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FOOTBALL NOTES.
By MAKKWELL.
REMARKABLE EQUALITY OF TEAMS.
Never in the past history of football in
[Victoria have teams of the first Sight, ap
proached one another so nearly in
the matter of all-round capacity as
at present. A glance at the re
cords for last Saturday will suffice to
show that between the topmost company
and the lowest on the league list there ex
ists no more difference in actual ability
^h«M» may be fully counterbalanced by a
trifling shade of luck. It will be seen that
last week's games were all practically in
doubt to the latest moment, and. that in no
instance was the majority in favour of the
victors by more than eight points. In fact,
only one game of the round, that between
fitzroy and Melbourne, finished with the
totals even that many points apart, and
FItzroy head the premiership list, whereas
Melbourne are level with South for last.
Collingwood had to play for all they were
worth to get home in front of South; Carl
ton defeated Geelong, not in play, but in
points, and they had mighty little to spare;
whilst between Essendon and St. Kilda the
Conflict was so even that anytime in the last
Quarter a single kick might easily have re
versed the verdict. The levelling-up of
teams is, indeed, mast gratifying, and un
questionably the most pleasing circum
stance connected with it is the fact that the
equalising has bear brought about, not by
reduction of quality in the play of foremost
ftoms, but by the judicious strengthening
of dubs which heretofore often proved too
easy victims. As teams are at present
constituted, a foregone conclusion is an im
possibility in any engagement, and the out
look for the remainder of the season is,
therefore, big with promise of close, inte
resting, and exciting games.
MELBOURNE PUSH FITZEOY HARD.
Last week's games were played in
instance on turf that was moist to the
point of saturation, and I think it was
scarcely possible to find any arena in worse
condition for football than that of Fitzroy.
Nevertheless, the game was fast, clever,
open, and splendidly contested. Fitzroy
were minus Fontaine, who had been
thrown heavily against the fence at prac
tice; Bartlett, whose ankle, injured in
the Carlton match, was only slowly im
proving; and B. Sharp and G. Moriarty,
who were standing down for a spell. In
Melbourne's team there were substitutes
for C. Gardner, the club's crack wingman,
who was away on holidays, and J. H. Gar
diner, who had temporarily lost his form.
At the start men on either hand slipped,
floundered, and frequently measured tneir
length in the mud, and chaos reigned for a
time. Soon, however, the majority of those
engaged began to accommodate themselves
to their surroundings, and before the first
term ended things were going at a brisk
pace, and, except that the bail was more
frequently kicked than handled the pro
ceedings were being as skilfully and
effectively conducted as if the ground were
dry.
Without showing any special superiority
in method or manipulation during this
term, the Fitzroyites gained a fairly sub
stantial lead, but they were hard pressed
enough after the change, when the scoring,
if not the play, was in favour of Melbourne.
A grand struggle was seen throughout the
second half, with Fitzroy always in the
lead by a few points. Twice in the last
quarter Melbourne all but overtook them,
and two points was Fitzroy's narrow
majority as many seconds before the bell,
when a hurried snap by Brophy from the
crush added half-a-dozen more, and
clenched the argument. Melbourne's sup
porters had every reason to he pleased
with the form their men exhibited, and the
local following were more than satisfied
when "the bell rang their warriors in to
victory. It had been a game played in truly
sportsmanlike spirit, and, despite the mud,
it had proved immensely interesting. .
There was one man on the Fitzroy
defence lines who was always a stubborn
check to Melbourne's advances, namely,
Jenkins, who, whether right back in goal
or out on the half-back line, never per
mitted anything within reach to elude his
grasp. His dash, his strength, his solidity,
and his sureness went far towards making
victory possible for his side. He was man
fully aided by J. Sharp, whose kicking was
the finest of the match, and by Naesmith,
who played the best game he has ever
playea for Fitzroy. Beecham, as nsual,
threw heart and soul into his work in the
centre, and was one of the best on the
ground. The expert young wingman,
Millie, had the better of his man on the day,
and did his friends great service; whilst on
the opposite wing, 'Shea was fast, plucky,
and reliable, and a vast improvement upon
Best, whom he replaced after the first
quarter. Kiernan handled the greasy ball
with ease, and often passed it cleverly, bnt
Wilkinson excefied him in quantity of work
np forward, where Brosnan was seen at his
best only in the later stages. Barker, for
ward and roving, was sure in picking up,
quick in getting away,, and rarely failed to
kick to his man. Trotter's two goals were
items of importance in so close a game, and
his play generally was excellent. M'Speerm
was clever, as is his wont, and late rn the
day a series' of exchanges between him and
Brosnan brought down the house. Milne
and Walker, especially the former, played
efficiently in the rack.
