1927 Auckland Rugby League season explained

The 1927 Auckland Rugby League season was its 18th. Newton defeated Ponsonby by 6 points to 3 in the championship final to win the Monteith Shield after both teams finished the season tied with identical 8 win, 1 draw, 3 loss records. This was the second time Newton had won the championship in 18 efforts, with the first being in 1912 and was to be their last after they merged decades later with City Rovers and the combined team ceased in the early 2000s. Richmond won the Roope Rooster knockout trophy for the second consecutive season. Newton Rangers defeated Richmond to win the Stormont Shield.

Ellerslie won the Norton Cup by winning the second division competition, known as the B Grade at this time. They were undefeated and also won the Stallard Cup which was the B Grade knockout trophy. Interestingly the league played a 'promotion-relegation' match, with Ellerslie by virtue of winning the Norton Cup for winning the B Grade playing off with Grafton, who had finished last in the A Grade. Ellerslie won 11–3 over Grafton thus winning the right to compete in the A grade competition in the 1928 season. Despite this there was still considerable discussion at the annual general meeting the following year as to whether or not Ellerslie be admitted to the A Grade. It was eventually decided that they would be, with Grafton dropping to the B Grade.

Other trophies awarded (at the 1928 annual general meeting of the Auckland Rugby League) were the Davis Points Shield to Richmond, the Thistle Cup to Newton, and a special cup for the best forward to W.Clark from Newton.

Auckland rugby league news

Club teams by grade participation

width=230 Teamwidth=50 abbr="1st Grade" 1stwidth=50 abbr="B Grade" B Div.width=50 abbr="2nd Grade" 2ndwidth=50 abbr="3rd Grade" 3rd Openwidth=50 abbr="3rd Grade" 3rd Int.width=50 abbr="4th Grade" 4thwidth=50 abbr="5th Grade" 5thwidth=50 abbr="6th Grade" 6th Awidth=50 abbr="6th Grade" 6th Bwidth=50 abbr="Schoolboys" Schoolswidth=50 abbr="Total" Total
Richmond Rovers10102111119
Devonport United10111101107
Ponsonby United10110210006
City Rovers10101011106
Grafton Athletic10110101005
Kingsland Rovers01101000104
Point Chevalier01001001104
Marist Old Boys10100000103
Newton Rangers10001010003
Māngere United01110000003
Northcote & Birkenhead Ramblers01010010003
Ellerslie United01001100003
Akarana00000011103
Parnell01001000002
Otahuhu Rovers01000000012
Remuera00100000001
Glen Eden00010000001
New Lynn00010000001
Onehunga Convent00000000011
Onehunga Primary School00000000011
Newmarket Primary School00000000011
Papatoetoe Primary School00000000011
Total779797667670

Transfers

A McIntyre who had been playing in Sydney joined the Newton club.

Annual meetings of Auckland Rugby League

The annual report for the 1927 season stated that the total revenue for Auckland Rugby League was £5,597, with £4,216 taken at the gates.[1] At the annual meeting of the Junior Management Committee of the Auckland Rugby League on 23 March it was stated in their report that junior players exceeded 1,500. It was also reported that the Remuera League Club was being revived. They had fielded two junior teams in 1914, and appeared to have the numbers to enter two junior teams in the 1927 season.[2] On 10 August the Auckland Rugby League Chairman, Mr. W.J. Hammill tendered his resignation for business reasons. He had occupied the position for five years. He was congratulated on his contribution to the game and made a life member of the League. Mr. George Rhodes was elected as the new chairman of the Management Committee.[3]

Representative season

Auckland began the season with a match against the returning members of the New Zealand team that had toured England from August 1926 to January 1927. There was some controversy in that Joe Menzies had played for the 'New Zealand team' despite being from the South Auckland (Waikato) province and the New Zealand Rugby League questioned the Auckland Rugby League on the selection. One possible reason for his selection may have been the fact that Arthur Singe had been banned for life after going on strike during the tour along with 6 other players. This meant that there was one less Auckland forward to pick for the match. Auckland won the game 24–21. They went on a southern tour later in the season and played matches against Canterbury, West Coast, Otago, and Wellington. After their return to Auckland they played against Buller and South Auckland. The Buller side was coached by Bill Davidson who had spent many years playing for City Rovers, Auckland, and played for New Zealand from 1919 to 1921. He had later moved to the Canterbury region where he was involved in sporting administration. He later returned to Auckland and coached Ponsonby in the 1938 season. Auckland lost the Northern Union Challenge Cup to South Auckland in their final game of the season.

