Rugby Football.

Free Lance, Volume IV, Issue 164, 22 August 1903, Page 18

Rugby Football.

By the tune these notes are printed the New Zealand team will have finished its successful tour of AustraJia. There are many of us who hoped, but never anticipated, such a series of triumphs as has been achieved by the team, and its successes are all the more pleaising. Reading the report* of the matches, and the various w riters' comments thereon, there \\ ould hardly seem to have been a weak spot in the \\ hole selection. The defence of the back division was. supposed to be weak, but individually and collectively they rose to the occasion, and showed an amount of defensive w ork that in many cases they were not thought capable of. More credit to them. At the time of w nting, the team has played nine matches, winning them all, and scoring 244 points as against 13 by the teams opposed to them. The first New Zealand team — the 1884 onei — won all its matches, scoring 167 points, as against 17 by their opponents. This team had the best record of the three teams which have preceded the present one to Australia, and, with everything taken into consideration, tlie present team's record eclipses even the 1884 team's one. In 1884, there were no penalty goals, a try was worth but two points, a goal from a try five, and a goal from the field four. During the tour in that year 40 tries were scored, 19 goals from tries, and eight goals from the field. This gives a total in points of 169 — where the difference of two points

comee, from I do not know, but, for the pui poses of comparison, they aie not w orth cavilling about. Including the match against Austra,lia, tho present teajn's hgures aie — Tries, 55, goals fiom tries, 24, goals horn the held, 4, penalty goals, 5. The hguies are a conclusive answer as to the capabilities of the present team. * * * Some comments on the second Queensland match — Wallace's play at full-back was perfect, his line-kicking and tackling being a tieat. In fact, thei whole of the backs played finely, R. W. McGregor being particularly solid and hard to tackle. Their work nas made all the easier by having such a magnificent pack in front of them, all of whom put up an excellent performance. On Saturday's play, it is. a moot point whether Mulhneux's English team was any better than the present New Zealand team, and, collectively, one is inclined to think that the difference in strength, if any, would slightly favour the visitors from the land of the Mo<a. — "Foiward," a Sydney "Referee" w nter. * * * Many people m Wellington feel that a slight has been put upon Wallace by keeping him as full-back in aJI but one of the matches during the tour of the New Zealand team. It is saad that the Selection Committee, in sorting out the fifteen to play against the Wellington team, placed Wallace as centre three-quarter, seeming thereby to indicate that that wa.s the posit'on they desired him to be played in. The touring committee — Messrs. Noins, Duncan, and R. McGregor — have, however, thought otherw lse. That Wallace has filled the position w ith credit to himself and honour to the colony is the pleasantest featuie in connection with his being played fullback, and the claim that he is ' one of the best all-round backs the colony has produced" seems to have a deal to wailant it. *■ •/• T^ Hardcastle. who Mas a member of the 7897 New Zealand team, was to play in the All-Australia team against New Zealand last Saturday. In commenting on this fact, ' Off-side Mac" indulges m reminiscences on the old Wellington player — 'Hardcastle, who has always been termed a Petone High School boy, is one of the most brilliant forwards ever produced in Maonland. He was a Rugby genius, with a peculiar naivete and wealth of expression which were a continual source of annoyance to Mullineux what time he played against the leveiend eentleman's team of English footballers. ''For some years the old Wellington boy has shown good form in Sydney football but as there was always an ao-mv of bank clerks, lawyers, doctors, and university men who wanted to be lepresentatives, a horny-handed son of tho soil like Hardcastle had to stay in the hack attic of Rugby, until fears of an almighty slopping bv New Zealand made the Australian Selection Committee give him recognition." * * * A 'Full-back" paragraph, which seems to be deserved — "Mild surprise has been created in football circles at the w idely divergent opinions sent to New Zealand regarding the play of a well-known Otago player with the Ne,w Zealand team in Australia, and the feeling has been freely expressed that a certain newspaper correspondent with the team, a gentleman who occupies a seat on the Management Committee of the New Zealand Rugby Union, and who snont a season in this city as a, ixv porter on a local paper, is going out of his way to write disparagingly of the Otago representative. That his statements are not borne out by experts on the Australian side there is abundant and lehable evidence to prove. An example — NZ Conespondent Sjdnei, Referee To mv mind, Duncans Give us> Duncan to plaj absence will not be alto- with and captain New gethfr nn unmixed evil, South Wales, and New as in matches plumed up Zealand would not beat to now his play has haa us in two out of thiee the decided effect of matches Those who told harassing the tactics of us that J Duncan is a his halves and wings " lias been " should ha\e The Otigo mm'it display seen him in the Bathurst 13 certainly not on a par match, in which he diswith his exhibitions prior placed exceptiona' form to the selection of the He skipped about like a New Zealand team, and sprinter of 20 summeis, on present form he and plajed a fine game wouM't ha\e a ghost of a. all over the field — chance if another com heie, there, and eveiybination were picked to- where. Wood and Dun. morrow can at fhe eighths seemed to have had their opponents mesmeiised The New Zealand pair, given loom to mo\e about, pla\ed beautifully, the running and passing at top speed being splendid * * r Absolum, who was one of the shining lights in Auckland's three-quaiter line in the match on the Newtown Park in 1890 is considered to stand a good chance of inclusion in this year's Auckland team.

