Out Door Sports And Pastimes

Free Lance, Volume V, Issue 216, 20 August 1904, Page 19

Out Door Sports And Pastimes

By Touohline. Rugby Football.

THE great game has been played— the game on which the attention of the inhabitants of piactically every town and hamlet in New Zealand has been centred foi some time past. It is ha! dly necessary for me to say that I refer to the Bntish-New^ Zealand match, played on the Athletic Park Park last Saturday afternoon. And how satisfying for any native-born New Zealander to proclaim the fact that the game has resulted in a gi eat triumph for the football representatives of the Greater Britain of the South. ■» * ** In the first place, the assertion often made that the New Zealanders are experts at th playmg ot Rugby football has been proved by this success not to be an empty boast but atruism. For, although the team that opposed New Zealand on Saturday last Say not have been entirely composed of international players, I think I am fauly safe in saying that collectively it L equal to either an English, W« lsh ' Scottish, or Irish international team. THiprGtfore if New Zealand can hold its own t ? th'a team of this calibre, there is no disputing the fact that our lads know how to play the game * * * And again, it has been asserted that our leading players play the game in a way that would not be tolerated on the playing fields of Great Britain. lam Kured that the team of Britishers that is now tourmg New Zealand was selected on the principle that a man s private character was beyond reproach and that one who could not conduct himself as a gentleman off the field was barred by the promoters fiom being given a place in the team. By the way, in my opinion this is a principle that should always be adopted in tours of representative football teams, and no matter how good a P^yer a man is, if his conduct off the field brings reproach on his comrades, he should be labelled "not suitable for selection." But to get back to the crux of this paragraph— the New Zealand players were not rougher m their methods than the opposing Britishers. True, there were occasions when the man was played instead of the ball by members ot both teams. I have in my mind's eye a case where a Britisher thumped a New Zealander when the latter was on the ground, said New Zealander retaliating with a kick on the handiest portion of the anatomy of his opponent. In the scrummage, also, a New Zealander struck an opposing player a heavy blow on the face, the one struck responding right merrily with both feet at once. But, why keep otn — the game was not a kid-gloved one. It was a keen, highly-strung struggle, where haid knocks were given and exchanged, but still I would have pieferred to have seen the game played in a true spirit of friendly rivalry, with said knocks but incidents in the game, and not elements brought unneoessaiily into it. ♦ » • Again, many asserted that the New Zealand way of packing the scrummage^ — each man with a set position, and trained to such position — was doomed as the result of this match. Personally, I think the reverse has been proved Why? Firstly, because with the three-man scrummage as played by the Bntisheis the ball cannot be put fairly into the scrummage, because the centie man of the three, who is in advance of the other two, prevents it being so done, and every time the ball is put in a free-kick should be given against his side for that leason. If both teams packed three men in front, the ball must, to carry out the rule of the game to the letter, be put past the two centre men — as they aie the actual front of the scrummage, and the lules provide that the ball must be put past the front to be fairly in — which, in nine cases out of ten, would be a piactical impossibility. Therefore, the New Zealand method of packing the scrummage is the fairer one. That being agreed, its effectiveness cannot be disputed. Each man with his allotted place, the pivot to keep the front-rankers in position, the other four men packing on to the pivot, makes for solidity, and the wedge thus formed gives every man an objective on which to expend his strength, and none of it is wasted.