Monteith Shield (first grade championship)

Monteith Shield standings

width=175 Teamwidth=20 abbr="Played" Pldwidth=20 abbr="Won" Wwidth=20 abbr="Drawn" Dwidth=20 abbr="Lost" Lwidth=20 abbr="For" Fwidth=20 abbr="Against" Awidth=20 abbr="Points" Pts
Newton Rangers13101218812821
Ponsonby United1391319011119
Devonport United1270520711414
Marist Old Boys1170415511414
Richmond Rovers124171371409
City Rovers113171341827
Grafton Athletic120012813030

Monteith Shield results

After two completed rounds Newton and Ponsonby were both tied on 19 competition points. This necessitated a final between the two sides and this was won by Newton 6–3.

Round 1

Jim O'Brien and J Stormont (ex-Marist players) had both retired from the game and were spectators at the match between Marist and Grafton. However, after watching they decided to come out of retirement and resume playing for their old team. Meanwhile Craddock Dufty returned to play for Newton after 5 years with Grafton Athletic. Les Bull refereed his 50th match involving senior rugby league teams in Auckland and was the third man to do this after Archie Ferguson (1912–22) and Billy Murray (1913-25).

Round 2

Prior to round 2 Wigan made an offer to Lou Brown of the City side, while Ben Davidson had reportedly received one from Hull. Future New Zealand coach Bill Telford debuted for Richmond and scored a try in their 15–15 draw with City. In the same match brothers Ken and Ray Hyland clashed heads diving to save a try with the result that Ken had to leave the field and Ray had to bandage his bleeding head to continue.

Round 3

Jim O'Brien and Stewart were both sent off for fighting near the Richmond try line in the Marist v Richmond match. Grafton only had 12 players make the trip to Devonport Domain where they were thrashed by Devonport 47–3. Nelson Bass tore his knee cartilage in the match between City and Ponsonby and was forced into early retirement.[4] Arthur Rae made his first grade refereeing debut in the match between Devonport and Grafton on the Devonport Domain.

Round 5

The Devonport v Richmond match was played on the Friday as part of the King's Birthday celebrations. It was notable for the fact that 4 players were ordered off. Neville St George who had had words with the referee was sent from the field, two minutes later Stewart from Richmond joined him and Stan Prentice (Richmond), and Jim O'Brien (Devonport) soon followed. Leslie Knott scored two tries for Marist. At the end of the season he became the Auckland singles tennis champion and New Zealand doubles champion before moving to Australia to advance his career.

Round 6

City were without the services of Lou Brown, Maurice Wetherill, G Brown, Nelson Bass and Alf Townsend and were soundly beaten by Marist. Frank Delgrosso of Ponsonby was ordered off in their match with Devonport.

Round 7

City had lost the services of Lou Brown and Ben Davidson who had both been signed by Wigan during the week. They would depart for England later in the month. In their match with Devonport two players for Newton left the field injured during the second half leaving them with 11 players.

Round 8

City were further weakened after Alf Townsend was transferred to Dunedin permanently for work during the week. In the Marist match with Grafton, Norman King broke a bone in his hand and had to leave the field.

Round 9

City sought to strengthen their side due to the large number of players who had departed. They signed Godkin, a Bay of Plenty rugby player, Pascoe a Manukau rugby player, and E Spencer a league representative from the Waimairi club in Canterbury. Te Huia Hawira Mason also joined the City side from Huntly (Len Mason's brother). Devonport captain Jim O'Brien was ordered off in their loss to Marist. At the conclusion of the match the referee (H. Taylor) was escorted from the field by two police officers as several spectators crowded and heckled him. Opponents Jack Kirwan and his namesake Jim O'Brien (Marist) had tried to plead his case to the referee to allow him to stay on the field and the Devonport later wrote a letter to the Marist club thanking them. Taylor had replaced Wally Ripley as referee after Ripley fell ill before the match. The match between Newton and Ponsonby at the Auckland Domain was postponed due to the ground being unfit for play. He was suspended for their following match. The following weekend saw all games suspended and the postponed match played at Carlaw Park. Ironically rain fell throughout the match and the field "was badly churned up as the game progressed".[5]

Round 10

Richmond lost captain Jim Parkes who was moving back to Christchurch to join the Hornby club. The match between Devonport and Grafton was postponed due to the unfit nature of the field at the Auckland Domain. It was played on the following weekend at Devonport with other fixtures from that round not played due to the Auckland Rugby League making Carlaw Park available for the soccer match between New Zealand and Canada. Ponsonby fielded 3 brothers, future New Zealand international Tim Peckham, and his older brother Joseph, and younger brother Kenneth.

