RUGBY.

Hawera Star, Volume XLVIII, 15 November 1924, Page 18

RUGBY.

THE ALL BLACKS. From our very good friend and felloav toAvnsman, Mr. B. C. Bennett, we acknoAvledge Avith great pleasure receipt of an official programme issued for the OoniAvall match. : Mr. - Bennett says in it. covering- note: “Hope you are receiving all papers of matches. ’ ’ (We have pleasure -in acknoAviedging receipt of . thi§ with copy •of South Wales NeAVS, aricLValso a ;previous batch of South of England papers.) “All are quite fit arid well. Kind regards. —B. O. B.”

The All Blacks find friends and relations, no doubt,-in many parts. Harvey was pleased to: find a cousin at Nuneaton, in Leicestershire. “From what I have heard,” states a writer in a Home paper, “there will have been several New Zealanders -at the match, and in fact I personally secured tickets for several who are in London. So it is probably I who must take the blame for the lady in the front row who so annoyed you this afternoon by her really aggressive enthusiasm for the visitors.” The South Wales News of September 29 devotes a lot of space to the match between the All Blacks and Swansea and pays many compliments to the Dominion team. In a leader under the caption of “The Wonderful All Blacks” the writer oays, inter alia: “The debut of the All Blacks in Wales on Saturday was a most brilliant performance, such as lias not been seen by Swansea spectators for very many years. It was a beautiful, open game, in which all the spectacular elements were assembled to -produce the maximum effect. Again and again there were swift passing movements which swept to almost every part of the field in a brief space. And in every detail the visitors were absolute. Their superiority was not confined to one or two isolated features, but extended to every phase of the game. f How long is it since we saw such a magnificent combination of speed and power on the Rugby field? Even the weighty forwards were faster than the Swansea backs, while the Porter-Daily-Brown combination between the scrummage and the threequarters completely controlled the game in the second half. In forcing openings, in developing combined movements, and in feeding the wings this wonderful triumvirate were in the picture all the time. . . In fact, we had a feeling at the close that, splendid as was the visitors’ performance, they are not yet “all out.” They will probably improve as the season advances, and as they get more accustomed to our style of ofay and weather conditions. The match on Saturday at any rate settled one doubt. -Whether the visitors will have as good a record i as the All Blacks ’twenty years ago remains to he seen, but beyond question they are, capable of- attaining

quite as high a standard of play. They are indubitably a wonderful team, destined to add a new and thrilling chapter to the annals of the gaxte.” The report is headed ‘ ‘The Glory of Rugby”; “All Blacks’. Wonderful Display”; “Dazzling Speed and Unerring Accuracy,” and proceeds“lf the New Zealand tourists of 1924 do nothing beyondwhat,they did for the glorification," ofßugby football at Swansea on Satiirday, they will, have . completely justified the expense and trouble involved in their long journey to this country from ‘down under” Not one of the huge crowd of 40,000 AVelslnhen who saw Swansea go down could shake off the feeling of surprise and regret at the emphasis which was laid upon the contention, of those who argue that the days of the great Rugby players of Wales have departed; but. underlying their sadness, and transcending it in all the known ways of expression, Was unstinted admiration for the brilliance and skill of our colonial friends. For the greater part of the 80 minutes during which the battle raged they depicted to that huge throng, with all the cleverness of master artists, the unparalleled glories of - Rugby, clearly showiug that if the game is properly handled by a band of experts, it reaches out far beyond the boundaries of any other game as a spectacle and a pastime. ... It is only those who hide their heads in the sand who will refrain from, acknowledging that the New Zealanders of 1924 are as great a side on a dry day as were their predecessors of 1905, and that, given good conditions, they are capable of building up as brilliant a record, and possibly a more brilliant record than that which was compiled by the colonials who toured this country nineteen years ago. ‘ ‘Panic must, of course, be avoided at all costs; the Welsh clubs who have yet to meet the tourists —and. most of all, the'Match Committee of the Welsh IJnibii, upon whom a great responsibility lies—-must not be overawed l>y what happened at Swansea ; they must find their best men, train them to the last minute, and insist that every man must give of his best; but they must not run away with the idea that all is lost against the All Blacks before the game starts, for although the presis at least the equal of the 1905 side as a combined aud united force, it lacks the half-dozen outstanding personalities that shouldered most of, the work and took most of the glory in the 1905 tour. Now all are gqod; concentration upon any particular individual in the back division is certain/to lead to disaster; all require carefiil watching, not because of any special qualities, though none of them are without marked capacity, hut because the component parts of’the hack division contain points of strength which dovetail> into each other to v perfection and contribute tp -the makihg" i a juighty machine which can deliver the full force of its Blows, just-when and where captain C. ' G.’. Porter ' determines.” v. r:

