THROUGH AFRICAN EYES

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume 80, Issue 252, 23 October 1937, Page 4

THROUGH AFRICAN EYES

THE ‘ SPRINGBOKS ON TOUR JOTTINGS FROM ACCOMPANYING WRITER Looking back on the tour of the South African Rugby team through New Zealand it is interesting to study the comments of a writer from the staff of the Rand Daily Mail, Johannesburg (Mr J. Sacks, sports editor of that journal), who accompanied the team on tour. Below appear the more interesting items culled from the paper in order of date.

August 8. The Springboks considerably enhanced their Test prospects in consequence of their magnificent victory against Wellington, though it must be remembered that nothing can be taken for granted. They need dry weather conditions like Saturday’s in order to produce their best play. Nevertheless, the New Zealanders generally consider that the Springbok forwards will be difficult to master in the tight and loose, while the All Slacks do not possess scoring versatile Kings comparable with Turner and Williams. Mr. V. R. Meredith, president of! the New Zealand Rugby Union told' me that the present side is far superior to the 1921 side. He said: “They play brighter football and the backs are a better line than sixteen years ago. Mark Nicholls, All Black selector laid: “They played the best football 1

have ever seen, displayed by a Springbok team. The 1921 side was not capable of the same efficiency all round.” Nel declared: “If we beat New Zealand playing a similar type of open football as on Saturday, our boys will revolutionise South African Rugby when they return for next year. "These players will demonstrate backing up and aggressive packing against the Britishers, the like of which South African crowds have never before seen.”

The South Africans outplayed Wellington in almost every department, .ackling devastatingly, and, the forwards linking with the backs, consolidated every attacking movement. It was an amusing note that the Wellingtonians took scrums instead of lineouts, flushed by early success in the scrummages. Thereafter Lotz settled down, considerably damaging the selection prospects of Lambourne, hitherto regarded as the next All Black hooker, the tourists completely beating the Wellingtonians for the ball in the scrums and lineouts.

Wellington crowds who came in order to encourage the homesters sportingly remained to cheer the Springboks in consequence of the sensationally brilliant first half, when the tourists’ forwards demonstrated a remarkable scoring strength. The Springboks will proceed to Masterton, which is an “all-dry” or liquor prohibition area, to-morrow morning :or an intensified period to training. ■ t is what the New Zealanders call gong into camp. Certain test players are Williams, White, Babrow, and Turner ana Harris is a certainty for the fly-half position. August 11.

A wave of Rugby pessimism has swept New Zealand in consequence of Saturday’s magnificent display by the Springboks. The majority of Wellington critics confess the same pessimism, declaring that if it is dry the only question is by how much of a margin the Springboks will win. They say the All Blacks’ only hope is to pray for rain. A letter published in a New Zealand newspaper deplores this prevalent state of doldrums among New Zealand supporters.

The biggest crowd in the history of the game in New Zealand is anticipated to pack the ground where the final Test was played in 1921, when the ground filled at 9 a.m. and the game ended in a draw on a mudlogged pitch. The general gloom has been heightened by an injury to Hooper, considered the five-eighths discovery of this year’s trials, while the twelve stone lanky Rankin, regarded as the greatest wing forward genius since the days of Parker and Uliff Porter, is suffering from a cold and not joining the rest of the players until to-morrow.

Meanwhile the Springboks are learning that the experience of * going into camp” at Masterton is not the mysterious ritual they anticipated. They have captured the imagination of all New Zealand schoolchildren, who obtained special leave from classes and lining up in hundreds cheered all along the motor route from Wellington to Masterton. The players are receiving daily a shoal of “fan” mail, schoolgirls addressing them like favourite filmstars, while autograph books are piled by scores at the hotel awaiting signatures.

In a special interview to-day, Nel said: “We are not making the mistake of taking the New Zealanders too lightly. We fully respect the All

Black tradition, while the very fact that our opponents are representing their country is likely to result in keying them up to play far above themselves. We therefore are preparing for a hard struggle and hope to do our best. We are not undergoing secret training and are not worried by the likely All Black tactics; we are preparing along our own lines and hope to improve our own style of play. Our great strength is teamwork. We hope to play an attacking game if it is. August 15 (Final Test).

New Zealand is still trying to recover from their amazement at seeing the All Blacks rise corpse-like from the grave—where they had • been prematurely buried by their own critics —and deliver a lively blow on behalf of New Zealand Rugby, thus completely shattering the illusion that there is anything wrong with the standard of the game there at ptesent. It is generally admitted that the Test team’s forwards provided the greatest forward display by an AL’ Black pack for nearly two decades. They went through the Springboks in the loose purposefully, like an infantry bayonet charge, giving a fiery, determined, rugged display, the giant Springbok forwards appearing to be wooden by comparison. Behind this pack the inexperienced New Zealand backs received a great chance to make a name for themselves. They made most of the opportunity. Trevathan scored ten of the All Blacks’ 13 points and Hooper! repeatedly showed flashes of brilliance. The speedy Sullivan bottled Babrow completely. There is all the more glory for New Zealand’s feat because it was achieved with 14 men. Cobden was obliged to leave the field a consequence of a tackle by Wil-

aams, which lifted him into the air. Cobden was replaced by the forward Ward. Consequently the inability of the Springbok eight to secure the upper hand is all the more humiliating. They lacked cohesion in the scrummages and were without leadership in the loose.

When things were going against them, strangely enough, it was the midget of the side, Pierre de Villiers, who tried to urge them on, appealing to each one in turn: “Come on, fellows, pull yourselves together.” Despite failing to make the full use of roughly a stone advantage per man in the scrummages, the Springbok forwards battled desperately several times, hammering to within a few feet of the All Black line.

The Springboks might have pulled the game from the lire had the backs been able to make use of their opportunities. The trouble here was the failure or Craven at five-eighths. All New Zealand is laughing at the Spingbok selectors for omitting Harris, the best attacking fly-half. Craven was too slow and played with leaden feet, making his three-quarters targets in a tackling practice for the All Blacks by delivering slow or standing passes.

Consequently, the Springbok backs never had room to get clear from the swift rushes of their opponents. Just as “Boy” Louw and Nel left the committee room earlier in the week when their selections were under consideration so did Craven be-

come an absentee when the selectors on Saturday morning blundered by omitting Harris whose presence would have made up for a lot. Brand’s absence proved a big factor, Lystcr lacking Turner’s left wing brilliance, while Turner was without Brand’s polish and reliability at fullback. Thus two positions were weakened by a single injury.

Though the game was generally I hard and gruelling, it was not unduly rough. “Fanie” Louw was felled by I a blow to the stomach, but there were jno repercussions. The All Blacks displayed wonderful teamwork and are worthy of every praise. The result, however, is likely to have a most beneficial aftermath among the Springboks. They are not likely to be held to the same extent at forward in I the future. I predict the tourists will | win the second Test. Their display this time was too bad for a side with such proved and remarkable footballing qualities.