Seniors.

Since the last issue of "Smad" there have been five more Senior games. The results are, briefly, v. Miramar, won, 8-7 v. Oriental, won, 9-6; v. St. Pat's, lost, 11-10; v. Melrose-Selwyn, won, 29-5; v. Berhampore, won, 21-6.

Comments on Form.

Throughout the series the forwards have proved a hardworking pack and have given the backs a fair share of the ball. Amongst the forwards, Barker, Eade and Russell have shown up as hard workers, while Blacker is a fine leader and a good man in the tight. In one game, against Oriental, the club captain replaced Chesterman at half-time, and was the best forward on the field.

Amongst the backs, Tricklebank has been outstanding. In every game he has given a good display, his line-kicking and handling being excellent. He can kick with both feet—very useful and really essential in a full-back.

The wings, Harpur and McElwain, have been disappointing. Harpur should run straight and hard. He is a strong runner with a useful fend. He is, however, overfond of kicking, and is inclined to hold on too much. McElwain is very fast and usually has no difficulty in running round his man. In his last two games McElwain has shown a distinct improvement and shown up to advantage.

O'Regan at centre has been unreliable, and his handling has been weak. He has a good cut-in, but seems to be unable to finish off the movement. Wild, Overtoun, and Paul have all played in the five-eighth position. Wild has shown a return to form, and his tries against St. Pat's and Berhampore were good efforts although the first was just a bit lucky. His tackling has improved immensely. Overtoun is playing well and combines well. He is inclined to cut in too much and should very his play more. Paul has been playing well at first, but kicks too much.

Rae has been playing football of a high standard. With monotonous regularity he has been scoring a spectacular solo try per week.

Review of Matches.

'Varsity were lucky to win against Miramar. The forwards played moderately and the backs kicked too much instead of passing. Against Oriental, 'Varsity owe their defeat to the fact that they made little use of their opportunities. Oriental won because they could finish off their movements, and deserve full credit for this 'Varsity were, however, a little unlucky on the day. The same remarks apply to the game against St. Pat's. In the last quarter of an hour, despite strenuous efforts by 'Varsity, the St. Pat's defence proved too stubborn, and again the team had to acknowledge defeat.

Against Melrose-Selwyn the team met weaker opponents and scored a runaway victory. Towards the end of the game backs and forwards combined in good scoring rushes. This definite improvement was short-lived. Playing Berhampore a weak team with no backs, 'Varsity were lucky to win at all, let alone by 21-6, Berhampore played well and with a reliable place-kick should have collected at least another nine points.

Lower Grades.

Amongst the lower grades, 'Varsity has met with success. The Junior A's have been playing good football and are well placed on the ladder. They have a hard-working set of forwards and enterprising backs. The Junior B's are having a lean time at present. They are a useful team, and with a little more luck should win more games. The Third A's do not seem to be having quite as many wins as one would like, while the Third B's always the weakest team in the Club, remain so this year. The Third C's, of whom we heard so much last year, are very quiet at present and do not appear quite as keen as last year.

Henry Moore's Fourths are not the team of last year. Perhaps it is due to the vacation, but they have lost the last two games.

Masterton Old Boys v. V.U.C.

On the King's Birthday, a team comprised mainly of senior players visited the Wairarapa to play the Masterton Old Boys' fifteen. The game was arranged by Neville Whiteman, once secretary of the College Football Club, and it is hoped it will become an annual fixture.

Mr Diederich, the manager-organiser of the team, was approached by "Smad" for his impressions of the game.

"It was very enjoyable, and the football was of a good standard."

"Who was outstanding?"

"They all played well," was the non-committal reply.

However, "Smad" discovered that all the forwards played well. Paul played his best game to date, his tackling and straight running being a feature. Overtoun was sound. Mules, at centre, playing his first game senior, was impressive. Tricklebank was, as ever, very safe at full-back. O'Regan blossomed forth as a goal-kicker with good direction but is lacking in power.

V.U.C. won 19-6, and from the various accounts the opinion is unanimous that Masterton treated them well and often. The dinner afterwards was memorable. Reports indicate that one member of the team observed the old custom of "going through the menu," while another, more modest, was content with one half plate of soup.

Heigh, ho! for a dry district.