League Rugby

Sun (Auckland), Volume IV, Issue 959, 30 April 1930, Page 13

League Rugby

Notes and Comment.

Next Saturday's Matches Next Saturday's matches in the Auckland Rugby League senior competition are: Ellerslie v. Ponsonby. City v. Newton. Marist v. Richmond. Devonport v. Kingsland Athletic. Which Wiii Be Main Game? This draw indicates that good fare can be expected in every case. On paper it appears that the MaristRiclimond game will be the keenest fight, thus the management committee may again play Richmond on the No. 1 area. However, the DevonportKingsland encounter should be a good one, and after the shock it administered to City last week Ellerslie should be able to make Ponsonby fight all the way. Any one of these three games could well be starred. * * * Carlaw Park on Saturday rang with the cry of “Hot Dogs, Hot Dogs.” This is a form of enterprise which will no doubt be appreciated by patrons as the real touch of winter descends. * * * Even First Games It is not every Saturday, and much less every opening Saturday, which sees all the games so closely fought as on Saturday. Three of them were particularly close, one being a draw, one point separating the teams in another and three points in the third. This promises a keen fight for the championship, coming at a stage when creaking joints and short windedness have not been entirely eliminated. * * * Wetherill Will Play City was not quite up to concert Pitch on Saturday, and another week’s

training should make a deal of difference to the team. In addition, the club officials state that Wetherill, former New Zealand captain who went into retirement last season will be in the firing line again next Saturday and ho should make division quite a formidable one.

The pack is a hard-working one with a strain of the Hadley blood of Rugby All Black fame in it.

Ellerslie Looks Up Ellerslie's fight against City to £f draw on Saturday is not really surprising when the calibre of three newcomers to the side in Dufty, Somers and Webb are considered. Dufty played only very irregularly for the racecourse suburb last season. A hooker is a vital man in any team, and thus with a New Zealand representa-

live raking for them, tiio Ellerslie backs have not far lo look for opportunities. There were rumours prevalent at Carlaw Park on Saturday afternoon that City had grounds for protesting against the action of Ellers lie in playing *Pip” Webb, formerly of Shore, but club officials state that no action will be taken. * « « Richmond Ready Richmond is well known as a team which is always ready to step off the mark at the beginning of the season in the pink, and last Saturday was no exception to the rule. A little more of the luck which every team gets at times might have bridged the single point which lay between the rovers and victory. McCarthy was missing from the pack, owing to having injured ribs, and he will not be seen in action lor .1 work or 80 yet. R. HcKiimoi) another forward who has been on the

injured list will make his first appearance next Saturday.- « * * Against all the administrative wrangling in the Canterbury Rugby League the facts remain that there are seven senior teams playing this season (an increase of one from last year) and 50 thirteens in all grades. Linwood juniors recently decided to strive for senior honours. Training Counts Newton’s excellent showing against Devonport was a good advertisement for solid training, for the Newton men

have been practising in earnest lately. A young side, yet they "a\ e sufficient t vilencc of ability to play tenacious League. Shore was not trained nearly as well on Saturday and. according to the opinions of some, should not have won. Newton deserved to make th--score closer than 16—8. but it would be a good deal to say that Shore, which enters the 1930 season with as much vigour and speed as ever, was ■ eftii a I truth that Shore gained points rather luckily—especially when Saxon was apparently “sh-'pherded** jn gaining the runaway trv which ruined N w • Los O'Leary, who played an excellent game as v.ing-thrcvquarter for Shore. O’Leary should do well this season. New Fullbacks - Newton game m u the mpiiriiw of two new fullbacks. Shore has found a nugget ty substitute for Simons in O'Donnell, the former Akarana player, and Newton has taken Dempsey from Marist Rugby. OTHmnell is steady, with good line judgment, and Dempsey should mould into a satisfactory player when he becomes more acquainted with the code. For Newton, the Dunedin Pacific Club men. Fagan, wing-threequarter. and Butler, forward, did reasonably well. especially Butler. With the North island and Auckland representative. Francis, in fine form right at tho

opening of the season, Newton lias a good leader for a. lively pack, in which Middleton and Ferguson are certain to be conspicuous this season. • • • Kangaroo Visit There is a possibility that a Kangaroo team will visit New Zealand at :!ie close of the present season, after the New Zealand team has completed • - j tour. At the annual meeting of th«: New Zealand League on Monday ing the West Coast League applied for a match, if the team came. The question was left in the hands of the incoming council.