New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1903-11-16
ON THE GRIDIR0N.
YALES POOR CONDITION.
No Nelc Plays at Nesc-HaUen-Har-
cards Drear Outlook.

furnished more surprises than any football
match of recent times The victory Of the
Tigers was not one of them. however. for II was
practically toss up between the two elevens.
In this column Saturday morning said that
SO evenly matched were the opposing forces that
any one Of half dozen fortuitous happenings
might turn the scale. AS a matter Of fact. it
was just one of these happenings that gave the
match to Princeton When two teams are so
closely matched that it takes goal from place
ment in the last few minutes of play to win the
game. IT follows that neither team can lay claim
TO marked superiority.
The most astonishing feature Of the match
was It's failure to show anything new in foot
ball The new rules gave wide scope for the de-
velopment OF novel plays. Both teams had been
practising in secret much longer than usual
From behind the closed gates came frequent ru-
mors of something novel and surprising in the
way of strategy which the coaches had devised
and were certain to spring on the opposing team
when the time came to do or die All eyes
watched sharply for the novelties that were
promised but nothing new happened The only
approaches TO trick plays seen on Yale Field on
Saturday were the quarterback kick. the crisis
cross and the quarterback run, and all of them
had been shown before many field
It is hard TO see how the coaches Of both teams
could have neglected such rich and obvious
opportunity develop moves that, by reason OF
their novelty and the suddenness OF their ex-
ecution, would take their opponents mapping
Ore or two such plays perfected they might
have been by constant drilling, could well have
served to snatch victory from defeat At any
rate with the game tie up to the last few
minutes of play, they were well worth trying.
It may be that the generals of the two teams
and al
things as strategy, or that they feared that their
players worn and breathless by the afternoons
desperate playing were not capable of carrying
them out Whatever the reason. nothing new
happened and the possibilities of the game re-
ceived no new impetus from the biggest match
Of the season.
Reflection on the details of the match deepens
the conviction formed by the writer immediate
ly after the game that condition had more than
anything else to do with the victory of Prince
ton At least FIVE Of the Yale team were so
plainly in bad shape when they lined up for the
first time that no one at all familiar with the
symptoms of staleness could fail to note them
Rockwell looked as If convalescent from vast
ing fever. His face was white and drawn, ana
his cheekbones seemed likely 10 protrude at any
moment through the flesh. Captain Rafferty,.
too had the pasty complexion and facial emacia-
ton Of an invalid Shevln was also white and
bIoodIess, while Hogan. despite his massive
physique looked if he had been driven to
death. Boomers hurts had kept him from prac-
tice so long that he undertrained, and
eventually got groggy. Metcalf also was plainly
a little more than on edge. For once Mike"
Murphy overshot his time limit. Hard work is
a good thing and needful thing within bounds,
but woe to the team that overstePs the mark
The Tigers. on the contrary. looked ft TO fight
for their lives. Though on an average fifteen
pounds lighter than their opponents. their
strength gradually grew proportionately great
er. and at the end they outplaying Yale
with ridiculous ease. There can be no question
that had there been fifteen minutes more Of
playing time Princeton would have scored at
least two more touchdowns.
One feature of the match which leads
one irresistibly 10 the conclusion that had
Yale been in shape TO do her best from
first to last there would have been
different story TO write, is the burst Of
consistent form with which the blue made
her only touchdown. Taking the ball near the
centre Of the gridiron. she beat the Tigers back
yard by yard, until she had crossed the goal
line The Princeton line could not stand up
under the assaults made upon it by Metcaf,
Bloomer and especially. Hogan. This sort Of
football had II been kept up, WOULD unqueStlon-
ably have won. But strength faded away al
most TO nothing while Princeton grew stronger
at the very end Shevlin and Rafferty,, in 1902,
were Individually the strongest pair OF ends
any eleven It was unreasonable TO expect
Davis and Henry good they to outplay
them decisiveiy this year. Yet that is exactly
what they did Rafferty, was boxed up by the
Interference time after tine, while Kafer
sneaked around him for valuable gains. Nor
was Shevln so fast and furious as he was a
year ago. Here was where condition told again.
Probably no championship match Of late years
has shown so much fun bling and slovenly hand
ling of the ball The weather furnished no
cuse for il. The ball was perfectly dry, yet
scarcely back on the gridiron seemed able TO
hold the ball Both teams offended. but Yales
fumbIes were the more costly. Metcalrs muf
OF De Wits punt was the most expensive one
of the afternoon, as it allowed Princeton to get
so near that Bowman could not punt far
away as to keep De Witt from making his goal
from placement. Mitchell too. often got panic
stricken when sent back to kick while not a
Princeton back could be relied on to catch
puut cleanly Rockwell was not blameless, and
his passing as well as Rorabacks, left much to
be desired. Yale men generally handle the ball
cIeanly, and 1t is not unlikely that their offences
In this line are to be ascribed 10 their shaky
physical condition.
Not the least surprising feature of game that
reeked with the unexpected was the poor kick
ing of De Witt. The giant guard is unquestion-
&c hos he