To my mmd, although Captain Be-dell-Sivilght does not caie to admit it, his replies to his mtei viewers conveyed to me the impression that when he gets back among his own club playeis he will give the New Zealand scrummage a tua.l. And, if he does, I feel ceitaan his present expressed opinion® will undergo a change. * * * Yet, again, many asserted that the wmg^foiwaid was a useless exciescence, and made for rough play, and rough play only. But, the exponent of this phase of play on the New Zealand sid© thoioughly convinced, I am positive, even his loudest deorier, of his thoi ough usefulness, and of his effectiveness. Therefore, the wing-forw ai d is a necessary adjunct of the New Zealand game, if he can be found to play as fairly as the player in that position did in the match under leview. .*. ¥■ *■ Thus, judging by the British-New Zealand match, our footballei s have nothing to unlearn, according to my way of thinking Is there anything they can leain from the play of the Britisheis? A piominent player on the New Zealand side in the match told me tha f Bush's feint to pass 01 kick and then making a fast dash to the open side of the field impiessed him very favourably, and he will endeavour to bring it to perfection in his o\\ n play If he can-— and he intends to practise it in his spare moments' — a new feature may be introduced into our back play. For he will have many copyists, without a< doubt. An. art many of us have bewailed as a lost ooie is a piominent feature in the play of the Britishers — viz., the potted goal. The lesson that can be learnt is that the player that has a tendency to pot-shot at goal should be encouraged, and mot forced to pass wlien a good chance to put f oui points on the scoi esheet comes his way. A lot has been written about the passing of the Bntishers, and the centring kicks of the backs as theii modes of attack. But, both these featuies were rarely in evidence in the match on Saturday, fhstly because the passes were straight acioss the field, and secondly because the New Zealand backs lined out deep, and weie suie in catching the ball on the full. Theie is no doubt, however, that where they are given i oom m which to make their passing lushes the Bntishers would be very effective, and a mis-take of one of their centring kicks would see their forwards lompmg over the opposition. In a back division where theie is a weak spot it must be successful. A lesson to be learnt by selectors and captains of teams is that a place-kick is a positive necessity. Players should be tiained exclusively at the diffeient angles from which place-kicks aie made, and the most effective in practice should be given the prefeience in matches. * * * One thing about the play of the Britishers I could not undei stand, and that was, why the four three-quaiteis bujiched together in the centre of the field on occasions. Possibly, it was to pi event the opposing team from gauging the side from which the attack was coming, but there is no gainsaying the fact that the two tries scoied by the New Zealand right wing threequarter should not have been obtained without his having to beat one man out of the four on hisi journey to the line. Ab it was, no one touched 1 him till he grounded the ball. All said and done, then, the match was an object-lesson to the Bntishers lather than to the New Zealanders. * * * The daily papers have given full descriptions of the play, and I do not intend to weary my readers with anything in that line. Much has been written in these columns and in otheis piecedmg the match about the risk the New Zealand Union weie taking in sending the team into the field with no combination attained bv Pi actising as a team against another set of fifteen playeis I honestly believe that the winning of the toss gave the New Zealand team the victory. In the first half of the game theie was absolutely no cohesion whatever among the New Zealand backs. I cannot help remarking that if the order of the play had been reversed, and the Britishers had had the assistance of the wind and sun in the earliei portion of the game, instead of having to play with these as disadvantages, they would have rattled up a tally that may not have been reached by the New Zealandei s when they changed ends. The boys m black in the back division were feeling for each other right thi ough the fiist half of the game For instance, Wallace had a lone-hand down one touch-line, Wood cut in on one occasion and nobody followed him but opponents, Harper's passes to McGregor were generally misplaced, and so on and so on As the game wore on and the wind helped to keep the players (Continued on page 20.)

