A NEGLECTED ART

Sun (Auckland), Volume III, Issue 719, 19 July 1929, Page 12

A NEGLECTED ART

A SPLENDID example for the rest of Auckland (and pai-ticu-larly the city) was set at a meeting of the Bay of Islands Rugby Union last week when Mr. W. O. Smith (Ngawha) donated a gold trophy annually for the best forward in the art of dribbling. This is one of the weaknesses of Auckland football, both in Rugby and League. It was clearly in evidence last Saturday, when the state of the grounds at both Eden and C'arlaw Parks made them a paradise for a forward able use his feet effectively to control the ball. Time and again Southern teams have shown up Auckland’s weakness in this department of play. But the lesson has been forgotten as quickly as it was demonstrated. It has been remarked by good judges iu the South that Auckland forwards who have gone to Wellington for the All Blacks trials would have stood a much better chance of selection if they had only been able to use their feet as well as their hands. The classic example of a good dribbling forward in recent years was “Son” White, who was one of the first men picked for the famous 1924 All Blacks, chiefly because of a wonderful exhibition of footwork at Athletic Park, Wellington, in the inter-island match of that year. In Auckland itself, there have been few better with their feet on a wet ground, in late years, than “Dick” Fogarty. As far as League is concerned, it was freely admitted in Australia last year that where the Australians were beaten in the Tests was.in footwork. In the second Test especially, on a heavy Sydney ground, the English forwards won the match by a magnificent exhibition of dribbling. This feature of their play was also strongly in evidence during their successful tour of New Zealand. It would be a splendid thing if the award made in the Bay of Islands district were duplicated in Auckland. Apart from that, however, club coaches might see that their teams go in for more dribbling practice on training nights. Expert footwork is a very big factor on a heavy ground. Not only that, it can be exploited successfully on a dry ground as well.