Round 13

Bert Avery was carried off the field with concussion in the Newton match against Grafton. He had been attempting to tackle M Herewini who tried to hurdle him and made contact with Avery's head. Avery was taken to Auckland Hospital where he eventually recovered. His brother Henry who was also a league played died later in the week after a bout of pneumonia and Bert Avery decided to retire after many years playing for and captaining Grafton and New Zealand.

Final

Roope Rooster knockout competition

Round 1

Craddock Dufty and captain W Clarke were both out injured from the Newton side for their match with Marist. Hamilton went off injured for City meaning they had to finish the match with Richmond with 12 players. The scores were tied at the end of the match 17–17 so 5 minutes extra time was played with Bill Telford scoring and Edmund Carroll converting to win the game for Richmond. This was the first time extra time had been used to decide a game in an Auckland Rugby League senior competition. Usually matches were replayed the following week.

Semi finals

The Auckland representative team had left for their southern tour and so all teams were fielding greatly weakened sides. Holmes, a rugby representative three-quarter signed for Devonport just before their game with Ponsonby.

Final

A. Finlayson switched codes to join Richmond signing one minute before kick off so as to keep the switch secret. The following week he applied for reinstatement into rugby union. Richmond won the Roope Rooster for the second consecutive year. It was a case of déjà vu with another 1 pt victory over Devonport who they had beaten the year before.

Stormont Memorial Shield

Newton won the match by 25 points to 14, but the match was noteworthy due to the large number of injuries suffered. G. Norman the Newton captain was concussed and had his jaw broken, Dick Stack fractured his leg, W. Rhodes broke his collar-bone, and Wally Somers sprained his ankle. The first three players were all taken to Auckland Hospital, while Somers was taken home.[6] Stacks leg injury was so bad in fact that his leg had to be amputated and he spent many months in hospital. There were several matches in the following season used to raise funds for him and his family.

A Grade/B Grade promotion-relegation match

At the conclusion of the A and B division competitions the last placed Grafton Athletic from the A Division played against the winners of the B Division Ellerslie for the right to compete in the A Division in 1928. Ellerslie won the match by 11 points to 3 thus earning themselves a place in A Division and forcing Grafton Athletic to play in the lower grade. This was the first time in Auckland Rugby League competition that such a match had been played.

Top try scorers and point scorers

Top try and point scorers for A Division, Roope Rooster and Stormont Shield competitions.

RankPlayerTeamTries
1Len ScottDevonport14
2J BeattieDevonport12
3George WadeCity10
3Hec BrisbaneMarist10
5M LittleNewton9
5Allan SeagarDevonport9
7Leslie KnottMarist8
7Sydney UsherPonsonby8
9Frank DelgrossoPonsonby7
10Roy HardgraveNewton7
RankPlayerTeamTriesConPenPoints
1Craddock DuftyNewton417964
2L TaylorRichmond59849
3George GardinerPonsonby612144
4Frank DelgrossoPonsonby78343
5Len ScottDevonport140042
6J BeattieDevonport120036
7Allan SeagarDevonport94035
8Hec BrisbaneMarist100030
8George WadeCity100030
10Leslie KnottMarist82028

B Division (Norton Cup) standings and results

A large number of games did not have the scores reported in either The New Zealand Herald or the Auckland Star. As a result, the fixtures list is incomplete as is the final standings. Results are missing as follows, Kingsland x 2, Parnell x 1, Mangere x 4, Point Chevalier x 1, and Otahuhu x 1). In addition there were two cancelled matches. The round 4 match between Mangere and Kingsland did not have the result reported though it was said several weeks later that Kingsland was undefeated so they must have won the match. The Ellerslie match with Mangere on July 9 is missing the score so Ellerslie and Mangere teams for and against is incomplete.

