A Football Newsletter

Sun (Auckland), Volume IV, Issue 1039, 1 August 1930, Page 7

A Football Newsletter

Dear Pat, — I have two souvenirs of the third Test, one a programme which cost Is and a rotten cold which cost nothing to get. The cold was worth it, and the programme wasn’t. The British are a good team, but the 1924 crowd would have made mince-* meat of them. Do I think our footbab has deteriorated? Yes, fully 25 per cent, in the past five years, and the “Big Six” have made it 50 per cent, by picking the wrong men. It looks to me as if some of them (players and selectors) have outlived their usefulness, and I won’t be surprised if they (the selectors) go out with a dull thud at next year’s meeting of the Xew Zealand Rugby Football Union. It’s no good saying Saturday’s game was a brilliant one to watch, because it wasn’t. There were flashes of bright play, but for the most part, the two teams were too scared of each other to take chances. The Auckland match the previous Saturday was a 100 per cent, better one to watch.

Mark Xicholls’s kicking won the match, and Bert Cooke’s defence saved it. Cooke is only a shadow of his old self on attack, but he is positively uncanny in anticipating the run of play on defence. Barring his kicking, Xepia was not worth two tins of stale fish. Half the time he was miles out of position, and “Cookie” was doing his own job, and Xepia’s as well. Xepia is like that —brilliant one day. and colourless the next.

For solid, consistent play. I hand it to Bassett. He is a policeman, and as a fullback knows every inch of his beat, and is as safe as a church. This chap Spong and Beamish are the higlirolers of the British side. The only thing that saved the Xew Zealand forwards was the soft going. The heavy English pack floundered round like elephants, and never looked happy. If they get a hard, fast ground at Wellington, they will worry us a lot more than they did at Auckland. Spong is a top-notcher. Twice. Strang got him, but Spong gave a funny sort of a wriggle and broke away again. He was easily the most dangerous attacking back on the ground. The British had an off-day with their goal kicking. Three reasonably easy shots were missed. At least three All Black forwards wouldn’t get a game in the Auckland pack. Neither Cottrell nor Hore could shift Swin Hadley. “Bubs” Knight is a better lock than Steere, and Laurie Knight can hold his own with any forward in New Zealand. I think it’s time we started to look round for a new wingforward. Cliff Porter is a great chap off the field but these days he is little more than a spoiler, and it's this style of play which has stirred up all the ill-feeling about the wingforward. It looks as if the team to play at Wellington will be a bit stronger than at Auckland. It would need to be. Xew Zealand wants a really decisive win to re-establish its battered reputation. Cheerio till then. ANDY.