TRIBUTE TO N.Z. FORWARDS, TO BRITISH DEFENCE

Wanganui Chronicle, 12 June 1950, Page 4

TRIBUTE TO N.Z. FORWARDS, TO BRITISH DEFENCE

CHRISTCHURCH, Last Night (PA) —“I said in my first speech in New Zealand that we would not be unduly disappointed if we were beaten bv better teams. Today we wero beaten by a better team,” said K. Mullen, cup «-» i ol the British Rugby team, ai a dinner arranged by the New Zealand Rugby Union on Saturday evening. Mullen said he thought the loss of McKay did not affect the result cf the match.

Special mention of the New Zealand forwards was made by Mullen, who was proposing a toast io the New Zealand team. They had paved the way for New Zealand’s win by superiority in the line-outs.

He said the British team was looking forward to the remaining tests and hoped to be able to find some means of sharing possession of the ball

In reply, the New Zealand captain, Elvidge, congratulated the British team on its fine performance and the wonderful spirit in which it had played the game. It had made a great name in New Zealand, he said, as footballers and sportsmen. In proposing a toast, to the British team, Mr A. St. C. Belcher, chairman of the New Zealand Rugby Union Council, said New Zealanders had seen British players in adversity and bad seen how they took defeat. They had advanced in the regard and affection of everybody. “We may speak with some authority on defeats,” Mr Belcher said. “We have had six losses in consecutive tests, and the British team will pardon us if I say that we regarded today’s game as a very important affair, because we were anxious to break our run of defeats. “I feel our win today was tinged with a feeling of regret, that our opponents should have lost one of their players so early in the game, and we all pay tribute to the manner ir which they carried on and gave us a magnificent battle. We all hope that when the last lest is played in Auckland the teams will be all square, and that it will be a deciding one.” The manager of the British team, Surgeon Captain Osborne, congratulated the New Zealand team on a fine game. “Tonight we all rejoice that New Zealand has broken her sequence ot defeats,” he said. Surgeon Captain Osborne thanked the New Zealand Union for its “unique and generous action’ in allowing a replacement, for G. W. Norton, who had been injured in Invercargill and retaining him for the rest of the tour as a guest. It was, he said, an example of the generous spirit which actuated New Zealand Rugby adminlistration. This action had been followed by a similar gesture by the i Australian Rugby Union. | “How much richer, stronger and I more lovable is the spirit of our great | 'game made by such actions as these, ’j Surgeon Captain Osborne said.