Football.

Southland Times, Issue 18822, 15 May 1920, Page 9

Football.

(By “Onlooker.”) Green backs tackle badly. Passing attempts poor on Wednesday. Banks and Law will miss Stead's services. To-day’s games promise good clean football if fine. Too many "shiners” in the Union pack against Bluff on Saturday. Rugby Park drain-ploughed at five yard intervals. Bluff side a strong forward combination on Saturday and showed up well. Public Service and Banks and Lav.' game full of incident and excitement ran high. It is unfortunate, that- Stead received a bad injury on Saturday as he was showing good form and playing uttraetivc football. Finnerty behind 'he* Bluff pack on Saturday got more opportunities to open the game and made the best u.-e of what came his way. His fielding of a rebound that led to Bluff’ s second try was smart, and ho will be a dangerous attacking player before the season closes. A football reputation does not live for •ver, and Coekroft on Saturday playing for Union against Bluff was apparently content to allow his reputation to carry him through. Instead of getting down to 80 lid forward work he waited for openings to shine, but found that the Bluff rearguard was strong enough to keep forwards out. The Bluff side that took the field against Union on Saturday was an improvement upon the previous week, and played better football. The forwards were strengthened by the inclusion of Wriblinski, anti it is to be regretted that this player is not available for his club every week, :u he plays a good solid game and follows well. The Bluff forwards were always on the ball and gave their backs plenty of openings, securing the ball from the majority of the scrums. In the line out work they frequently camo away with the ball at their toes and gave the Union backs many anxious momenta on defence. Budil and Tall played good games, and the former lead his team with more judgment, marshalling his pack well when Bluff’s line was threatened. Tall although on the light side is a good useful club forward, and his following could he copied by many with advantage to their sides. He is always handy when on attack, and scores more tries than any other forward playing in Invercargill to-day. Trcrnbath and McNeil also played good games not being afraid to use their strength in the tight, while Winter at front row was instrumental in getting a good share of tho bail for his side. Although handicapped by the loss of an arm ho plays & hard game, and is a good member of a hard working pack. The Bluff backs had more opportunities on Saturday, but several good openings were lost by bail handling. Finnerty behind the pack played a good game and none of the missed opportunities can be attributed to his lack of openings. He got the ball away well from the scrums, and on several occasions stopped dangerous Union rushes going down in tho approved style. Brown at five-eighths was weak on attack, his transfers being too slow and badly directed. He would be a good member of tho team if played further from tha scrum, because at present he stops the rearguard in its attacking movements. Potter appeared in a new position at fiveeighths and played a solid game, and when more conversant with the requirements of his new place should make a big improvement in tho Blurt' attack. Johnstone at centre appeared for the first time and played a defensive came. Ho is a useful kick and uses the line with judgment, but is at times inclined to neglect the centring lack. The Bluff wingers Long and Phillipson had little to do in passing movements the ball seldom reaching them, bur. when any opportunities come their way they showed up well. The Union pack carried too many passengers and were unable to withstand the continual pressure of the Bluff vanguard. Stewart on the wing was wasted, and his absence from the front row no doubt accounted for tho lac!-; of ball obtained by the Union pac;-;. (,'ockruft led his pack with questionable judgment, mid when in tho closing stages he tried to rally thorn, the strenuous gome had cold tint I they were unable to respond io their skipper’s cull. Only in solo work did Cockrott show out. and his waiting on th-.- tin e-outs was u><> apparent to get away with, the Bluff vanguard being wi.-e io the trick. Bursting through a line-out may pay on occasions, but Co try it consistently, only upsets one’s own forwards. Good openings are not to be hail by waiting, and the best forward is tho one who works to provide his own openings, then he is sure that he lias command of the 1 Galbraith was tho best of the L mon iorwards on .Saturday and never let up throughout the game plugging away solidly, ami on many occasions his work enabled the Union pack to arrack. Leetc and Mills wen- also handy when it came to solid forward work :uui toiled hard. On at tuck the Union forwards were inclined to uv-r run rite bid', bur when they obtain a iiiile mure training this will disappear to a certain extent, and with a little more control they will give some of j the teams a good rigi-i to secure the nia- |