Melbourne's strongest department was
that of defence. I doubt if any man on thp
ground did better or more work than was
put in by Purse, whilst Herring, Bcemner,
Parkin, Bowe, »"d Henderson were, in that
order, afl worthy of commendation. Young,
in the centre, was decidedly off, for him,
but Bowden and E. Gardner were persist
ent and frequently successful battlers on
the respective wings. Langley and
Strong, roving and forward in alternate
terms, playea briliantly throughout, and
Goutie, Moriarty, and Mills were
vigorous and earnest forwards; but Leitb,
save for an excellent place-shot goaL was
useless to the team. Tout, McClelland,
and Moodie shared about equally in the
honours gained in the ruck. Umpire
D'Helin again performed the duties of his
nffieo with absolute fearlessness and im
partiality, and with most commendable sue
cess. The game was patronised by- some
7,000 interested onlookers.
WON BY SUPERIOR SHOOTING.
Geelong looked like being annihilated for
some time after the opening of their tussle
with Carlton, as the latter went off with
a speed that took their visitors by surprise.
In the space of a few minutes, M. Grace,
marking superbly, and kicking dead
straight, had three goals recorded to his
own and his side's credit, and meanwhile
Geelong had had never a say. During the
first term, and, indeed, throughout the
game, Carlton's centre line played havoc
with the men opposed to them. Much, if
not all, the side s superiority in the early
quarter originated with this most capable
section. On the first change, though the
wind was scarce appreciable, the character
of the play changed also, for it was now
Geelongs turn to make the pace, and they
made it a cracker. They wiped out their
opponents' lead, notwithstanding that their
marksmen were none of them Graces.
They were ahead some time before^the in
terval, but had been again ousted when
that time arrived. Thence to _ the finish
Geelong surpassed their adversaries in play,
and. gained the greater number of oppor
tunities. They, however, .turned their
chances to comparatively poor account; aim
where with straighter kicking they must
have won they came back from the new
beaten by seven points.
Taking items in Carlton's play were the
number and sureness of their passes with
hand and with foot, and it was a Pr°°t"
able custom of theirs to complet
a series of exchanges with an
accurate shot for goal. This was, of co ,
the perfection of first -class football, an
in this regard if in no other was Carlton
win deserved. Their star wmg m,
Roland, was at his top; and Ford in the
centre and Bruce on the other dank help
to make the line invincible. Walton waa
once more the best defender, and Trimm
and Scott gave very valuable help. M.
Grace, with four goals and stunning rucfc
work besides, held a high ,P°S1^P
amongst Contestants. Along with mm
up forward were three clinkers in Topping,
Webber, and Sullivan, each of whom put
in a busy and profitable afternoon. Snell
roving, and Elliott and Opie m the ruck,
constituted a section that was hard enough
to beat, but that, nevertheless, was beaten
bv the Geelong combination on the pail.
Herein lay the visiting team's strong, point.
H. Young followed throughout with so
much vim and skill that no onecould
withstand him, and whenever he hit the
ball out to Rankin it was manipulated by
the rover in artistic fashion and used to
good advantage. Donaghye forte lay in
dribbling the wet ball from the back lines
safely out of danger, and his work was the
most effective, though both Wright and
M'Kinley had each a big say in defence
matters. Bailiff did good service on the
wing, M'Kenzie and Coles forward and fol
lowing did very useful work, and Eason
waa tke pick of tlie bunch of forwards.
