Brisbane Courier (Qld. : 1864 - 1933), Monday 16 September 1929, page 7


SOCCER.

TRISTRAM SHIELD FINAL.

LATROBE'S NARROW

VICTORY.

ROSEBELLS' FINE PERFORM-

ANCE.

By "WANDERER."

If the 'success ot Latrobe in the final of the Tristram Shield was entirely in accordance with ex-pectations, few bargained for the dour struggle which took place before the destination of the trophy was decided. The first division club only won in the last minute, after bo'.ng forced to put forward their most strenuous effort of the season. Roscbclls went down with colours flying, and there were few who, on leaving the ground, were not sincerely sorry that the West Moreton youths had been forced to submit.

It cannot seriously be contended that Latrobe got something to which they were not justly entitled, but dur-ing a critical period of the second half Rosebells were given offside im

BLACKSTONE APPEAL

UPHELD.

..The Appeals Board of the Queensland Football Associa-tion decided on Friday night to uphold the appeal of the Blackstone Club against the suspension imposed by the Brisbane and District Associa-tion. The Appeals Committee was unanimousl- of the opin-ion that the special competi-tion which Blackstone Rovers refused to take part in was not specifically provided for in the rules when affiliation was made by the Blackstone Club, and that the Rovers were quite within their rights in re-fusing to enter and play. Also, that Blackstone had dene everything in their power, and willi the least delay, in ac-quainting the B.D.F.A. of in-ability to play.

properly, when it was guineas to gooseberries that a goal would have resulted. Tlie refereeing was not satisfactory, and it was most annoy-ing to hear the whistle blown for a foul, when it was a case of a per-fectly fair, if vigorous, shoulder charge. Mr.' Blackburn's mistakes in this re-gard probably were due to his overanxiety to hold the players in check against rough tactics. Rosebells were mainly the sufferers by these errors of judgment.

If we cannot do other than sing the praises of the defeated team, who had quite as much of the play as their formidable opponents, and gave Viertel and Rigby the fight of their lives, still we must not lose sight of the fact that Korotcoff, that faithful ser-vant of the club, received a painful injury at the commencement of the second half, which put him entirely out of the reckoning. Korotcoff would not give in, and It was almost a pathetic sight to see him limping about the field trying to save his side from a reverse which would have dealt such a blow to their pride.

The sympathy of the spectators usu-ally is with the little fellow, and that was why Roscbclls got just as much moral support from the Brisbane sec-tion of the spectators as from the en-thusiastic little contingent from Ips-wich. As a fact, with all due re-spect to Latrobe, had Rosebells won It would have been the most popular victory any West Moreton club has ever achieved at the 'Gabba.

| A BELATED GOAL.

The goal which decided the shield was as good as it was unexpected, ior Taylor had to beat two men before he let fly with a shot which gave Kitching no possible chance of saving. The indications were that the Rosebells' heroic defenders had begun to yield under the heavy strain; that they sur-vived so long is eloquent tribute to their worth. There were occasions when a terrific assault was made on them; but they never wilted, and if they had some good fortune, they also demonstrated a surprising knowledge of sound tactics. And they had hearts like lions.

It looked anything but healthy for Latrobe, when Rigby decided to put his most dangerous forward, Gorring, into Korotcoff's place in the half back line, to transfer Korotcoff to the left wing, ahd send Taylor inside, but this proved to be the factor which determined the issue. Taylor had not done much good on the wing; but after his colleagues had repeatedly failed, he seized the first likely opening which came his way, and won the match with an in-dividual effort of no mean merit.

A FINE RECORD.

And so Latrobe brought off the quad-ruple-won the premiership, the special challenge cup, and the shield, and pre-served an absolutely unbeaten certifi-cate.. All credit must be given to them for that, for it will go down on Soccer records as one of the best achievements in the history of the game in this State, even though the Iijswich senior clubs were barred from taking part in the shield competition, which naturally knocks a little of the gilt off the ginger-bread.

There had been rumours that Rosebells would not play owing to being refused certain monetary consideration for coming down from Ipswich, but the second division premiers arrived on the ground in plenty of time, and walked on to the ground in great fettle. Lat-robe are never backward in using their weight, but Rosebells gave a Roland for an Oliver, and hard knocks were not an inconspicuous feature of the lively proceedings. There were one or two incidents which were opposed to the principle of "clean sport, but nothing serious. Both sides fearlessly went for the ball no matter how big the other fellow was, and it was surprising that Korotcoff was the only casualty. The pace was a cracker from the first whistle to the last, and was a tribute to tlie way the training instructions had bçèn obeyed. The defence of both sides was excellent, many gruelling ordeals being survived-. Each goal underwent the closest possible calls, shots being rained In from all angles, to be. circumvented by heads and feet which- seemed to suddenly como on the

scene from nowhere.

As the second divisions demonstrat-ed quite clearly that their convinc-ing start was no spasmodic effort, and- was going to bo sustained, the crowd became infected with the en-thusiasm of the players, and cheered lustily. For 90 minutes there was not a dull spell, and as Viertel ana Rigby were bustled and pressed by the lively opposition, and looked as near to being beaten as ever they were, the excitement was intense. The 10 for-wards played hard enough, but the defence Was tlie dominating influence, there being . no failures. Where all did so well, .it would be unfair to par-ticularise, Suffice it to say that when the . competition starts next season some way should be found for in-cluding Roscbells in the senior 'grade.

On Saturday's form tsams like Thistle and Norman Park would have been "pie" for them.

The teams were:

LATROBE.-Nixon; Viertel and Rigby; Bowen, Murray, and Korotcoff; Alexander, V. Bell, Carton, Gorring, and Taylor.

ROSEBELLS.-Kitcliing; Sander and Bisgrove; Thorburn, Fountaine, and Kitching; w. James, R, James, A. Kltching, Hales, and Hardy.

Referee: Mr. Blackburn.