# 1922 Auckland Rugby League season

The 1922 Auckland Rugby League was the 14th in its history. There were 68 teams playing across the various grades. City Rovers won the first grade championship for the 5th time, with Ponsonby winning the Roope Rooster for the 2nd time. City Rovers also defended the Challenge Shield, warding off efforts from Petone, Tongariro, and Huntly to lift it from them. The twenty two year old Bill Davidson set a record for points scored in an Auckland club rugby league season with 116 for City Rovers. He and his brothers Ben and their Olympic sprinting brother George between them scored 186 of City Rover's 339 points which was also a competition record for a team in a single season. City scored a further 19 points in the Roope Rooster competition and 85 points in their 3 Challenge Shield matches for 443 points in all official games.
It was an incredibly busy year for the Auckland representative team. They played more matches than some club teams had played in earlier seasons with ten matches in total. There was also an Auckland Provincial team match against New South Wales, and one Auckland B fixture with the team making the trip down to Cambridge to play the local side. Bill Davidson also led the representative team in scoring with 37 points.
| Preceded by1921 | 14th Auckland Rugby League season 1922 | Succeeded by1923 |

## Auckland rugby league news
### Club teams by grade participation

| Team | 1st Grd | 2nd Grd | 3rd Grd | 4th Grd | 5th Grd | 6th Grd A | 6th Grd B | Total |
| City Rovers | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 7 |
| Richmond Rovers | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 7 |
| Devonport United | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 5 |
| Newton Rangers | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 5 |
| Ponsonby United | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 5 |
| Maritime | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 5 |
| Manukau Rovers | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 4 |
| Northcote & Birkenhead Ramblers | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 4 |
| Marist Old Boys | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 3 |
| Kingsland Rovers | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3 |
| Ellerslie United | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3 |
| Otahuhu Rovers | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3 |
| Parnell | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 |
| Fire Brigade | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Ihumātao | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Māngere Rangers | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Point Chevalier | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Coromandel Old Boys | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Takapuna | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Total | 8 | 11 | 11 | 9 | 8 | 10 | 6 | 63 |

### Junior Management Committee

The junior management committee elected for the season was Lewis Binns, J.S. White, K. Lippiatt, G.J. Flynn, W. Baskett, William Mincham, O.O. Riley, D.C. Adamson, W.E. Frost, Bill Davidson (Hon. Sec), A. Freeman (Chairman), G.H. Seagar, A.H. Te Mete, T.B. Carpenter, W. Dowle, G.F. Burgess, J. Curtis, F. Cleal, W. Boag, F. Kennedy.

### Carlaw Park

At a pre-season meeting of the management committee it was discussed that Carlaw Park needed more 'modern equipment', and it was decided that "the establishment of more modern methods of dealing with the turf and the purchase of more efficient machinery shall be an early charge on the new season's funds". Sufficient money was made from gates at club and rep fixtures at Carlaw Park and the Auckland Domain to begin improvements on the ground at the conclusion of the season.

### New clubs and name changes
#### Maritime to Athletic

The Maritime club changed their name to 'Athletic'. Their club colours were also changed from red, white and blue to royal blue with a gold band. In 1926 they were to change their name again to Grafton Athletic. This was not to be confused with Grafton Athletic who had existed as a team from 1914 to 1920 under the leadership of Karl Ifwersen and were presently playing under the name of 'Fire Brigade'.

#### Richmond promoted to 1st grade

Richmond Rovers applied for entry into the Senior A Grade competition and this was approved. This made the competition an even 8 teams meaning 4 matches per round and no byes. Unlike most previous seasons there were no byes, no defaults, and no postponed matches meaning 56 matches were played in total, easily the most in the competitions history. Richmond would go on to finish 7th with 3 wins and 11 losses.

#### Ihumātao club enter

On April 4 the ARL management committee reported that they had accepted the application of a new club called the "Central Mangere Club", and they would enter a team in the second grade. The team was however exclusively named "Ihumata" for their existence and were ostensibly a Māori football side. It was a misspelling of their area's Māori name and was corrected at a later date to Ihumātao. They were based in the Ihumātao area of Māngere and played most of their home games at the Mangere ground further towards the east. They only survived for two seasons with it likely that many of their players began playing for the preexisting Māngere United League Football Club such as Paul and Wilson junior.