joniy or nomas. The U moii rearguard have no knowledge OX the passing game and I heir only object when they secure the ball i-, apparently, to get rid of ;t in the quickest manner possible. Their p.-sses were high and lacked direction, and ihe Blur: forwards by quick loliowing a.: 1 hard tackling were more than a march for them. The onlyback to show any mud defence was Stapiey, and ho extricat-d his side from many tight corners. firs line kicking gaining a lot of ground when his side was pressed. Kelly at half was too slow to be elective, while the five-eighths had no idea ot the requirements of their pnssition. Middlexnisa at fuli-back was .-me, but was called upon to do work that, should have been shouldered by those near.-r the .scrum. On Wednesday Star and Athletic had a great forward -rrua.'le on No. I area, and the wearers of the Blue and White jerseys ran out winners by II points to 9, the bad place kiextng of the Greens saving the game lor Star. The Star puck indulged in some good open forward rushes and Leggat, Agnew, and Strang were always then* when there was any hard graft to do. On the line outs Strang and Agnew showed to advantage, and the former's pace allowed him to break some of the attempted passing rushes of the Athletic rearguard. In the loose the Star forwards were equal to their opponents, bin lacked weight when it came to the dose work. Ths Scar backs with the exception of Oughtou (naif i and Lilley had little idea of attack, and the tihs they did secure were more the outcome of their opponents’ mistakes than th.-ir own good play. Oughtou at half was in.-truim-nlal in stopping many dangerous rushes by the Athletic forwortis, and it was unfortunate lor his side that he had to retire in the closing stages of the game, became it gave the opposing forwards a big chan- • to equalise the score. The five-eighths were without cohesion and their pas-m;: was too slow to be effective. Jack Oughtou cut in nicely for his first try', but had he been collared Star would have lost a good opening, because he was not followed by ins companion. Concerted work by the live eighties makes for good back play and this was absent from the Star rearguard movements on Wednesday.

The Athletic forwards made strenuous endeavours to pull the game out of the lire in. the closing stages on Wednesday, only- to see their good work nullified by bad back play. Spurkes, Roche and Meffin were always handy anil worked well on the line-out. Sparks and Rocho in the open seized every opportunity that cams along to improve their side’s position and were always to be seen at the head of a willing forward pack. On the line-outs tuc Green pack bunched well, but was at times inclined to use brute strength instead of using their heads. A little thought would have saved them a lot of unnecessary toil. The Green backs no doubt did their best, but it was a poor showing and many times they lost good positions, for which their forwards had worked hard, through faulry handling and bad fielding. Behind the pack Shepherd invariably went on his own, and on the only occasion that ho sent out the bail with a well-directed pass the backs added three points to the score. He spoilt many good positions by trying to reach the line on his own, and his run from the scrum was never varied throughout the game. Cross at first five-eighths was a solid man on defence, and at times cut in with good judgment. With n little more assistance from his half he should be a good man on attack. Coakloy at centre was not too sure and suffered from the same weakness us the rest of the rearguard, hanging on too long. Cook at full was the one bright spot in the Greens' backs, and it was seldom that he was found wanting. He headed some good rushes out of tight corners and his long line kicks in the second spell gained a lot of ground. The Wednesday forwards on the lino nut were apparently content to reach for the ball with one hand, and the result was frequent knock-ons that gave the opposing halves opportunities to mark which in many cases were quickly accepted. This habit was noticeable in all games and some good scoring positions were lost through it. Two hands are required to handle a ball with any degree of accuracy, and forwards should practise and attain some proficiency in this department of the game. The Bluff club by moving its ground nearer the bank has provided a first-clam playing area and tho bad comer that- war evident during the matches last season is now eliminated. In wet weather that corner was heavy going, and in several matches last season parts of it were under water, making good football almost impossible. With a drier ground better football should be witnessed at the Bluff during the coming season. The decision of the Rugby Union to play ail matches on the morning of Hay 20 will give tha public an opportunity of seeing tho Saturday teams in action and good gates should result. The games start at 9.30 a.m., and continue until after noon, four games being played, two upon each area. The Bark now that it has been drain ploughed should be able to stand the extra games without cutting up to any great extent. Should tho drain ploughing do all that is claimed of it the Park this season should not develop into the quagmire that was noticeable in many of the matches last season. Without a good ground back play is impossible and this season with a good ground, back play should improve if players study their mistakes. A small but enthusiastic crowd of spectators gathered on Rugby Park on Saturday last in the expectation of seeing good football; and they were not disappointed. During the last two years the Banks and j Law and Public Service teams have added i to their reputation for fast, open football ! and, what is far better, for clean play and ; good sportsman.-hip. The game on Satur- 1 day was very fast from start to finish, and i play went from one end of the field to the 1 other with lightning rapidity. The gradu- ! ally increasing number of spectators showed I their appreciation of the play by loud and ! frequent applause, and, when Macdonald I scored his second try and brought Public i Service within striking distance of th-ir \ opponents’ score, such a volume of cheering | burst forth as Rugby Park has nor heard j for many a day. In the lust, quarter of an : hour with tho scores almost equal and both j sides "all out,” the people in the grand- j stand were continually on their feet. j The Bunks and Law v. Public Service j match wa.s a very close thing, and with two | tries scored by each side the issue rested on i tho goal kicking, Dykes’s solitary goal being the deciding factor. Public Sendee were ! unable to make trie of their chances. For- j tune missing two easy shots when points j were badly needed. The result of the match j goes to chow the value of good place-kickine. j Both the reams could do with plenty of ; practice in this department of the game, for | there were plenty of good chances trivrn on j Saturday which -iiauld have resulted in the j .score;; of b. Ih sides being mabui", 1 ';,- increased. There is no luck about, place- I kicking as some people eeem to think. j The forwards of both sides played a very i fine game, but the Banks and 1,-r.v pari; j were better than their opponents in el! i oranehes oi the game with the '•xtvffion j of .-■(’rum work. The Public Sendee hook- I ers got the ha.!! in the majority of iho l scrums, but it came out to tho half iat her • slowly. In the loose, with fast lollovviti •: i up, the lighter Blue and Black forwards i excelled and Bank.; and Law’s two .-cores i