B Division standings

width=215 Teamwidth=20 abbr="Played" Pldwidth=20 abbr="Won" Wwidth=20 abbr="Drawn" Dwidth=20 abbr="Lost" Lwidth=20 abbr="For" Fwidth=20 abbr="Against" Awidth=20 abbr="Points" Pts
Ellerslie United131300151*75*26
Kingsland Rovers13*10021376020
Northcote & Birkenhead Ramblers13706746614
Parnell12*3171031317
Māngere United12*30763*79*6
Point Chevalier13*219821395
Otahuhu Rovers12*209631234

B Division (Norton Cup) fixtures

The Round 8 match between Mangere and Northcote was not played due to the condition of the ground at Mangere. However, after an inquiry it was stated that the Mangere team was willing to play and the referee said the match could go ahead. The Northcote team thought the match shouldn't be played and did not take the field. They also complained that they had to get changed underneath a gorse bush while a local official said there was a dressing room at Northcote's disposal. The league awarded the match to Mangere. The Round 15 match between Otahuhu and Northcote at the Auckland Domain was not played due to the condition of the field.

On May 14 Walker Park in Point Chevalier was used for the first time for a genuine senior grade match when Point Chevalier beat Māngere 9–5. It was approximately the 20th different ground to be used for senior rugby league in Auckland since its origins in 1908.

DateScoreScoreVenue
Round 17 May [7] Northcote 7 Mangere 6 Victoria Park
7 May Otahuhu 12 Point Chevalier 6 Otahuhu Trotting Ground
7 May Ellerslie 6 Parnell 5 Ellerslie Reserve
Round 214 May [8] Kingsland 8 Parnell 5 Victoria Park
14 May Otahuhu 6 Ellerslie 8 Otahuhu Reserve
14 May Point Chevalier 9 Māngere 5 Walker Park, Point Chevalier
Round 321 May [9] Ellerslie 26 Mangere 7 Ellerslie Reserve, 3pm
21 May Otahuhu 3 Kingsland 11 Otahuhu Trotting Ground, 3pm
21 May Point Chevalier 5 Northcote 6 Walker Park, Point Chevalier, 3pm
Round 428 May [10] Ellerslie 6 Northcote 0 Auckland Domain # 1, 3pm
28 May Otahuhu 8 Parnell 11 Otahuhu Reserve
28 May Mangere L Kingsland W Mangere, 3pm
Round 54 June [11] Kingsland 20 Northcote 6 Victoria Park, 3pm
4 June Ellerslie 23 Point Chevalier 5 Ellerslie Reserve, 3pm
4 June Mangere 15 Parnell 11 Otahuhu Trotting Ground
Round 611 June [12] Otahuhu 7 Mangere 6 Otahuhu Reserve
11 June Northcote 8 Parnell 3 Auckland Domain, 3pm
11 June Kingsland11 Point Chevalier 5 Victoria Park
Round 718 June [13] Otahuhu 5 Northcote 8 Otahuhu Reserve, 3pm
18 June Ellerslie 9 Kingsland 5 Ellerslie Reserve, 3pm
18 June Point Chevalier ? Parnell ? Walker Park, Point Chevalier, 3pm
Round 825 June [14] Point Chevalier 19 Otahuhu 3 Walker Park, Point Chevalier, 3pm
25 June Mangere WBD* Northcote LBD* Mangere, 3pm
25 June Ellerslie 21 Parnell 20 Auckland Domain # 1, 3pm
Round 92 July [15] Mangere ? Point Chevalier ? Mangere, 3pm
2 July Ellerslie 13 Otahuhu 0 Ellerslie Reserve, 3pm
2 July Kingsland 23 Parnell 7 Victoria Park, 3pm
Round 109 July [16] Northcote 13 Point Chevalier 0 Victoria Park, 3pm
9 July Kingsland 25 Otahuhu 0 Auckland Domain # 2, 3pm
9 July Mangere L Ellerslie W Otahuhu Trotting Ground, 3pm
Round 1123 July [17] Mangere 8 Kingsland 11 Otahuhu Reserve, 3pm[18]
16 July Parnell 11 Otahuhu 7 Victoria Park, 3pm
16 July Ellerslie 8 Northcote 0 Ellerslie Reserve, 3pm
Round 1230 July [19] Mangere 16 Parnell 8 Auckland Domain # 2, 3pm
30 July Kingsland WBD Northcote LBD Auckland Domain # 6, 3pm
30 July Point Chevalier 6 Ellerslie 13 Walker Park, Point Chevalier, 3pm
Round 136 Aug [20] Mangere ? Otahuhu ? Mangere Trotting Ground, 3pm
6 Aug Parnell 11 Northcote 8 Victoria Park, 3pm
6 Aug Point Chevalier 8 Kingsland 20 Walker Park, Point Chevalier, 3pm
Round 1413 Aug [21] Ellerslie 9 Kingsland 3 Carlaw Park # 2, 3pm
13 Aug Northcote 5 Otahuhu 2 Auckland (Outer) Domain # 2, 3pm
13 Aug Point Chevalier 11 Parnell 11 Walker Park, Point Chevalier, 3pm
Round 1520 Aug [22] Otahuhu PPD Northcote PPD Auckland Domain # 2, 3pm
20 Aug Ellerslie 9 Point Chevalier 8 Auckland Domain # 6
20 Aug Kingsland ? Mangere ? Otahuhu Trotting Ground, 3pm

