Australian Football

Round 19

Premiership Season 1890 - Round 19 Review

Total Crowd 19,200 (Avg 6,400)

The return match between South Melbourne and Carlton, which took place at South Melbourne last Saturday, attracted an immense crowd of spectators, notwithstanding that the weather was extremely unfavourable and in spite of the fact that the result of the contest could hardly affect the home team's ultimate chances for the premiership. All told, there were certainly not fewer than 20,000 people on the ground, and the desperate character of the contest from beginning to end was a sufficient recompense for the discomforts which intermittent showers and cutting cold wind entailed upon this large assemblage.

Additional interest was imported into the game by the superb play of Carlton, who in nearly all points exhibited such form as has not been shown by them for many a day. It was truly astonishing to see them one and all handling the soddened greasy ball with great facility and keeping their feet upon the treacherous turf without apparent difficulty. In both these particulars they were superior to the Southerners, and their performance throughout reminded onlookers of their brilliant career in 1887 when they gained honours of premiership is what was perhaps the wettest season on record.

There were two opinions concerning their consummate ability during the progress of that season, as week after week they supported themselves in the mud as in their native element, and their record of 16 wins, 3 draws, and only one less was accomplished purely upon merit. But though throughout that year of triumph they gained many a glorious victory, I cannot recall a match in which they appeared to such advantage as in last Saturday's engagement.

I have not the slightest hesitation in stating that the Southerners did all they were capable of doing to avert defeat and I distinctly and emphatically reject the insinuation that their team, or any of them, threw the match over. My firm conviction is that every individual amongst them worked his hardest, and there was not an incident that escaped my notice from the kickoff to the sounding of the Iast bell. That there was and is a widespread idea that the struggle was not fought out on its merits I regret most sincerely, not because the play gave the slightest warrant for the impression, but because such an impression was possible.

A few years back the public would never dream of accusing a conquered team of having been bought, but also it is not so now. The practice of betting upon matches has assumed regrettable proportions and those unprincipled cormorants, the professional layers of odds, whose baleful influence has destroyed every species of sport with which it has been permitted to tamper, are already prominently in evidence upon our football grounds. Last Saturday they were more than usually numerous at South Melbourne and their presence it was that lent colour to the charge levelled against the home team. Something must be done, and done without delay, to keep these individuals from getting their clutches in the game, or our national sport will rapidly sink in the estimation of the public.

I deeply regret, as I have stated, that the suggestion of foul play in the match under notice found so many ready to adopt it, but I defy anyone to point to a single instance wherein a Southerner showed any inclination to let his opponents get the better of him. As a matter of fact, notwithstanding that the dark blues played the superior game and had much the better of affairs, in general, the result of the conflict was absolutely in doubt up to the last five minutes and the gallant efforts made by the red and whites during the final term should have convinced every onlooker of the genuineness of the contest. Besides it will be admitted on all sides that Carlton and South Melbourne are teams so evenly matched that either may beat the other without causing surprise and at any time a little ruck or a very slight advantage may influence the result of an encounter between them.

Souths bad luck in hitting the post twice, and their comparative inability to hold the ball or maintain their footing, added to the fact that Powell and Middleton were lamed early in the game, are to my mind more than sufficient reason for their defeat; and that the Carltonians had not a simple walkover must have been evident to all who noticed how thoroughly exhausted the majority of them were at the conclusions of the match.

Great pace was maintained throughout the encounter, and exciting passages were common. In the ruck, Currie, McKenzie, McKechnie, and Moorhouse played themselves almost to a standstill, and the brilliant marking of the first and the genuine hard work put on by all four of them were big factors in Carlton's success. Captain Strickland, halfback, delighted the supporters of his club with the brilliancy and consistency of his exhibition. His magnificent dashes were quite in keeping with his old-time reputation and he had a thoroughly trustworthy ally in Lorraine, who seldom allowed the ball to pass him, and whose telling kicks repulsed many a Southern advance.

Batters, roving, eclipsed his previous form and Roberts stood out conspicuously with neat and extremely clever dodging. Blake showed great ability as a centremen; Hutchinson, placed or following, was alike effective; Keane's great speed won him a large mead of applause; Sutton was, as usual, a most determined defender, and Mackie, a recently promoted junior, distinguished himself by his coolness and dexterity amongst the forwards. Carlton's goals were notched by Williams (2), Currie, Roberts and McKenzie.