Three new men, Mesley, Stoddart, and. .Lee,
were given a trial, and proved in each case
quite worthy of the honour. The umpir
ing of Keenan fell still a trifle short of be
ing perfect.
ESSENDON BY THREE POINTS.
As it was against Essendon on the second
day of the season the Saints gained their
first premiership points for several yeara,
it was only to be expected that they would
make strenuous efforts to gain more points
at the exepnse of the "same old m last
week's return match at East Melbourne.
The public were so interested in the ad
vance of St. Kilda that they earned up to
thiB game in crowds, and practically made
it the match of the day. So far, too, as the
closeness of the scoring went, it was tbegame
of the afternoon, since Essendon were only
able to scrape home by three points. Con
cerning the play shown in the encounter, it
must be «"■'<* that though. Essendon seemed
always the more disciplined, and in some
ways the better company, there was really
little to choose between them. Owing to
his mother's death, Vollugi was away from
Essendon, and Cleghora waa likewise an
absentee. Their places were taken by
Rosser and Sullivan. For St. Kilda, Trinder,
a player of note last y^ar, supplanted
M*Kay, and W. 0. Jackson1 had recovered
fromhis injuries, and resumed his place in
the team. It is generally admitted that
Essendon's total should have been increased
by a goal, as Barry warn almost between the
posts when he took deliberate aim, and
made a miserable failure. An offset to this
mian was, according to St. Kilda barrackers,
a goal given in error to Essendon, and about
which, it was said, the Saints intended ap
proaching the league. Possibly there will
be no protest, since the goal umpire was sure
he was right, and gave fus verdict honestly.
Even the knowing membsa of Essendon's
executive, who persistently left M. Collins
out for many matches, are prepared to ac
knowledge their mistake, for the sturdy little
defender has done most excellent work in
the last two matches. Against Fitzroy he
headed the list of his teams defenders, and
this day week he did the same thing, but
rather more empathicaffy. He was cer
tainly the mnn of men against St. Kilda.
Geggie's brilliant runs, and Anderson's
plucky efforts wore sterling items in the
back play of the team. Baxter was the
pick of Essendon's centre line, for Hastings
was, on the whole, only second to Oucen, in
the centre; whilst Robinson, the St. Kilda
wingman, was a bit too quick for Rosser.
Gilligan waa the neatest ana best af the for
wards, with Barker, in closest attendance.
Forward and following he re were few on
the side did sounder work than was done by
Carkeek. Hedley followed admirably, ana
Bony was an effective rover. Highest
honours of tlfe match were gained by Cum
berland, the St. Kilda follower, whose mag
nificent display had a brilliant and. very
valuable setting in the fine form shown by
Barwick roving. Ricfeards back and follow
ing did splendidly, and Dowding half-for
ward, Trinder back, and Trevillian on the
ball were highly useful members. Carris had
charge of the game, and gave satisfaction
to tlie majority of onlookers.
COLLINGWOOD ON THEIB METTLE.
With South Melbourne and Collingwood
almost at opposite ends of the league list, it
was thought that their second meeting for
the year would prove an easy thing for one.
The fact, however, proved otherwise. In
the beginning the 'Woodsmen looked like
running away with the match, for despite
the extreme moisture that prevailed they
quicldy got their system of short distance
kicks and marks in operation, and their for
wards being on their best behaviour, ran
up goal after goal till their lead was some
thing big. Evidently, however, the wind,
though light, made its impress on the plav,
for as Boon as ends were changed South be
gan to have chief say, and, as a matter of
fact, they had at least aB much of the se
cond term as their adversaries had had of
the first. Their kicking was a little less to
the purpose, otherwise they must have led
at half-time. Then for the remainder of the
game they held rather more than their own
in general matters, and gained more oppor
tunities of scoring. They wanted only a
shade more coolness in attack to have dipt
the wings of the "magpies," notwith
standing that at intervals throughout this
engagement, Collingwood's systematic pass
ing put them temporarily out of their
stride. Had they been capable of block
ing the 'Woodsmen in this particular, they
would have won hands down, for they had
undoubtedly the better ruck, and in pace
and ground play they more than held their
own. A strong adherent of Collingwood
was heard" to declare at the finish that, if
his side had been beaten, he could have
excused them, because the greasy ball and
wet ground had hampered them in their
passing; and, he added, taking an unpar
donable liberty with the poet, that "mud,
like death, levels all ranks.'
