Auckland Has Been England’s Rugby Waterloo

Sun (Auckland), Volume III, Issue 695, 21 June 1929, Page 14

Auckland Has Been England’s Rugby Waterloo

Tours of 1888, 1904 and 1908 Recalled —Memories of Bob Whiteside, Prince of ThreeQuarters —-Tragic Ends of British Captains of 1888 — Bedell-Sivright’s Team Beate?i Pointless By Gallaher and Co. —Crowd of Over 20,000 Saw Big Game at Potter’s Paddock in 1904 —How Old Guard Saved New Zealand in 1908.

forthcoming visit of a British Rugby team is a reminder that Auckland holds a wonderful record against touring teams from the With the exception of Taranaki, Auckland was the only team in New Zealand which scored a win against the 1888 British team, and against Bedell-Sivright’s team in 1904 and the Anglo-Welsh four years later, Auckland fairly overwhelmed the Englishmen.

When the British team of ISSS reached New Zealand, it was captained by R. L. Seddon, a forward, who was drowned a month or two later while the team was touring in Australia. When the British team came back to New Zealand on the second part of its tour in the colony, it was led by A. E. Stoddart who had the unique distinction of having captained England at both Rugby and cricket. Curiously enough, Stoddart

hmiself came to a tragic- end many years later in England. The first match the British team played against Auckland was at Potter/s paddock, Epsom, on May 19, 1888. It rained heavily all the morning. and the attendance was considerably affected. Stilly the Rugby Union got a £3OO gate. The British team won by six points to three. The match will always be remembered as having practically finished the career of Bob Whiteside, the greatest player of his time in New Zealand, vCrho was seriously injured during the game. The accident cast quite a gloom over Auckland Rugby, where Whiteside was the idol of the footballers of the ’eighties. In the second match against the Englishmen the following week, Auckland won by four points to nil, W. Elliott scoring a and W. Hobson potting a goal from’ the field. The

team was the same as that which played the visitors the previous week, with the exception that Tommy Brown 1 filled Whiteside’s place in the threequarter line. Scoring in New Zealand at that period was calculated as follows: One point for a try; two points for a goal from a try; and three points for a field goal. On their return to Auckland in September of the same year, the Englishmen played two more matches against Auckland, winning one and drawing the other. The visitors were chiefly remembered as having a solid pack of forwards, two brilliant halves in Nolan and Bumby, and a magnificent threequarter back in Stoddart. The great thing it taught New Zealand, was the value of the passing game, with the reverse and feint pass. Stoddart’s men did not play a Test match in New Zealand. Out of 19 matches, they were beaten only twice, Auckland getting one win, and Tara-

naki, which has often been the Waterloo of overseas teams in New Zealand, the other. The next British team to visit New Zealand was Bedell-Sivright’s team of 1904. In the early stages of its tour, it looked like being a very formidable and the New Zealand team was put into camp at Day’s Bay, Wellington, before the only Test match took place. New Zealand won a magnificent game by 9 points to 3., Coming north, the British team sustained the most crushing defeat of its tour at Auckland, where it was overwhelmed by 13 points to nil. Auckland at that period could field an All Black team, and it was too good for the Englishmen.

Eleven out of the 15 Aucklanders either then were or afterwards became All Blacks. The team was as follows: D. Gallaher, C. Seeling, G. Nicholson, H. Hayward, W. McKenzie, W. Mackrell,

M. Wood, G. Tyler, W. Cunningham, H. Kiernan, R. McGregor (All Blacks), A. Renwick, W. Joyce, W. Harrison and G. Murray. Mr. Arthur Tilley, who is a mine of information about the history of Auckland football, recalls that the British team had a very rough passage up from New Plymouth, and this undoubtedly affected their play to some extent. There was a great crowd to see the match, the attendance being well over 2^,000. Mr. Peter Mackie, now president of the New Zealand Rugby Referees’ Association, controlled the match. There was also an informal game against the Maoris at the native team winning by eight points to six. Both Bedell-Sivright and Dave Gallaher, the famous international players and captains of their time, gave their lives for their country in the Great War.

A feature of the British team of 1904 was the wonderful play of its threequarter line. Morgan, Gabe and Llewellyn were a great trio of Welshmen, who had their revenge for their defeat on the New Zealand tour in the following year, when Wales beat the All Blacks at Cardiff—-the only defeat sustained by that team, which is regarded by many good judges as the best that New Zealand ever sent abroad.

The 1904 British team played five matches in New Zealand. It won two, drew one, and was beaten by New Zealand and by Auckland. Four years later, A. F. Harding brought out the Anglo-Welsh team, which had a disastrous tour, losing all of its matches against the major provinces and two out of the three Tests. The other was drawn. The tour is chiefly notable for the fact that, after being heavily beaten in the first Test, the Englishmen held

New Zealand to a draw in the second. The All Black team in the second Test was hardly a New Zealand representative side, and in the final Test, the selectors took no chances. It sent for the famous Old Guard of 1905, Bill Stead leading on the field at Auckland the bulk of the 1905 veterans, including Hunter, Deans, Gillett, Roberts, Glasgow, Seeling and Cunningham. “Boiler” Francis and “Circus” Hayward of the Thames, also found places in the team, which completely outplayed the Anglo-Welsh to the tune of 29 points to nil, and only one try was converted. After the match, Bertie Laxon, the Cambridge half, said: “We were beaten because the All Blacks were too good for us. They are the best players in the world. The Welshmen can think what they like, but in my opinion New Zealand would beat Wales three times out of five.

Auckland itself experienced no real difficulty in beating the Anglo-Welsh, the home province winning by 11 points to nil. The Auckland team was as follows: —Backs: Renwick; Wilson, Magee, Murray; Morse, Bater; Kiernan. Forwards: McGuire, Herring; Francis, Cunningham, Nicholson; . Seeling, Hayward; Gillett (captain). 1

The departure of the Anglo-Welsh team from Auckland on their way back to England was attended by a sensational incident at the wharf. One of the Englishmen—Down—while saying goodbye to a overbalanced and fell into the water between the wharf and the steamer. He shouted for help, being encumbered with a heavy overcoat, and Jackett, the English fullback, at once dived to the rescue. He was immeditaely followed by the Aucklanders, Gillett and Francis. After considerable excitement, the whole party was rescued, although Jackett sustained slight concussion.