A STRONG PACK

Southland Times, Issue 21096, 30 May 1930, Page 8

A STRONG PACK

BRITISH FOOTBALLERS

TEAM FOR SATURDAY’S GAME

FIXE FORWARD STRUGGLE

PROMISED

(Special to The Times.) Masterton, May 29. The British team to play Wairarapa-Bush on Saturday is: Full-back.—G. M. Bonner (12.5). Three-quarters.—J. C. Morley (11.0), A. L. Novis (12.2), T. C. Knowles (13.0), J. S. Reeve (13.10). Half-backs.—R. S. Spong (13.0), T. Murray (11.7). Forwards.—H. O’Neill (14.0), D. Parker (15.2), A. Kendrew (14.10), J. L. Farrell (13.11), B. 11. Black (14.4), Ivor-Jones (13.9), C. R. Beamish (15.4), captain, W B. Welsh (13.7). This is probably the weakest rear division the British have yet fielded, but the strongest set of forwards as every man is a hard experienced scrummager. The backs on recent form are weakened by the inclusion of Knowles who, both at Wanganui and at practices, has been unable to hold passes. Novis suffered the same complaint on Wednesday. The wings however are first class. Murray, though not a regular scrum half, was capped in that position for Ireland, while Spong will revel in defensive work. Bonner has not played since he suffered a cut eye at Wanganui, but the wound is now quite healed. The other full-back, Bassett, turned out for practice to-day for the first time for several days. If fit he will probably be played against Wellington on Tuesday. The Wairarapa pack, which includes three Bush Union men, Mahoney, Gerrard and Henderson, is claimed to average 14.3 which makes it much the heaviest pack the British have yet encountered. On overage weights, the Wairarapa pack, man for man, will probably be heavier than the British forwards. Opinion locally however suggests that Wairarapa lacks confidence in the backs. There is a feeling that Britain should win which is a decided change from opinions expressed before the Taranaki and Manawhequa matches when enthusiastic local suppotters were confident in their side’s ability to check the British team’s run of successes.

Beamish, who captains Britain on Saturday, is the fourth captain in four matches, Sobey, Aarvold and Prentice having each had a turn to date.

Gerrard, the .Wairarapa forward, is a clergyman who formerly played for South Canterbury and the South Island. He was last year a member of the Blackheath Club, London, of which Rew, Novis and Black are also members.

STEADY IMPROVEMENT

BRITISH FOOTBALLERS.

CAPTAIN PLEASED.

(Per'United Press Association.)

Palmerston North, May 29. The British Rugby football team left for Masterton this morning.

F. D. Prentice, the captain of the team, said a few players had yet to strike their best form. He was pleased with the displays already given and he felt assured the team would improve with every match.

SCRUM-HALF’S TROUBLES

SOBEY TO’ ENTER HOSPITAL.

Wellington, May 29

Sobey, the English scrum-half, may enter a private hospital in Wellington for careful attention. It is most unlikely he will be available for play for some weeks.

THE FIRST TEST

MR E. McKENZIE APPOINTED RE-

Wellington, May 29.

The New Zealand Rugby’Union this evening appointed Mr E. McKenzie (Wairarapa) as manager of the All Black team to play Britain in the first test match at Dunedin on June 21.

SOUTHLAND TEAM IN CURTAIN-

RAISER.

Advice has been received that the cur-tain-raiser to the first Test match at Dunedin on June 21 will be played between teams representative of the first fifteens of the Otago and Southland Boys’ High Schools. The Southland boys are training very hard for the game, which should serve as a good trial for the inter-secondary schools' tourney to be played at Invercargill next month.

THE LIGHTER SIDE

SNOWBALLING AND FOOTBALLING.

BRITISH TEAM’S MOVEMENTS.

(Special Representative—Copyright.)

Palmerston North, May 28

Considerably elated by the victory over Taranaki, the British Rugby team left New Plymouth on Monday morning—and a bleak, raw Taranaki morning it was, with mist hanging low down on the landscape, and Mount Egmont totally obscured. The day before the team had visited the North Egmont mountain house, where snow lay on the ground, and mist concealed the slopes of the mountain. Once or twice during the afternoon the mist moved aside, allowing just a glimpse of the heights; but for all that, it seemed until the last moment that the team would depart without having a completely unobscured view. Then, quite suddenly, just as the cars were due to leave, the masses of cloud dissolved, leaving the mountain stark and clear, a glorious picture warmly appreciated by the visitors. The snowballing during the day had been a happy feature of the proceedings. The party arrived in about a dozen cars. As the first car reached the gates of the mountain house enclosure, some girls and boys standing by the. gates threw snowballs in through the open window. That started it. The members in the first car lay in ambush for those who arrived in the second, and so on in increasing ratio. By the time the tenth, eleventh and twelfth cars were due there was a small army waiting for them. Sitting next to the driver in one of these cars was a popular member of the Supreme Court bench. His remarks when the door of the car was piffled open and a large mound of snow deposited neatly in his lap and down the back of his neck were entirely unprintable. but he took it very sportingly, all the same, and was soon lined up with the rest.