One _or the illustrations will-he particularly interesting :to TardnakiGEn-' thusiasts for- it shows H. W. Brown breaking away from a lighter opponent and in the centre background is a capital .snap ; West, just ■ typical; of :Ms attitude on the field. Another shows Sorter the skipper,. photographed with" t‘iane° r^f n *he > Welsh/ Iner’antional f T\r. i w h° sc o r ed-fh© memorable try, for Wales that won the only match lost by New Zealand. Writing in • the same paper, however, Ernest E. Booth, an. All Black of 1905, (or. as he .calls ‘ ISew Zealand’s-, original,” lyOo-b-i) vis pretty >seyere' on ‘the present team and deplores the deterioration of Welsh Club Rugby. He says: 1 could: only rub my eyes and murmur, like tho theatrical, artists do,”" great shades ;> pf'-the .past.” It i s to be sincerely hoped- that this' match does riot .truly serve as. a 'criterion of the : standard of Welsh . club, foothill. he deterioration of .form, shown by; the men of Abeitawe on Saturday. a’s : compared with the past is unbelievable.' ’ , and visit generally, will probably help to bring-about a revival wi i lol’iVsI ol ’iV s interest and glories of Welsh football which every colonial anticipates here in Wales. Every country has its cvcle of depreciation in every branch of sport, and i t is to be hoped .this tour of the All Blacks will nave a good missionary effect tw he i Al i ® la ? ks § ave unmistakably their best display on this tour so far, and many of their passing evolutions were speetaeulaidy to watch o™ t° then speed and inter-change-‘n noi, eff rA S -- Sfcill > i ud & d critically, much of their work was very faulty, and hardly fitting to an International dav - S Tbo a Tui e r p ! oyed on Saturi ‘ s backs lost quite a dozen easy chances of increasing their Ity ; liand,i "?' However, whether his criticism thf S,,T ”°* the , fact the team has proved much too good for all the teams they have met, and that mafch PPeai t 0 be improvin 2 with each

nav te -! P eau . (the manager) u e t to tlie crowd and the lqteiee.. Ihe former said: His team were emmensely pleased with the way the spectators appreciated the good foothaU of either side, and he classified the spectators at St. Helens as -the fan vr fc ' c £r Td ; m ® ll gland and Wales. .?h • Paid a?high tribute ;to the ’ J ’ Llewellyn,. and. also to the sporting people of Swansea, who, he said,- were a treat to watch. . Responding to the toast to, the ]osiig team, Mr. J. H. John, the Swansea captain, congratulated the New Zealanders on their victory, and said team 6 llotlim £ moi 'e than a wonder Comments _on the Mercurv football wnter: “The Welford-road ground be ° ne plaCe in a)1 England wheie there were most people anxious to insert themselves into as small a place as possible in order to see 15 kiek a football about Conspicuous in the rush for late seats were visitors who obviously were partisans of the visitors, fo/the match did not only rely on local interest. tbiuo- ay T as a perfect one for anytinuf f and man , y were the exclamateh tuff aP n loVa i a , t th , e . excellence of about tbo .®, °f f* ie things I noticed n’ lsltw ? was the care they took over themselves before the match ' When I went to see Porter in his r Stei ' day i aft ® rn °on I found him fast asleep, evidently preferring fitness to-day ” momnV t laU Seein - Leicester

