RUGBY PASTIME.

Waikato Times, Volume 96, Issue 15016, 12 August 1922, Page 16 (Supplement)

RUGBY PASTIME.

(By “Drop-Kick.’’) Liat of Rep. Fixtures. September 3.—Waikato v. Thames Valley, at Hamilton. September 16. —Waikato v. Thames Valley, at Paeroa. Waikato v. Bay of Plenty (date to be fixed).

WAIKATO-AUCKLAND GAME. Waikato has only a brief season of thoroughly representative football for 1922. It opened with a game against Auckland on Wednesday. To-day Wairarapa are engaged, home and home fixtures are set down with Thames Valley next month, and the programme will close with the Bay of Plenty match, which will be staged at Rotorua later on. 1922 is one of the lean years for this end of the Rugby playing Dominion. Next year Waikato will have a much more prominent list of engagements, in winch a tour south will be one of the matters lor consideration. Wednesday’s game, in which the Waikato representatives were beaten by Auckland l y 11 points to 3, was by no means high-class. In fact, so far as rearguard play was concerned it was decidedly mediocre. The forwards staged a stubborn set-to over four spells of play. The public yearns for football of the open, frequent transferring order, and forwards, no matter how great they are, can never whet that appetite. With a reasonable measure of stability among the backs. Waikato could have won that game, hut the play of the rearguard, looked at collectively, was too lukewarm to raise a cheer over. The Auckland backs were noL a strong combination either, and on their showing here one can l'orsee much trouble when they set their paces against the strong provinces further south. Outside Mattson , (wing three-quarter), Ifwcrson (centre), and Muir (full back), the men fell a long way slmrt of first grade provincial standard. The inside backs of both sides were the weak links in the chain. Defect at a vital point tike this must invariably court trouble, and we were presented with it time and again on Wednesday.

Castles, wing three-quarter, was th e •only member of the Waikato rearguard who was on his game, and justified all the claims which “Drop Kick" has put forward from time to time during the season. It’s a good man who can do his own job. Castles not only did thill on Wednesday, but ho did a whole lot more in the game— Hie excessive duty which comes one’s way when others are failing, 'rime and again Castles turned off threatening danger, and alternated this with spirited dashes to give his men the attack. However, while these had their benefits, they only passed to a cerlain point, and no further— through the inability of the others of the attacking line, or most of them anyway, to press the opportunities homo. In the general run of ill which pervaded the Waikato atmosphere, there were two other contributing factors which must not tie overlooked-—meagre shars of I he ball from the scrums, not, always the fault of the honkers) arid the man directly behind ntl'-rlv strange to an important job. A half-hack cannot be turned out in five minutes, and no matter the garneness of the one in the post, lie cannot turn affairs to profit without the knowledge for so doing. That exactly was the positiuo with Peach, and Hie game proved that Ihe selectors could have belter a post so important. Lve.ry man fitted

for his special task makes for the perfect machine. Barileet and Peake, the five-eights, were not a happy combination. The former was far too sluggish in his movements, and with Peach moved out to that point to-day I am hoping for better results. Thompson and Stewart were alternating between wing three-quarter and centre. With the Auckland forwards coming through inside they seemed to be placed off their balance very often. There were times when both shaped well, but more often than not they were found wanting. if they had shown the same capabilities as Castles, there would have been some fire in the three-quarter line. Thompson was much below form, but be is a player who must bo liberally supplied with the ball, and, as it were, driven to his attack. Once on the move lie is a hard man to nail down. The full back, O’Brien, was never at home to the needs of such an important position, and it was evident that- the prominence of his task was weighing with him. His taking of Hie ball and bis tackling were decidedly weak, and often placed his team in difficulties which should not have come their way. Two of Auckland’s tries could be laid at his door through his failure to go to his man. However, many a young player lias not answered demands immediately, but lias turned up trumps later on. O’Brien has ample time yet to blossom out. Defects at ball handling and taking were far to'o common among the Waikato backs, l’acy forwards will always seize these opportunities, and defence quickly becomes the portion of the defaulters and their team. We saw that often on Wednesday.

Waikato put a pack in the field j which gave quite as much as it got in the light work, and was certainly superior in Hie loose. Often they gained stretches 'of ground, hut Hie weak play of Hie hacks just as often nullified this good work. In feeding i from the line-outs Auckland made / progress very often, and showed the ;

home pack a lesson in this respect. It would be difficult to find fault with any of the Waikato forwards. Sowman played a useful game in the loose, and Keightley, a forward of similar type, showed up too. Hamilton was always there to seize openings, his try being typically illustrative of the observant player. Hooper worked like a trojan, and is one of me few forwards hereabouts who can keep command of the ball. Too hard kicking is always a salient fault with packmen here. Patterson was another solid worker during Hie game, but, as previously mentioned, one could give kudos to them all. It was unfortunate that Sandos sustained injury which will keep him out of the game for the rest of the season at least.

Much of the credit of keeping out ihe consistent clashes of the opposing forwards belonged to Muir, the Auckland full back, lie opened somewhat spasmodically, hut once ha warmed to his work lie made few mistakes, frequently getting the ball clear from an avalanche of hustling forwards, and kicking upheld or to the touch as occasion demanded. Ifwerson, the captain, is a player who does things that count. Wasted effort seldom appears in his curriculum. The quickness to seize an opportunity is invariably followed by the ability to turn it to profit. The try he scored from half-way in this game was a brilliant piece of work, allowing, too, for Tiefeetivc tackling. Ifwerson, also, gave the lead to Mattson's try. The latter, on the wing, showed one valuable adjunct to a three-quarter, that is pace and the determination to avoid half measures when a scoring chance looms up. A break through from half-way, such as Mattson registered on Wednesday, stamps him with the label of “dangerous." Earl was not afraid of toiling behind his pack, though he did not rise above the stolid order. The five-eighths, McManus and Grant, were not a strong pair by any means. The visiting forwards all toiled hard against opposition which permitted them no idle moments.