THE ALL BLACKS.

Hokitika Guardian, 21 November 1924, Page 3

THE ALL BLACKS.

AUSTRALIAN AND N.Z. OADLB ASSOCIATION OXFORD DEFEATED. T!V If It TO to. LONDON, November 20. The All Blacks again proved successful in to-day's game, the scores being: All Blacks 315 Oxford University ■* 15 PARTICULARS OF PLAY. (Received this day at -2.0 p.m.) LONDON * No).'cmnber 20. The All Blacks to-day met Oxford University which is regarded as one ol the strongest sides in England and contained in its ranks a number of overseas plays. After a spirited game the New Zealanders emerged vietoiious by lilt to 15 and thus have put their total score well ahead of the last two Dominion teams which visited England. Th New Zealand team was:—Nepia. Robiliard, Cooke. Steel. MeOregor. Nicholls, Dailey. Porter. Donald, Irvine. M. Brownlie. Masters, Stewart, Cupplcs and White. The conditions were excellent as the weather was fine though dull, and there was no wind. 'The ground was soft. Oxford abandoned their usual darkblue jerseys to avoid confusion and played in all white. Oxford kicked oil’ and through -Masters mulling the ball the Varsity bored their way into New Zealand territory, where a passing rush nearly brought them a score. .Tust after, Cooke failed to field the ball, which was kicked over the New Zealand line, and Jacob, following up fast secured a try whit h Berkeley converted. Oxfiml 5 All Blacks 0 Nicholls promptly retaliated by dropping a goal.

Tlu* All Blacks soon pulled themselves together and put in some effective passing. Brownlee. Nicholls and White took a hand in one limit and the lastnamed went over the linn. Nieliolls converted. All Blacks !> Oxford 5 Keeping up their pace and Hinging the ball about freely. Cooke ran over, as the result of another spell of brilliant passing, and again Nicholls added another goal. All Blacks I I Oxford 5 Oxford then had another look in. Nepia for once was caught in two minds and failed to take (lie ball, and let Mrl’lierson in to score an easy try. Berkeley was again successful in converting. and half-time ended with the score— All Blacks I I Oxford 10 Upon resuming. West-lie renlaccd Raymond at full back for Oxford and Raymond went up into the three-quar-ters line. The All Blacks continued their aggressive play and swept down on the Varsity’s goal, vitli an irresistible rush that carried them over and enabled Brownlie to score under the posts. Nicholls had no difficulty in converting. All Blacks 19 Oxford 10 The visitors kept up the attack, but many attacks failed through mistakes in passing at the right moment. The Oxford three-quarters put up a gallant defence and amid dealcning cheers Wordsworth and Wallace made a splendid united effort. The latter ran to half-way and then passed to Wordsworth who ran through all the opposition and crossed the line. Berkelev converting. All Blacks 19 Oxford I > This, however, was the \ arsity s last success. The All Blacks came to the attayk again and Steel got over. Nicholls enlivening. Soon alt"iv.arils NieliolL droplied another goal. All Blacks 28 Oxford I■' Though Varsity backs wetci omhining weff and then torvarils nltelt gained ion lie- Nov Zealander;-; l.nd.e through and Steel scored under Ibe pe*.t-. Nicholls easily added a goal. All Blacks 33 Oxford 1-5 Following a movement in which Porter, Nidn.lls, MeOregor and Robilliard successfully handled the ball, the lasi named scored and .Nicholls once more converted. All Blacks 38 Oxford !•> The second half was thrilling and full of excitement. Raymond, AiTUcn (Westport and Wallace stood out among the Varsity backs. Nieliolls was" tlu* hero of the match, converting every try and dm| ping two goals. Cupples, Brownlie, White, and Masters were the best forwards.

OXFORD ROUTED IN I'.HI. A REVELATION IN IM'GBV. The All Blacks who met Oxford University yesterday were baldly expeeted to pul up the wonderful performance winch their predecessors did against the “Dark iJliles" on November 7lh. f!):io, when they heat their opponents by 17 to nil. Mr .J. A. Buttery, writing in the “Daily .Mail" after tlie 190-> mulch said -“This is the severest reverse the Dark Blue fifteen have ever experienced in the whole course of their history. Indeed never bclurc have they had double figures in tries scored against them. The efforts id the Dark Blues to stem the resistless All Blacks’ rushes would have been lar-ch-ill if they had not been so plucky. They were outrun, outgeneralled, tricked, and toppled about like so many ninepins, but they stuck to their work with true Oxford resolution. Ihe game bad been very fast—the New Zealand forwards were making the pace very hot—and the 'Varsity pack were run nearly off their legs. 'I hey got slower and slower, with the result that a tremendous amount of work was thrown on the backs. When the whistle blew for hall'-t ituc, Oxford looked rather tired, not to say limp, “Done like a dinner!" observed an undergraduate spectator. The scon- then stood at 22 points to nil—two goals and lour

“On the resumption both sides went at it hammer and tongs. The passing of the New Zealanders was dazzling ill its brilliancy at times. The hall, when out of the serum, seemed to he always in their hands, travelling like lightning from one to the other. ! hey made a lot of mistakes, it is true, dropping the hall or passing lorward at a critical moment. It was as well for Oxford that they did, or the score might have been nearer 103 points than .10. Try succeeded try with disconcerting regularity. In hooking, and heeling out the Oxford forwards were beaten almost every time. The score might easily have been much larger had not 11 it* All Blacks tiicd s‘-veral place-kicking experiments. Instead of trusting to Wallace to convert, tln-y rang the changes on several members of the team—some of whom had never taken a place-kick in their lives with occasional ludicrous -results. The attempts by Newton. Tyler, and Hunter were particularly diverting spectacles. The crowd of -0000, including a fair sprinkling of ladies, trooped off the field in excited admiration of ‘this revelation of Rugby football.’ as one white-haired old gentleman described it. “The New Zealanders’ score of 17 points to nil was made up of five tries l,v Hunter, two each by Booth and Wallace, and tries by Tyler, McGregor, Roberts and Glasgow. Wallace converted three of the tries, and Hunter one. “The New Zealand team comprised: Gillett; McGregor, AVallace, Booth; Hunter, Mynott; Roberts ; Gallagher ; Casey. Tyler, Johnson, Newton, Nicholson, Corbett, Glasgow.”

RESULTS TO DATE.* Following are the results to date (with scores of 1905 team for purposes of comparison) and matches to be ptay-

0(1 l>v tile All Blacks: — 1021. . 1905. v. Devon 11-0 55—1 v. Connvnll 29—0 <11—0 v. Somerset 0—0 23-0 v. Gloucester ... G— 0 <11-0 v. Swansea 39—3 <1—3 v. Newport 13—10 G—3 v. Leicester 27—0 28—0 v. North Midlands 10—3 21-5 v. Cheshire 18-5 31—0 v. Durham <13—7 1G—3 v. Yorkshire •12—1 •10—0 v. Lancashire 23- 0 — v. Cumberland —41 — 0 — v. Ireland G--0 15-0 v. Lister 28 -G -— v Northumberland 27—1 31—0 v. Cambridge Unv. 5-0 11—0 v London Counties 31—0 — v Oxford University .‘Id Id COMING MATCHES. Nov. 22—v. Cardiff (JO—8). Nov. 2!)—v. "Wales (0—•'!). December 2.—v. Llanelly. •17—0