Stallard Cup knockout competition

1927 Stallard Cup results
DateScoreScoreVenue
Round 13 Sep [23] Kingsland13 Parnell 8 Auckland Domain # 5, 3pm
3 Sep Ellerslie W Otahuhu L Ellerslie Reserve, 3pm
Final10 Sep [24] Ellerslie15 Kingsland 10 Carlaw Park # 1, 1:30pm

Other club matches and lower grades

Lower grade competitions

Second grade (Wright Cup)

Devonport won the competition with a season record of played 14, won 13, lost 1, points for 252 and against 62. Devonport also won knock out competition (Foster Shield) when they beat Remuera 15 to 7 on October 8 at Carlaw Park. City withdrew after 3 rounds, Grafton Athletic (Maritime) withdrew after 4 rounds, and Marist withdrew after round 15 near the end of the season. Newton entered a side in the knockout competition but were knocked out by Devonport immediately 32 points to 0. Ponsonby lost their semi final to Devonport, while Mangere were the other losing semi finalists, going down to Remuera 12 to 5.

width=215 Teamwidth=20 abbr="Played" Pldwidth=20 abbr="Won" Wwidth=20 abbr="Drawn" Dwidth=20 abbr="Lost" Lwidth=20 abbr="Bye" Bwidth=20 abbr="For" Fwidth=20 abbr="Against" Awidth=20 abbr="Points" Pts
Devonport United14130112526226
Remuera1482311955718
Ponsonby United1362121233314
Kingsland Rovers14406290788
Richmond Rovers132072481214
Māngere United13207191424
Marist Old Boys12105118852
Grafton Athletic400103280
City Rovers300200240

Third grade open (Walker Shield)

New Lynn won the competition by one point after a 3–3 draw with Grafton Athletic on July 30. The majority of match results were not reported so the standings are significantly incomplete. Grafton Athletic (Maritime) won the knockout competition when they defeated Devonport 12–3 on September 24. Grafton had beaten Glen Eden 3–2 in one semi final while Devonport beat Ponsonby 6–3 in the other semi final. Northcote withdrew from the championship after 7 rounds.

width=215 Teamwidth=20 abbr="Played" Pldwidth=20 abbr="Won" Wwidth=20 abbr="Drawn" Dwidth=20 abbr="Lost" Lwidth=20 abbr="Bye" Bwidth=20 abbr="For" Fwidth=20 abbr="Against" Awidth=20 abbr="Points" Pts
New Lynn122*1012395*
Grafton Athletic12412144329
Ponsonby United11401151328
Devonport United10104143482
Northcote & Birkenhead Ramblers6102120262
Glen Eden1100216170
Māngere United1200113260

Third grade intermediate

There were several results not reported and the winner of the championship was never reported in any of the Auckland newspapers however in the 1949 Rugby League Annual it was stated that Richmond B had won this championship. Interestingly the following season at the Auckland Rugby League annual meeting when trophies were presented to winning teams in all grades there was none presented in this grade, possibly because it was an intermediate grade and only in its second year of competition. Richmond had won it in 1926 and won it again in 1928. The Richmond A team won the knockout competition when they defeated City in the final on October 8 by 20 points to 0. City had beaten Parnell 20–2 in one semi-final, while Richmond A won their semi-final 5–0 against Newton. Devonport withdrew from the championship after 16 rounds near the end of the season.

