FOOTBALL.

New Zealand Graphic, Volume XXV, Issue VI, 11 August 1900, Page 247

FOOTBALL.

AUCKLAND V. OHINEMURI. A WIN FOR THE METROPOLITAN TEAM. (Auckland 5 points, Obinemur> 0.) The Auckland metropolitan representative team played its first match of the season on Saturday afternoon, when it met a combined team representing the Ohinemurl ano tlaihi Rugby Unions. The match took place at Paeroa, the Auckland team journeying thither by the s.s. Taniwha on Frlday night. “hfortunately was most an- < j-Uiab.e. Karn fell lieavilv on Frld*Tv and continued in a steady drizz>e mor iiw'' r 7n i' ““ intermission, all Saturday tom d r V os ot the afternoon. The football ground was in consequence tfioeo a b a' . soak ed, and the game had not prosHi ,m-v °th S ,r n e the kruund became so ™n' 5 1 w ? s uext t° impossible to run nitboiit coming a ‘’cropper” This with a sodden, greasy bail, put scientific football out of the question, and the game resolved itself into a series of more scrambling rushes on the part of the opposing packs. Towards the end the players were so covered with mud as to be almost unrecognisable. In spite of the wretched weather there was a very fair attendance, fully a thousand spectators being present. A special train from the Thames brougut over a hundred, while others drove la from Waihi, Karangahnke, and the surrounding districts. Judging by the attendance, there would probably have been three or four tiue USal!<J peOple present had the day been The teams turned out as under:— Auckland (blue and white;: Full-back Donovan; three-quarters, Absolum, Paul Woods; five-eighths, Asher; half, Kiernan; forwards, H. Wilson, A. Wilson Tvler Bonclla, McGregor, Irvine, Bradv; wings’, Gallaher, Doran. ” si?? l <"V> nlU '' <black and gold): Full-back, Shaw three-quarters, Thorn, Landy Moore : Mc U Mi^n U , e '^ar^ GUlrC ’ the play. Ohinemuri won the toss, and took advan tage <>l the slight breeze blowing, it was eviueut from the start that the game t kl be a fo rw a rd one, as indeed proved to be tlie case. Ohinemuri were the rlist lo attack, the forwards rushing the ball Inside the Visitors’ 25. The Auckland pack, head® ?m l>r i.? l , cG , reß< Lff cleared their lines, but a lon„ kick by bhaw again endiiugered the visiters line, until Moore, kicking too hard sent the ball into toueh-ln-goal The phiv coidinued In Auckland's 25. Donovan failed to take the bull from a high kick, and as it sav • .. l ‘'‘ ou ! tbe klek-out, a long kick by I.andv land • t >-‘ C tOUCh lusil le the-Auclf 100e l o“r'>i„v tbu bul > •“ the .. ‘ ’. P a -J that followed made a rush for the Auckland line, but lost the ball within t toucb ’la-goal resulted. Soon afterwards Asher missed the ball, and Ciark u charging him down carried the oval to rue line, but Donovan succeeded n extricating h'n side from danger. Plav still eonttnm u in the visitors' territory. ’ Presently Kookley dashed for the line, and when threatened passed to Thom, who got across, only to be called back, the pass having been

thrown forward. From the ensuing scrum l*uu! cleared bis lines.

