Los Angeles herald., 1909-11-11
RIVAL SCHOOLS
BATTLE IN VAIN
[. A. HIGH AND POLYTECHNIC
PLAY O TO O GAME
LARGE CROWD OF RooTERS
WATCHES CONTEST
ceissIer Is Star for Mobiles Team.
Pierce Plays Great Game for
Poly-Game Is But Fair
Exhibition
:. A. High, o; Polytechnic, o

L. A. High, o; Polytechnic, o
Two old-time rivals, Los Angeles and
Polytechnic high schools, met yesterday
afternoon at Fiesta park in their first
football contest in three years, and for
two thirty-minute halves they battled
for supremacy without either being able
to cross the others goal line. The game
was not good exposition of Rugby by
any means, both teams playing great
deal of the old games bucking style
throughout. But for excitement 1t was
all that could be asked, and the record
delegation of rooters from the two In
stitutions were on their feet most Of
the time, as the ball see-sawed back
and forth.
The first half was nearly even, with
the odds a little in favor of the L. A.
boys, but the second was played in the
shadow of Poly's goal posts, and at
times it seemed as if nothing short of
miracle could keep the mechanics from
scoring. Throughout Poly played the
better Rugby. The l.. A. boys probably
lost the game because they insisted on
trying to pick up the ball and run with
il whenever the opportunity offered, in
stead of dribbling. Time after time
they had a fairly clear field when the
instead of booting 1t down the field for
substantial gain they would try to
PICK it up, and as a consequence would
be downed in their tracks or thrown
back for loss. Poly's serum also did
better work than their rivals, keeping
punched back of the ball, and on sew
eral occasions this formation nearly
scored for them. Tho l.. A. teams
greatest asset was their gameness and
=. ku1 wtrtt h TN
few inches of their line and the
heavy serum of the mechanics bearing
down on them. the l.. A. team would
fight their hardest and always managed
to save their goal. Captain Ted Geiss-
Ter was. their brightest star, being in
the thick Of the fray throughout and
always managing to get on the bah
when 1t was in danger of going across.
GeissIer a Star
Geisser kicked off to Poly at $40.
The latter returned the kick into touch
and the ball was scrummed. After
little fighting back and forth in the
center of the field, Poly was penalized
for being offside. and Geissler punted
well down the field into touch. Anoth-
er scrummage, with things going l.. A.
way, when Boyle grabbed the ball and
tore down the field for a 40-yard run,
which put the pigskin we'll into L. A.
territory. This was lost in a few min
utes by the superior dribbllng and kick
ing of the Poly team, and the ball re-
turned to the center of the field. L. A.
pushed it down to about their twenty
five yard line again when Haney got
away and ran two-thirds of the length
of the field before he was tackled. AS
he went down he passed to Pierce, who
ran fifteen yards further before the ball
was finally stopped. The bali was again
worked down the field by the blue and
white team, and in a mixup on Poly's
30-yard line the ball popped into the
air and Boyle caught it, signaling for
a fair catch. Harrigan attempted a
place kick, but was blocked, and again
the endless see-sawing back and forth
began. The only thing which livehed
things up at all from this on to the end
of the half was a clever 35-yard run by
Geissler, who secured the ball on Poly's
35-yard line and sprinted to within two
yards of his goal before he was stopped.
The L. A. boys were unable to cross the
line however, and Pierce punted it out
Of danger. The half closed with the
ball in l.. AS territory.
Ball on L. A. Ground
The second half was played almost
exclusively in the territory defended
by Los Angeles 1t was simply a case
of the old game played without any
rules-rushing. holding and bucking be-
ing. seemingly, the only way the play
ers knew of advancing the ball. Poly
tried several times to get the ball out
to their wings, but each attempt was
smothered so successfully that nothing
was gained by this method. The bali
went back and forth within the 25-yard
line, and twice was pushed across the
goal by the Mechanics, but each time
either L. A. secured II and made a
safety of the play or it was called back
and L. A. held them until time was
called.