ALL BLACKS PICK STRONG SIDE.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 17345, 27 September 1924, Page 15

ALL BLACKS PICK STRONG SIDE.

SEVERE TEST EXPECTED AGAINST SWANSEA < STEEL AND M’CLEARY TO PLAY FOR FIRST TIME. By Telegraph.—Press Assn.—Copyright.—Aus. and N.Z. Cable Assn. (Received September 27, 2.30 p.m.) LONDON, September 20. Tt has been arranged that the All Blacks plav two matches in France early in January. The first will be againsl a Paris team, ami the second against a French international team at *Toulmise. In view of the interest the All Blacks’ tour has created it lias been suggested that the test match against Kngland lac played tit the Wembley Stadium, instead of at Twickenham, but the Stadium was such a quagmire after the rodeo and military tattoo that it could not possibly be reconditioned in time. Xew Zealand’s first severe test will he against the Welsh team at Swansea to-morrow. They have picked the strongest available side. J. Steel and Brian M’Cleary are making their first appearance. Tremendous interest prevails in South Wales, and many club matches have been cancelled. An attendance of 30,009 is anticipate d.

To-day the All Blacks play Swansea in the fifth match of their tour. Against Swansea the 1905 All Blacks won by the narrow margin of 4 points to 0. but it was the last match of their tour in Groat Britain: by that time they were a tired team and had had quite enough of football. Swansea has long been renowned as a strong Rugby centre. Of course, of recent, years Rugby has not been so strong in Wales as was the case in 1905. In those days Wales was the strongest Rugby country of Great Britain. However, English critics consider that some of the Welsh teams will give* the present All

Blacks their hardest games and it is possible that Swansea \vill prove one of these teams. In the last English football season Swansea was considered to he about fourth and Newport third in strength among the Welsh clubs, \vith Llanelly the strongest. A feature of the last English season was that the only English teams which beat the Welsh clubs oil the lattor*s grounds were Oxford and Cambridge Universities. In the in terna- I tional game England convincingly beat Wales. According to the reports of the matches which Swansea played last season, it is a solid team on defence, with a hard battling lot of forwards.