NORTH v. SOUTH MATCH

Waikato Times, Volume 125, Issue 20919, 26 September 1939, Page 11

NORTH v. SOUTH MATCH

WINNERS’ GREAT SCRUM WORK FAULT IN FIVE-EIGHTHS’ PLAY A Waikato Rugby supporter, who witnessed the annual North v. South Island game in Wellington on Saturday makes the following comments on the match: Played under ideal conditions and before a huge and enthusiastic crowd the game, at times, reached great heights, while on other occasions many weaknesses were revealed. From the whistle the pace was on and it was patent to most that this could not be maintained. In the early stages Lambourne, for the North, hooked the ball with monotonous regularity in spite of the extra weight of the South scrum. It was not long, however, before the -“shiners” began to neglect the heavy work and the South began to get their fair share of the ball. North looked dangerous at the beginning but superior tactics by the Whites turned the table. My general criticism of the game is this: “The South showed the North how to pack, both in set scrums and ordinary scrums. Even when Lambourne hooked the ball and it was held in the back of the scrum the White forward either pushed the North off it or the breakaways robbed them of it. Forwards’ Display “It would be hard to criticise most of the forwards and there is no doubt that a fine forward team could be picked from the players seen in action. Bowman, McKenzie and Reid were all playing the loose game and left the hard rucking to their mates. They were quick to move forward but not so quick to return to the scrum if the ball was taken by the Whites. I was disappointed in Bowman's play. T. Reid is still a good forward. I think the hardest working forward for the Blacks was Jackson. Carson played a good tight game and was brilliant, at times, in the loose. Lambourne was definitely the better hooker but no man can hook if the weight is not behind him. “The White forwards are hard- to separate. They played as a pack and were very ably led. Ward and King are still great forwards. George is also a fine forward. Some fine dribbling and backing up was seen and this is where the South had the edge on the North. The White forwards were keen to move forward but they were back in a flash to pack in if the Blacks got the ball. “There were some disappointments in the back division but this was to a certain extent compensated for by brilliance. Both halfbacks were of New Zealand class. Saxton had the edge on Tindill on the day. Saxton gave some wonderful long straight passes right from the ground. Tindall was, I think, inclined to shirk the ground work. He had to stand up to give his pass which lost a little time. Five-eighths Not Brilliant “The five-eighths were not a brilliant lot and I think that it is time that we in New Zealand changed our ideas regarding the methods used by our five-eighths. With the present scrummage it would take a very brilliant player to make the opening near the scrum. The Whites were using the long pass from the scrum and the centre or wing made the cut in. The ball returned infield and in some instances the forwards carried the attack forward. The Blacks tried the cut in or stab kick and this proved to be a failure. “Pearman started . off as though he were going to show great form but the company was too great for his methods. I think that Grace and Reid, on the day, were the pick of the five-eighths. "The three-quarters were up to quite a good standard. Sullivan shaded Wesney in play though the latter kicked with wonderful accuracy. Sullivan’s speed told and of course he is an opportunist. One fault was noticable in his olav and

that was he gave his passes in many instances just a fraction late, leaving his winger flat-footed or ahead of the ball. “On the day Sutherland was brilliant. He has speed and determination and does not need much room to move. He was marked by a weaker man than Phillips who had to retire injured after a few minutes’ play. He displayed no weakness. He could take the ball at top speed and cut infield to score a brilliant try. The best of the others was Schubert. Though he is not of the rugged type he has speed, determination and a good pair of hands. His defence was sound. “Both fullbacks had to be world beaters to eclipse the display given by Taylor in the curtain-raiser. It was hard to separate either of them on the day’s play. Eastern made only one bad break, while Dyer was not getting good length with his kick. He did not run infield to get a better angle and at times kicked when he had room to move up. As previously stated Taylor was the best of the four fullbacks who faced the crowd.” C’atley’s Good Hooking In the trial match Catley certainly showed that any other hooker must be a world-beater if he can take the leather more often than the Waikato forward does. It will be ininteresting to see the result of Wednesday’s duel with Lambourne. Catley rakes the ball while Lambourne stabs it back. I think Catley is the better. Apart from his hooking he played a great forward game. Warrender was probably the best forward on the paddock during the trial game. He broke from the scrum a little quickly at times and gave away a couple of penalties but he certainly was a thorn in the opponent’s side. He gave the backs little time to tltfnk. He appears to me to be qualified for higher honours. • Crossman’s Display I think that Crossman was the best back in the trial game. His handling at times was patchy but his general play and leadership were of high standard. He was one of the few backs who did not do the obvious. Cunningham appeared to be the only other back who looked to have prospects and I would like to see him playing in better company. Readers will be pleased to hear that Frank Cassidy is still playing good football. He will be playing in the trials on Wednesday. He was a very promising young forward while here and it is pleasing to hear that he has represented Wellington and is now in the running for higher honours. Perkins Has Few Chances While not playing very spectacularly, C. Perkins did all that was asked of him. He handled the ball only twice and on one occasion gave his vis-a-vis a few anxious moments. He used his fend to advantage. He gave his opponent no quarter on defence and kept him penned up. This was no mean feat as Murray came north with somewhat of a reputation. Chris is young and has time to develop with exoerienre.