#### Coromandel Old Boys join

On February 15 the Auckland Rugby League held their weekly management committee meeting and said that "affiliation was granted to a new third grade club to be called Coromandel Old Boys, with the colours red, white, and blue". a Thames Old Boys team had existed from 1915 to 1920 but this team appears to have had no serious links to the Coromandel Old Boys side. The Coromandel team fielded a third grade side only from 1922 to 1925 before withdrawing from the competition.

### George Davidson's return

George Davidson played for Maritime (now named Athletic) in the 1919 season but had missed most of the 1920 and 1921 seasons as he was training for and competing at the Antwerp Olympics where he came 5th in the 200m final. He stated that over those two seasons he had only played for Maritime on two or three occasions as he was seeking a transfer to the City Rovers where his two brothers Bill and Ben played. Athletic were denying his request and Davidson appealed to the league who then asked the Athletics club to reconsider his request "favourably". He would eventually have his transfer to City approved.

### Point Chevalier

Point Chevalier secured the use of Richard and Elizabeth Walker's paddock at the bottom of Humariri Street as their home ground. It has since become Walker Park where they are to this day located. In the same season they bought jerseys from George Court & Co. Ltd. In 1925 a shed was built at Walker Park with volunteer labour.

## Monteith Shield (1st grade championship)
### Monteith Shield standings

| Team | Pld | W | D | L | F | A | Pts |
| City Rovers | 14 | 11 | 0 | 3 | 339 | 157 | 22 |
| Ponsonby United | 14 | 10 | 0 | 4 | 205 | 169 | 20 |
| Marist Old Boys | 14 | 9 | 1 | 4 | 258 | 192 | 19 |
| Devonport United | 14 | 7 | 1 | 6 | 223 | 194 | 15 |
| Newton Rangers | 14 | 6 | 1 | 7 | 197 | 219 | 13 |
| Athletic | 14 | 6 | 0 | 8 | 242 | 208 | 12 |
| Richmond Rovers | 14 | 3 | 0 | 11 | 141 | 295 | 6 |
| Fire Brigade | 14 | 2 | 1 | 11 | 143 | 313 | 5 |

### Monteith Shield fixtures
#### Round 1

Peter Irwin James Francis Hing, better known as James Hing, or later Sonny Hing scored a try for Ponsonby. He had previously played for Marist and would later coach the Point Chevalier premier side in the 1930s. He was the son of Charles A'Hing and Margaret Mary Irwin and was one of the first ever rugby league players in New Zealand with Chinese ancestry along with Arthur Singe.

#### Round 2

Lou Brown debuted for Newton aged just 17 having already played 2 seasons of senior rugby in the Waikato. He would go on to have a remarkable career being a prolific try scorer for every team he played for which included Newton (12), Wigan (106), City (72), Halifax (33), York (77), Bordeaux, Auckland (18), North Island (4), Auckland Māori (4), Other Nationalities (5), and New Zealand (22). In the match between Athletic and Ponsonby Eric Grey had a highly unusual collection of points after he scored a try, and kicked a conversion, a penalty, a goal from a mark, and a drop goal. Bert Laing transferred to Devonport during the week and had the unusual distinction of scoring against a team and then for a team in the space of a week. In the match between Devonport and Newton Alex Godick, J Price, and Calderwood had to leave the field through injury, with Godick being concussed.

#### Round 3

Stan Webb debuted for North Shore joining his older brother Clarence in the side. Stan would go on to represent Auckland in the same season and New Zealand in 1925. He predominantly played in the halfback position but also played at centre and fullback at times.

#### Round 4

The Carlaw Park games secured £213 2/6 through gate attendances. The main match between Marist and Athletics was "fast and interesting throughout, and was one of the best expositions of the code that has been seen here for some time" according to the Auckland Star scribe. In the match between Ponsonby and City, Horace Neal, and Mitchell were ordered off after a scuffle in the corner during the second half. The referee (Walter Ripley) stated at the hearing that he had caught them just before blows were struck and both players were let off with a caution. The Newton v Fire Brigade match at Grey Lynn Park only received very brief match reports with no detailed scoring provided.