l*r« fcutiy the blue and whites Invaded th<- hoiL*<* team’s 25, but the good Ic'ekiug of the itvai backs removed the danger. Eren play followed till the elose of the spell, the Au< kui.tiers improving as the game proceeded. On one occasion Absolum dribbled dangerously near the home team’s line, bait Them checked the advance in time. Flic sped erded without score on e ther side. The second spell was a repetition of tne tactics adopted in the iirst, both teams trusting chiefly to their forwards for the aggH'ssive work. This time the blue an».l whites were the first to attack. Doran waking a bold bi<i for “first blood,” w tuouc lesj;t. Coming ou again, the Auckland park, headl4 by Doran and McGregor, rusiied ihe ball within a yard or two ol the line, but xlcughton averted the danger by i..avki.i ,r am! kicking into touch. Then the black and gelds assumed the aggressive, but spoilc .. hiore than one promising upon*ng by w »d passing. As the end approached the visi or.* gradually began io get the upper hand, ami five minims from time were well insi le Ohinemur- t 25. Here Kiernan got possession from a s-rum and passed out to Asin r. vuo in turn transferred to Woods, an! lie to A.bsoir.n*. The last-named stumbled, but rccovei.ng himself dodged over the line and scoied a try. Alec. Wilson placed a good goal, front a difficult angle. Auckland 5, Cnutnivri 0. Just before the btd ran’' Abselmr made a neat pot ar gon’. The ktc < just fell short, but even the i Irv’ne Brady or McGregor might have seor?d by their fist following-up had md the bail s'.ruck the goal-post and bounce 1 out cf tneir reach. The game ended a minute < r two later, Auckland thus winning by 5 points to nil. 0 J NOTES. wh£h'V? the * ret S’ b <’ d conditions under ' US pla >’ed. the game was disappointing to players and public alike. 9 a ,, l '.? h a *‘ uv . a sood display of football was out ot the question. The sodU e ” Was very tiulcltiy trampled into a broad expanse of mud, over which the men floundered about in a more ?£ * e J s belp * ess fashion. In the scrums the forwards could with difficulty get a .’? y bold 011 the ground; their feet went slipping in all directions. Under such condltions it was a wonder that they managed to heel out at all. As for the backs, they had the greatest difficulty in keeping on their feet; as soon as a man tried to dodge or even stoop to pick up the ball he generally went sprawling. Then the ball, heavy and greasy as it was, slipped through the men’s hands like an eel and slid along the ground in a bewildering fashion. Kicking at a rolling ball was in consequence the commonest way of stopping a rush, most of the backs adopting this method, with more or less success, Instead of trying to pick up when at ail pressed. Under the circumstances it was only to be expected that forward play should predominate, as it did throughout. Considering the state of the ground the game was surprisingly fust, if somewhat scrambling. Ohinemuri made it willing from the start, and the forwards, following up the long punts by their backs soon had the visitors in difficulties For the first fifteen minutes Auckland seemed all at sea on the slippery ground; It was the first wet day they had had this season, and the home team, who handled the greasy ball much better pressed them hard. The local backs were kicking far better than their opponents, and this tended to keep the play in the visitors’ 25 Ohinemuri were nearly in more than once; in fact, they had hard luck in not scoring. Had their backs supported each other better they would probably have scored. Want of combination was, however. the home team’s weak point, nor is this to be wondered at. seeing that the men are drawn from all over the district. and get no chance to practice together. In the first spell Ohinemuri had decidedly the best of the game, though towards half time Auckland were beginning to get the upper hand. The second half was more even, each side doing a good share of the aggressive work. Towards the end Auckland asserted themselves again and a passing run. about the only good one seen during the match, resulted in a score, which won the match for th" visitors.

Though beaten. Ohinemuri were bv no means disgraced. Taking the game ns a whole, they had rather the best of it On a dry day, Auckland would probably have won by a larger margin; as it was they had to battle hard to pull off the mi’ch Both teams deserve credit for the determination they displayed. It was “a good go” from start to finish.

Donovan. the Auckland fu I back though he kicked better than usual was eclipsed by the opposing full, a lad named Shaw, who handled the slippery ba!) w'th wonderful accuracy, and generally found lhe line with a long punt. Shaw’s kicking was the best on the ground. Auckland’s threequarter line was weak Absolum being the only one who seemed able to handle the ball at all. Absolum ployed consistently, and had ha been better supported by Woods, the centre threequarter. the back diets on would have shown up better. Woods seemed helpless on the wet ground, and Paul’s display was mediocre.

On such a day. the position of centrehalf was a trying one. but Kiernan filled It with credit. He got the ball awav very neatly on the occasion of A uckl-md's score. Asher, at five-eignths, suffered by comparison with his vis a-vis Hockley, who got through a great amount of work, and under the circumstances did well. Hockley's chief fault Is a weakness for kicking at a rolling ball, but it must be said that ho generally managed It successfully on Saturday. Asher was closely looked after by the opposing forwards and got few chances. Of the wing men, Gallaher (Auckland) outclassed hls opponent Mathias, but the heavy going handicapped the lighter Doran, and he was not a match for the opposing Ohinemuri wing, Cock, who played a strong game throughout. Gallagher received a painful cut on the Instep early In the game from an opponent's boots, and though he pluckily

