Brisbane Courier (Qld. : 1864 - 1933), Monday 17 September 1928, page 7


BUSH RATS WIN.

. .

TRISTRAM SHIELD FINAL.

LATROBE CAPTURE

MOORE CUP.

BUNDAMBA'S PREMIERSHIP.

By "WANDERER.*

Saturday vas a big disappoint-ment to the Thistle Club. They had great hopes of winning the Tristram Shield at last, but were doomed to disappointment. Bush Rats always looked menacing and more likely to do the trick, and when Johnny Steel missed a penalty, and CoL Warrell followed up his first goal .with a low oblique shot, which would have beaten anybody, that was the end

of the chapter. Thistle were un- ~ lucky, inasmuch as three of their men were knocked out at one time or other.

Latrobe created no surprise iv hen they won the Moore Cup at the expense of Norman Park.

Pineapple Rovers defaulted in (heir match against Bundamba, and at Toowong, where Brisbane City and Blackstone Rovers were down to meet, the farcical situa-tion arose of there being no ball to play with. No wonder the Ips-wich men have put in a claim for

expenses.

The premiership of the first division has definitely gone to

Bundamba.

Although nobody could seriously tontend that Bush Bats were not en-titled to leave the field victorious In the Tristram Shield final, yet it would be impossible to refrain from sym-pathising with the Scottish club in their hour of misfortune. They played hard and cleanly, and their prospects were not brightened when first Perotte got a kick in the ribs and was in pain for the rest of the afternoon, when Palmer received an injury to a leg, and «hen Weir also was hurt. But it is impossible to state definitely that this had any bearing on the result. No quarter was given by either side, and in a broiling sun a terrific pace was maintained to the finish. There was only one unseemly incident, and that was when Seeney took a deliberate kick at Martin. Luckily the objective was missed, and luckily also for Seeney the referee did not see the Incident. In contradistinction to this Incident nas the act of Dave Cumberford, cap-tain of Thistle, who was the first to warmly shake Pedley, the Bush Rats' captain, by the hand when the final

whistle blew.

"Spokes" Pedley is one of the genuine soccer enthusiasts, and the success of his side brought him a lot of personal congratulations.

KEEN TO THE END.

The result of the contest was well concealed to the end of the chapter, but looking back on the game several incidents could be recalled of glorious chances being frittered away by the losers. Casey was a notorious offender, and so was Bentley. On four oc-casions the supporters of the Thistle gasped with dismay at the missing of what should have been simple goals. Some day players will under-stand that a better Idea of direction can be obtained if less power was put Into the drives. There Is no neede.to put a hole in the net to score goals. Casey does not need telling what his erratic shooting meant on Saturday.

Another weak spot was Palmer, who frequently was too slow for the fastmoving, Bush Rats, and who failed to realise the futility of the close-passing game. C. Warrell, who was "chalrÈd" after the match, was far too good for his fair-haired opponent. But Palmer has served his side faithfully, and he »as unlucky to have an off day just nhen his best was demanded. Casey used to be able to shoot, but he has lost the art. He has not done any good since he joined the Thistle Club. Mar-tin was an honest battler, and got through a ton of work, but the "star" of the Thistle defence was Teasdale, 1 who saved his side from disaster more 1 than once. Perotte was unlucky to

finish up the season with another in-jury; but even If he had been well all through the game it Is not likely that he would have stopped the second goal The first was due to a mistake on lils part¿, but many good things he did cannot be lost sight of.

CUMBERFORD'S STRATEGY.

Dave Cumberford had a wai m hand-ful in Henderson and C. Warrell, es-pecially as Palmer could not last the pace this pair set, but he caused h|s supporters far too much anxiety by wandering too far up the field. This left a breach which Bush Rats seized more than once. Had Cumberfoid and Palmer shown a better understanding at least one ot the two goals would not have been possible. There was also the impression that the Thistle skipper would have been Well advised in the second half to have risked re-arranging the defence, so as to enable himself to take the centre forward position. Certainly the experiment could not have done any harm as tilings turned out. It was a pity that the Scotsmen had not a man avail-able to get into the back division, so as to release Cumberford for the pivot position, where his ability is so well known.

The real menace to the Rats came from the Thistle left wing, where Stone and Steele combined to solid pur-pose. Had the other Inside men len* anything like îeasonable aid a different story must have been told Stone strove unceasingly, and was one of the outstanding figures on the fieldSteel also was a constant danger, but he seems to have lost his cunning when it comes to the final touch. Weir was too well watched* to do anything out of the ordinary. Petie and Eric Nunn were more than a match for the Thistle right wing.