#### Round 5

George Davidson made his debut for the City club. He had requested to be released from the Maritime/Athletic club where he had previously been a member prior to going to the Antwerp Olympics where he competed in the 100 and 200m races. He wished to join bis brothers Ben and Bill in the City side but was initially blocked by his old club before securing the release. He scored a try for City in their 20-5 win over his old side, with brother Ben being credited with a penalty try after being held back by his jersey when he was going to score, and Bill kicked 4 conversions. At halftime Athletic sent their fullback, Mike Flynn (a boxer from Australia), to second five eighth and shifted Dougie McGregor to fullback. They also brought New Zealand international Bert Avery out of the back row to act as an extra five eighth to good effect but they still went down. A Halliday scored Athletic's only try. He was also on debut for them, having previously playing for Ponsonby in 1920. The conditions at Carlaw Park were poor with a wet, muddy field with a smaller crowd than previous weeks. There was still 72 pounds in gate takings collected however. Harry Francis the City forward broke his shoulder and such was the seriousness of the injury that two months later on July 27 a benefit concert was held for him in the Town Hall concert chamber. Francis had been unable to work in his occupation due to the injury.

#### Round 6

In "ideal" conditions a "record attendance" came to Carlaw Park with £255 13/6 taken at the gates. Bill Davidson scored a try and kicked 2 conversions and 2 penalties for a personal haul of 11 points in City's 17-13 win over Marist.

#### Round 7

The match between Devonport and Marist was the 50th senior rugby league game played at Devonport Domain. The first match played there was in 1910. A large crowd attended the Carlaw Park games with 183 pounds being taken at the gate. The Auckland Star match description of the City v Newton game said that Wally Somers scored for Newton however the slightly more detailed New Zealand Herald match report credited the try to Leo Barraclough after Somers passed him the ball so Barraclough has been credited with the try.

#### Round 8

The club games resumed after Auckland had played the Australian University side 3 times. The crowd at Carlaw Park was relatively small with just £61 15/ taken at the gate with slippery conditions prevailing. In the 3pm game City had a 9-3 win with no goals kicked in the match. Near full time F. Wilson was knocked unconscious and had to be carried from the field. The game on the number 2 field between Ponsonby and Newton was a "mud scramble". Richmond recorded their first win coming back from 7-0 down at half time against Athletic at Victoria Park while Marist also mounted a second half comeback to draw 21-21. They had trailed 15-2 at the break. Marist had struggled to get a full team on the field and it was rumoured that they might have to default however they eventually mustered a side. Early in the match one of their recent recruits from rugby was ordered off the field for rough play which injured McClure. In the second half the Fire Brigade captain, Charles Woolley collided heavily with his brother John (Jack) with the sound of the contact heard by spectators. He was able to carry on but at the conclusion of the game had to be carried from the field suffering from concussion.

#### Round 9

The New Zealand Māori team had returned from their Australian tour and the Auckland players rejoined their club sides including George Paki (City), Sam Lowrie (Ponsonby), and Craddock Dufty (Athletic). There were also seven Māori players registered with the Fire Brigade club but ultimately only George Gardiner, Moses Yates, Bill Te Whata, and Barney Pitman took the field. They were well beaten by the strong City side 32-2. Ponsonby and Athletic both struggled to get full teams on the field and had to use lower grade players to make up their numbers. Athletic were missing Eric Grey and captain Bert Avery. For Ponsonby, their captain Thomas McClymont scored a try and converted 5 of their tries.

#### Round 10

Marist had to fill 4 vacancies from their starting side just before kickoff with Nelson Bass, Bill Stormont and Stevens all having to play in the back line. While John Lang played at half back in place of the absent Billy Ghent. Bass played in the five eighth position along with Norm Loveridge. The Newton v Athletic game saw some controversy. Bert Avery was playing in the five eighths for Athletic, away from his usual loose forward position and he appeared to score at one point. The referee did not award it and Lou Brown gathered the ball and ran the length of the field to score. Newton went on to win the game 16-15.

#### Round 11

The matches at Carlaw Park drew £201 1/ in gate takings with City against Ponsonby in the main match on the number 1 field. City thrashed Ponsonby 40 to 9 with George Davidson and brother Ben Davidson scoring two tries each while Maurice Wetherill crossed for four 4. The eldest Davidson brother Bill converted four of their ten tries. A thousand spectators also ventured to Victoria Park to watch Newton beat Fire Brigade 19-17.