THE NEWPORT GAME. SOME IMPRESSIONS. . Beiir, ett, writing to a friend m Hawera, says “that the All Blacks were lucky to get away with the game aganist Newport. A good drv ground, but the side was the best vet,' met. Our boys were not. together. Mark Nieliolls was the hero, and we have to thank lnm for the win. Porter played a shocking game, and was everywhere except full-back, and this disorganised all the backs. Harvey was much missed among the forwards; he-is playing a great game. Can only say our boys had a day off. Cooke got a nasty knock and was .off the .field, for about ten min-

utes, ami no replacements are aßfwed over here. Our boys, Brown and West, are playing great football; Hart lias only turned out once and then played a great game. M. Brownlie is a fine forward, but is inclined to overdo: the “solo” game. They "are a good even lot, ami that is better than two or three brilliants. Leicester is on a par With Newport, but wc cannot again play such a rotten game as at. Newport. Guess a win ofls-points- should happen at Leicester. Mark Nieholls Was a hero, and but . fori liis good work throughout wo must have be,en defeated. Cooke is good; makes fine openings for his backs, and is always dangerous, Harvey is a fine dashing forward and always on the balk He is resting just uoay on account of a bad throat. We could have done with him at Newport. Receptions everywhere are truly wonderful; words cannot tell how deep and sincere the feelings is. New Zealand stands very high all over England. I think the team is short of a good general—we certainly have the material—and do not adapt ourselves to circumstances such as-wet grounds, referees’ rulings, meeting different styles of play, etc. We are not getting the ball from the scrum and are beaten on the line-out, yet we win. ' '.

ALL BLACKS v. NORTH MIDLANDS.

The Birmingham Post, in commenting on the North Midlands match, remarks, inter alia: “Each player-.pf the ,All Blacks possesses the best attributes of a Rugby footballer, but comparing the score with the opposition and the exchanges in attractive play seen yesterday, there seems to be littlri doubt that the tourists’ back game will have to improve if the team is to be regarded as the peer of that combination which made so /much sporting history. . . '. It is, however, among the forwards -that one sees the great strength of the Colonials,' and it showed the keenness, pluck and determination of. the. local men that they were by uo means treated as Robots.” GALLAHER’S MEN OF 1905. , “TIGERS” WHO MET THE ALL BLACKS 19 YEARS AGO.

Dealing with : the visit.; of the All Blacks to Leicester, the Sports Mercury of October . 4 has the following 'interesting' reference to the previous tour:.

• Leicester’s welcome to the. All Blacks, heartily 1 sincere as is the wel- 1 come given to all sportsmen from . overseas, is, perhaps, ali the keener Serialise of the many years that have elapsed since we last had the pleasure of j Receiving 4 representative team from Hew Zealand. And, of course, the ex- - ceptional success. of Gallaher’s men of 1905 has invested the present tour with .a, quite •peculiar interest. Rugby men aye all wanting to know whether the All Blacks , of 1924 are as powerful and" brilliapt a ; combination as their illus- ‘ tripus predecessors of 19 years ago. ; This is a question that cannot be dog-, matically answered, because with a ’ fresh generation of players the standards of comparison cannot be readily applied. But if the present AU Blacks can go through the tour with as good a record 1 as the men of 190545 we may Safely say they are entitled to all the decorations of greatness ' that.. were worthily worn by Their predecessors.. It is interesting to note that the “Tigers’.’ fullback of 1905 ; was A. O. J ones. Was he the famous cricketer ?■... The 1905: team. played two matches-:; at Leicester—the- second .against the; Midland- Cbuiitirifi.. < f ~' v •/.

SCHOOL .‘HUGGER

A PLEA FOR MORE INTEREST.

