Spectacular Rugby Played By Maori Team At Home.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 18013, 25 November 1926, Page 6

Spectacular Rugby Played By Maori Team At Home.

FALWASSER CLASSED AS BRILLIANT; SO IS PHILLIPS; BUT GEMMELL AS ROVER IS NOT POPULAR. SPORTING NEWS BY MAIL FROM LONDON. (Special to the “Star’’). LONDON', October 21. THE MAORIS gave a very favourable impression in their first match in this country. This was against the Somerset county team, and they won by the decisive margin of 21 points to 8. As a combined team, they are probably not as good as the AU lilacks of two seasons ago, but they play ■with great enthusiasm, and their football is both spectacular and in some respects skilful. Rut they succeed mainly as individualists, and their lobbing passes appear very' dangerous.

On one occasion against Somerset, they gave an astonishing display of overhead passing. About a dozen men bandied the ball, and some of them never moved a foot after receiving it. The movement, one thought, should have been nipped in the bud, but as a matter of fact it ended in a spectacular try. Again, the tourists are alWays going out to Icore, and the two wing threequarters, A. Falwasser and 11. Phillips, are likely to obtain a lot of tries.

. But S. Gemmell, who filled the position of rover, will not be ptigular. He puts the ball into 0 serum. but seems to have no set place in the field, and, indeed. is little more than an obstr’uctionist. The seven forwards are big strong fellows. who make excellent use of their Weight, and it was notable that against Somerset they usually got in the first shove in the scrummage. Their heeling, too, was quick and clean, but they did not play the same par-tin the open as the New Zealaad for—wards of two seasons ago.

It is thought, that the tourists will not complete their thirteen matches in England and Wales without being beaten. One of their hardest tests will be against the Harlequins. It would be possible for the London club to place in the field a team mainly comprised of internationals, but they have declined all offers of outside assistance. ”by intend to play only the men who turn out regularly for the club.

THE PRINCE AS A GOLFER. The Prince of Wales now divides most of his spare time between hunting and golf. As a golfer one used to think that he played only in order to get exercise, but he has developed a new interest, and he is now very keen on the game. After his illness early in the year, he went to recuperate at Sandwich, a lonely spot on the Kent coast where one might play all day during the middle of the week without seeing another person. This privacy he greatly appreciated, and he has been back twice to Sandwich. It is now his intention to pay a round of visits to the London clubs, but it is understood that no official notice will be paid to him, and also on no account shall it be known' outside the officicials of the club that he is going to pla> r . As a matter of fact, on these occasions he often never goes into the clubhouse. He walks straight

from his car to the

___,“ ~ ~ , first tee, and there a caddie is waiting to take his clubs. At the present time, he is the captain of the Mid—Surrey club. “'hen it was suggested that he should join. he consented to do so only on the condition that he was an ordinary subscriptionpaying member. To mark the Prince's year of office, the club. which is situated at Richmond, has been given the prefix ROyal. Three years ago he played himself into the captaincy of the Royal and Ancient Club. St Andrew‘s. by driving a ball from the tee. I do not suppose that he will ever forget the occasion. It was a wet October morning. and. when he arrived in front of the Clubhouse, he found about 6am people waiting to see him perform the time-honoured ceremony, To make matters worse. he had not had a club in hit: hands for many months, having only recently returned from India. W'ould he miss the ball altogether?

That was cbvioudy his tour; but tho Prince went for the shot In the true golfing styla.

Luckily for him, the turf was wet and greasy, for he struck at least nine inches behind the ball. Fortunately, the club-head skidded through far enough to hit the ball on the top. It was, however, a desperate escape. CURE FOR UNFINISHED CRICKET. Now that the Australians have gone home, cricket has faded into the background. Even the agitation for test matches of the future to be played to a finish has ceased. P. F. Warner thinks that four days would suffice for most games to be

completed. M.C.C. officials, however, dislike even this concession, and it is probable that, when the time, comes for a decision to be arrived at, they will resist it.. In the meantime, they will perhaps try to solve the problem without permitting any extension of time.

e.Mcnniuii ui unit. When the , agitation for finished tests was at its height, Lord Hawke proposed as a cure for excessive run-getting a return to natural wickets, and it is along these lines that the authorities will work; but it will be useless for them to express a pious opinion on the question. It will be necessary to give definite instructions as to how the pitch is and is not to be treated. This move may cause opposition from the county clubs, because from their point, of view it is essential that matches should last as long as possible, and for them to be decided under conditions which would give the bowler an Advantage might cut d6wn the gate receipts. But something can be done to bring the game back to .the old state. Today, even after rain, the turf is never very treacherous. The “glue pot ” wicket, as it was called, has completely disappeared. In these circumstances, I think the M.C.C. will endeavour to restore the balance, and they will be anxious to do so as soon as possible, in order to remove all reasonable doubt as

to the feasibility of test matches being finished in three days before the next visit of the Australians. BILLIARDS CHALLENGE TO THE WORLD. Some weeks ago Willie Smith threw out a challenge to Tom Newman, the billiards champion, but there has been no response. Smith has now gone further, and is prepared to challenge anyone in the world to three games for £SOO a-side. and he is? willing to play with any ball, ivory or composition. Obviously this offer, while not excluding anyone, is mainly directed at Walter Lindrum. the Australian champion. Last year Smith offered to play him six games, three with composition balls, which Lindrum is accustomed to use, and three with ivory, but received no reply. The only condition of the challenge is that the matches must take place in this country. Smith will not, I am afraid, ever risk going abroad, for health reasons. Some years ago he had a very serious illness, and he has to take great care of himself to avoid a recurrence of it. If Lindrum wants to come to England, here is clearly his opportunity. The conditions arc. of course, greatly in his favour; but it docs not follow that he would win. As a matter of fact, though he has not played with composition balls for several years. Smith knows everything about them. Indeed, it was with these that he was the first player to beat the Australian, George Gray. Having fallen out with Newman, and. as there is no likelihood of their meeting this season, he naturally wants to find some attractive engagement for his fixture list.

A* he puts it: “I am willing to meet all comers. I mean business. My money is there to be played for, and I shall be glad to hear from any player in the world who wants to try to win it." KEEPING THE GOLF BALL STRAIGHT. Golfers have tried many means to ensure straightness. J. S. F. Morrison, the old Cambridge University football, cricket and golf blue, has just introduced another. Playing in the mixed foursomes tournament with Miss Joyce Wethered as his partner, he used one of the new wooden tees, to which was attached a piece of string. The other end of the string was fastened to a metal pencil, and this was laid on the ground with the point of the pencil pointing in the direction of the flight of the ball. Golfers laughed at the contrivance, and regarded it simply as one of Morrison’s little jokes. A member of the St Andrew's committee, however, took a more serious view. He declared it illegal. “ You must not,” he said, •” have any artificial guide to the line of flight." and, if Morrison were to persist in his tee. there is no doubt, though there is no rule governing the point, that the authorities would tell him it was against the spirit of the game. That was their decision when 11. 1). Gillies, the distinguished surgeon, entertained his friends by driving his ball perched on the top of a rubber tec nine inches high. For twenty years or more St Andrew’s have had to guard against artificial aids being introduced. In this respect the Americans have been mbst daring, but. even though there was a risk of causing offence, the British authorities have not hesitated to ban their innovations. The first of these was the centre-shafted putter. It appeared an innocent-looking club, but it was designed with the purpose of taking the eye down the shaft straight to the ball, and in this way it gave the player important assistance. The latest attempt *.f the Americans to change the implements of the game has been by introducing steel and cane shafts. Both of these St Andrew’s have barred.