#### Round 12

Richmond caused something of an upset beating Fire Brigade by 18 points to 3 in very cold conditions at the Auckland Domain. Fire Brigade were missing six players who had been injured the previous weekend including Ernie Herring, Jack Woolley, Charles Woolley, R.R Lovett, and John Wareing. In the main match at Carlaw Park Athletic beat City with recent addition Redmond Lonergan on the wing getting a hat trick of tries for the winners.

#### Round 13

The gate collected 195 pounds at Carlaw Park. The Auckland Star credited a try to B Nilson while the New Zealand Herald writer said that it was George Duane that crossed in the corner.

#### Round 14

164 pounds and 5 shillings was taken at the Carlaw Park gate. By virtue of their 18-13 win over Newton City claimed the championship. Ponsonby could have tied for the lead in the competition with a City loss but the Rovers side won thanks the scoring of the Davidson brothers. George Davidson and Ben Davidson scored two tries each and Bill Davidson converted three of them. Bill Williams scored on his return to the Newton side after a stint in rugby union. Richard Rope played his first game for Newton since 1917 after returning to Auckland from Northland. He scored a try for the losers who also were unfortunate in losing Clarrie Polson to injury in the second half leaving them to play with 12. Bill Cloke who had been playing at five eighth moved to halfback to replace Polson and gave "a remarkable display".

## Roope Rooster knockout competition

The loss by Athletic in the final was remarkably their 5th consecutive loss in the Roope Rooster final (their previous 4 under the name or Maritime).

### Final
## Top try scorers and point scorers

These lists include tries and points scored in the First Grade competition and the Roope Rooster competition only. Bill Davidson set a record for the number of points scored by a single player in a season. While earlier seasons were often incomplete with some points unattributed his 115 points was well ahead of the previous highest of 78 by Karl Ifwersen in the 1915 season. Percy Gallagher of Marist was the top try scorer with 15.
| Top try scorers |
| Rk | Player | Team | Gms | Tries |
| 1= | Ben Davidson | City | 14 | 15 |
| 1= | Percy Gallagher | Marist | 15 | 15 |
| 3 | Ivan Littlewood | Athletic & Ponsonby | 9 (6 & 3) | 13 (5 & 8) |
| 4 | Stan Webb | Devonport | 13 | 11 |
| 5= | Lou Brown | Newton | 16 | 10 |
| 5= | George Davidson | City | 12 | 10 |
| 7= | Eric Grey | Athletic | 11 | 9 |
| 7= | Bert Avery | Athletic | 13 | 9 |
| 9= | George Yardley | Athletic | 9 | 8 |
| 9= | Maurice Wetherill | City | 16 | 8 |
| 9= | F Wilson | City | 16 | 8 |
| Top point scorers |
| Rk | Player | Team | G | T | C | P | M | DG | Pts |
| 1 | Bill Davidson | City | 16 | 7 | 34 | 10 | 3 | 0 | 115 |
| 2 | Eric Grey | Athletic | 11 | 9 | 10 | 4 | 1 | 5 | 67 |
| 3 | Thomas McClymont | Ponsonby | 13 | 6 | 19 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 58 |
| 4 | John Wareing | Fire Brigade | 15 | 7 | 6 | 11 | 0 | 0 | 55 |
| 5 | Ben Davidson | City | 14 | 15 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 49 |
| 6= | Clarrie Polson | Newton | 13 | 5 | 12 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 47 |
| 6= | Percy Gallagher | Marist | 15 | 15 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 47 |
| 8 | Ivan Littlewood | Athletic & Ponsonby | 6 & 3 | 13 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 41 |
| 9= | George Yardley | Athletic | 9 | 8 | 5 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 40 |
| 9= | Maurice Wetherill | City | 16 | 8 | 5 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 40 |

## Challenge shield matches

City Rovers came into the season as holders of the trophy after defeating Ponsonby United the previous season. The shield had taken the place of the Thacker Shield which had been taken from Ponsonby and returned to the Canterbury Rugby League after a dispute over who was eligible to compete for it. City went on to defend the shield 3 times during the season defeating Petone, Tongariro, and Huntly.