At a reunion after a match in Lei- ; . cester incidents of bygone days were;; recorded in plenty by the- “old hands” who were present with- a view to inspir- . ing the younger generation, amongst' whom Wyvern must he considered. In responding to the toast of “The ,Visi-.-tofs,” Mr F. W. 'Taylor (hon. secretary of the English Schools’ Union) pleaded for more interest in the juniors. There were great possibilities, he said, in schools’ Rugger, just as much to-day as years ago, lyhen more than one boy trained on to become not only a credit to his school, but to his town, and even his country, in the sphere of football. Mr Taylor also mentioned that the Schools’ Rugby Union international match with Wales had attracted an attendance of 11 ; 000 at Bristol. . He hoped, not without cause, that such a fine record: would be - beaten at Leicester' this ‘season; ■/. '-/•

RUGBY IN SOUTH AFRICA. The English captain,, Cove,Smith, interviewed on the eve of his departure for England, said: “I think .in.case of future tours that a,lees strenuous’ 1 programme would be advisable. More opportunity might be given for rest between Test matches. After playing the Test at Durban, for instance,. we travelled from the coast to Johannesburg—a climb of several thousand feet, and quite a long journey. Arriving on the Rand, we had to play a mid-week game and then a Test match, on the Saturday. That means two Tests within a week, with a mid-week game and ,a considerable amount of travelling thrown in. It is no'good giving players heavy programmes and then complaining because the football is not good. As to Rugby in South Africa, I came out here expecting to find representative South African sides much stronger than they really were. The general standard is high, hut except in the last Test match the South African Test teams did not seem to represent nearly l that standard. The thing that your Rugby in South Africa is suffering from is what the game is suffering from in England—though not to the same extent. I mean press and public. Well may the play and players ask to be delivered from their friends. Rugby football is becoming merely a public entertainment, and the real spirit of the game on its recreative side is in danger of being lost. Frankly, we must he careful that the, game does not become ruined, by commercialism. I am perfectly 1 satisfied with the tour. Of course, the idea one gets of a tom- like this—l mean of South Africa and its people—is quite an artificial one. We really have had little opportunity of meeting people in their homes, and so can form no real idea of home life of the country. MORE RUGBY. “Tackier wanted for Mexico.”— Advertisement in provincial paper. Forward, Mr, Cummins.

A FAMOUS PLAYER’S OPINION. Mr. T. H.; Vale, the Welsh international half-back, who.played in New Zealand with Bedell Siev wright’s team in 1904 and against the, 1905' All Blacks, in an article in the South Wales Argus, remarks thus : “Looking back to 1905, my opinion of the present New Zealand team, is that at the moment they are not so good as

the old team. '1 hey arc younger and Jess experienced, but I believe they are faster, and when they acquire the finish and experience of their predecessors—say, half-way through- the present tour —they will be a different side altogether from wliat they are to-day arid will take some beating.”, a great Railway company. Mr. Bennett encloses to us a catalogue of “G.W.R. Hotels, Refreshment Room? and Restaurant Cars -.■Department .issued for the New Zealand Rugby Football Club” with a map of the “Great- Triangle,'’ showing the area covered by the - Great Western—B69o • miles of track ; 1000 stations; 6900 locomotives, 10;000 pasrenge.r vehicles and 100,000 goods waggons and trucks; a staff of 110.000. ' ; GREAT SPORTS CENTRE! IN ENGLAND. Particulars are given of a ,great sports eeritrb neat Newton Abbot, Torbay, a. place where some of the most important British and international events - have been decidedEnglish Riviera golf championship, lawn tennis hard court championships, Davis Cup match between Britain arid Belgium, Harvard v. Yale, and United Services, International motor boat races for Duke of York’s Cup, WELFORD ROAD “CRICKET PITCH.” The All Blacks w.bre wildly enthusiastic ribout the Welford Road ground, not only in regai-d to, the condition of the tuff, but as to the building and accessibility of everything. I asked one of the visitors about the ground, and his reply was not without its humour. “It is wonderful,” he said. “Looks more like a cricket pitch. There must be ssoriieone pretty careful about its treatment.” A COLONIAL OPINION. .'(By E. E. Booth.) The spirit of the game was a feature of the day, arid reflected great credit oil both sides. -Altogether, the game was a credit to all corieerried. The New Zealand 'superiority .was riiore marked in the; backs. than, the fort wartts, Dalle}- being .the king bolt- Of the colonial team. The big attendance was a coriiplimerit to the All Blacks..