Rugby

Sun (Auckland), Volume II, Issue 415, 25 July 1928, Page 11

Rugby

.The Game and. its 1 Plse/ersu

Morry Brownlie’s speech after the Battle of Johannesburg: “I am glad we won. It was a fine game and we enjoyed it very much.” Never very garrulous, was Morry. * * * Inter-College Game Postponed The game between King’s College and Wanganui College, which was to have been played this afternoon, has been postponed. Tentative arrangements have been made to have the game played at Middlemore next Wednesday.

Two Winning Kicks Waterloo was won on the playing fields at Eton, and the second test on the Timaru High School football ground. New Zealand did not know how lucky it was when Strang and Lindsay took to filling in their spare time at the goal posts. For that matter. either did Strang or Lindsay.

“A Beaten Side” “The Springboks were now a beaten side,” stated the cable man, referring to the concluding stages of the game last Saturday. A side with only one point behind is never beaten until the last whistle sounds. Anything might have happened in those last few minutes, particularly in a land where test matches are won by kicking.

Couper’s Four Tries To score four tries in a championship final was the achievement of R. Couper (Technical Old Boys) in the game with University on Eden Park on Saturday. Couper gained his 12 points through sheer pace and clever work, and to him Technical owes much of its surprisingly easy victory in the senior B title. The team has gone through the season without defeat, but it was generally expected that Varsity would be of sterner stuff. It was but it could not prevent a run-

away score of 20 points (six tries, one conversion) to a Bennie Osier four. Technical is knocking at the door for senior A honours. * * * A New Zealander Abroad Randell Booth, a member of the well-known football family in the Wairarapa Province, is playing halfback for North Sydney. He was first selected as a wing-forward, and then played in the five-eighth line, later being moved up to behind the scrum, where he is reported to be playing excellent football. Since 1918 Booth has played a number of representative games for his province. When Greek Meets Greek The meeting of Ponsonby and University at Eden Park next Saturday to decide the senior championship should attract a big attendance. Judging by the performance of both teams this season an even game with plenty of fast, open play should result. A couple of Saturdays ago both teams went down to stronger forward teams, but with both clubs possessing wellbalanced sides the clash should prove interesting. On the last occasion this season when these teams met Varsity succeeded in defeating Ponsonby by 25 to S. It was a decisive victory, the scores representing seven tries to one but it is very doubtful whether Varsity will repeat this performance on Saturday. On present indications it looks as though it will be a close go.

A Wild Welshman One of the forwards in the New South Wales Rugby team that will visit New Zealand this season probably will be W. Cerutti. Although he plays for the Y.M.C.A. Club in Sydney Rugger, his nickname is “Wild Bill.” This is what a Sydney paper had to say of his play against the Randwick Club: “Foremost in the best play of the winning pack was ‘Wild Bill’ Cerutti. This young giant, fast, and heady too, is the best forward in the game for years. Originally he was a Soccer footballer. He was in everything and generally at the head of the play. Two tries were scored through his fast following-up and determination to go over the line.”

Representative Tour The Auckland representatives will make a start with serious representative football on Wednesday next, when they will take the field against Wairarapa, present holders of the Ranfurly Shield. The Wairarapa team has engaged in several big matches and should now be in first-class working order, while Auckland, which up to the present has only played minor unions, has not been properly tested. The Wairarapa pack, headed by the two ex-international hookers, Quentin Donald and “Bull” Irvine, are a fast, solid lot, and it is forward that Auckland will have to look to itself. Providing the pack plays an honest game, the backs should ,have little to fear. The team is a good representative one, and with the assistance of such versatile backs as Paewai, Falwasser, Barclay and L. Hook, there should be no difficulty in fielding a good side in every match.

Line Umpiring Quite a noticeable feature of the football at Eden Park lately has been the frequency with which referees have found it necessary to over-rule

line umpires. The man in charge of the game exercises this power and if he deems it necessary he should certainly exercise it, but it should not be as regular an occurrence as it is. Compared to refereeing, the duties of a line umpire are not very onerous, and a reasonably efficient line umpire should not make many mistakes. At the same time his decisions can often have a very importantt bearing on a match and it is essential in the interests of the game that they be correct.

Inter-Island Candidates For the inter-island game to be played at Christchurch next month Auckland possesses several very likely candidates, and with the certainty of one or two of the North Island selectors being present upon their performances against Wairarapa next week a great deal should depend. Angus Finlayson, who should have a good chance of being one of the two hookers, will be measured against Donald and Irvine, both of whom got beaten for the ball in the Canterbury game. Batty should be sure of a place in the forwards, and both Paewai and Lou Hook must receive earnest consideration. Minns and Falwasser, who have both been playing good football this season, will probably find serious opposition in the shape of Yates and Jury (Wairarapa), who are reported to have played excellent games in the last Ranfurly Shield game at Christchurch. L. Roach, the Wairarapa fullback, who