played on he was quite tame after the match. The Auckland forwards worked well to a man. They lasted splendidly, and outclassed their heavier opponent* in the scrums. It would be hard to pick the beat of the bunch. H. Wilson and MacGregor w Z. re P er^a P s the most prominent. “ e Ohinemuri team was a stronger one than that which Thames defeated. Their backs excelled in kicking, but lacked combination: their forwards had plenty of dash, but were not so well up in the finer points as the city pack. Moore (threequarter) and Rockley showed great dash, and Houghton shaped well at centre. Shaw’s display at full back has already been noted. McMillan. McGuire and the veteran Clarkin were about the best of the forwards. Mr Angus Campbell, of Auckland, gave entire satisfaction as referee. The Auckland team returned to town on Sunday morning. During their stay at Paeroa they were driven out to Karangahake. where they were shown over the Crown mine and battery. Mr O. Wells manager of the team, expressed himself as highlj- pleased with their behaviour while on tour. ® © ® AUCKLAND V. OHINEMURI. Although Auckland proved victorious in this match, must people will lit inclined io feel disappointed with the result, as a win by 5 points over a team which was decisively beaten by Thames does not, on the face of it, appear to warrant any great confidence in the ability of Auckland to defeat Thames when they meet next Saturday. However, comparisons of this kind do not, as a rule, come out as anticipated, and I am still very hone ful of the result of Saturdays match. For one thing, the state of the ground at Paeroa, wet and greasy, was altogether against our men, who are quite unused to that kind of thing. Further, those who saw the match on Saturday, and also saw Ohinemuri perform against Thames, state that they played almost a fifty per cent better game than they did in the Thames match. Of course, too, the Auckland team will be strengthened by the inclusion of 1). Hav as threequarter, and I think it might be slightly strengthened in other directions as well, but Mr Arneil- apparently thinks differently. Whatever the result of the game may be it is almost certain that it will lie a splendid match, and should attract a very big attendance. It is reported that Thames supporters are offering two to one on their team. Well, not having seen Thames perform this season. I can hardly offer a very decided opinion: all the same, though, I would rather take those odds than lay them. The only match at Potter's on Saturday that created any amount of interest was the final for the Public Schools championship, played between Beresford Street and Devoiiport. Up to Saturday both schools had splendid and unbeaten records, having each played 11 matches, of which II) had been won and 1 drawn. On the occasion of their last meeting the result was a draw, so everything pointed to an even and exciting game. In this

respect the large number of spectators who made the journey to Potter’s were not disappointed, as the teams proted very equally matched, and the play altogether was as interesting as could be wished for. Although Beresford Street won by the substantial margin of 10 points (two converted tries) to nil, it cannot be said that* they showed any marked superiority over their opponents, and their sue cess was almost solely due to the fact that they apfieared to take fuller advantage of such opportunities as offered than did Devoiiport. The latter school had. if anything, rather the better of the general play, but they don’t seem to have many scoring players. In the first spell the town school had the benefit cf the strong wind that was blowing, and despite that fact the play was as often as not on their side cf the half-wav line. Towards the end of tiie spell Nolan, the brilliant little captain of Beresford Street, got away, and the splendid passing rush he initiated ended in a try being scored between the posts, and which was easily converted. The second spell was of a similar description to the first, but Devonport did the most of the attacking, but were unable to break through the stubborn defence of the town boys. Then a Beresford Street plaver intercepted a pass and varied the ball well down to the oppo.site goal, and Nolan seizing his opportunity, dashed over and scored between the posts, the try being again converted. During the remainder of the game the Shore boys made desperate efforts to equalise matters, but Beresford Street was quite equal to the occasion, and the game ended without further score. It must be admitted that the football shown in this game was of a very high order, and when the age of the players is taken into consideration it will generally be allowed that the performance was brilliant. If these boys improve with age, as most of them naturally will, the future of football in Auckland bears a very bright aspect, and f quite look forward to seeing, in a few years’ time, quite a number of boys representing Auckland who have during the past, season been playing in the Public School matches. Even now their play is an object lesson which some of our seniors would do well to lay to heart, and more especially in regard to the taking of the ball, in which nearly all are regular adepts. It is rarely, indeed. that they fail to take a kick on the full, whilst amongst our senior backs this season the majority always seem to wait for the ball to bounce before attempting to take it. Altogether it may be safely staled that these school matches are fulfilling a long felt want and are training i number of players who will shortly make their names known in high-class football wherever thev mav be.