### City v Tongariro

The Tongariro team was "made up of Maori players drawn from the scattered settlements of the King Country" according to the New Zealand Herald match report, though were missing some of their best players. The Auckland Star reported that many of their players were graduates of Te Aute College.

### City v Huntly

Huntly came to Auckland as the South Auckland (Waikato) champions and were expected to provide a stern test to City however after a competitive first half with the scores tied at 11-11 at the break, they fell away badly in the second half with City ending up running in 11 tries. The match was the last of the season for City and saw them score a total of 444 points in total. Ben Davidson with three more tries finished with 20 tries from 17 games.

## Lower grades

There were 7 lower grades in 1922 if you include the Sixth Grade which was split into an A and B grade and the Cadet Competition. Mr. G. Davis donated a trophy for the junior club with the most points and it was won by Richmond, with City second and Ponsonby third.

### Second grade

City Rovers defeated Devonport United 16–13 in the final on September 2. Marist and Ellerslie had withdrawn after 2 rounds and had no results reported so possibly didn't play in any matches and therefore have been omitted from the standings, Newton withdrew after 8, Athletic after 9, and Otahuhu after 10. A knockout competition involving the nine teams still remaining from the championship, and Newton who had reformed their team began on September 9. On October 28 Mangere defeated Newton 19-11 in the final played at Manukau (Onehunga). On September 16 a Junior rep side made up of players from this grade played against the Wednesday Representative side and lost 16-8. The match was played as a curtain-raiser to the Auckland - New South Wales at Carlaw Park.
| Team | Pld | W | D | L | B | F | A | Pts |
| City Rovers | 7 | 6 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 98 | 40 | 12 |
| Devonport United | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 58 | 44 | 2 |
| Richmond Rovers | 9 | 6 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 89 | 47 | 12 |
| Māngere Rangers | 8 | 3 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 38 | 68 | 7 |
| Ponsonby United | 6 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 66 | 81 | 6 |
| Ihumātao | 14 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 78 | 107 | 6 |
| Manukau Rovers | 4 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 30 | 21 | 6 |
| Newton Rangers | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 23 | 15 | 3 |
| Otahuhu Rovers | 2 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 14 | 5 | 2 |
| Northcote & Birkenhead Ramblers | 6 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 2 | 16 | 57 | 0 |
| Athletic | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 26 | 0 |

### Third grade (Myers Cup)

Ponsonby United won the championship with an undefeated record, beating Kingsland Rovers 9-3 in what was labelled the final, on September 23, although Kingsland had lost at least 3 matches prior to this. A large number of results were unreported though the majority of Ponsonby and Point Chevalier's results were. Manukau defaulted their first two matches and then withdrew so have been omitted from the standings as they did not play a game. City B withdrew after 12 rounds, Devonport and Coromandel Old Boys withdrew after 14 rounds.
| Team | Pld | W | D | L | B | F | A | Pts |
| Ponsonby United | 13 | 12 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 202 | 48 | 25 |
| Kingsland Rovers | 12 | 8 | 0 | 4 | 1 | 51 | 61 | 16 |
| Point Chevalier | 12 | 8 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 199 | 67 | 17 |
| Ellerslie United | 9 | 4 | 0 | 5 | 2 | 90 | 89 | 8 |
| Parnell | 9 | 4 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 23 | 83 | 8 |
| Newton Rangers | 6 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 55 | 38 | 6 |
| City Rovers B | 4 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 13 | 39 | 4 |
| Richmond Rovers | 8 | 1 | 1 | 6 | 1 | 39 | 50 | 3 |
| Devonport United | 8 | 1 | 1 | 6 | 2 | 29 | 85 | 3 |
| City Rovers A | 6 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 2 | 18 | 64 | 2 |
| Coromandel Old Boys | 12 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 2 | 7 | 102 | 2 |

