FOOTBALL. Hamilton v. Huntly.

Waikato Times, Volume XXVII, Issue 2225, 12 October 1886, Page 2

FOOTBALL. Hamilton v. Huntly.

On Saturday, the i)fch inst., the last football match of the season was played on Sydney Square, between the Huntly and Hamilton Football Club.?, and resulted after a very even and hard fought tussle in a draw, neither side succeeding in making any score. The Hamilton men were captained by Hmton, and the Huntly men by McNeil. Hamilton kicked off, and almost immediately the ball was returned, and a series of scrummages took plao in the Hamilton 20, the local men being forced down three or four times in quick Buccession, but towards the end of the first half the ball was kept well in the middle of the ground. In the second spell Hamilton kept the ball well down towards the Huntly goal, and once or twice were very near scoring, but did not succeed, and after forcing the visitors down several times the game ended, as above stated, in a draw. Huntly had the advantage of weight, and also had the best runner on the field in L. Harris, who made many good runs, but could not succeed in getting through the local backs. The game all through was a forward one, and the backs on either side had very little show of doing anything, and this it was that enabled Hamilton to hold their own against their active opponent", as they, knowing so much more about the game, vwie always able to prevent the visitors fiom gaining very much ground as they might have done had they indulged a l'ttle more in running and kicking. Messrs Yon Stunner and Sande.s acted as umpires for Hamilton and Huutly respectively, and Mi Stevens as referee, but their services were not much required, although at times both sides played roughly (too much so), and a good deal of offside play was going on in the scrums and on the wings. Huntly had the assistance of some very smart visitor-, who happened to bo in their neighbmrhood at the time, and who played up well all through. Good feeling prevailed throughout.