BOYS OF THE OLD BRIGADE

Daily Telegraph (Napier), Volume 58, Issue 166, 15 August 1929, Page 5

BOYS OF THE OLD BRIGADE

HASTINGS HIGH SCIIOOL STl'DENTS. A Rl'GBY BATTLE ROYAL. j Tlie old hoys of ihe llasiings High | Scliuol ii-.>ejuhlc(l at tlie scliool grounds j vesterday aterxmoii, detennincd to ''do I or dio," in a Rughy hattlo xvitli tlie ; I'resent hoys of tlie scliool, but the j game lind not advanccd verv far ! hel'ore the niajority of the "old timcrs" | haxl little difliculty in reaeliing tlie conclusiou that it would be lixuch easier to "die" tinui to "do." I Like the brave warriors tliev xvere i (once), sixteen oi the old hoys stepped j boldlv on to the field, and left on the I side line xvas a strong eontingent oi j resorves xvho xvere quite prepared tn let the other fclloxv have a- go first. Graeetully thoy tripped on tlie ground, and daintily wero thoy attired, in ''shorts, shirts and siispenders" (and j erseys , of course). and tlien tlie starting xvhistle soundod. With a brave shoxv, and xvith xvonderful dasli did tlicse old students set out to sliow the hoys of to-day "lioxv we used to play the game," and in tlie xTan was quite a portlv gcntlcman, xvho wlien tlie cares of Rughy are not upon liiin, lo-oks after tlie destinies of this cmhiyo citv from a horseshoe table. Fast and fut'ious the game xvaged. Old boys started to ])iiff and bloxv until their gasps heeanie like a gale of xvind. and it is little xvondcr that tlie small boys of tlie scliool to-dav found tlieir advances c-liecked hy that ever inci'easing gale. Almost every timo tlie hall xvas kieked, it would lie cnught hy a spasmodic gas|i trom an opponent and literally bloxvn back to- the other end. And tlicn canie trouble. The youngsters liad the audaeity to tackle and bring down one of their "fathers." What else could referee Sergeant-Major O'Leaiy do but admonisli the boys for taekling a man xvitli tlie hall , and give tlxe tackled old bov a free kiclcK Then came a scrum, and the youngsters again had tlie audaeity to secure the ball. Tliere xvas no alternative for the referee. He promptly xxTiistled and took a free kick himself. By this time, the fever was spreading. The reserves, felt an itch in hands and feet as the brilliant play of their old felloxvs recalled great deeds of yore. Tlie call was irresistible, and one by one, tlie reserves sneaked into action, until the "to-day hoy^ found themselves playing against 22 — and a x'eferee. The tide was noxv sxvinging in favour of Old Bojrs, hut one of them started an argnment xvith tlie referee. He was dramatically ordered to the hank, hut lnanfully stood liis ground and refu^d to go. Tlie old timer xvas a big man, a city i'ather and liandy xvith his fists, so xvisely, the referee apologised and the game continued until half time, xvhen no score had been recorded. The lialf-time xvliistle xvas xvelcome •music to tlie- old stagers, and it nxarked tlieir finislx, for even tlie referee refused to go back for an other round. Still, the lionour of tlie Old Boys xvas at Stake. Thoy could not throxv in tlie- sponge, so tliere arrived on the scene a-nother eontingent of Old Boys, not quite so old as those xvho liad broken tlxe morale of the youngsters in tlie first spell. Even the referee xvas uexv. This time, the txvo sides were in deadly earnest, and better Rughy was played, some of tlie "young Old Boys," heing able to shoxv quite a lot of points to tlieir younger brotliers, and tiiey -secured tlie vei'dict-by 12 points to 3. To-day, vesidents of Hastings have been xvondeving at 22 old boys of tlie Hastings High Scliool, xxTio have been parading the street, with their chests out, a look of couficlciice in their eyes, and a courage xvlxich time cannot diniiiiish. Tlicse are tho 22 wlio played yesterday and tlie reason for _ tlieir haughty niien, is the expectation of an ui'gent xviro nppealing to them to assist Hawke's Bav in their hattle against Auckland on Saturday next.