### Fourth grade

Richmond played Otahuhu on September 23 for the championship. The match was drawn 5-5 but Richmond secured the title as they were 1 competition point ahead going into the match. A large number of results were not reported, with just 3 of Otahuhu's reported thus their tally of 6 wins is based purely on the fact that they finished 1 pt behind Richmond. Richmond only had 8 results reported from their 14 scheduled matches. City withdrew after 11 rounds.
| Team | Pld | W | D | L | B | F | A | Pts |
| Richmond Rovers | 8 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 150 | 34 | 15 |
| Otahuhu Rovers | 3 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 29 | 8 | 13 |
| Kingsland Rovers | 5 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 60 | 40 | 8 |
| Parnell | 10 | 4 | 0 | 6 | 1 | 65 | 136 | 8 |
| Athletic | 4 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 51 | 16 | 4 |
| Ellerslie United | 7 | 1 | 0 | 6 | 2 | 38 | 99 | 2 |
| Devonport United | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 14 | 30 | 2 |
| City Rovers | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 32 | 10 | 0 |
| Newton Rangers | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 11 | 77 | 0 |

### Fifth grade (Endean Memorial Shield)

Takapuna won the championship. It was to be the only grade win for the club in their history which lasted from 1921 to 1925. Richmond had beaten Takapuna 8-3 on July 22 but the match was ordered to be replayed by the league. Takapuna going on to win the title. Richmond defeated Takapuna on September 2 to win the knockout competition. The majority of the results were not reported so the standings are significantly incomplete.
| Team | Pld | W | D | L | B | F | A | Pts |
| Takapuna | 12 | 7 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 93 | 36 | 14 |
| Richmond Rovers | 12 | 7 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 90 | 36 | 14 |
| Manukau Rovers | 6 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 99 | 33 | 7 |
| Newton Rangers | 6 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 1 | 44 | 98 | 4 |
| Ponsonby United | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 16 | 20 | 2 |
| Northcote & Birkenhead Ramblers | 5 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 3 | 11 | 61 | 2 |
| Marist Old Boys | 6 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 33 | 51 | 2 |
| Devonport United | 4 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 11 | 62 | 1 |

### Sixth grade A

City Rovers A won the competition ahead of Richmond and Athletic. A standalone match was played between City and Athletic on September 16 to end the season and this was possible to decide the title. Northcote & Birkenhead Ramblers withdrew after 3 rounds. A large number of the results were not reported.
| Team | Pld | W | D | L | B | F | A | Pts |
| City Rovers A | 11 | 10 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 184 | 19 | 20 |
| Richmond Rovers | 8 | 6 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 113 | 24 | 12 |
| Manukau Rovers | 4 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 26 | 22 | 6 |
| Marist Old Boys | 5 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 46 | 43 | 4 |
| Athletic | 5 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 39 | 54 | 4 |
| Kingsland Rovers | 6 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 3 | 19 | 142 | 3 |
| Otahuhu Rovers | 5 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 3 | 25 | 46 | 2 |
| Ponsonby United | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 7 | 18 | 2 |
| Ellerslie United | 6 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 88 | 1 |
| Northcote & Birkenhead Ramblers | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 6 | 0 |

### Sixth grade B

Athletic won the competition. The majority of match results were not reported so the standings are significantly incomplete. Athletic only had 3 match results reported and 2 of those were losses. Ponsonby defaulted in round 1 and withdrew from the competition so have not been included in the standings.
| Team | Pld | W | D | L | B | F | A | Pts |
| Athletic | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 11 | 34 | 2 |
| Richmond Rovers | 6 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 70 | 31 | 10 |
| Manukau Rovers | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 37 | 10 | 10 |
| Parnell | 7 | 3 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 47 | 34 | 6 |
| City Rovers | 5 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 1 | 18 | 53 | 0 |
| Northcote & Birkenhead Ramblers | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 20 | 0 |

### Cadet competition

22nd Company, based in the City won the competition. They sealed the title when they beat 36th Company (Northcote) with a 13-0 win on September 30. It was slightly confusing as teams went by different names, sometimes being referred to by their company number and sometimes by their geographical location, whilst City were also called "Athletic" on occasion. Then on July 8 a team joined the competition simply known as Takapuna. Presumably this was also a cadet side rather than the club team of the same name.
| Team | Pld | W | D | L | B | F | A | Pts |
| 22nd Eden Company | 12 | 9 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 153 | 51 | 18 |
| 26th City (Athletic) Company | 7 | 5 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 85 | 72 | 10 |
| 36th Northcote Company | 7 | 3 | 0 | 4 | 1 | 40 | 76 | 6 |
| 29th Ponsonby Company | 5 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 2 | 9 | 90 | 0 |
| Takapuna | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 8 | 25 | 0 |

### Wednesday Competition

On September 13 a Taxi Drivers side beat Bakers 21-9 at Carlaw Park. A Bakers player (T. McPherson) broke his ankle and was taken home). On September 20 the Post and Telegraph side played against the Wednesday representative team as curtain-raiser to the Auckland Province - New South Wales match at Carlaw Park. Post and Telegraph won 33 to 11 with future New Zealand international Arthur Singe scoring 2 tries and kicking a conversion. Wally Somers was also in the Post and Telegraph side.