I'tre tat* n’suii oi msir :onvari!3 orciming away in fast rushes to their opponents’ twenty-five where, by the very swiftness of their attack, they had completely demoralised the nppcving forwards. With the Service backs out of position, they heeled the ball to their hacks who hud kept in touch with them all the time mid the inevitable, happened. Tim nest of the Public Service pack was Sprost. whose usual position is either front row or wing three-quarter. On Saturday he played a good game at the back of the ■ scrum. lie was always a source of trouble CO the Blue backs by reason of his fast fob ; Sewing up and breaks from the scrum, but i his p.lay was usually hampered by a lack of I support from the rest of the forwards. The j Service forwards played well. but it was j evident that that were not ns tit us their | opponents. They did not follow up us fast i or come round to protect their backs who I had gone down to forward rushes as did the J Blue men. They' would bo amply repaid hy , stricter attention to training and should | remember that with only two of their last year’s back team playing again, the new back division will require some time to settle down to their positions. Until then a large prof/ortion of the work must fall j on the forwards. | The backs of both teams were very even- j !y matched and what Service Inst by bad , pasting they made up for by solid tackling. ; To those who like to watch good back play —and who docs not. ?-- the variations of play on Saturday must have given pleasure. Stead and -J. Daigleis.h showed a wide knowledge of the finer points of the game by their use of such tactics its the cross kick and play on the blind side. The Blue backs with their Inst season’s combination intact were faster on attack than their opponents, but their tackling was not .so good. Train has improved from j last season and appeared to move much faster iu his runs. Stead's line finding was very' accurate at all times and he will be greatly missed from the backs. Tire Service backs did not play the same evenly balanced game as did their opponents, bpt there were flashes of greater bid- | liancy about it. Although Rac tackled well ! and went down fearlessly to forward rush-

es he could not be depended upon to get the ball away and this slowed the play of a fust team. His play suggests that he would play well in his old position in the forwards. Macdonald is as fast as ever, and when scoring his second try he came so unexpectedly that the Blue backs were momentarily caught napping. When they did recover, however, they made no mistake with their tackling and as the big winger crossed the lino he disappeared under the combined onslaught of all the Blue backs in the vicinity. Of the rest of the backs Fortune did not seem to be very fit, and it will be a pity if this player cannot get back to the form ho showed in Dunedin some years ago. Holz was fairly safe at full-back, although slow. His kicking and taking were good and, when given plenty of time, he got in some good line finders. Gibb, the Banks and Law fullback, was also slow and ho Invariably waited for the bounce of the ball instead of taking it on the full. On two occasions on Saturday C. Lopdell kicked the ball with only one man to pass. On the first occasion he came right up to the Service full-back and kicked over bis head but missed the bouncing ball. Fortune, who followed up fast, had time to get the ball into touch. Probably the only times a man can kick safely over the fullback's head are when he is well clear of the field and when the opposing full-back is slow. The act of kicking means a big slowing up in speed and unless the ball can bo caught again on the full there is a chance that the manoeuvre will not “come off.” But a fast wing three-quarter is a hard man to atop when he is travelling at full speed and he can usually jink a slow fullback. It will be found that in the majority of cases it is better to try to go through with the ball. On many occasions on Saturday the Bunks and Law team made the mistake of kicking the bail too hard when they got away. This was most noticeable when they had only the Service full-back to beat, to croea the line. When either backs or forwards broke away, the ball was kicked hard to Holz, who had plenty of time to gather it up and make sure of a big kick up the line. Tile Waikiwi-Invercargill match on Wednesday was a rather ragged affair. No real passing rush among the backs came off all day, and the game became a forward scramble with flashes of good individual back play and one or two small combined efforts among the five-eighths at rare intervals. The victory wont to the side that made the better use of the high wind, not only on attack but on defence. The forwards were very’ evenly matched, but the play was not of a very high order. Both sides made use of tight scrums when playing against the wind, and open rushes when playing with it. O'Byrne and Garrett were the best of the Invercargill pack, both being prominent in following up from scrums and in loose work, but they got little support from the rest of their forwards.

