NINE PAEROA BOYS

Hauraki Plains Gazette, Volume 52, Issue 3257, 30 April 1943, Page 4

NINE PAEROA BOYS

RE UNION IN PACIFIC MET AT RUGBY MATCH AMERICANS THINK IT "TOUGH” Although serving with the Second New Zealand Expeditionary Force in the Pacific, many Paeroa boys who 'in the past have been keen rugby players in the Thames Valley are again looking forward •to the football season which is just opening. • Writing to the Gazette, Pte. Laurie Berry states that the inter-battalion rugby competition has just opened, resulting in a real re-union of 'Paeroa lads- from three different battalions: “The games were held on a field belonging to a small outfit that reclaimed wrecked cars and trucks and young Eric Mitchell was the cook for the day. He entertained us to tea and New Zealand cake and it was really great,” stated the letter.

Boys From Paeroa “There were nine of us’ on the field —Jim Morrison of Hikutaia, Lionel Smith, Pat Hart, Bill Cranch, Snowy Williams, Max Chamberlain, all of Paeroa, and another lad by the name of Smith, who was on the railway at Paeroa for quite a while and. played for Convent Old Boys, and myself. Out of the lot I was the only one who is mad enough to be still playing. Our opponents

wore Paeroa rep jerseys, green, anti the Thames Valley were there also, so you can imagine how homesick it made us all. “ All the boys send their kindest regards and told me to tell you how welcome the Gazette is over here.” Americans Thought It Tough In an earlier letter Pte. Berry mentioned that same U.S.A, soldiers who had watched a game of rugby, thought it the “toughest” game they had ever seen.

“Last week we had a crowd of American soldiers to watch the game and they reckon that New Zealand Rugby is the toughest game they have ever seen. They said that we would most likely kill their footballers if they played as we did without padding,” wrote Pte. Barry.

“They enjoyed it and I think we shall get quite a few' American followers of the game. They have been teaching, us baseball and they can certainly put it over us at this game,” he concluded.