Of the residents, Purdy was undoubtedly the most conspicuous performer, and for quantity and excellence of work he deserved to rank with the best of his antagonists. Next to him, and close up, too, came Graham, whose labours in the ruck, especially towards the end of the day, were prodigious. Elms merited very high praise indeed for the and energy displayed by him in defence, and it is no exaggeration to say of him that he never played better in his life. Kerr, Page, and O'Meara fought manfully against Carlton's (on this occasion) superior ruck, and McKay and Burns divided the honours in the roving department, though both were a shade less successful than usual.

Spence and Waugh on the wings held their own their own in the style; and Doran, Morton, and Talbot, back. McMurray, Middleton (prior to his being injured), and Brown forward, likewise gave their immediate opponents plenty of trouble. Barrett gained a splendid goal from an acute angle, but otherwise, his influence upon the game was not appreciable. The remaining goals were acquired with good kicks by O'Meara and Graham, and it was McKay and Brown who had the misfortune to hit instead of going inside the post.

Owing to the death of Trait's brother, a sad event which has caused a general expression of sympathy for the popular umpire, the latter was prevented from taking charge of the game, and the veteran Shaw, who was substituted almost at the last moment, filled the breach in a praiseworthy and thoroughly satisfactory manner. There was at times a tendency towards undue roughness, but it was speedily checked by a lavish and impartial distribution of free kicks, and nothing was allowed to occur that could offend the eye of the most exacting of censors.

North Melbourne were without the valuable services of McInerny and Todd on Saturday in their return match with St Kilda on the ground of the seasiders, and being thus handicapped they went dangerously near sustaining defeat. The turf was in better condition than might have been expected after the rain of the previous night, and the play was fast and extremely spirited throughout the engagement. It was even enough, too, in all conscience, for though at intervals and by turns each side prevailed, neither at any point was very far in advance, and when time was called the totals both in goals and behinds were exactly the same.

St. Kilda are credited with having, in the persons of Rusden and Alf Smith, stolen a march upon their unsuspecting opponents by wearing illegal metallic projections in their boots, in consequence of which during the earlier portions of the game, both the men named are said to have travelled over the moistened turf with great facility. If this were so it was a grievous wrong and the captain and his confederate should be compelled to answer for it. Whatever advantage of foothold they had in the first half, they were compelled, through the intervention of the field umpire, to do without after the interval. I cannot imagine, however, that honourable men and true footballers like Smith and Rusden would take an unfair advantage of manly antagonists, and I fancy that when the full facts are made public the projections objected to will be found to have been not nearly so bad as they were said to have been. At any rate, the removal of them did not prevent the two St. Kllda's from doing a fair share of work in the second half.

The ball was kept in play very well from first to last and the game, consequently, presented less unsatisfactory struggling upon the margin of the field than is customary. As a spectacle, this was a decided improvement, and it gave the clever placed men in either team great scope for exhibiting their respective powers. It was, perhaps, due to this circumstance, that Wimpole, Speary, and Bennett were very conspicuous on the St. Kilda side, and that Bingham, Lording, and G. Bean were almost as prominent in the ranks of the Northerners. Alf Smith's speed and general cleverness caused him to be about the most useful member of the home team, whose capable ruck maintained the reputation mainly through the skill exhibited by W. Smith and Brooks, both of whom played sterling games. Ferguson once more evidenced his uncommon ability as a back man, and perhaps nothing was so striking in the contest as the coolness and judgment he displayed in working the ball through the ranks of his assailants. Harper, Taylor, Lockett, and Allard likewise contributed largely to St. Kilda generally excellent performance.

For North Melbourne, besides the wing players I have named may be mentioned Alessio, who outshone himself with the brilliancy of his running, marking, and kicking, and who was little inferior to the best man in the team. Robertson was a host in himself following; and Dobell, R. Gibson, and Henderson in the same department gained considerable distinction at various periods of the conflict. A. Gibson and Smith back, Peters in the centre, and Christian and Thompson in their respective places were also efficient and untiring in their efforts, but Captain Houston was too well watched by his opponents, who seldom permitted him to make any headway with the ball. The goal-getters were Robertson, Dobell, and Bingham for North Melbourne, and Taylor, Speary, and McDonald for St Kilda. H. Wilson ably performed the duties of central umpire.