"Defence, not defiance," was the motto
the 'Woodsmen might have adopted after
the opening quarter,for they were hardpresscd
enough in all conscience. They found then
soundest and most reliable backman in G.
Lockwood, whose dashes were irresistible;
and they had to thank Monahan, Fell,'
Rush, and Ayling for unremitting zeal in
the same department. Out in the open,
Condon's roving proved invaluable, ana, as
usual, Panam's wing play and briskness in
picking his man were items of great im
portance; whilst Tulloch's versatility, and
the persistency of Angus forward were
material aids to the team. South Mel
bourne ruled in the ruck, where Pleass and
Has sett made short work of opponents;
and Gent, operating on the fringe of the
crush, played a very taking game. The
Southerners were likewise capably manned
half-back in the persons of Hickey, M'Gee,
and A. Adamson; and they had in Todd, on
the wing, a bright, particular star, whilst
N". Rippon in the centre very frequently
claimed attention. Scott's pace,
M'Donough's marking and kicking, and
Li tiler's general expertness were matters
of considerable moment in front of Colling
wood's goal; and Fogartv, forward and on
the ball, was much more than a symbol of
stability. Crapp umpired the game in mas
terful fashion.
FOR THE V.F.A. PREMIERSHIP.
This afternoon should find the Richmond
ground the centre of attraction for followers
of association football, as the local team,
who so far have lost but one match, and
that by a single point, try conclusions with
North Melbourne, who hold top place on
the list. The Northerners have won seven
games and drawn one, and their continuing
to occupy first place will, therefore, depend
upon their ability to defeat Richmond in
to-day's encounter. Both teams were in
good order this day week, as Port Mel-
bourne and West are in a position to tes-
tify, and it may be accepted as certain that
their meeting to-day will furnish its patrons
with an intensely interesting combat.
Against Port Melbourne the Northerners
are reported to have shown their finest
form for years, and the ease with which
they settled Port's pretensions bears out the
report emphatically. They amassed be
tween five and six times as many points as
they permitted to their opponents, to whom
they were quite as much superior in play
as the tallies indicate. The Portsmen have
lost many of last year's players, and al
though their organisation is good, lack of ex
perience tells its tale amongst the new
comers. North's finest play against them
was shown by Londergan, who, in addition
to his pace, has this year learned to use his
head, and has vastly enhanced his value as
a player. First-class games were played
also by Considine and P. Noonan, roving
by Martin and Stewart, on the wings; and
by O'Brien, Morrison, Barnes, Milne, and
the goal-makers, Kennedy (4), English (3),
and Armstrong (2). Ports were best served
by Keenan, Hurley, Pettit, M'Gowan, Hill,
Gray, Croft, Yates, and Moloney.
Richmond made mince-meat of West Mel-
bourne. beating them more decisively than
North beat Ports. In this engagement the
defeated company appear to have accepted
the inevitable too early in the day, for they
succumbed utterly in the last quarter, dur-
ing which they did not pass the centre line.
Richmond, in this lopsided encounter,
increased their lead by half-a-dozen goals.
The drastic character of the defeat was in
a measure attributable to the concertedness
shown by Richmond, whose more com-
mendable performers were Gibb, John-
ston, Matthews, Wilmott, Williams,
Bownas, Edmunds, Watson, Richardson,
Rudd, Maine, Wade, and Catlin. The last
named kicked five goals. West Melbourne
were well served, especially before the in-
terval, by Poole, Rook, Feaver, Armstrong,
Dean, Gregory, Rolent, and Williams. At
the conclusion of the match, M'Cormick,
the Richmond trainer, was made the reci-
pient of a handsomely-illuminated frame of
photographs of the players and the execu-
tive of the club.
