow. A New South Wales or a New

Zealand League team would have little difficulty in defeating the visitors. 5 A writer in Auckland Star 5 corn cuts thusly : Officers as well as players of different League clubs would be glad to discover whether the oui--7 siders, . who persist in ringing up with - tales of players being ill, are simply insane, or whether they really have so mi 4 desperately important axe to grind, and arc thinking they can grind 3 it by preventing League teams -seniors } and juniors from turning out to 2 matches with some of their host play--2 ers absent through misunderstandings, j The Auckland Teague had a letter tho > other day informin'-- them that several ) players of flic Richmond Fourths wore ‘ rung up just before a match and told y it was the secretar\ speaking, anil that j owing to the de;tt:h of a prominentLeague official there would h* im games * that, afternoon. Of course, the whole tiling -was a deliberate hoax, and u he- ' tlier a, joke or done with more serious 5 intent, it was in such poor taste that j me is. justified in suggesting that the > perpetrator will most likely end his * days in the *' W han *’ or some similar ' institution. Thai is not the only im i dent of a like nature. One Saturday • the Fire Rrigade skipper was fold , j ovrr the. ’phone ol course- that.- three of bis strongest players were ill. The voice purported to be that of the player 1 whose- nanuv was mentioned in each i case. He went out to see, and found the whole thing a hoax. Tt would be i ' well for the different clubs to arrange j some simple pass-word among themi selves. That would prevent any misunderstanding in i be future. AL-TR ALASI AX TKA.M. The, Australasian Rugby League team left Wellington yesterday by the Tahiti, bound for Fnglnnd, via America. The twenty-eight players are, as originally , chosen, save that F. Rule, the- North Sydney centre throe-piiartcr, has diop- ! peil jmt, and ('. fi mad foot, of Queensland, lakes his place The feeling is' general (sa \ s the Syiimy • Referee' ’ of recent, issue') that the campaign -will be splendid in every sens©, and that in a. way it will enn- ‘ tinm-. m the northern parts of Lug land, tin- most, excellent advert?.so?nont. given Australia by the cricketers, oven admitting that the vogue of the Northern .Hugby 1 nion i.l far less gon- . era! than that of cricket, in the Old 1 Fund. 'The men in whose rare the reputation of Australian sportsmanship is to repose on this occasion are just the type which should fulfil the responsibility -with honour. No amateur team could hope to be more fully represen~

tativo of Australia in skill as athletes and in character as sportsmen. No matter what fihe results on the field may fur. this team should earn u fine name as exponents of. the game and interpreters of its spirit. The Rugby Tib ague of the Mother State, primarily responsible, tor the selection of the team and developing their skill, is t-o be congratulated on being in the happ.v’position of seeing men of their fibre setting forth to the hub of the Umpire to £< play the game ” oi Rugby football. The captain of the team, Leslie A. Cubitt, heartily agrees with this estimate of the men. Ho has a very high appreciation of tlie Tionoui- conferred on him in being selected to lead them. He feels that they will be an extremely happy party, ©very man out to assist in developing match-winning combination, and to do honour to his country ill sport. Ik realises that the conditions tinder which the game is played in England differ from those which footballers usually have in Sydney. But he knows how adaptable the players are. and if Englishmen are able to exploit the game at its best on their own grounds, he knows no reason why the Australasian team should not he able to do likewise.