The Wuikiwi pack gave the ball out "well |in attacking positions. Many of their sfforti!, however, were nullified by their getting off-ride. The match was remarkable for the number of free kicks given, against the Waikuvi team for off-side play. The offence was often unintentional, but the suburban team will have to guard against tli!.-! fault, for off-side nlay does not add to j a team's reputation. Tlie Invercargill backs were strengthened by tbs inclusion of L. Lopdell at first fiveeighth and the first three from the scrum played well. Blues's two tries were the result of good combined play by the players mentioned. Vial’s score was a very fine effort, a cut in neatly and quickly executed. Lop 101 l made a good opening for Lyttle j when the latter scored in the corner. Lopj dell ulayed well in Southland before the war, and wan captain of the Now Zealand team in Kgypt. where he received injuries which I It was thought would debar him from playj ing again. On Wednesday he kicked very accurately against the strong wind. Clolaud ! came in for a severe handling at half, the j Blue wing forward failing to protect him sufficiently from attacks round the scrum. Sutton was cafe at iiill-bnck, but he would do better if he tried to pet the ball before it bounced. The Wei kiwi backs were collectively better than their opponents. Wills would find it better to give Knight more of the ball, for the latter Is a good attacking player and the re.l of the backs puss fairly well. Fm-de, an old Southland representative, played e. goo;I game in the three-quarter id id-; try wiu» the outcome of a fast e, ,> id v.o.k. The buck division has great hi".' as an attacking team, and if it can got olenty of bull should bo heard of -xion. P-.rrngh at full-back was a tower of . •reiv.i'i to hi - aide. Hi;- powerful kicking with the wind was a great help to the Bed and Black forwards, und his drop kick fr.the field near half-way showed that he ; rcidated what the meteorologists term the ■■abnormal atmospheric disturbance” which was making itself felt on Rugby Park on \*’itd>;e.-d:>y. T oik; ,w if Southland will be rather :: of good live-eighths this season, i.'ourts and Webber sre not playing, Hazlett .’•ill be among the spectators for most of the .--.'a.'on, and Stead is now in the same wi.dtioa. Tin- latter injured hi? shoulder i"'!- 1 .- in ili-- match on Saturday and, aide > ;ah he played through the game, it was if: ■•••wards found that his shoulder was ■plinli red. However, the fact, that so many young players came into first grads football h.-i lead? one to think that their •!: “ from the field will have the remit this year. The decbiea of the S R.F.U. to set aside a d ,y for a football and c hockey match dugbv i’arl: for the benefit of the Ladies’ H -■■■•ur.iiou. will romnur.d itself to do,: - who know ihe conditions under which id: • girl t : .. -v-.y players of Invercargill have had : > • daa, I heir matches. The football al; of Southland are fortunate in that rhe S.n.F.r. po!>■('->• r. ground of their own md ■:•!• p■ -! wholly dependent on the Town hockey is probably the sport '.h'V ha-- hr en hardest hit by the retrono: icy of the Town Council in re--p-c: !,•> ;d••vine are!:!, and the more for- ■ ;;n:o,:' footballer?, and sporting people gen;r.ky. will h.e r. idin.g to assist a sport that has had hard light to keep going owing :o the eau-v mentioned above. SCHOOL FOOTBALL. 'I"i'll CL v HIGH SCHOOL (Nil.) Aff’r a fairly fast and interesting game hi v. lm-’a neither side scored, South proved vicfiriou.d Sietid drop-kicking a goal from t nriialtv.

MARIST i'G) v ST. GEORGE (Nil.) The lUari.-r team packed well in the for- • and passed the ball with some degree of accuracy enabling them to defeat St. >.lec.!;;e by six points. WAHiOPAI (IS) v NORTH (3). Waihopai were too good for North and ;‘t tiie end of a good game cam© off vie•orious i>y IS to 3. TECHNICAL (Si v MIDDLE (Nil). A fast game, both teams using their back* at every opportunity. Technical ico: d from a louse forward scramble just on half lime. In the second half Dyer, Wright and Comeron were instrumental in placing middle on the attack, but Technii■ • i!’ -c full luck was equal to the occasion. Melvin and Padget put in some heady work for .diddle, but time was called with Technical (one unconverted try) ; Middle (NiL. —Juniors.— St. George (9) v Blutf (Nil.) Marist (271 v North (Nil). Mil Idle (20) v South (Nil).