The victors, who stepped on to the field vfull of confidence and fit as liddies, lasted out a hard, gruelling battle In typical West Moreton style. They had evidently resolved not to sit on the ball, but to outwit the Thistle defence by flashing it about Vthout a moment's hesitation. It was their go-ahead method which turned the tables In their favour. They wre a constant source of anxiety, be-cause it was realised that if they fall

I ed it would not be because they hesi-

tated or overdid the passing business. They adopted the cup tie strategy, Jhlch is calculated to upset most com-bination. But it was not all "kick and fun' business. They did quite a deal °{ impressive things. Eric Nunn was always convincing, and constituted the "rains of the defence, just as Pedley ¡jas the inspiration of the attack. Len Warrell also found it a simple matter to out-manoeuvre Bentley, and If P. Nunn found his opponents too hot. he Jjas by no means a weak spot. The packs, Petle and Jeffrey, never looked 'ike letting their side down, and Saun¡w« gave no cause for anxiety between "ii sticks.

The forwards showed a good under-standing, and combined to such pur-pose that the Thistle defence could nardly afford to make a mistake.

POINTS OF THE PLAY.

«n?'ei,Baine opened at a solid pace,

»na all manner of risks were taken in B«tlng possession of the ball. In the fi* íew minutes a goal to the Rats Mkeci probable, but Perotte saved at ne expense of a painful injury, havdnLbeeil, r°ughly used when he lay J,»* the ball, with three opponTh. fö"5 t0 k'<* It out of his hands ¿XLT1lLstIe na<i Quito a torrid time

"«ore they broke away, and. a¡, the I

result of an effective bit of work by 'Stone, Bentley had the goal at his

mercy.

For several minutes the Rats wera hemmed in, and Casey had a chance, but he could do no better than Bent-ley. The struggle between the Tnistle vanguard and the Bush Rats' defence had been In progress for what must have seemed io the visitors an inter-minable . time, before the ball was booted to Henderson. That player gave Palmer the slip, and, going cn, he transferred to C. Warrell at the right time. The Inside forward shot at Pèrotte, who ' should have saved, but his partial clearance was fatal, as Kruger dashed up and scored.

Once again Casey had the oppor-tunity to score, and thus level the proceedings, but his was a woeful ef-fort. Up and down the field the ball travelled, and the players, cheered on by a most enthusiastic crowd, fought with great relish. It was anybody's game, and thrill after thrill was being experienced. As half-time drew near Thistle rallied with telling effect. The Bush Rats' defence had withstood a fusillade for 10 minutes before it final-ly had to capitulate. The effort which brought the Thistle the equaliser came within three or four minutes from the interval. The entire Thistle front line took part In the assault, and after the ball had bobbed in and out half a dozen times it went to Stone. That player drove in true and hard from an acute angle, and Saunders had not time to clear his Unas properly before Palmer completed the move-ment. It was a success well merited.

At' half-time the score still was:Thistle, 1.

Bush Rats, 1.

The second half had quite as many good points as the first, and was even harder than the first 45 minutes. At first it was thought that Perotte would not be able to resume, but, after Steel had gone Into goal, the hearts of the Thistle were cheered by the appearance of the clever custodian. This put courage into the Scotsmen, and they tore into the business for all they were worth. Park, who had done many good pieces of work, next caught the eye with a most timely clearance under the bar. The forwards of both sides were now showing some sort of mastery over the defence, but just when a goal would seem certain there would be a bad foozle. Over-eagerness undoubtedly was the cause of the

trouble.

A TRAGIC MISTAKE.

Fifteen minutes from time, and just when it appeared certain that a replay or extra time would be neces-sary. Thistle swept down on the Rats' citadel. In a terrific duel Eric Nunn was adjudged to have handled in the penalty area. He protested that the ball hit. his shoulder, but the referee was adamant. Steel was en-trusted with the kick, but, to the utter dismay of the Thistle support-ers and the corresponding delight of the visitors, he tapped the ball outside.

Just on time the left wing of the Bush Rats, which had always threat-ened to be a determining factor, com-pletely outwitted the defence, and C. Warrell won the Shield for his' club by driving in, one of the cleverest low oblique shots which has been seen this season, and Perotte had to pick the ball out of the back ot the net. It was a surprise to every-body, but the effort was worth the goal. Thus the Thistles' hopes were dashed to the ground, and the second of the two principal honours of the season went the way of Ipswich. The final

scores were:

Bush Rats, 2. Thistle, 1. .

The winning of the shield by Bush Rats is an honour not undeserved. The Black and Whites once held a proud position in Queensland Soccer, but re-cent years have been lean ones. Whilst sympathising with Thistle, who have had a season of somewhat ill-fortune, the success of the Rats will give them just the fillip for the times which are ahead. . >,

The teams were:

Thistle: Perotte; Cumberford and Park; Palmer, Martin, and Teasdale; Weir, Casey, Bentley, Steel, and Stone.

Bush Rats: Saunders; Jeffrey and Petie; F. Nunn, L. Warrell, and E. Nunn; Kruger, Pedley, Seeney, C. Warrell, and Henderson.

Referee, Mr. A. Ireland.