Lions Cannot Take This One Easily

Press, Volume CVI, Issue 31098, 29 June 1966, Page 19

Lions Cannot Take This One Easily

(From I. J. D HALL) NELSON. It must be many decades since the combined Nelson-Golden Bay - Motueka - Marlborough team has been regarded as a vitally important match for an international touring fifteen.

Three defeats in five matches has placed the Lions in the position where the team have to win at Nelson today, and to win well. Normally it would be an innocuous fixture for a Lions team but this touring side, still groping to match New Zealand forward play and place its own imprimateur on back play, has so many problems at present that the combined side may have a slight psychological advantage today.

The combined fifteen provide a reasonable opposition. Its forwards do not match the Lions physically but there are two big raw-boned players in the Sutherland brothers, fast and determined loose forwards, quite speedy backs and, most important, an accurate goal kicker in Delaney.! Morris, who was a brilliant full-back for Canterbury Uni-1 versify a few seasons ago. is playing at centre and he and j Chadwick, the second five-! eighths, have important tasks ( today.

Only determined tackling will stop the fast and skillful Lions’ centres, McFadyean and Weston, from creating openings for their wings. Usually the Lions play quite frothy Rugby in matches of this sort but it is not expected that the captain, Campbell-Lamerton, will allow his pack to become too loose. Tight Play He realises that with important matches coming up the pack has to knuckle down to tight play. There should not be too many deviations into the loose skirmishing that characterised part of the Universities match.

Keeping their faith in the running and passing game, the Lions backs can be expected to provide some bright play. Watkins only needs to repeat his form against Universities to give the impetus to a back-line which has skill and speed.

Without taking anything away from the combined team it can only be hoped that the Lions finally strike form. It can be assumed that they will win. What is yet to be known is whether they can win by playing attractive, attacking Rugby. For the sake of the rest of the tour one hopes they can emerge from their slough of despondency. Heavy Rain Trafalgar Park will be soft and slippery. There has been some heavy rain in Nelson and the long grass on the pitch will make greasy conditions. If anything, this will be in favour of the combined side for it might slightly reduce the effectiveness of the Lions backs. There has been another change in the combined side. The half-back, E. Ercolano, failed to pass a fitness test yesterday morning and he lias been replaced by J. Norton. In the Lions team,

■ the Scottish wing, Hinshcl- . I wood, replaces S. J. Watkins Teams: British tsles.—S. W A. J. H nshetwood. M. P. Weston .C. W MacFadyean, K. F. Savage; P. Watkins. A. R I Lewis; T W. Teller: N. A. A Murphy. M. J. Campbetl Lamer ton (captain). W D Thomas. ID. Grant; R J. McLougMtn, F. A. L. Laidlaw D. L. PoweM. ; Combined.—M. Delaney: P .1 Clark. T. J. Morris. R. Bo’water: iJ. Chadwick. D Bowater: J. Norton: A. Sutherland: D. King. R Sutherland (captan). R i Pratt. R. Adams; N. Fitzslm ' mons, P. Fry. J. Joseph.