width=215 Teamwidth=20 abbr="Played" Pldwidth=20 abbr="Won" Wwidth=20 abbr="Drawn" Dwidth=20 abbr="Lost" Lwidth=20 abbr="Bye" Bwidth=20 abbr="For" Fwidth=20 abbr="Against" Awidth=20 abbr="Points" Pts
Richmond Rovers A17110221623922
Richmond Rovers B1510012973120
City Rovers1760621026512
Devonport United146052635612
Ellerslie United16406226618
Parnell17314227637
Kingsland Rovers18306163986
Point Chevalier14216534695
Newton Rangers1610103251172

Fourth grade (Hospital Cup)

Richmond won the championship. Devonport won the knockout competitions when they beat Richmond 12–5 in the final on October 15. Richmond beat Remuera 19–0 in one semi final while Devonport beat Grafton Athletic (Maritime) in the other by 24 points to 2.

width=215 Teamwidth=20 abbr="Played" Pldwidth=20 abbr="Won" Wwidth=20 abbr="Drawn" Dwidth=20 abbr="Lost" Lwidth=20 abbr="Bye" Bwidth=20 abbr="For" Fwidth=20 abbr="Against" Awidth=20 abbr="Points" Pts
Richmond Rovers1790012381418
Devonport United1380131113016
Grafton Athletic144052107478
Ponsonby United A13314257447
Remuera130262131432
Ponsonby United B130253161612
Ellerslie United13014271101

Fifth grade (Endean Shield)

Akarana won the championship. Not all of the results were reported so the standings are incomplete. They also won the knockout competition when they beat City in the final on October 15 by 7 points to 3. Newton withdrew from the competition after 4 rounds.

width=215 Teamwidth=20 abbr="Played" Pldwidth=20 abbr="Won" Wwidth=20 abbr="Drawn" Dwidth=20 abbr="Lost" Lwidth=20 abbr="Bye" Bwidth=20 abbr="For" Fwidth=20 abbr="Against" Awidth=20 abbr="Points" Pts
Akarana147112681015
Richmond Rovers147122592915
City Rovers135033662410
Northcote & Birkenhead Ramblers14217119405
Ponsonby United13016118601
Newton Rangers400200670

Sixth grade A

Akarana won the championship after beating Grafton Athletic (Maritime) 11 to 5 in the final on August 27. Devonport United won the Hammill Cup for winning the knockout competition when they beat Grafton Athletic in the final on October 22.

width=215 Teamwidth=20 abbr="Played" Pldwidth=20 abbr="Won" Wwidth=20 abbr="Drawn" Dwidth=20 abbr="Lost" Lwidth=20 abbr="For" Fwidth=20 abbr="Against" Awidth=20 abbr="Points" Pts
Akarana15732773817
Grafton Athletic16635785915
Richmond Rovers1432589668
Point Chevalier1532335888
City Rovers1331436517
Devonport United1521544575

Sixth grade B (Myers Cup)

Richmond win the championship after beating Marist 6–0 on September 3. Marist won the knockout competition when they defeated Akarana 5–0 on October 8. Marist beat Richmond 7–6 in the semi-final. It was the Marist clubs first ever junior grade trophy.

width=215 Teamwidth=20 abbr="Played" Pldwidth=20 abbr="Won" Wwidth=20 abbr="Drawn" Dwidth=20 abbr="Lost" Lwidth=20 abbr="Bye" Bwidth=20 abbr="For" Fwidth=20 abbr="Against" Awidth=20 abbr="Points" Pts
Richmond Rovers16120121301924
Marist Old Boys16100221612520
Point Chevalier144242608310
Akarana15415235929
City Rovers14108324752
Kingsland Rovers1310635432
Devonport United14016210881

Schoolboys competition

Otahuhu was a combination of students from several schools in the area and as such did not represent Otahuhu Primary School. The other schools were from the individual schools though the Papatoetoe school side had some players from the local Orphanage too. Newton Central Primary School entered a team in some matches late in the season and Newmarket Primary school entered a second side around the same time.

width=175 Teamwidth=20 abbr="Played" Pldwidth=20 abbr="Won" Wwidth=20 abbr="Drawn" Dwidth=20 abbr="Lost" Lwidth=20 abbr="For" Fwidth=20 abbr="Against" Awidth=20 abbr="Points" Pts
Otahuhu Schools10901207918
Richmond Primary School107211452816
Newmarket Primary School106221313814
Papatoetoe Primary School10406401388
Onehunga Convent1010911942
Onehunga Primary School1010961802

Exhibition matches

Devonport v Ponsonby

The final match of the season was one played by Devonport against Ponsonby for charity. The money raised was given to the Mayor's unemployment fund.

