Rugby

Bay of Plenty Beacon, Volume 15, Issue 51, 31 May 1950, Page 5

Rugby

WHAKATANE TEAMS TO PLAY RANGITAIKI

Many new faces will make their appearance for the first time in the Whakatane senior A and B and junior Rugby teams selected to play Rangitaiki at Te Teko on Monday (King’s Birthday). The senior A team will be playing for the Dunderdale Cup and this wiir be the main game of the day. In the senior B and junior games all players, including reserves, will be given a game.

.A practice is to be held for all three teams at Whakatane Field at 10 a.m. on Sunday. The teams are:— Senior A: Fullback, E. Welch (Taneatua); three-quarters, W. Rutherford (United), M. Bluett (Wairaka), B. McGougan (Taneatua) vice-captain; five-eighths, D. McGarvey (Ruatoki), or G. Stewart (Wairaka), T. Riini (Wairaka); half back, K. Hurren (Taneatua); back row, H. Nuku (Ruatoki); side row, D. Howat (United), J. Semmens, (Taneatua); locks, H. Ranapia (Paroa) captain, P. Ratahi (Paroa); front row, T. Tait (Ruatoki), O. Anderson (Taneatua), D. Akuha (Paroa). Reserves: Back, B. Carter (Wairaka) ; forward, P. Gardiner (Unit 7 ed), W. Uatuku (Paroa).

Senior B: Forwards: Haumate, Ngahuru (Ruatoki), Foreman (Taneatua), C. Walker, J. Copeland, B. Hudson, K. Merito (Wairaka). Backs: A. Thatcher (Taneatua), Wilson, Harawira, C. Ingram, K. Wano, Tawa, B. Mokai (Paroa), K. Martin (Wairaka), M. Tiepa, J. Kingi (Poroporo). JUNIOR TEAM Fullback, R. Heta; three-quart-ers, K. Tawa, P. Seebeck, M. Brown; five-eighths, Hohapata, Luxton; half back, Simpson; back row, S. Shapley; side row, Goodall, Chadwick (captain); locks, Pryor, Hunia; front row, Cave, Tunui, T. Moeke. “Reserves: Backs, Stokes, .White; forwards, Hall, Stuart, K. Civil. SECOND ROUND STARTS SATURDAY '

Taneatua and Paroa will be the Whakatane teams most affected in the senior Rugby competitions on Saturday as each will have players in the Bay of Plenty team, which is to play East- Coast at Opotiki on that day. All competition games will be continued as usual at Whakatane for all grades.

Both the senior and junior teams will start the second rounds in their respective competitions with Paroa leading the senior and the speedy United team the junior. The games are:—

Senior: Poroporo v Wairaka on No. 1, Ruatoki v United on No. 2, Paroa v Taneatua at Taneatua. Junior: United v Wairaka on No. 1, Poroporo v„ Taneatua at Taneatua, Paroa v School on No. 2. Third grade: School A v Ruatoki on No. 1, School B v Paroa on No. 2. MURUPARA LEADS AT GALATEA With ten points Murupara has a two-point lead on M.O.W. at the end of the first round of the Galatea senior Rugby competition. Then come Minginui 4, Waiohau 3, Rautahuna 2, Kaingaroa one. The first series of games in the second round showed that the leading teams will ■ have to take their games seriously if they wish to maintain their positions in the competition, as Minginui beat. Ll.O. W. 8-6, and Murupara drew with Ruatahuna, 6-all. * Murupara now has a 3-point lead, with four games to be’played to decide the championship f:r the season.

The .over-all standard of play in club games is not improving to any degree. There is insufficient coaching of teams to develop understanding between forwards and backs.

Murupara is the best-balanced team in the competition and on two occasions, it has produced the best football seen in the district for many years.

/ There are some excellent forwards in the sub-union and the representative pack will be stronger than in previous years. This is mainly due to the increasing experience of players. There are some useful backs but none is outstanding. Key back positions in the representative team will be hard to fill.

There will be a sorting-up of players when the representative trial game is played at Murupara next week-end. The seven-a-side has been postponed until later in the season.

WEEK-END TEAM

United juniors to play Wairaka at Whakatane on Saturday, team to meet at A. and P. shed at 12.45

p.m.: Comiskey, Brown, Chadwick, Pritchard, A. Taylor, B. Taylor, Seebeck, Civil, Luxton, Shapley, Henderson, Goodall, Edmondson, Butler, Stewart, 'Carling, Hauesier. Hall.