SWEEPING CHANGES IN AUSTRALIAN SIDE

Chronicle (Levin), 24 June 1947, Page 7

SWEEPING CHANGES IN AUSTRALIAN SIDE

Press Assn.

Ban Of Secrecy On Training Of Test Team

By Telegraph

-Copyright

SYDNEY, June 23. Sweeping changes in the Australian team for the second Test next Saturday have been made by the selectors as a result of the All Blacks' deeisive win over New South Wales. The Australian selectors consider their forward' play has been too close and not vigorous enough, and have therefore concentrated 011 picking men conspicuous for hard play in the tight. W-indon and Cornforth, the two best loose forwards in Australia, have beon dr.opped, as well as Hardcastle, who was eaptain in the first test but who has not reprodueed recently the form shoivn last year in New Zealand. D. Keller, front-row forward, has also t een dropped to make room for the younger and faster E. Tweedale. The Aust'-alian team is: — Full-back, K. Windsor; threequarters, J. MacBride, • T. Allen, K. Bourke and C. Eastes; live-eighth, N. Emery; half-back, C. Burse; forwards, Gc. Cooke, A. Buchan, D. Kraeflt, N. Sliehadie, W. MeLean R. McMaster, K. Ivearney and E. Tweedale. McLean eaptain of the Wallabies in Eew Zealand last year, takes Hardcastle 's place as eaptain. Cooke toured New Zealand last year with the Wallabies. Ivraefft and Shehadie are young, strong f> rwards who have performed well this year for New South Wales. Cremin has been dropped from the first live-eiglith position on the ground of slowness, and a chanee is given to Emery, who played five-eighth for New South Wrales against the All Blacks in the second mqteh in Sydney. Allan, who was with the Wallabies in New Zealand last year, has been playing at centre instead of oh the wing, vvhere he played on Saturday. Howell was injured and has been replaced by Bourke, the Queenslander, who would have been in the first test had he not had to drop out through injury. Windsor is a better kiclcer tlian Piper. Windsor, Bourke, Cooke,. MeLean and McMaster are all Queenslanders. The Australian selection has given' new life to the test. Had Australia fielded more or less the same side as in Brisbane, the result would have been considered almost a foregone conclusion. The Australian team is so extensively remodelled that now no one can sav just what it is capable of accomplishing. Ban of Secrecy A ban of secrecy has' been imposed by the selectors on the training of the reconstituted Australian Kugby TJnion team to meet New Zealand. The players have been bound to secrecy and warned against giving the press interviews. No one will be allowed on the field during training except the coaches, Messrs. A. C. Wallace and H. Masters. The selected forwards are the toughest internationals obtainable, according to Mr. Ginty Lush, in the Telegraph. Six have plaved in tests against New Zealand, while the others, Shehadie and Kraefft, have already shown good t'orm against the All Blacks this season. Every oue of the forwards is at his best when the play is tarl. McLean, Buchan and Cooke will be required to give the half-back., Burke, protection, wliich he did not get 011 Saturday, and will provide the cover defence'for the tliree-quarters. _ ihe tnain problem of the forwards is to combat the line-out break throughs }

New Zealand and the inenacing loose forwards, Arnold and White. "The Australian backs, are still of doubtful . quality," says. Mr. Lush. ' ' Emery is game and runs straight. ' He should be an improvement on Cremin on attaek. Bourke is ono of the surest def enders in the,. game, but has yet to prove himself a penetrating centre. Trevor Allan is the only Aus tralian centre capable of running the winger. Eastes into . position. The Queensiander full-back, Clem Windsor, has ability to win the match for Australia. He is just as dangerous as Scott when he runs with the backs and there is no better handler or kicker in Australia, but as a defende? he is patchy." Drastic Changes The changes in the team are so drastic that some adverse comment is unavoidable. Sydney elub secretaries express surprise at the dropping of Windon and Piper, both of whom appeared tp go well on Saturday. Thc reason for the exclusion of Howell, who played well, is stated to »be injuries to his lcnees necessitating a' rest. The oipission of Hardcastle, Cornforth and Cremin from the reserves has also eaused a surprise, though it is noted that Cremin was a sick man on Saturday. ' As the former international, Mr. S. • C. King, puts it: "Men get out of sick beds and win matches for their sides only in story books." Mr. A. Hodgson, another former .international, says that the selectors have ehosen the right forwards to cope with the New Zealanders. He also approves of the choice of Emery for straight running and speed off the mark. Mr. W. Cerutti, the famous Australian player over many years, says that 'Cooke may be near the veteran stage, but is still the best secbnd row forward 'in Australia. "While the team, as a whole, must aecept its share of the responsibility for the serious setbaclc to the union's prestige in New South Wales, othei factors cannot be left without consideration, " says the Rugby reporter oi' the Sydney '-Herald. 1 ' It was f elt all last weelt that the decision to transfer MacBride to inside centre and to 'place Trevor Allan on the wing was not advisable. The New Zealanders were quiek to perceive the possible weaknesses and tested their theory after 10 minute&J play, and then decided to play footba.ll that was confmed alniost solely to. attack down the centre of the field. The New Zealand five-eighth, Kearney, merely had to draw MacBride and send to Allen, v who untrouiiled and scarcely tackled all day, brought his forwards or backs into a scoring position as he deemed fit. While New Zealand was defending, penetration was reduced to a minimum as the cover defence droppea every man who succeeded in getting through. It was high class matchwinning t'ootball. " "The higgest.shocki;among the whole sale changes . in , tl^e ./team is the resurrection of> the 3b-year-pld Graham Cooke," says Mr. E. W. Kann in today's Sun. "'cook'e; first appeared in senior football in 1930 and represented, Australia against New Zealand in 1932. He toured South Africa with the 1933 Wallabies and went Tback there to engage in gold mining but is now a police man in Brisbane. At Toowoomba' he scored a try and also surprised everyone with his cover defence."