Other matches

DateScoreScoreVenueAttendance
Junior representative trial match9 July [25] A Team5 B Team 3 Carlaw Park # 1
Junior representative match15 Oct [26] Auckland Juniors 15 South Auckland Juniors 0 Carlaw Park
Parnell tour match9 July [27] Parnell27 Rotorua 3 Rotorua
Parnell tour match9 July Parnell Juniors 20 Rotorua Juniors 6 Rotorua
Ponsonby tour match23 July [28] Rotorua15 Ponsonby 22 Rotorua
Ponsonby tour match5 Sep [29] Rotorua8 Ponsonby 11 Rotorua
Richmond junior tour match1 Oct [30] Rotorua B0 Richmond 3rd Grade 8 Rotorua

Representative season

The Auckland teams for the season were to be selected by Ernie Asher, Edward Vincent Fox, and Alan Blakey. The Auckland representative team won 6 of its 7 matches. They began the year with a victory over the Auckland representatives of the New Zealand team which had toured the England and recently returned home. They went on a 4 match tour during the year which saw victories over Canterbury, West Coast, Otago, and Wellington. They then played home matches against Buller and South Auckland. Buller was coached by former New Zealand and Auckland player Bill Davidson.[31] They beat Buller easily but then lost the Northern Union Challenge Cup after a loss to South Auckland.

Representative fixtures

The first representative fixture of the season was played on 30 April between Auckland and the Auckland members of the 1926 New Zealand touring team of England.

Southern Tour

In September Auckland toured the south, playing 4 matches. The 18 man touring side was Charles Gregory, Craddock Dufty, M Little, George Wade, Claude List, Joe Wilson jun., Maurice Wetherill, Stan Prentice, Stan Webb, A McIntyre, Wally Somers, Jim O'Brien (Devonport), Lou Hutt, Alan Clarke, Trevor Hall, Horace Dixon, A Payne, and F Bass. Several players originally named were unable to make the trip including Hec Brisbane, Riley, Usher, Frank Delgrosso, and J Beattie.

Wellington v Auckland

Auckland v Buller

The Buller side was coached by former City Rovers, Auckland, and New Zealand player, Bill Davidson.

Auckland v South Auckland (Northern Union C.C.)

In the first half Albert Payne was injured and as there was no forward reserve for Auckland Allan Seagar had to replace him with Lou Hutt moving in to the hooking position. He was outplayed there by future New Zealand representative Bob Stephenson.

Auckland representative matches played and scorers

NoNameClub TeamPlayTriesConPenDrop GoalPoints
1Craddock DuftyNewton64130038
2Claude ListKingsland5700021
3Albert (Bert) PaynePonsonby6600018
3Horace DixonDevonport6600018
5Joe Wilson jun.Mangere6510017
6Maurice WetherillCity6400012
6M LittleNewton3400012
6Stan WebbDevonport5400012
9Charles GregoryMarist4310011
10J BeattieDevonport130009
11Frederick BassRichmond221008
12Alan ClarkeNewton311107
13George WadeCity320006
13Lou HuttPonsonby720006
15Tim PeckhamRichmond111005
16E SpencerCity102004
17Ivan LittlewoodEllerslie110003
17Jim O'BrienDevonport510003
17Trevor HallNewton110003
17Roy HardgraveNewton110003
17Allan SeagarDevonport110003
22Trevor HanlonRichmond100000
22Stan PrenticeRichmond400000
22Neville St GeorgeDevonport100000
22Wally SomersNewton400000
22A McIntyreNewton200000
22Stanley RuleDevonport100000
22Selby CrewtherEllerslie100000
22Ernest RubyDevonport100000