in the led, white, and blue jeiseys m check, the team got combination, and, m the second half of the -game got gomg well together. Therefore, theie are some people who can le.un a lesson from the game under review — the New Zealand Rugby Union to wit. The les-.on is that combination is a handsome thing fm a football team to li.v c. • * ' Theie were two players in the match who stood right out bv themselves. Thp hist was GaJlahei, the wing-forward Nothing cleaner, fairei , cnsper, 01 moie detei mined than his play was has eyei been seen on a football field in Wellington, and I have no hesitation in pronouncing him to be the finest wingfoiwaid of his or any other day. Da.ve's methods were fmr. and above board', and the vim and das'i he put into his play were really refreshing. The other was Vile, the Bntish halfback. His was a task that, I venture to asseit, not a sohtaiy vpectatoi or player on either side begrudged him, for he had a, heavy afternoon's work. But, with the odds against him, he played a pluoky manly game, and his efforts deserved bettei success. Papeis f1 om Sydney side told us there was no defence in the Butish team Well, that may have been correct judgment on the games played bv the team over there, but no finer defensive work than Vile's has been seen in Wellington for some time. He seemed a bundle of activity, and, no matter how often he was bumped, he came up smiling every time. * * * The two tries scored by Duncan McGregor successfully silenced all those people who said he was not entitled to a place in the New Zealand team. They were worthy of George Smith, the Auckland flier, in the hey-day of his career, and no better praise can be given McGreeror when, recounting his deeds to a Wellington public To prove this it is only necessary to remark — "Remember the Auckland-Wellington match of 1897." Bush did not impress me as greatly as the critiques of his play in previous matches had led me to expect. Peihaps, I expected him to shine as a bright stan among a lot of lessei constellations, and was disappointed _ because he did not fulfil my anticipations. He is a clever, heady player, and, in a game where the play was coming kindly to him, would 1 be dangerous indeed. He i eceived an immense amount of attention from the New Zealand forwaids. The fleetness of foot of the Butish thiee^quarter line was a marked feature of their play. Gabe did not get many oppoitumties, but one of his mns was an object-lesson to local players. He dashed down the right wing, di awing all the play to that side of the field and, suddenly turning, darted off at right angles. The move, however was not wholly successful, for in the centi c of the field he was met by the main body of the New Zealand forwards, and bi ought to mother earth. It reminded one of the gi eat run made by Stanley Wickham when the last New South Wales team played in Wellington. Morgan and Llewellyn did not get as many chances to show their attacking abilities as one would have liked them to have to judge of their prowess. McEvedy appeared to be the weak member of the quartette. The whole four, however, showed defensive qualities not credited to them in thear matches in New South Wales and Queensland, and they further found the touch-line with their kicks more than I anticipated they would. As a matter of fact, they were more successful in this dnection than the New Zealand backs. OBrien, the full-back, had a busy afternoon, and he came out of the ordeal with ciedit. An occasional fumble, marred an otherwise good display. His kicking was sound, a,nd whenever he got near enough to a man he tackled him with plenty of dash and sureness On one occasion he almost potted a goal from beyond the half-way line in leturning a kick-out. • • • At the beginning of the game the New Zealand backs weie exceedingly nervous — so much so that the chances of the ultimate success of the team appeared to be very remote. The ball came too fast from the scrummage for Harvey, Wood knocked on his opening passes, Wallace mis-took his first ball — the fiist of the match, too — Stead fumbled a lot, and Haiper threw his passes to McGregor and Wallace at all angles and elevations but the correct ones. But, directly they waimed to their woik, and the nervousness wore off, they one and all gave typical exhibitions of theii individual capabilities Harvey's passes became quick and clean, his touch-line kicking sure an'] every forward rush that came his way met a stumbling-block. Wallace is the ideal back of the Wellington public. Originally picked right wing three-quarter, he gave way to McGregor in that position, because the latter had had no experience on the left wing. His taking of the ball was