Many of. the touring party were anxious to get back to golf, but a check in the one-way traffic up the mountain road so delayed them that they decided to go up the mountain instead. Conditions for climbing were not good, but some of them managed to get well up above Humphrey’s Castle into deep snow, where a challenge from another party of snowbailers was accepted with alacrity. Black, one of the forwards, went considerable higher by himself, and might have got to the top if there had been more time. As it was he left his coat high up on the Slopes of the mountain, and, not ' discovering his loss until he was almost back to the mountain house, had to go back for it in the lowering twilight, an exhausting feat which was probably something more in the way of harder training than he had-bargained for.

Decisive Victory. The win over Taranaki was sufficiently decisive to convince those who saw it that the team is one that may mould into a really great attacking combination. Prentice on Saturday evening was a very proud man. His team had broken a Taranaki tradition of long standing. There were some interesting sidelights to this very hard-fought game. The British team went on to the field with instructions to keep the ball tight. In the face of the vigorous tactics of the Taranaki pack, the policy did not pay.at all, but its purpose was obviously to see how the forwards would shape in the face of just such opposition. In the first half hour the result was certainly not impressive, but towards the end the British forwards were holding their own as well in the tight as they were in the loose. The high pressure at which the Taranaki forwards set out could not, of course, be maintained, but a provincial side which could start in the same way and maintain it, never relaxing its grip to allow the British backs the slightest freedom, would have a good chance of defeating the visitors. Taranaki’s methods were not always to be admired. Die backs were instructed to get their men, but some of them got their men whether they were in possession or not. The Taranaki centre threequartcr, Brown, was seen more than once to ground his man long after he had let go the ball. In one instance he put down the wing threequartcr, Reeve, when the British player was a yard out of touch, and the line umpire had already Had his flag up for some seconds.

A British threequarter who was tackled in this manner distinctly after he had passed the ball confessed his surprise when on remonstrating with his over-zealous opponent, he was given the answer: “I intend to get you every time, whether you have the ball or not.” The cream of the jest in this case is that at the dinner in the evening the same Taranaki threequarter unwittingly approached his victim of the afternoon and asked him for the gold lion he was wearing on his coat lapel. He did not get, it. That Wing-forward. The real sensation of the dinner in the evening, of course, was Mr Baxter’s remark that the ordinary man who attempted to play wing-forward was nothing more, or less than a cheat. The outspoken character of this utterance was mitigated to some extent by the very complimentary nature of Mr Baxter’s other remarks, in the course of which he stated that the revival of Rugby in England dated directly from the visit of Gallagher’s team in 1905, and had been accelerated by the visit of the later team in 1924. Nevertheless, the statement that the wing-forward as normally played was a cheat was quite obviously too strong to be overlooked by New Zealanders, in however conciliatory mood, and one was not surprised when reports from Auckland indicated that strong exception had been taken to it. The report of interviews on the subject with prominent Auckland Rugby men was published in the Palmerston North morning paper on the morning after the team’s arrival in Palmerston North, and appeared under the extremely provocative heading, “Is Mr Baxter talking through his hat?” As the paper was distributed .to all the guests at the hotel with morning tea, a good subject for breakfast tabic conversation was provided. It was felt with some justice that in the caption referred to a more courteous tone might have been used. It is quite obvious that the question of the wing-forward, like the question of scrumming, is going to provoke endless argument, but that argument need not necessarily be conducted from either side in an unmannerly tone. At the same time, New Zealanders will not endorse the attitude of members of the Rugby Union, who at the dinners so far have meekly acquiesced in criticism of New Zealand methods and styles. An exception was Mr J. McLeod, of Taranaki, who took a stand against the proposal that neither team should leave the ground at half-time. Up to. the last moment the referee, Mr W. 11. Rowe, of Wanganui, believed that the teams would stay on the field, but Mr McLeod interviewed Mr Baxter, and a dispensation was given, though, as Mr Baxter stated later, it will be the last. Ask the Referee.