## Representative season

It was an extremely busy season for the Auckland representative side. They played ten matches in total, while many members of the side also played for the Auckland Provincial team, and an Auckland B team also played a match in Cambridge. Of the ten matches they lost 6 and won 4. The first representative fixture of the season was played on 20 May between Auckland and the Maori team which was preparing to visit Australia and play a series of matches. There were 7,000 in attendance and gate receipts totaled £297 2s 6d. On 19 June the touring Australian Universities Rugby League team arrived in Auckland on board the 'Manuka'. They were welcomed at a function at the Auckland Town Hall by a large assembly of Auckland politicians including the Mayor Mr. J.H. Gunson, and representatives of Auckland Rugby League and the New Zealand League Council. The Australians acquitted themselves well by beating Auckland twice, and losing to them once and a loss to the South Waikato team in Hamilton. The games were played over the space of just 8 days.
After the NZ Māori team returned from their tour of Australia seven members of their team were transferred to the Fire Brigade Club, though only four played in their round 9 match (Pitman, Gardner, Yeats and Te Whata).
History was made on 2 September when Auckland was defeated for the first time in a Northern Union Challenge Cup match. They had held the Cup for over a decade, but had to hand it over when they were defeated by South Auckland 21 to 20 on Carlaw Park in front of a large crowd. On 16 September they met the touring New South Wales team at the Auckland Domain and in front of a huge crowd of 20,000 they went down in a "tremendously fast and exciting game" by 45 points to 25.

### Auckland v New Zealand Maori

The Auckland team was not at full strength with 5 players originally selected unable to play. The New Zealand Māori team featured Bill Te Whata who joined the Fire Brigade (formerly Grafton Athletic) team after the tour and then later the Athletic (formerly Maritime) side. Also in the team was Craddock Dufty who became a huge figure in the game in the 1920s and 30s in Auckland where he played over 50 matches for New Zealand and 30 for Auckland, George Paki a long time City Rovers player who also had a stint at Richmond Rovers, and Sam Lowrie who played 149 games for Ponsonby along with several games for New Zealand and Auckland.

### Auckland v Australian Universities

The Australian University team was made up of players from Sydney University and Brisbane University.

### Auckland v Australian Universities

Bill Stormont injured his knee during the match and was replaced by Ernie Herring. Herring took his place in the starting side for the third match due to the injury.

### Auckland v Australian Universities

Nelson Bass and Ivan Littlewood were originally named to start however Turner and John McGregor both took their places in the starting lineup.

### Auckland v Cambridge

Remarkably 12 of the 13 Auckland players scored points, with 8 separate players scoring tries and 4 others kicking one or more goal. The only player not to register any points for Auckland was second rower, Henry Hawkes.

### Cambridge v Auckland B

William Southernwood of Ponsonby played for the Auckland B side. He would be tragically killed in a boating accident just prior to the start of the 1923 season which also claimed the lives of three other men. His team mate and New Zealand representative Bill Walsh survived the accident.

### Auckland v New South Wales

Auckland played the touring New South Wales team in front of 20,000 spectators at the Auckland Domain but was heavily defeated with Australian legend Frank Burge running in 5 tries. George Davidson replaced his brother Bill Davidson in the starting side, and Lou Brown came on during the first half to replace the injured Frank Delgrosso, while for New South Wales O'Connor replaced Tye who was also injured in the first half.