heait>breaking to the Britisheis, and his lunning, tackling, and kicking weic in Wallace's be,st style. Harpei, Stead, and Wood weie each seveially good, and kept up then reputations as repiesentativeis of the back play of the colony. D. McGiegor I have lefened to previously. R. McGiegoi was not happy a,t fullback. Enough work did not come Ins way for his liking, and what little did come he had grown so weary in waiting foi it that he occasionally fumbled the ball. • • * Forward, the New Zealandeis wem gi eatly superior to the Britishers. The pack was, absolutely the most-evenly balanced I ha,ve ever seen go down togethei, and they played so consistently that the individualizing of any one of them as playing better than his comrades is a matter of impossibility. They all played at the top of their form, and, in saying this, it is only necessary to say that Tyler and McMinn wei c happily mated in the fiont rank, Fanning locked the scrummage with his • burly form, and kept it solid all the time Cross and Nicholson were valuable supports to him, and Seeling and Glenn put all then weight into the back low. » * * A feature of Seelmg's play deserves a special paragraph. On one occasion the New Zealand full-back mulled the ball, and. the Britishers getting on to him quickly, there looked every possibility of a. score being registei ed against the New Zealanders Seeling, however, had backed up McGregor, and, gathering up the ball in fine style, a quick punt to touch saved the situation. * * * The Britishers' scrummage seemed a disoi ganised affair generally to me. With the three men in front, and the double lock, there, seemed no solidity in it, and the weight of the eight men was not ooncentrated where it should be. Besides, I had read in many places that the same thiee men did not always constitute the front row in the ButishieiV vanguard. But, on Siaturday as far as I could judge from beyond the touch-line, it was the same three men who, on every occasion, went down in front. However, although playing at a disadvantage because of the way they packed, they one and all worked strenuously to aveit defeat. Dobson, an inoffensive gentleman, stiuck me as one of the hardest workers, and one who would make a fine support in a New Zealand-packed scrummage Swannell was a rare toiler, and one who leceived marked attention fiom the opposing scrummagei s — too much at times Rogeis, Traill, Bevan, Edwards, Harding, and Ci owther were all fine specimens of British manhood, and a credit to the countnes that leared them. * * * Mr F T. Evans had complete control of the game, and gave a generally impaitml and excellent exposition of refereeing. "Dutchy" has for many yeai s been consideied as the foremost, of New Zealand leferees, and his dercolons in last Saturday's match proved that he is worthy of that distinction. I cannot say more. • # * A few incidents of the game and afterwards that came undei my notice ai c woith mentioning — On one occasion, Geoige Tylei , the fi out-ranker fiom Auckland, dashed fast down on to Vile, the British halfback. Just as he reached the lattei the whistle blew, and Geoige fondled Vile in a beai-like hug lound the neck. The small Bntisher drew back his left arm in an aggressive attitude, but Tyler quietly patted him on the head two or thi cc times, lemaikmg, "Don't lad, don't, I'm bigger than you!" The incident was greatly enjoyed by those who noticed it. A scium incident Wellington'^ burly representative in the pack got well'woiked up as the game pioceeded, and mvaiiably remarked as he put his head down to his opponents "You don't like it, blokes, you don't like it at all." At the smoke concert teadeied to the visiting teams by His Excellency the Govei nor, cigars were served out to each member of the party. A small spn it-lamp was provided at which the cigars could be lighted, and theie was a footman in waiting to attend on the gueste. Tom Cross, in his usual sang fioid style, remarked to the said footman "Pass us the gas stove., bloke I want to light my cheroot " At the dinner to the two teams m the evening, Dr. Newman pi oposed the toast of "The Pi ess." In doing so he refei red to the number of press correspondents the last team of English ciicketers that visited Austialia had in their ranks. A propos, he considered the teams that played that day could combine to publish a book on the match, and incidentally he mentioned an article by Gallaher on "How I Smothered Bush" would make good reading. The doctor's sally was appreciated.

Swannell, tlie British forward, has been the subject of much comment be>cause of his display of temper on one occasion. It is only fan to him to say that the provocation he received on that occasion fiom one of the New Zealand sciummagpis was great indeed, and almost beyond endurance. His lapse was excusable. When McGregor sooied his first try, th,eie was no one more pleased tha.i Jimmy Duncan. He waived his left arm frantically but hung on to his stiaw hat with his right. The efforts made by those near him to take off tho said sti aw hat and expose Duncans bald pate to the admiring gaze of the assembled spectatois, did not meet with the success those making them anticipated. But, I must conclude, as the space at my disposal is exhausted. Befoie doing so, I must pay Caretaker Murphy a word 1 of ptaise for the excellent condition the Athletic Park was m, and. I make bold to say the Britishers never played on a better turf than Saturday's was The New Zealand Union and the Athletic Park Company deseive a special w ord of pj-aise for the way in which the great crowd of spectators was handled. Not an accident, of any description occuned to mar the haimony of the proceedings, and they deserve the fullest credit for the successful way in which their an an^ements weie projected and carried out. And the ciowd, too! It w r as a goodhumoured, w r ,ell-behaved assemblage, who had gathered together to see a Rugby game of football played as it ought to be played. And every one of them was prepaied to enjoy himself or herself, and, as far as I could gathei , left the ground thoroughly satisfied with the outinor-