Though Port Melbourne have during the season suffered more than any other team from the loss of capable men, they will manage to muster a strong body of players, and last Saturday on the Fitzroy ground they made more than a respectable show against the maroons. This encounter, unlike others on the day's programme, was marked by superior accuracy to shooting for goal, and the aggregate number of behinds obtained was, therefore, not out of proportion to the more tangible items in the total record. As might have been anticipated, Worrall and his men led throughout, but it must be admitted that they had to keep going hard the whole time to do so, and in the final term their adversaries held their own against them in the most commendable fashion.

Marking of a superior order characterised the play of the home team, but in the matter of assisting one another, they were almost equalled by the visitors. Bryan, Fraser, and McKnight netted the latter's goals, and Grace, who has evidently regained the form which in the beginning of the season made his name famous, annexed three for Fitzroy, whilst Worrall secured two, and King one. Besides the goalkickers in either team, Hannaysee, Fitzpatrick, Flaherty, and Collings for Port, and Callaghan, Meiling, Ewing, Banks, and Leydin for Fitzroy, all comported themselves excellently. J. Kennedy succeeded in giving satisfaction as central umpire.

Some alterations made in the Melbourne team, consequent, I understand, upon the retirement from the game of a couple of promising young players, have rather disorganised the red legs, and this circumstance, added to an unexpected development of power amongst the Williamstown men, made the engagement at the fishing village a very much more exciting one than most people imagined it would prove. Melbourne began well enough, and obtained a Iead in the opening quarter, but the change of ends give the locals the call, and at half-time, the latter were a couple of goals ahead.

The discrepancy was made up by the metropolitans soon after the interval, and the goals, which were equal at three-quarter time, were not added to during the final tussle, which was full of intensely interesting episodes. The draw was slightly in favour of the same team who must blame their erratic kicking for the fact that they did not experience the luxury of a win. W. Jones played the soundest game for Williamstown, and his more conspicuous confreres were Fribbs, Gibbs, Brownfield, Griffin and Kenny, whilst McLean, Wilson, Carroll, Fox, Healing, Aitken, and Griffith distinguished themselves for Melbourne.

Richmond's victory over Ballarat Imperial, one of which the yellow and blacks may well he proud, though it was accomplished in the face of the fact that the losers had much the better of the game in general play. It has been Richmond's good fortune to possess capable goal makers, and all who have consistently watched the team's performances have been disappointed as well as surprised that the number of wins acquired by them has been so few. The Richmondites are undoubtedly a well-balanced and properly disciplined company and nothing is more certain than that they will make name for themselves next season if they can be kept together.

Last Saturday's engagement was an extra one, arranged in consequence of the clubs happening to be both unemployed, and it was brought off at the Friendly Societies' Gardens, the playing ground of which was in anything but a suitable condition for football. Nevertheless, splendid work was done by both teams, and amongst the visitors the champions (McKenzie and Hoskin) at times electrified the beholders with their brilliancy. Elder, Shore, Lock, Kilmartin, and Burwood did most work for the metropolitans and the umpiring was efficiently attended to by J. Savage.

A large attendance witnessed the Geelong and Essendon match on the Geelong Cricket ground last Saturday, and both clubs were represented by strong teams, The good form thrown by the Pivotonians against Fitzroy on the previous Saturday warranted the expectation of something like trouble for the gallant wearers of the red and black, and the expectation was thoroughly realised during the opening teams of the match. The game was brisk enough at the start to delight the onlookers, and the spirited play of the men on either aide evoked hearty applause.

At first, the local team forced the running and by means of well-concerted passages and grand marking and kicking they put on 2 goals 6 behinds to Essendon's 1.1 before the first bell sounded. At half-time, Essendon had made up the leeway and were a behind to the good mainly through the excellent play of their ruck men. After this the residents, though they struggled manfully, were unable to gain more than an occasional momentary respite from the arduous task of defending their fortress against the determined attacks of the visitors. The latter with superb all-round play, in which nearly every member of the team distinguished himself, added no fewer than 7 goals to their previously acquired brace.

