SOCCER.

Star (Christchurch), Volume LXVI, Issue 20314, 25 May 1934, Page 11

SOCCER.

Thistle and ’Western’s Second Clash. BRIGHT FOOTBALL LIKELY. With the representative team to meet Wellington to be selected in the next few days, players will be on their toes in to-morrow’s Hurley Shield games. Sixteen “ prospects ” for the representative team are already in training, but the selector has stated that he will not necessarily confine himself to these trainees when making his final choice. A good display tomorrow may therefore win for any senior player the honour of selection. Thistle and Western, the only unbeaten teams in the competition, will provide the chief attraction, at English Park. The other matches are:— Nomads v. Linwood, at Richmond Park; St Albans v. Technical Old Boys, at Malvern Park. Rangers have the bve. Thistle and Western have met once this season, in the Charity Ci'P match. Thistle won 2-0, but only on account of superior finishing. Better work in front of goal woul.l give Western a good chance of reversing that result. They have re-registered Balloon, and it is possible that he will fill the centreforward berth. Such a change, however. would not tend to improve the forward line’s finishing ability. Balloon's strength is in his aggression. Whatever the result, it should Vie no easy victory, for both sides are strong in defence. Technical Look Winners. St Albans, fielding several young players of , promise, notably M'Cann. have improved since their opening game. They have done nothing to indicate, though, that they will beat Technical Old Boys. This young eleven is settling down into a useful side, and Craggs and Smith are two promising forwards who have caught the selector’s eye. It looks easy for Technical, but St Albans have given one good team, Western, a “ fright,” and they Linwood's Hard Task. Linwood, in their match with Nomads, will have as hard a task as St Albans. Nomads are not models of consistency, but their new defence. M’Rae, Goode, Fail, with Gordon, Wilson and Waddell, in the halves, is very solid. Sharr and Trotter are two of the forwards who are likely to be trouble-makers for Linwood, sufficiently so to give their side victory, at least.