So one-sided was the engagement between
Footscray and Brunswick that the latter
had not opened, their account when the
final quarter began. The Brunswickers
were at sea in the wet ground, and failed
to get their system into going order. Like
Collingwood, they are at their best in dry
weather, for they, too, place their main
trust in quick passing at half-distance,
Montgarret, Marino, O'Bhea, Swannell, the
Stephensons, Williams, Hughes, M'Cartby,
Fhiellyn, ana Deceit shaped well for Foots
cray, and Andrews, Temple, Dawson,
Crowe, Smith, Chase, Cowley, and Sliel
nack were hardest triers for Brunswick.
Taylor, the umpire, put up a spotless re
cord for the afternoon.
Toorak:park was the scene of a dose and
interesting combat, in which the local team
showed their best football for .the year.
They were.put through by only a handful
of pointer, and, as they struck the poirt once;
it > plain they had their .^Vilfiainstowap
visitors hard at it io the finish. They weri;
weaker forward than in other parts of the
field. Their most deserving members were
Blynn, Todd, the Browns, Hinton, Weafc
brooke, Chalmers, Tenbrink, Shaw,, and
Jones: whilst M'j&ideyj WihMier^iTewfHitt,
Houghton, Williams, - andDick played ex
cellently for Williamstown.
Preston defeated Essendon Town in n
tussle that was spirited, open, and attrac
tive, and more even than the totals would
seem to indicate. Just one particular in
Essendon's display calls for adverse com
ment, namely, their lack of cohesion for
ward. This is a weakness that would rain
a stronger team than Essendon, and it is
one that may be remedied by the exercise
of a little common sense. Preston were
chiefly beholden to Gilbert, Pratt,. White,
,aiV4 Salk Raff, Cooper, and Knell,
and Essendon Town's best were Sheldon,
Sweatman, O'Keefe, Gorman, Girdwood,
Griffiths, Bushbridge, Da vies, and Martin.
The defeated Townsmen speak in terms of
high praise concerning Murphy's umpir
ing.
INTERSTATE MATCH.
With fine weather thiB afternoon's en
gagement, Victorian League against South
Australian Association, should attract a
record attendance. It will be remembered
that in last year's interstate games the
South Australians were deservedly vic
torious. The football they showed us on
the M.C.C. ground was superior to our own
in pace, dasn, and smartness generally, and
they played much better together than our
men. They are to-day represented by as
strong an eighteen as last year's, and, judg
ing from the form they exhibited at prac- .
tice on Thursday afternoon, I feel convinced
they will prove extremely hard to beat.
The league company, too, is a first-rate
selection, and may be trusted to uphold the
credit of the state, though the fact that
they have been afforded no opportunity of
working together as a team must tell against
them in a contest with men who are tho
roughly acquainted with one another's play.
Nevertheless, the encounter will furnish
patrons with a good afternoon's entertain
ment, as both teams will be on their mettle.
If the leaguers be skilfully handled and play
with system, they will probably win; but,
failing through organisation, they are likely
to be oadly beaten.
Another league team went last night,
under the management of Mr. James Den
bam, to Ballarat, where they will encounter
tne picked players of the local association.
Changes have been made in the eighteen
originally chosen for this game by the
V.F.L. selectors, G. Lockwood, Sowden,
Jo. Powell, G. Ross, and Cochrane having
replaced Herring, Vollugi, Elliott, Opie, and
Martin, who were unable to undertake the
trip. Despite the changes, however, the
team is a good one, and it should make
matters interesting enough for the football
loving people of Ballarat.
South Melbourne's holiday in Tasmania
has been brought to a conclusion earlier
than was intended owing to the outbreak of
small-pox at Launceston. The team were
able to play only a couple of games, one at
Devonport and the other at Launceston,
and they were to start yesterday on their
return trip for Melbourne. It is said they
have all been vaccinated during their stay
in Launceston, but it is doubtful whether
they will not have to undergo a term of
isolation before being permitted to return
to their homes. Should they be detained
a fortnight or so in quarantine the V.F.L.
programme of premiership matches will be
thrown out of gear.
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