A fnend, anting from Chnstchurch, tolls me that the Canterbury representative backs aie fair this season. The iorwaids aie dashing, but not feohd, but when Cooke, Fanning, and otheis (Coisbie and Mcllwraith) get into the team, it will be a good pack. The same writer says of the Wairarapa team — Wairarapa were 'absolutely.' Their backs couldn't stop a fly." * * # The annual battle, under Rugby mles, between teams representing the head and the district offices of the Land and Survey Department, was fought at Miramar one afternoon last w eek, under favourable conditions. Physically, the* condition of most of the combatants was not conducive to a scientific exposition of the game, but what was wanting in this respect was amply compensated for by the willingness which was infused into the contest. Rugby as it is played to-day was, on the whole, not attempted, but whether the game was played under past or futuie rules this scribe is not in a position to decide. As, however, the lefeiee was one of the foremost battleis of half-a-decadei ago, who has, in the meantime developed a most nonchalant attitude towards the o-ame generally, it is more than probable that the rulings were based on the rules of that long-ago time. Some veiy fair rushes were attempted by both sides, alternate passing and dribbling tactics, occasionally bnJhant, kept the interest up till the conclusion. The district office had all the best of the scrum work, being much bulkier than their opponents, and, consequentrlv, w ere early established as favourites, and, never losing confidence in themselves, eventually were returned the winners bv 14 points to 6. For the victors, Clark, Marchant, Stew ait, and Mason were always prominent, and Black. Murray, McGowan, Lewis Arthur, and Lindsay distinguished themselves for the vanquished. Girdlestone (2), Stewart, and Chmie scored for the winners, and Arthur and McGowan for the losers. Afternoon tea was provided by the ladies, and much appreciated. The spectators included a large number of ladies, who at times were quite carried away with enthusiasm., often invading the field to look after their fallen and distressed heroes. On t!he

return journey to town, the teams assembled in the saloon of the s.s. Countess, when votes of thanks to the heads of the Department for sanctioning the match were earned by acclamation, on the proposal of Mr. McCardell. * * * "Hen" Kelly will moie than likely be one of the wing-forwards in Auckland's touring team. "As green as their jerseys" — a Christchurch comment on the tactics of the Wairaraoa team. Taranaki plays Wairarapa, at Carterton next Satuiday, Mr. D. D. Weir acting as referee. All matches in Wellington were postponed last Saturday, on account of the boisterous weather. "ActEeon" remarks —"I think Aucklanders are fairly confident with regard to the results of the Southern matches. In the first quarter of an hour in the game betw een Canterbury and Wairarapa the foimer team scored 18 points. I have been promised newspaper accounts from the Transvaal of the visit of the English team of footballers there this season. J. J. Taylor, recommended for inclusion in the New Zealand team, was only picked as an emergency in the Southland team to play against Wamurapa. Mr. Yio Langsford, the treasurer of the Auckland Rugby Union, has been appointed manager of the Auckland representative team, on its Southern tour. At an Intercolonial Rugby Union Conference, held in Sydney on' the 13th and 14th instant, Messis. A. C Norns and W. Beck represented New Zealand. Southland and Otago play their first match this season, at Dunedm, on Saturday next. Hawke's Bay and Canterbury meet at Chnstchurch on the same day. The Sydney "Referee" says there is every likelihood of a Biitish team visiting Australia next winter. Could they not be prevailed upon to extend their tour to New Zealand p The New Zealand team arrives in Auckland by the Maraioa from Sydney on Sunday next. The North and South Island match will be played on Weclnobday, and the Southern members of the team leave Auckland for their homes on Thursday.

Isaac Jenkins, who has played for the Southland Union in all its matches since that union was constituted — 1887 a member of the team that placed against Wairarapa. Ru C'ooke was billed to put the glo\es on with E. R. Larkm, the captain of the Newtown team, at that club's smoker," while the New Zealand team was in Sydney. The Wellington Union's Southern tour commences on September 9th, the team leaving for Chnstchurch on the evening of that day. The first match of the tour will be played agaanst Canterbmv, on the 12th, Southland on the 16th, and Otago on the 19th. The team picked to represent Wellington against Taranaki this week came in for a lot of adverse comment. It is too lato now to criticise the selection, as the match has boen played, but methmks it is time tho selector dropped the two five-eighths A suggestion I would like to make is that Johnson be played left-wing three-auarter and Wallace solus at five-eighths in future matches. A. Asher, the New Zealand wing three-quarter, at Biisbane, as at Sydney, did not become a favourite with a section of the crowd. Here, at all events, that section of the spectators treated the Aucklander badly. He did nothing to merit derision, and a good deal to merit applause. It is to be hoped that, in the two remaining matches to be played here, those spectators to whom one refers will show a better and fairer feeling to a visitor who has to take as well as give haxd tackles and who plays good football — "Cynic," in the "Referee." The special reporter of the Dunedin "Star" contradicts other reports received of the players in Australia, in the following sentence — "Before leaving for Australia McMinn was regarded in the light of a great forward, but his performances to date have been disappointing. In fact, Igo so far as to say that he is a very weak spot in the vanguard. Neither in the loose nor on the hne<-out where his height should be of immense service, has he done 'anything worthy of mention, while his shirking of solid scrum work is notorious. His punting is also marked by an utter lack of judgment." Who is right. - -- how P