Should players for personal reasons wish to leave the field at half-time, they must ask the referee. If a team wishes to defeat this entirely unwarranted ruling of the international code, it must individually approach the referee for permission to go off. To New Zealanders the thing is sheer farce.

At the matches played by the British side, half-time is a good deal shorter than the usual spell allowed in New Zealand. Five minutes is the limit to be allowed. At Wanganui it seemed even less. Mr Rowe gave a very satisfactory exhibition of refereeing considering it was his first big game; a big game in which traditions are at stake is an ordeal even for an experienced . referee. One factor which contributed to Mr Rowe’s success }vas that he was always up .with the game. He had trained for it by doing a circuit of the Wanganui racecourse once a day for some little time before the match.

Incidentally the Taranaki Rugby Union managed to break the dictum that prices of programmes for the matches with the British team should not exceed sixpence in price. The Taranaki programme sold for a shilling, and with its excellent photographs was worth the money. Prentice, Dunne, Harold Jones and Jones-Davies played their first game at Palmerston North. The team is offered a good deal of entertainment at its successive ports of call, but the men chosen for matches look after themselves well. They get off to bed early, and spend the morning of the match quietly. The seriousness with which the team is now taking training operations suggests that it is pretty keen about its record.

COUNTRY BAY FIXTURE

WESTERN DISTRICT TEAM.

(From Our Correspondent.)

The following will represent Western District in their match with Southern at Invercargill on Country Day (June 3) :—

Backs—Vickers (Ohai), Bates (Orawia), Gardiner (Orawia), Greer (Nightcaps), Sangster (Riverton), W. Chamberlain (Orawia), Mclvor (Otautau). Forwards. —Balloch ■ (Ohai), Knowler (Orepuki), Purdue (Orepuki), captain, McGregor (Ohai), McCoy (Nightcaps), Greer (Nightcaps), Fowle (Ohai), D. Hope (Otautau).

Emergencies.—Butson (Otautau), O'Halloran (Ohai), W. Flndjay (Orawia), M. G. Clapp (Otautau). Any player not available is requested io advise the secretary immediately. TEAMS FOB. TO-MORROW The following will represent the various clubs in their fixtures to-morrow:— STAR. First Grade —Donnelly, Campbell, Adams, Lorimer, Lilley, Clarkson, O’Toole, Galt, Mattingly, Aitken, Sinclair, Holden, Bell, Stubbs, Agnew, Giller. Second Grade—Halpin, Louden, Sievwright, Creeser, Lee, Burke, Grey, Cuff Smith, McCorkindale, Pasooe, Little, O’Shaunessey, O’Sullivan, McColl, Elliot, Agnew. Fourth Grades—Robertson, Tinnock, Stevens (2), Reid, Cockroft, Agnew, Marshall, Donaldson, Robertson, Doig, Tyrie, Wilson, Small, Green, Matheson, McMillan.

PIRATES. No. 1 Team —O. Thomas, Webb, Diack, Geddes, Falconer, Sharp, G. Thomas, Murray, Tinnock, Carter, Batchelor, Hazlett, Metcalf, O’Driscoll, Peterson, Robertson. No. II Team.—Aitken, Rangi, Murphy, Boyd, Patton, Morrison, Cockburn, Johnstone, McPherson, Mclntosh, Craig, Stott,

