The San Francisco call., 1910-08-28
AUSTRALIA TRIP A
RUGBY EDUCATION
Returning Varsity Players Gain Worlds
Of Experience on Tour
By c. H. PHLEGER

Now that the All America Rugby team
IS home from its Australasian tour. a
resume of the concluding games of the
schedule IS interesting.
In my last letter wrote accounts of
all the games played by the American
universities football teams up TO July
.. including the game against Sydney
university on that date.
The seventh game Of the tour was
played Wednesday, July 8, against the
Central Western district team at Wade
park. Orange. New South Wales. The
American backs had now become more
Of unit and their play was better
than in any Of the previous games. The
final score Of 11-9 in the universities
team S favor gives a good idea of how
evenly matched both teams were.
Brown at fullback played an excep-
tionally fine game, his line kicking
being Of a very high order.
All during the game the townspeo-
pie were very generous in their APP
plause and a stranger would have had
difficulty in picking the home team, so
impartial were the spectators.
AMERICAN UNIVERSITIES $,
METROPOLITAN
The Australian tour was closed July
3 at the Sydney cricket ground. sgd
ney. where a draw game of all was
played with the metropolitan team.
This game proved the surprise Of the
campaign in Sydney, our team dis
playing form Infinitely superior to that
of any earlier game. Our forwards
held their own in every department of
the game.
The Metropolitan team contained
some Of the best players IN sydney,
and a drawn game with such a team
shows very adequately the improve
ment which had taken place in our
team.
IT viii be interesting to note an ar
ticle in the Sydney Referee Of July Is:
The American university team is
going back to America vita high
appreciation Of Rugby unih foot
bail as a scientific game. with an
exalted opinion of the sportsman
ship Of their opponents and with "A
feeling that nothing can ever OBJ
literate the memory Of the cam
paign from their minds AS rule
J do not see a very great deal OF
Rugby tourists off the field. but [
always make point of noting the
sentiments Of their principal
spOkesmen and the attitude of the
men IN matters Of discipline and
training. The Americans are
thorough sportsmen. They have
played the game strenuously. but
with scrupulous fairness There
has never been more loyal set of
men on tour; never a team that
had higher conception of what
was necessary to their physical
welfare. And they acted up to IT.
In this they may be held up to
colonials as pattern The Ameri-
can team has had conditions to
test them as men and as sports
men. They have had hospitality
showered upon them and they were
beaten in four matches straight
of the reel" They went through
ali this and have left Australia.
Judging them on the form of the
last match, an Infinitely better
combination than they were on
their arrival They have made
hosts Of friends; they believe that
these friendships viii last forever:
and they hope TO renew them at
no very distant date on American
soil AS opponents Of Rugby the
Americans came 10 Australia most
admirable in the forwards but not
collectively good in the backs.
The forwards improved, but the
backs hardly improved in attack
for The first half dozen matches At
the finish. however. il was made
clear that the backs had at last
mastered the art of passing with
skill and of attacking with some-
thing approaching real system. In
their hrst game they gave many
slow lot passes. and in this way,
time after time. lost position
gained by their forwards But at
the close they were passing sharp
", straight or practically straight
with the men running fast and
taxing the ball at full speed. The
earlier passing was Of a crude
bookish sort OF football; at the
close il was the real thing.
On the morning of July II the team
left for Wellington. New Zealand At
noon Friday, June 15, we landed in |
Wellington.
AMERICAN UNIVERSITIES o.
~
Our first game in the dominion was