It will be admitted that Essendon's performance in the later stages of the game was phenomenal, as their 7 goals were secured from only 9 legitimate attempts. Nearly all of the goals were the outcome of magnificent kicking from considerable distances and at difficult angles. Under the circumstances, Fleming and his forces thoroughly deserved their brilliant victory, and it is no exaggeration to say that the form they exhibited in this match would have won for them against any team in the colony. Their more conspicuous players were Sykes, who must be credited with having earned the highest honours of the day; Ball and Forbes, who accomplished wonders in the ruck; Schutt, who bagged three first-class goals; and Finlay, who, besides acquiring a couple of goals, comported himself generally in the most able fashion. Ball was likewise a busy member throughout and contributed two of the goals, whilst Vine, in the centre, could hardly have been improved upon. The remaining goals came from Julien and Threlfall, the latter a promising and recent addition to the ranks.

Undoubtedly the most meritorious of the Geelongites was Parkin, who laboured with consistent excellence in the ruck from first to last. The redoubtable J. McShane, both as a follower and as a back man, maintained his great reputation, and his high marking was perhaps the most striking feature of the engagement. Murray, Kearney, the Reids, Conway, and Adams also deserve special mention for their share in the afternoon's entertainment.

Thewlis, the central umpire, had comparatively little difficulty in administering the laws, as the match was conducted in a very friendly spirit. He was, however, afforded ample scope for the display of speed, and to his credit it be stated that in this respect he appeared to very great advantage.

Ballarat succeeded on Saturday in defeating South Ballarat for the fourth time this season. Up to half-time, the latter team fought hard and made a respectable show, but afterwards, they were almost continuously under the whip. They were unfortunate in having to play a man short in the second half, owing to Cleary, one of their best men, spraining his ankle, but their bad luck in this respect hardly accounted for the drastic character of their defeat.

For the winners, Couttie, Christy, Coram, Crebbin, and Hewitson did excellent work; and White, Mclntyre, Moore, Ellingsen, and Caldwell spared themselves no trouble on behalf of the losers.

The points for the local premiership now stand: Ballarat 22, Imperial 14, and South Ballarat 4. Imperial play South next Saturday, and Ballarat later on, and should they be successful in both encounters they will have the honour of tying with Ballarat. In all human probability, they will win today's match easily enough, but the final tussle with Ballarat promises to be a particularly close thing.

I regret to have to announce that Trait has expressed his determination to give up umpiring, and my regret will, I am sure, be shared in by everyone who has the interests of football at heart. Certainly, no man has done more in recent years then he has to raise the tone of the game, and his departure from the scene will create a vacancy which will not be adequately filled up for many a day.

Very little interest was taken in football matters in Adelaide on Saturday as the premiership season virtually ended the week before with the defeat of Norwood by Ports. The ex-premiers had little to spare against Adelaide, just managing to get home on the post. The totals were: Norwood, 4.8 Adelaide, 3.8. Ports put South Adelaide through by 8 goals 12 behinds to 2.9.

On Wednesday, Carlton and South Melbourne played at Sandhurst for the benefit of the local charities, and a large crowd of spectators witnessed the match. Neither side was represented by its full strength, but as the absentees were about equally balanced, both in numbers and calibre the outcome was, perhaps, a fairly accurate indication of the relative merits of the contestants. The play was, however, not nearly so exciting as the Sandhurst people had anticipated, though it was pretty even from the start and Carlton's win by 6 goals 12 behinds to 5 goals 8 behinds was not accomplished without some difficulty. Williams kicked three goals for the winners and Currie, Murray, and White one each; whilst Graham and George McKenzie, of Ballarat Imperial notched a couple apiece, and O'Regan one for South Melbourne. 

It is satisfactory to note that the proceeds amounted to over £150 and that it is estimated more than £100 of this sum will be left for the charities after deducting all expenses. Both teams speak highly of the hospitable treatment received during their stay in the city of deep sinkers, and the assistant secretary of the V.F.A., Mr John Smith. deserved great credit for the ability with which he represented the parliament of football throughout the trip.

Of today's match, that between Essendon and Fitzroy, at Fitzroy, should be most exciting, as both teams are in the best possible form, but, doubtless, South and Geelong, at South Melbourne, will attract a bumper attendance. The red and whites are expected to win pretty easily in spite of the loss of power they exhibited against Carlton last Saturday.

R-19, Ladder