External links

Notes and References

  1. News: Review of Past Season/Total Revenue of £5597. 13. The New Zealand Herald. LXIV. 19580. 1927-03-08. 2019-09-23.
  2. News: Junior Competitions/Hundred Teams Expected/Meeting of Committee/Remuera Club Revived/Two Junior Teams. 15. The New Zealand Herald. LXIV. 19594. 1927-03-24. 2019-09-23.
  3. News: Mr. W.J. Hammill Resigns/Code's Progress Reviewed. 16. Auckland Star. LVIII. 188. 1927-08-11. 2019-09-26.
  4. News: Football Injured/Misfortune to N. Bass. 16. New Zealand Herald. LXIV. 19657. 1927-06-08. 2020-09-27.
  5. News: Newton Creates Surprise/Ponsonby Team Defeated/Fine Work by Forwards. 13. The New Zealand Herald. LXIV. 19685. 1927-07-11. 2019-09-25.
  6. News: Four Members of One Team/Newton League Players. 8. The New Zealand Herald. LXIV. 19757. 1927-10-03. 2019-09-29.
  7. News: Opening of Club Season/Close Game at Carlaw Park/City Defeats Devonport. 13. The New Zealand Herald. LXIV. 19631. 1927-05-09. 2019-09-23.
  8. News: Senior B Grade. 13. The New Zealand Herald. LXIV. 19637. 1927-05-16. 2019-09-24.
  9. News: Senior B Grade. 13. The New Zealand Herald. LXIV. 19643. 1927-05-23. 2019-09-24.
  10. News: Ponsonby Defeats Marist/Newton Surprises City/Three Teams in the Lead. 13. The New Zealand Herald. LXIV. 19649. 1927-05-30. 2019-09-24.
  11. News: Senior B Section. 13. The New Zealand Herald. LXIV. 19655. 1927-06-06. 2019-09-25.
  12. News: Ponsonby's First Defeat/Captain Ordered Off Field/Marist Now in the Lead. 13. The New Zealand Herald. LXIV. 19661. 1927-06-13. 2019-09-24.
  13. News: Senior B Grade. 13. The New Zealand Herald. LXIV. 19667. 1927-06-20. 2019-09-25.
  14. News: Senior B Section. 13. The New Zealand Herald. LXIV. 19673. 1927-06-27. 2019-09-25.
  15. News: Senior B Matches. 13. The New Zealand Herald. LXIV. 19679. 1927-07-04. 2019-09-25.
  16. News: Kingsland v Otahuhu. 12. Auckland Star. LVIII. 162. 1927-07-12. 2019-09-25.
  17. News: Auckland Competitions/Marist Defeats Richmond/Two Close Scoring Matches. 13. The New Zealand Herald. LXIV. 19691. 1927-07-18. 2019-09-25.
  18. News: Auckland Competitions/Devonport Beats Athletic/Thirty-Two Points to Eight. 13. The New Zealand Herald. LXIV. 19697. 1927-07-25. 2019-09-10.
  19. News: Senior B Games. 13. The New Zealand Herald. LXIV. 19703. 1927-08-01. 2019-09-26.
  20. News: Auckland Competitions/Marist Again Defeated/Newton and Ponsonby Level. 13. The New Zealand Herald. LXIV. 19709. 1927-08-08. 2019-09-26.
  21. News: Auckland Competitions/Ponsonby Beats Devonport/Ellerslie Wins B Section. 13. The New Zealand Herald. LXIV. 19715. 1927-08-15. 2019-09-26.
  22. News: Games on Muddy Grounds/Ponsonby and Newton Level/Play-Off For Championship. 13. The New Zealand Herald. LXIV. 19721. 1927-08-22. 2019-09-26.
  23. News: Lower Grade Results. 13. The New Zealand Herald. LXIV. 19733. 1927-09-05. 2019-09-29.
  24. News: Ellerslie Wins Stallard Cup. 13. The New Zealand Herald. LXIV. 19739. 1927-09-12. 2019-09-29.
  25. News: The Junior Games. 13. The New Zealand Herald. LXIV. 19685. 1927-07-11. 2019-09-25.
  26. News: Junior Representatives. 14. The New Zealand Herald. LXIV. 19769. 1927-10-17. 2019-09-29.
  27. News: Parnell Team's Tour. 12. Auckland Star. LVIII. 162. 1927-07-12. 2019-09-25.
  28. News: Ponsonby V Rotorua/Success of Visiting Team. 13. The New Zealand Herald. LXIV. 19697. 1927-07-25. 2019-09-25.
  29. News: Ponsonby Defeats Rotorua. 13. The New Zealand Herald. LXIV. 19733. 1927-09-05. 2019-09-02.
  30. News: Good Game at Rotorua. 13. The New Zealand Herald. LXIV. 19757. 1927-10-03. 2019-09-29.
  31. News: Representative Game. 10. Auckland Star, Volume LVIII, Issue 237. 1927-10-07. 2024-02-25.