LEAGUE RUGBY

Star (Christchurch), Issue 17028, 30 April 1923, Page 3

LEAGUE RUGBY

Note* on the Gama

League Club competition was continued on Saturday m excellent weather, but the grounds were heavy trom the recent rain. Amongst supporters of the code it was expected that the three senior game* would provide close contests, but this did not prove the case in the WooLston-Lin wood match. The latter played below their previous week’s form and lost to the younger club by a margin ot five points. A hard struggle between those former rivals for the junior premiership, Kaiapoi and. Hornby, at Kaiapoi, resulted in favour of the home team by the narrow margin of one point. The team’s success was largely due to the fine goal kicking by F. Lynaky. A reliable place kick is well worth his place in a team. Addiugton and Sydenham played a ctoee and exciting game despite the fact that Addington finished tip with a margin of five points in their favour. AWDINOTON (7) t. SYDENHAM (21. I Though the game lacked the sparkle atffi sure handling that will be in evilh the oouJfce of a week or two, the play was always interesting. It was anticipated that, there would be acme speedy movements amongst the > hathti, but these were only occasionally ID evidence. There was a tendency on the part of the centres to hold on too mtg or «4ee kick. The hrydenham backs did endeavour to get the ball to T. Davidson and he waa 4|*v«n k lot of work and did it well, ww vhreatend he transferred in- i field quickly, but the support forth- j coming was not up to the standard. j Tlio Addington bucks did not show , the combination, that characterised ' thoii play of last season, but there was an improvement during the second half : when -Vt’Leod was taken from the •crum to strengthen' the defence. Brown j sent the ball back consistently to Watt j Iwat Christenson found it difficult to I follow his tirat five-eights with the re- 1 *»dc that Saunders did not obtain the ball to make the openings for his wing j three-quarters of whom C. E. Fa 1 gar ehowod promise. S. Symister was not j in lom and frequently missed opportunities. He shows to more advantage in the forwards. G. Falgar, at full-back, has a fault of waitng for the bail to bounce, and this nearly had him in serious difficulties more than once. He gained ground j when in possession, and his collaring was 5 a near. W witness. A. Brown showed to advantage at ■ half and is always looking for chances and follows hi# forwards consistently. R. Wa*tt defended ably and is a . fine techier. An the forwards A. M’Leod, W. Collie. K. Cox and D. M’Gibbon were the •olid workers. T. Twmbws at full-back for Sydenham, was the best back of the team; hie placing of the ball and handling being an object lesson for the younger members to copy. The south suburbs player is in fine form at present. T. Davidson gave a pleasing display and b. one of the most promising youth* that have been promoted. S. Clegg performed satisfactorily and T. Molloy was Well up to the average. P. O’Cion nor did far too much kicking, an inexcusable practice with eleven others waiting loir the ball. Id. King and F. Kin-ir defended ably, but have not reached form yet. F. Matthew* did a lot of good work, and gave his supporters every chance. It is suggested here that he instils into the minds of his support that kicking ihe ball to opponent is’a weakness. Possession of the sphere to attack is the principal means of sucMM. A. M’Alpine and S. Swarbrick were prominent in the forwards W KAIAPOI (b) V* HORNBY (o). m/ There was a good attendance of the " Kaiapoi supporters to witness the fixture between these teams at aKiapoi. the interest being very keen as the clubs had fought seme hard battles when struggling for supremacy in the junior competitions. The home team’s •upporters became greatly excited in the concluding stages of the game, when the Blue and Whites successfully repulsed some desperate efforts by the Hornbyites to score. F. Lynskey was quite the idol of the crowd, and his abilities as a place kick won the match. The Hornbyites had every chance, but they lacked team work; individualism being much too conspicuous. In the charge of a capable coach they could be developed into a fine team as they possess plavers with ability. J Bryce. W. Davis, .and A. Lodge,

of the backs, and Parks. Vivian and Motfatt, forwards, strove hard for sucKainpoi will further improve and when they build up their play they will be hard to beat. They have good plavers i:i C Beck. T. Tainui, T. Thackweil, P Lynskey, and S. Turnbull. WOOLSTON (11) r. UNWOOD (6). On their own ground Wools ton defeated Limvood after a very fast game in which both torn ardx and backs worked untiringly. The inside backs on both sides held the bail too long, and the wingers were not given enough opportunities to show their capabilities. With men of the type of Ferris and Kelly this is a fault that much be remedied. The forwards are grafters, and though Limrnod had the advantage in weight Woolston wore their masters in the loose. The Woolston pack are a welltrained lot. but some of the fun wood team showed signs of weariness at th«* finish. Both sides will improve as the season progresses, and when the Woolston backs get better together the team will he about the hardest to beat. The Woolston full-back is a trifle slow, but the three-quarter line is 1 fine one, Ferris especially giving promise of developing into a real top notcher. "Paddy” Smith, though not fully recovered from his . illness, turned out and was a veritable stumbling block for Linvsoods fast three-quarters. His handling and short cross-kicks were a treat to watch. Beaumont was fast and worked hard without getting many opportunities, and Watson was good on defence. Harris gave a splendid exhibition at half, and though unaccustomed to the position, set his backs going in rare style. Of the forwards Thompson. Sullivan and Stapley wei> also prominent.

On the Lin wood side Kelly was verv much in the limelight tor his strong running. His try was a brilliant effort. He received the ba 1,1, in his own twenty-five, and a sharp burst put him in a good position and he easily outpaced til# opposing backs. There is room for improvement in his tackling, but he certainly shows great promise. The Moulin brothers were solid on He • ence. and Harney and Harper combined well. Bateman was quick behind the scrum, but sometimes holds on too long. M'Lauchlan was the untiring leader of a solid pack, which showed up more in the tight work than in the loose. Kinley. VVorafold and Jones were good supports. NOTES. V. juocke, who lias been prominently identified with the Addington Club toi some years and who was secretary of the club, left for Sydney last week with \\ . I*. Guiney. who played for the Western Suburbs two years ago. Air 1 Guiney, who was over on a holiday ,isit. is a member of the crack Nortn : Sydney team. Amongst the interested spectators at 1 Sydenham Park on Saturday was Mr T. Fielder, a member of the Auckland ! executive. In conversation with prot ininent local supporters of the code, ! the northern visitor remarked that the I one sure way to achieve success was to j promote' the keen and speedy youths | who .show promise in the lower grades. That was being done in Auckland and j results had justified the procedure. Mr Col will, who was a member of the Hawke's Bay Centre, was at Sydenham Park la-fct week. He is now located in Christchurch. The intent Sydney “ Referee ’’ to band publishes a very fine tribute to F. Burge, the crack New South \A ales forward, who is referred to as the greatest Rugby forward that Australia has produced. V . Burge has notified that he will not play this season. The English Rugby League has accepted the invitation to visit Australia and New Zealand next season. Since the League acquired its o\v*» ground at Carlaw Park the game ha* jumped ahead in Auckland, said Mr Fielder on Saturday. He nays a high compliment to Air James ( arlsiw, who was previously chairman of the Auckland executive and who lias been chiefly responsible for obtaining tin ground which bears his name.