Shawnigan Lake School - Yearbook (Shawnigan Lake, British Columbia Canada)

Page 30 text:

L, BORTLES — Left lock. A large and strong forward, he proved a disappointment. It was not until he was dropped from the team that he realized that living on last year ' s reputation was not enough. He then played well, but the season was almost over. I. ROBERTSON — Right lock. He was a useful player both in the tight and in the loose, though rather weak in tackling and kicking. Especially good in the lineouts. he gave the impression, generally speaking, that he could have tried harder and brought other aspects of his game up to this standard by being more aggressive. I. BEARDMORE — Wing forward. A fine all-round player, he performed magnificently in one or two games. Although he is not fast, he is never far from the ball because he knows the game. A very good tackier and ball-handler, he excelled in the loose and in the lineouts. J. LECKY — Number eight. Because of his height he excelled in the lineouts where only the most aggressive opponent could prevent him from getting the ball. Although he did not always do his share of pushing in the set scrums, he was useful in the loose and at times tackled well. He has plenty of confidence, but is inclined not to listen to advice if he has other plans on his mind. ft ft ft SECOND RUGBY XV If the Second XV had been able to keep the same side from match to match, the team would have had a much better record. This is never possible, however, and on two occa- sions because of unfortunate circumstances it was necessary to supply well over half the numbers to the First XV. The result of this showed in our second game with St. George ' s, which we lost, al- though we had scored a comfortable victory over them earlier in the season, and in the first Oak Bay High School game when our opponents gave us a sound beating. In our return match with the latter, when our side was at full strength, we were victorious after an interesting game. During the season it became apparent that the Second XV, at full strength, was of above average calibre and could play most attractive rugby. An active pack led by Stewart proved the undoing of more than one opponent. In the art of getting the ball our scrum was always more successful than the opposition ' s. Benson and Witt were a hard working pair w ' ho played consistently well throughout the season. Pratt, the wing forward, was unfortunate in that the First XV was well supplied with players for this position. Warren and Keith both had some successful games, but must try to be more consistent. Until they were promoted to the First XV, the halves, Armstrong and Ross, played extremely well together and were, responsible in no small way for the early success of the team. Ross, indeed, scored six tries in the first three matches. Howe played well in the centre both in attack and on defence, but the other centre. Wilson, must play with more aggression if he wishes ever to find his way to the First XV. For the seconds the season opened with a resounding victory over St. George ' s against whom everyone played well. Then followed a rather easy win over a disorganized Victoria College side. It was in this game that Stewart received congratulations for having con- verted a try, the first successful conversion in thirteen attempts — a new experience for the Second XV! For the first time in the school ' s history the Old Boys fielded two sides, but paid the price for their rashness when they went down to defeat. A weakened Second XV then lost to St. George ' s and to Oak Bay. The most disappointing game of the season, played at University School, resulted in a victory over our opponents. The least said about this match the better. The season came to an end with two fixtures against Victoria High School. In the first of these, things went very much our way, but in the second stronger opposition resulted in defeat for us. ft ft ft THIRD XV In addition to the members of the First and Second XV there was a residue of players, nuite keen and reasonably energetic, who lacked either skill, size or both these qualities. It was decided to form these boys into a Third XV and to arrange matches for them. Two games .were played. The one against University School was lost, 6-26; the other, against Qualicum College, was won, 8-6. Both games were most enjoyable and two players emerged from the Third XV who later played quite well for the Second XV. Page Twenty-Eight I

Page 29 text:

Beardmore was not far behind. Of the rest only Burgess and McLean played with abandon and showed the promise of becoming really good once they gain weight. It was in the lineouts that the forwards showed to best advantage as Lecky, Robertson and Bortles had the height to jump two or three inches higher than their opponents. The three-quarters never learned to pass with any degree of accuracy and the chances that were lost were legion. Vandrsluys refused to realize that he was a marked man and time and again would be caught in possession. The other centre, McAlpine, running with great thrust, took the smallest opening with determination and proved most useful. Both the wings had speed, which neither used to the best advantage. Brighton lacked confidence while Burke slowed himself down by overworking a side-step to such extent that he was often tackled by an opponent he had beaten twenty or thirty yards earlier. At full-back Ross proved to be a find for he remained cool under fire and played courageously in many a tight spot. For once the place-kicking was passable, and it was a pleasure to see some of the fine conversions made by McAlpine and two or three really long-range penalty goals by Vandersluys. During the season colours were awarded to Keate, Lecky and McAlpine. First XV Characters D. ROSS — Full-back. After having been tried with some success at several positions, he was played as full-back where he showed himself to be cool under pressure. His defence is excellent; his handling of the ball and his kicking need polish, however, and his positioning was not always good. M. BURKE — Left wing. A very fast and elusive runner, he does not yet know the game well enough to make the best use of his speed. His tackling improved as the season wore on, but his kicking is still not good. B. WHITE — Left centre. He played well in practices, but was disappointing in matches, as he never showed the same form in a game. His defence was sounder than his attack, chiefly because his running lacked sufficient thrust or drive to make it dan- gerous, his handling was at times careless and his kicking weak. M. McALPINE — Right centre. He is a fast , powerful runner who is not easily stopped. He is also a scoring threat as his place-kicking is accurate. Though generally sound on defence, he needs to improve his positioning. J. BRIGHTON — A fast runner, he showed glimpses of form which indicate that having gained more confidence he could become a first-rate player. Although his handling is not too safe and his kicking rather weak, he usually managed to score providing that he had the room in which to manoeuvre. R. VANDERSLUYS — Stand-off. After his scoring successes of last season he was a marked man. This fact he failed to realize and he was inclined to attempt too much on his own. His play in rugby, which he knows well, will remain spotty until he is willing to submerge his personality in the game. He has the promise of being excellent as his ball-handling and kicking were outstanding while his play on defence during the season improved greatly. P. ARMSTRONG — Scrum-half. He is a very promising player who uses his head well : ' n tight situations. He has the courage and the physique to become an excellent player in this exacting position. By and large good on defence, he needs to improve his pass- ing and to learn to run with the ball more often in order to vary the attack. When he kicks he shows intelligence. M. McLEAN — Left prop. Excellent on defence, he saved many nasty situations by his timely falling on the ball. To become a very fine forward he needs only to improve his handling and kicking, for he is aggressive and always plays hard. J. KEATE — Hooker. In this position he played well and was responsible for our gaining possession of the ball more t han our share of times. In the loose he was not so useful as he might have been as he was fonder of following than of leading. R. COOPER — Captain and wing forward. He was not only the best player on the team, but very often also the best on the field. Boundless in energy, he was never more than a few feet from the ball, but he will perhaps be best remembered for his astonishing tackling and other defensive abilities. S. BURGESS — Right prop. He has all the qualities necessary for developing into a really good forward. Though light, he was never far from the ball since h,e was aggressive and always managed to play a little harder when the game was close. Page Twenty-Seven

Page 31 text:

' 5 4 %mX4 ft . -TV |g b « CAPTAIN C. V. LAWS, Inspecting Sea Cadets Corps Cadet Band Cadet Inspection Page Twenty-Nine