### Auckland Province v New South Wales

A few days after the match with New South Wales an Auckland provincial team took on the touring side. This was the first ever Auckland provincial side which included Auckland club players and also players from the Waikato. The Auckland team was made up entirely of Auckland club players aside from former Auckland player Tim Peckham who was playing at Huntly. They also included Bill Te Whata who had played in Australia for the New Zealand Māori side and recently joined the Fire Brigade club in Auckland. They lost a tight match by 21 points to 20. Frank Burge was ordered off for disputing Wilson's try late in the match.

### Bay of Plenty v Auckland
## Auckland representative matches played and scorers
### Auckland

| No | Name | Club | Play | Tries | Con | Pen | Mark | Points |
| 1 | Bill Davidson | City | 6 | 2 | 10 | 3 | 1 | 34 |
| 2 | Craddock Dufty | Athletic | 4 | 2 | 5 | 4 | 0 | 24 |
| 2 | Bert Avery | Athletic | 7 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 24 |
| 4 | Nelson Bass | Marist | 6 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 20 |
| 4 | George Davidson | City | 6 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 20 |
| 6 | Clarrie Polson | Newton | 8 | 3 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 19 |
| 7 | Lou Brown | Newton | 4 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 18 |
| 8 | Maurice Wetherill | City | 9 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 16 |
| 9 | Eric Grey | Athletic | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 9 |
| 10 | Bert Laing | Devonport | 5 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 8 |
| 11 | Harry Hawkes | City | 7 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 |
| 11 | John Lang | Marist | 4 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 |
| 11 | Charles Webb | Athletic | 1 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 6 |
| 11 | Ivan Littlewood | Ponsonby | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 |
| 15 | Sam Lowrie | Ponsonby | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 5 |
| 16 | Arthur Singe | Marist | 5 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 4 |
| 17 | Frank Delgrosso | Ponsonby | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| 17 | Wally Somers | Newton | 6 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| 17 | Ben Davidson | City | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| 17 | F Wilson | City | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| 17 | A Nelson | Marist | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| 17 | J Johnson | Devonport | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| 23 | Bill Stormont | Marist | 5 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| 23 | Stan Webb | Devonport | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| 23 | Mike Flynn | Athletic | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| 26 | Frank Turner | Marist | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 26 | Thomas McClymont | Ponsonby | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 26 | Ernie Herring | Fire Brigade | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 26 | John McGregor | Athletic | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 26 | William Hanlon | Ponsonby | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 26 | Harry Douglas | Devonport | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 26 | Charles Woolley | Fire Brigade | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 26 | Percy Gallagher | Marist | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 26 | George Duane | Marist | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 26 | C Nicholson | Newton | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 26 | George Reid | City | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 26 | Harrison | Devonport | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 26 | Alf Scott | Devonport | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 26 | Ernie Mackie | City | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 26 | C "Chook" Mitchell | City | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 26 | Charles Hand | Devonport | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 26 | Neville St George | Devonport | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 26 | Jim O'Brien | Devonport United | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 26 | Brady | Fire Brigade | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |

### Auckland Province

| No | Name | Club Team | Play | Tries | Con | Pen | Points |
| 1 | Bill Davidson | City | 1 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 6 |
| 1 | Bert Laing | Devonport | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 6 |
| 3 | Maurice Wetherill | City | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| 3 | F Wilson | City | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| 5 | Craddock Dufty | Athletic | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 |
| 6 | George Paki | City | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 6 | Eric Grey | Athletic | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 6 | Nelson Bass | Marist | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 6 | Tim Peckham | Huntly (Waikato) | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 6 | William Hanlon | Ponsonby | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 6 | Neville St George | Devonport | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 6 | Bill Te Whata | Fire Brigade | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 6 | Wilfred McNeill | Ponsonby | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |

### Auckland B

| No | Name | Club Team | Play | Tries | Con | Pen | Points |
| 1 | Eric McGregor | Ponsonby | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 6 |
| 1 | F Wilson | City | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 6 |
| 3 | Stevens | Marist | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| 3 | W Little | Richmond | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 |
| 5 | Walter Voysey | Newton | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 |
| 6 | William Hanlon | Ponsonby | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| 6 | F Gregory | Newton | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 6 | Tommy Taylor | Devonport | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 6 | C "Chook" Mitchell | City | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 6 | Eric Carroll | Richmond | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 6 | Ernie Mackie | City | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 6 | Neville St George | Devonport | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 6 | William Southernwood | Ponsonby | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |