1910 Auckland Rugby League season

The 1910 Auckland Rugby League season was the first season where a full organised competition was played following the 1909 season where several exhibition club matches were played. The competition celebrated its 100th anniversary in 2010 and is currently in its 109th season. The 1910 season commenced on 14 May, with the start of the competition for the Myers Cup. It involved four teams, City Rovers, Newton Rangers, North Shore Albions, and Ponsonby United. Only Ponsonby United (now known as Ponsonby Ponies) still survive to the present day.

Two venues were used. Victoria Park, in downtown Auckland hosted 12 matches, and Takapuna Racecourse which no longer exists, hosted 4 matches.

Meetings and news

ARL annual meeting

At the Auckland Rugby League annual meeting the following committee was elected:Chairman, Mr B Brigham; Hon Secretary, Mr A. J. Powley; hon treasurer, Mr Percy Usher; hon auditors, Mr D. W. MacLean and E. W. Watts; president, Mr C. D. Grey; vice-presidents, Mr F. E. N. Gaudin, M. Molloy, W. T. Thompson, J. Patterson, W. M. Evans, T. Craig, A. E. Glover MP, T. Buxton. At the meeting information was received that two new clubs were forming, one in the city and the other at a marine suburb.

City Rovers Establishment

On 12 April a meeting was held at the Waitemata Hotel with a view to forming a club. There were 23 people in attendance with Mr. D. W. MacLean occupying the chair. It was decided that a club would be formed called City Rovers. The following were elected as officers: president, Mr. J Endean; vice-presidents, Mr F. E. N. Gaudin; Graham, A. J. Parker, and W. M. Evans; hon secretary, Mr L. E. Hinton; hon treasurer, Mr Ernest Asher; hon auditor, Mr B. Brigham. Players for the team were requested to travel to the North Shore on the following Saturday to practice with the North Shore Albions team. The match resulted in a draw with both teams scoring three tries each.

Newton Rangers

On the evening of 5 May Newton held a meeting at the Caledonian Hotel with Mr. W. Mulholland presiding. Twenty one playing members were present "and much enthusiasm was shown". The following officers were elected:- President, Mr. J.J. Molloy; vice-presidents, Messrs. W. Jones, J.E. Hunt, J. Fernandez, H. McNeil, R. Gordon, E. Hall Skelton, R. Robinson, J. Boonstra, D. Simpson, F.E. Baume, M.P., and A. Raynes; captain, Mr. William Mackrell; vice-captain Samuel B. Houghton; hon. secretary, Mr. G. Smith; treasurer, Mr. W. Mulholland; auditors, Messrs. M. Hooper and E.W. Watts; management committee, Messrs. Bradburn, Hooper, Samuel Houghton, Farrant, Winter, Smith, and Mulholland; delegates to Auckland league, Messrs. Linkhorn, Smith, and Mulholland; delegate on management committee of Auckland league, Mr. P. Linkhorn; selectors, Messrs. Mackrell, Houghton, and Bradburn. The club decided to adopt the colours of maroon and white. Samuel Houghton was the son of Joseph Houghton, the former chairman of Northern Union before the family migrated to New Zealand.

Northcote Ramblers join the Northern Union Code

On 15 April a meeting was held at Northcote to form a rugby league club there. There were 37 players and supporters present. Mr. D. W. MacLean chaired the meeting. 21 players enrolled at the new club. Mr Lepper was appointed hon secretary, and Mr A. Jackson treasurer. The club was initially to be called the Northcote Warriors however within a week this was changed to the Northcote Ramblers which they were known as for decades afterwards. Today the club is known as the Northcote Tigers. The team played their first ever match on 23 April when they took on a combined Newton Rangers and Ponsonby United junior team in Northcote. The home team won by 18 points to 8 with Jack Stanaway refereeing.

Myers Cup (First Grade Championship)

Sixteen matches were played until the final round on 20 August where City Rovers defeated Ponsonby United to become the inaugural champions of Auckland club Rugby League (which at this time was referred to as 'Northern Union' in the media). The Round 4 match between North Shore and City won by City 12–6 did not have the point scorers reported. In the Round 6 match between Ponsonby and City the match was abandoned after Albert Opai Asher led the City team off the field after protesting the non awarding of a 'try' to the City team. After an inquiry by the league during the week Asher apologised.

Senior competition

Final standings

Team Pld W D L F A Pts City Rovers 8 5 2 1 87 33 12 Newton Rangers 8 4 1 3 76 81 9 Ponsonby United 8 4 0 4 89 60 8 North Shore Albions 8 1 1 6 41 119 3 Results Round 1 Takapuna Racecourse to the left. The North Shore v City match was played on the Takapuna Racecourse. Bob Mitchell likely made his debut for City in the 0-0 draw at the ground. He went on to play 29 games for Auckland over 5 years and also 8 games for New Zealand from 1912 to 1914. 14 May Newton 12–6 Ponsonby Victoria Park   Try: William Winter, Hugh Gordon Haswell, Len Farrant 2 Try: Sid Riley, Sydney Cole Referee: Mr. R.J. Sharrock 14 May North Shore 0–0 City Takapuna Racecourse   Referee: William Wynyard Round 2 Harold (Ray) Denize scored the first ever points for City in their 8-8 draw with Newton. He would go on to play for them for several seasons being one of the mainstays in their forward pack. 21 May Newton 8–8 City Victoria Park   2:00 Try: Dick Bradburn, William Bonner Con: Dick Bradburn Try: Harold Denize, A Hawthorn Con: Sid Kean Referee: Jack Stanaway 21 May Ponsonby 34–7 North Shore Victoria Park   3:15 Try: Arthur Carlaw 2, Scotch MacDonald 2, Ronald MacDonald 2, Henry Bettis, Sydney Cole Con: Sydney Cole 4, Alf Chorley Try: Alfred Jackson Con: George Seagar Pen: Jim Griffen Attendance: 300 Referee: R. J. Sharrock Round 3 28 May North Shore 2–11 Newton Takapuna Racecourse   Pen: Jim Griffen Try: George Smith, Thomas Houghton 2 Pen: William Bonner 28 May City 9–0 Ponsonby Victoria Park   Try: Charles Brett 2, Sid Kean Round 4 4 June Newton 5–2 Ponsonby Victoria Park   3:00 Try: George Smith Pen: William Bonner Pen: Sydney Cole Attendance: 100 4 June North Shore 6–12 City Takapuna Racecourse   3:00 Referee: Jack Stanaway Round 5 Future Kiwi, Joe Bennett was on debut for Newton Rangers. He had played a few seasons of rugby for Waiuku and club teams in that area before moving to Auckland. After one match for the City Rugby Club weeks earlier he switched codes. 18 June City 14–5 Newton Victoria Park   Try: Albert Asher, Charles Brett, George Harrison, Bob Mitchell Con: Sid Kean Try: Charles Linkhorn Pen: Dick Bradburn Attendance: 2,000 Referee: Alfred Jaggs 18 June North Shore 3–7 Ponsonby Takapuna Racecourse   Try: Fred Jackson Try: Charles Dunning Con: Sydney Cole Pen: Sydney Cole Round 6 Arthur Thompson Haddon had recently joined the North Shore Albions team. It was said that he had recently played the game in the "Old Country". 25 June Ponsonby 11–8 City Victoria Park   2:00 Try: Claude Culpan, Ronald MacDonald, Harry Fricker Con: Sydney Cole Try: Bob Mitchell, George Harrison Con: Alex Stanaway Attendance: 400 Referee: Jack Stanaway 25 June Newton 16–5 North Shore Victoria Park   3:00 Try: Hugh Haswell, Joe Bennett 3 Con: Len Farrant Pen: Len Farrant Try: Sutton Con: Jim Griffin Attendance: 400 Round 7 Claude Culpan scored in his second match for Ponsonby. His brother Nelson would later be on the New Zealand Rugby League board, while another brother, Ivan, was the long time secretary of Auckland Rugby League. 2 July Ponsonby 26–2 Newton Victoria Park   2:00 Try: King, Fred Lynch 2, Henry Bettis, Claude Culpan, Charles Dunning Con: Sydney Cole 4 Pen: William Bonner Attendance: 4,000 Referee: W Pitts 2 July City 22–0 North Shore Victoria Park   3:00 Try: George Harrison 2, Harold Denize, Tom Avery, Bob Mitchell, A Hawthorn Con: Alex Stanaway Pen: Alex Stanaway Attendance: 4,000 Referee: R.J. Sharrock Round 8 Alfred Gault, who had been playing for the City Rovers 2nd grade team was named in the starting side for the first grade. It is uncertain if he actually played or not. He was a well known boxer in this period and would later go away to World War 2 where he was killed on 26 September 1916 in France. 20 August Newton 17–18 North Shore Victoria Park   2:00 Try: Hugh Haswell 2, Nicholson, Henderson, Lionel Nolan Con: William Bonner Try: Fraser, F Taylor, George Seagar, Hec Wynyard Con: Hec Wynyard 2, George Seagar Attendance: 600 Referee: Alfred Jaggs 20 August City 14–3 Ponsonby Victoria Park   3:00 Try: Charles Brett 3, Albert Asher Con: Alex Stanaway Try: Sydney Cole Attendance: 600 Referee: R.J. Sharrock Top scorers The Round 4 match between North Shore and City won by City 12–6 did not have the point scorers reported so the following lists are unlikely to be 100% complete with Charles Brett and George Harrison possibly adding to their point scoring. Top point scorers No Player Team Games T C P Pts 1 Sydney Cole Ponsonby 8 4 11 0 34 2 Charles Brett City 8 6 0 0 18 3 Hugh Haswell Newton 8 4 0 0 12 3 George Harrison City 7 4 0 0 12 5 William Bonner Newton 8 1 4 0 11 Top try scorers No Player Team Games Tries 1 Charles Brett City 8 6 2 Sydney Cole Ponsonby 8 4 2 Hugh Haswell Newton 8 4 2 George Harrison City 7 4 5 Joe Bennett Newton 2 3 5 Ronald MacDonald Ponsonby 8 3 5 Bob Mitchell City 5 3 Second grade A second grade competition was also played, however it received little coverage in the news media. It featured second teams from City Rovers, North Shore Albions and Ponsonby United, as well as a team from Northcote named the Northcote & Birkenhead Ramblers. Northcote were to go through the season undefeated to win the grade. On 6 June Northcote beat Ponsonby by default and North Shore beat City 12–6. On 25 June Northcote beat City 5–3. City beat Ponsonby 15-0 on July 2. The points table was published in The New Zealand Herald on 3 August. There had been two rounds of play scheduled for 13 and 20 August however it appears they were not played and the final table remained as follows. Team Pld W D L F A Pts Northcote & Birkenhead Ramblers 7 7 0 0 112 18 14 North Shore Albions 7 5 0 2 54 37 10 City Rovers 7 2 0 5 36 80 4 Ponsonby United 7 0 0 7 9 110 0 On 27 August the Northcote side played a combined team from the other 3 sides at Victoria Park and was defeated 14 to 5. Representative season Auckland v Rotorua 11 June Auckland 21–18 Rotorua Victoria Park   3:00 Try: Len Farrant 2, Alfred Jackson, George Seagar, George Smith Con: Len Farrant, George Seagar Pen: George Seagar Try: Riki Papakura, Keri McRae, W McCullum, Henry Du Vall Con: A Worrall, W McCullum Pen: W McCullum Attendance: 2000 Referee: Rowland James Sharrock Auckland trial match On 9 July a trial match was played between an A and B team selected in preparation for the visit of the British team and refereed by R.J. Sharrock but no result was given. A further trial match was played on 16 July which the A team won by 20 points to 18. 16 July A Team 20–18 B Team Victoria Park   Try: Albert Asher, Fred Jackson, George Smith, Jim Rukutai Con: Fred Jackson 4 Try: Alfred Jackson 2, Joe Bennett 2 Con: William Bonner, Frederick Neighbour Pen: William Bonner Attendance: 2,000 Auckland v Great Britain The team for the match was: (fullback) Alf Chorley; (three-quarters) L Nolan, George Smith, Albert Asher; (five-eights) Alfred Jackson, Ronald MacDonald; (halfback) Len Farrant; (forwards) Fred Jackson (captain), Charles Dunning, Jim Griffin, Alex Stanaway, Harry Fricker, and George Seagar. The emergency players named were (backs) Sid Riley, Arthur Carlaw; (forwards) Joe Bennett, Jim Rukutai, and Bob Mitchell. 23 July Auckland 9–52 Great Britain Victoria Park   3:00 Try: George Seagar, Albert Asher, Jim Griffin Try: Bert Jenkins, Bill Jukes 2, Jim Davies 3, Joe Riley 2, Jim Leytham, Herbert Kershaw, Jim Lomas, Billy Winstanley Con: James Lomas 7, Jim Leytham Attendance: 10000 Referee: Jack Stanaway Auckland trial match On September 3 an Auckland trail was played at Devonport Domain to help the selectors choose the team for the Southern Tour. The match was one-sided and the Auckland Star said that the A Team scored nearly 50 points while the B Team only scored 15. There were no scorers mentioned. 3 September A Team 49-15 B Team Devonport Domain   3:00 Auckland tour practice match For the Auckland B side Tom Avery and Charles Brockliss scored tries. Both players were included in the touring side. It is unknown if other members of the touring side played for the B team as there was no team list published. This was the first time rugby league had been played on the Auckland Domain. 17 Sep Auckland Touring Team 49–6 Selected Combined Team Auckland Domain   2:45 Try: George Seagar 2, Ronald MacDonald, William Bonner 3, Sid Kean 2, Robert Mitchell 2, Charles Dunning, Harry Fricker 2, Joe Bennett, Arthur Carlaw 2 Con: Arthur Carlaw, Robert Mitchell Try: Tom Avery, Charles Brockliss Auckland then went on a seven match tour of New Zealand. The following squad was selected to make the tour: Harry Childs, George Harrison, Ernie Asher, William Bonner, Sid Riley, Lional Nolan, Arthur Carlaw, Alfred Jackson, W J Walker (Rotorua), Ronald MacDonald, Sid Kean, Joe Bennett, Sydney Cole, Tom Avery, Harold Denize, Charles Dunning (captain), Harry Fricker, George Seagar, Bob Mitchell, Harry Oakley, and Charles Brockliss. The manager for the tour was Teddy Watts with Oakley assisting him. Tour Match v Wanganui 22 September Wanganui 14–15 Auckland Cooks Gardens, Wanganui   3:00 Try: T Irwin, A Seeling, R Mitchell, R King Con: J Hogan Try: Joe Bennett, Lionel Nolan 2 Con: William Bonner 2 Pen: William Bonner Referee: Sid Kean Tour Match v Bluff 27 September Bluff 12–42 Auckland Queens Park, Invercargill   3:00 Try: G Burgess, Donald Hamilton Con: J Johnston 2 Pen: J Johnston Try: George Seagar 4, Alfred Jackson, Ernie Asher 3, Sid Kean 2, Harry Fricker, Arthur Carlaw Con: Joe Bennett 2, Sid Kean Attendance: 500 Referee: P Fraser Remarkably George Seagar after scoring 4 tries then went on to compete in the annual September boxing tournament at the Municipal Theatre later that evening where he beat J O'Shea of Invercargill with loud applause from many of his teammates who were in attendance. He then beat F. Moir of Winton in three rounds. The following day he then played for Auckland again against Southland and scored another try. Unfortunately he injured his arm and was unable to compete in that night's boxing. Tour Match v Southland 28 September Southland 12–17 Auckland Queens Park, Invercargill   3:00 Try: H McDermott, Ogg Con: H McDermott Pen: H McDermott 2 Try: Harry Childs, Joe Bennett 2, Sid Kean, George Seagar Con: William Bonner Attendance: 2000 Referee: P Fraser Tour Match v Otago/Southland 1 October Otago/Southland 18–30 Auckland Caledonian Ground, Dunedin   3:00 Try: P Walker, H McDermott, J Coulter, A Harridge Con: Ned Hughes, J Johnston, H McDermott Try: Sid Kean 4, Ernie Asher, Lionel Nolan, Joe Bennett, Charles Dunning Con: Charles Dunning, Sydney Cole 2 Attendance: 2,000 Referee: Arthur Carlaw Tour Match v Nelson For Nelson, W Doyle scored a try while Charles James scored 2 tries and kicked 2 conversions. James was later killed in action in France during World War I in 1917. 5 October Nelson 13–24 Auckland Trafalgar Park, Nelson   3:15 Try: Charles James 2, W Doyle Con: Charles James 2 Try: Ernie Asher 2, Alfred Jackson 2, Arthur Carlaw, George Seagar Con: Charles Dunning 3 Referee: R Kincaid Tour Match v Hawke's Bay Towards the end of the match Lionel Nolan and J Johnstone had to leave the field due to minor injuries. 8 Oct Hawke's Bay 14–19 Auckland Napier Recreation Ground   3:00 Try: H Smith, R McEwan, Tom Cotterill, A Wall Con: William Mackrell Try: Lionel Nolan, Ernie Asher, Sid Kean, George Seagar, Charles Dunning Con: Charles Dunning 2 Referee: Arthur Carlaw Tour Match v Dannevirke 12 October Dannevirke 8–24 Auckland Dannevirke Recreation Reserve   3:00 Try: Harry Nuttal, Wilson Con: unknown Try: Bob Mitchell, Arthur Carlaw, Charles Dunning, Lionel Nolan, Sid Riley, Sydney Cole Con: Charles Dunning 3 Auckland representative matches played and scorers Matches include the match versus the touring Great Britain side and the seven tour matches made by the Auckland team. The Dannevirke match did not have a team list reported and therefore only the point scorers are included in the 'played' statistics (Mitchell, Carlaw, Dunning, Nolan, Riley, Cole, and Dunning) meaning there are 6 players with unattributed games played. Auckland representative matches played and scorers No Name Club Team Play Tries Con Pen Marks Points 1 George Seagar North Shore 8 9 1 1 - 31 1 Charles Dunning Ponsonby 9 3 9 - - 27 3 Sid Kean City 4 8 1 - - 26 4 Ernie Asher City 7 7 - - - 21 5 Joe Bennett Newton 5 4 2 - - 16 6 Lionel Nolan Newton 8 5 - - - 15 7 Alfred Jackson North Shore 8 4 - - - 12 7 Arthur Carlaw Ponsonby 6 3 - - - 9 9 Len Farrant Newton 2 2 1 - - 8 9 William Bonner Newton 2 - 3 1 - 8 11 Sydney Cole Ponsonby 2 1 2 - - 7 12 Albert Asher City 2 1 - - - 3 12 Harry Fricker Ponsonby 7 1 - - - 3 12 Bob Mitchell City 6 1 - - - 3 12 Sid Riley Ponsonby 5 1 - - - 3 12 Harry Childs City 5 1 - - - 3 12 Jim Griffin North Shore 2 1 - - - 3 12 Albert Asher City 2 1 - - - 3 12 George Smith Newton 2 1 - - - 3 19 Ronald McDonald Ponsonby 4 - - - - 0 19 George Harrison City 3 - - - - 0 19 Tom Avery City 2 - - - - 0 19 Harold Denize City 2 - - - - 0 19 William Walker *Rotorua 1 - - - - 0 19 Fred Jackson North Shore 1 - - - - 0 19 Charles Brockliss City 1 - - - - 0 19 Alf Chorley Ponsonby 1 - - - - 0 19 Alex Stanaway City 2 - - - - 0 19 William Mackrell Newton 1 - - - - 0 19 Charles Linkhorn Newton 1 - - - - 0 19 O Miller North Shore 1 - - - - 0 References External links Auckland Rugby League Official Site