McKay, Spencer, Scobie, Gilson, Roberts, P/yde, Brown. , SOUTHERN. Seniors Sylvester, Kerr, Jack (2), Bur-' tenshaw, Lock, Sinclair, Frost, Bagrie, Nivell, Mannix, Lee, Hamilton, Corkin, McEwan, McCallum, King, Flynn, Dillon. Third Grade—Crowther, Couling, Marshall, Calvert,' Hinds, Russell, Sutherland, Cavanagh, Oliver, McEwen, Kibblewhite, Allison, Miller, Jones, Kerr, Styles, Herbert, Burns. - ' ' WAIKIWI. Seniors.—Gibson (2), Little, Smith (2), Dagg, Crengle, Murray, Todd, Busby, Holland, Sheffelbein, Montague, Broad, Mitchell, Stephens, Greig, McDonald, Short, Soloman. Second Grade.—Wilson, Fox, Jones, Bissett, Cook, Walt, Kelly, Hogan, Jenkins, Kitson, Aitken, Challis, O’Kane, Prendergast, Lamond, Waldron, Tremlowe. Fourth Grade.—Wilson (2), Ayto, Blampied, Dagg (2), Corson, Rae, Burdon, Ackey, Bailey, Livingstone (2), Waters, Foijde, Finkle (2), Watson, Harris, Gilson, Wilkinson. INVERCARGILL. Second Grade. —Foster, Checketts (2), Tapley, Clode, Keast, Chapman, Smith, Norton, McManus, Bruce, Frampton, Lee, Stickman, McKay, McEwan, McKinnon, Bailey. Third Graded—McKay, Hannah, Brooker, Johnston (2), Sfnith, Brandford, McEwan, Insall, Blue, Stevens, Purdue, Watson, Wilson, Whyte, Nisbet, Mitchell, Aitken, Highfield. Fourth Grade—Sutton, McMillan, Wilson, Anderson; Eastlake, Lyons, Checketts, Frew, Insall, O’Kane, Bramford, Dunlop, Bloy, Troon, Marchant, Henry, Hyndman. Fifth Grade.—Henry, Brown, Little, Holland, Atley,' Vincent, Healey, Ayto, Tourley, Wilkinson, Hall, Murdoch, Sutherland, Shirley, McNaughton, Harvey, Habersfigld, Churton. RIMU. ■ Second Grade.—H. Thomas, W. Bulling, D. Baird, J. Cournane, L. Crosswell, A. Wyeth, M. Cournane. J. Trotter, W. Holland, R. Henderson, B. Maitland, T. Lyall, L. Ross, A. L. Thomas, H. Fairweather. Emergencies: G. Baird, J. Phillips, J. McHardy, J. Hewitson. The above team will also travel to Thornbury on Tuesday, June 3. Any player not available kindly notify the secretary.

OLD BOYS. Second Grade. —Cameron, Francis, J. Fraser, Lynch, Cournane, E. Rout, McFarlane, W. Fraser, Hawke, Stanley, Hamilton, Harrington, C. Rout, Braithwaite, Mitchel. Emergencies: Ross, Baillie. Third Grade. —Broad, Oram, Gumbley, Boyes, McDonald, Shand, Dennis, Gardner, Dobbie, Howorth, N. Derbie, Raines, Davidson, Cowie, A. Derbie. Emergency: MacEwan. Fourth Grade. —Willett, Caddie, Tinker, Challis, Kennedy, Cooke, Henderson, M. Cooper, Hughes, Wallace, Polson, King, A. Cooper, Atley, McDonald. Emergencies: Stewart', Welleans, Shaw, Paterson, C. Thomson. MARIST. Fourth Grade. —Murfitt, Pascoe, Hallambre, Hardy, Waterson, Kelly, O'Brien, Stone, Grindlay,. Ferris, Dale, Robinson, Francis (2), Cahill, O’Halloran, Holloway, Curtain, Murphy, Finerty. Fifth Grade—C. Campbell, F. Rooney, J. Baird, R. Robinson, T. Finerty, R. Ward, A. Shepherd, N. Ward, J. Kelleher, J. Curtin, J. Cleghorn, C. Fletcher, J. Murray, N. Forde, N. Wills, J. Hanning, N. Crowe, T. Donaldson, M. Small, N. Dawson. REFEREES FOR TO-MORROW First Grade. Pirates A v. Invercargill—Mr J. Oughton. Linesmen —Messrs J. Ewart and Kenward. Pirates B v. Waikiwi —Mr E. Fogarty. Linesmen —Messrs Leckie and Withers. Star v. Southern—Mr E. Budd. Linesmen —Messrs Findlay and Pay. Second Grade. Waikiwi v. Rimu—Mr A. B. Frampton. Star v. Old Boys—Mr W. O. Ward. Bluff v. Invercargill—Mr D. Dyer. Third Grade. Pirates v. Borstal ll.—Mr E. Kelly. High School v. Borstal I—Mr H. Wilcox. Southern V. Old Boys—Mr M. Sheehan. Bluff v. Invercargill—Mr A. Angus. Fourth Grade. Marist v. High School A—Mr A. Smith. Waikiwi v. Star —Mr J. Smith. High School Bv. Invercargill—Mr L. Cockroft. Old Boys v. Technical—Mr D. Donaldson. Fifth Grade. Marist v. High School—Mr C. Clark.. Invercargill v. High School A—Mr A. Wilson.