RUGBY.

Waikato Times, Volume 105, Issue 17786, 10 August 1929, Page 19 (Supplement)

RUGBY.

REPRESENTATIVE PLAY. WAIKATO AT AUCKLAND. LUCAS’ FINE GAME. (By Our Special). The ground at Eden Park on Saturday for the Auckland-Waikato match was in a very bad condition. Very few expected that Auckland would win by the big margin of thirty points. A contributing cause to the defeat, in my opinion, was the ground. Eden Park is one of the trickest playing fields to be found anywhere. The Aucklanders are playing on it season after season and consequently are used to it. But for a strange team It is a severe handicap. I remember a Hawke’s Bay team playing on the Eden Park a couple of seasons ago when it was in a similar condition to last Saturday, and they met with a big defeat. On Saturday It was plainly evident that Waikato were ail at sea on such a ground. There were plenty of lost opportunities on the Waikato side, and there was not 30 points between the teams. With the proverbial ounce of luck Waikato’s score should have been double figures. While they failed," Auckland seized every opportunity, hut had it not been for Lucas It is doubtful If Auckland would have done nearly so well. On reading the result most of your readers would think Auckland was a wonderful team on Saturday’s game. However, they will have to show wonderfully improved form to regain the Ranfurly Shield to-day.

A Prominent Figure. Lucas was the whole of the back team on Saturday. The inside hacks, particularly the five-eighths, were very poor on defence, while they raced right across the field. Every time the ball reached Lucas he was crowded ■on the line but using all his cunning he moved straight back on to the middle of the field and sent the ball out, more often than not the forwards doing the passing and _ most of the tries were scored by this method. One very serious mistake the Waikato backs made was not making sure ■of Lucas when they got hold of him. On numerous occasions when a player had him in his arms Lucas would feint or bring some other trick into action and instead of being on the ground would be going again at top. I have seen this player for many seasons, but I have never seen him p]ay a game like he did on Saturday. Some of the Others. Bush, at centre, got through good defensive work but he, too, made straight for the side line whenever he got possession. Minns made some fine dashes but his tackling could do with improve-

ment. Butler was the real stonewall in the backs, but he was beaten at times only to see Lucas come back and retrieve the situation. The latter’s backing up could well be copied by the Waikato backs. Hadley, Anderson and Batty were the best of the forwards. The Waikato Players. Thomas (Waikato) gave a fine display at full-back, though he appeared slow at times. Vosper (centre) was the best back on the Waikato side and got through a tremendous amount of work. Story and Mitchell also did well. The pick of the forwards was Robinson, who proved himself a tiger for work.