HOCKEY.

Dominion, Volume 2, Issue 514, 22 May 1909, Page 12

HOCKEY.

(By Duiver.)

Tho hockey cliarauionsliip matches wero continued oil Saturday laßti Boino interesting gspies resulting, f l'l|e imwt liotamo fcitfuro Uuitpd, \ylio defeat tit tjtp (lands of V.M.C.A, on the •' previous Saturday, recovered EC I!!? of their old dash, and gained a'fairly pu?y victory over "Vtctprisv Collego. > The uiajoh b'otwccnV Wellington-. Jvarnri wns of a vary ovon nature from start to finish. Karori made nonip veiy. (inij) rushes, hilt tho Strength Of tills Wollmgton fcks Proved aniplo to Hoou tlifiin out time aftor tjtpe, Karori s bapk, division, witfy the exceptions, perhaps, ot Spiers and lj,. DftrifS, was. weak,' but all tlieir rf fofWiiols, ciso.'pt, . I'liias, who is now to the game, played very well. T)io 'Wellington forwards, with tho oxception of Beer? and; Walton, wiiQ"showed great fpftn, were weak, Walton s efforts'wero much • handicapped by his collipanions.- Tho losers (Wellington) w«ro minus the service-; of Smith, let'trhalf, owing to a sprained knee, fshpley played peculiarly. He stopped some very h°t 6hots. in his usual excellent style, lint ho might' oasjly have saved two of the goals scored by.Karori; one of them, especially, jusfc drjliblcd past hiij) over tho line. Just after the commencement of tho second spell, Brewer ha<} to "rest for five minutes as ho received a nasty blow on the knee from a stick. Brewer is leaving the city, and Doughty cannot go on playing for healfh reasons, and thus the strength) of the Wellington. teams is seriously threatenod. Itowover, the club' ias good mon to fall buck npop, and this should, have the effect of maintaining the strength of the team to present average. : The contest between United and Victoria College was fast' from beginning to end, although He gfonnii wap on the heavy 'side. The forpier won by 8. to 3, but the figure? do not accurately repfesept tho ptrcnupusncss of the contest. .The victors' forward lji|e played very much better thqn on-the previous Saturday. 'I'ho full-bijcks, Pickspn apd Von Sturmer, qiu) tho goijlliceppr, .Dwyer, did a lot of good w°rk, .but the wing-halves still hsvo :i little to,(earn. Tho College forwards played a very Jiartl and good game al| through, Their hal£ ; lin?i was fair, but thoir weakness lay in their full-backs, ■. " "

Brighter prospects are in store for TJiorndon. The club, updpr the capable management of its enthusiastic skipper. Mr. Dunbar Sloaue, has borne, qp' against Jpng odds all through last year. If must be remembered that tho year provious TJiorpdon was a' thinfclass team, and. it jumped stTftlght up to senior rants .without meeting a junior team. Tljip is ample explanation of its position in |ast year's championship'. Now, hpwpvar, the team has greatly improved, and evidence of this was given last Saturday; Y.M.C.A, were able to beat the nine years' ehampjons, United, by 3 to J, but they- only, managed, to, jiofeiiji;' "JflioriiQPfj by J> to 2. Tile reason'why' the victory'vf'ijs Mph H naj-row not because Y.M.C.A. plgyeil badly->thoydid not—b'ntbeciiuso'Tliorud'pn tycre proficient onough to keep the .eoorihg" "down. Some brilliant charge were made by tip Thoriidon band. - Their first goal was registered through careful following tfit on • the part ? of the forwards, whjch onftjjlet} Hunt to sl|ppt t&roiigh. 1 heir second- was Kcnred _hy 9. Slpane, who hooked tlip h|»U haK my (Jown (hp field, tpok it down pluilsd thfi dqffiiipo, aijii fpijnfl qn pxipn 1 691 1 - ,%> T h °rpdp|i backs, G, AiHjpp (rijrhf; half) especially, were plso much improyei). Stnitljers p ayed a'good\gfime;' bi)V lio ran 'out o'f'his blade a little tnq much,' The left wing/'Howden, was weqlc; but ho Is only a'beginner. The full-bpcfes did well, as tjid the gpalkepper, It illward.' In the first fipell Y.M.C.A. played n gopd gamp, their forwards showing excellent wwtlflli, Their; bucks, Holmes were conspicuous far thpjr good play. 1,, the poocf was not fl uib so ' Wwlcy and Vivian mpf, 'fi rp t qij'.j|o, 5 apd ft 5w.» Bpj». fto former,iyjnuing by 8 to 1 after, a fast ganie. .Tfle Vivian" forwards mnds a ppor showing, nud tliejv halves wero not very-nUich liofter.' Tlie full-'hacks ppt Up a stubborn defence. Wfsjcv, l|rjive\4r were in snpcl - fpnn, anil exhibited good combination, lliey slinnhl reqlly liave sc/jred- manv more gnnls, and it was only, through bad shooting that the score ivas lint p to 1. Their forwards (lid not play so well as/the backs or as well as on the. prg7jou.s Satuydfiy. Jliipp ijns good: as was Birch, in the first half, but lie went off noticeabh as the game iprogros'ed. The forwards should pay .every.attention to straight slinotinj? ftpys niu) Smilli kppt'bfalinu one •IWt'hw-for. the ball tpp\ muoft iiiptoW ■Of rafcadinp. out )l) their plaW,s. Of the bnqks, _ August 1-1 hps been accrntcd by flip Wpl(ingtn.l Association. the da e for a mntol| with Auckland during the topr of the latterV team and it is Imped tq get n team away tq' the northern city m July., If this latter'tour tak»s plpco, it. 15' til hp, linpscj t!)i(t the Seleiiinn CominittP? Will dp their biist' to get a good (inlf line .in the (earn, for, np matter |ioiv eond the Fpippiijder mpy lie, it ivill be gpipc on toiif y.-itjipuf tjns desidprptura. . The' Wplljiigipn Asfnpiatini}'has given pertjlisw t!» m JiW .'Hsneiptipn to lisp ,jh< nay « Bay -grounds up to !M5 p!m./and {h» ■ Dyiipfl Street and Kelbnriio grounds 'ud to 3 p.ni< :