The 1928 Auckland Rugby League season was its 19th. Devonport United won the Senior A Championship for the first time under the Devonport United name, though they had won it twice before as North Shore Albions, prior to the merger with Sunnyside. Marist
Old Boys won the Roope Rooster Trophy for the first time. This was their second major trophy after they had previously won the championship in 1924. They also went on to defeat Devonport to win the Stormont Shield.
The senior club season featured over 110 matches through various competitions and did not finish until late October when suburban cricket competitions had already begun.
Grafton Athletic won the Senior B Division competition going undefeated season after they had been relegated the previous season, though they were beaten in the promotion relegation match with Ellerslie meaning they would have to stay there for another season. Point Chevalier defeated Grafton in the Stallard Cup final which was the Senior B knockout competition. The season was notable for the number of teams which played sides from other areas. Ponsonby, Richmond, Parnell, and the Northcote and Birkenhead Ramblers all played sides from north Auckland and the Waikato.
Mt Albert Club Formed
Mt Albert held their first ever meeting at St George's Hall in Mt Albert on the evening of the 3rd of April. Ralph Wilson was chairing the meeting and George Rhodes, chairman of the Auckland Rugby League was present. It was decided that they would form a club in the Mt Albert area though they did not decide on a name at this time. They would enter teams in the third and fourth grades.[1] During the season Auckland Rugby League made a grant of £3 to Mount Albert for a dressing shed.[2]
Representative Program
It was a very busy season, with ten representative fixtures including matches against the touring England team. Ernie Asher, Edwin Vincent Fox, and Bert Avery were appointed selectors for the representative team for the season.
Annual General Meeting
At the annual general meeting of Auckland Rugby League it was noted that out of the 28 playing days during the 1927 season thirteen of them were played in wet weather however crowds were still good and they were happy with the growth of the game. It was also planned for further developments at Carlaw Park consisting of “conveniences for ladies…extra accommodation… for players, and three more dressing rooms” at a cost of £60. There was a lengthy discussion about Ellerslie's application to join the A Grade. They had won the B Grade competition and defeated the last placed Grafton from A Grade.[3] The annual general meeting was held at the Auckland Chamber of Commerce on Swanson Street.[4]
Thistle Cup
The Management Committee announced at the midway mark of the senior club season that the Thistle Cup would be awarded to the A or B grade team that had scored the most points in the second round of competition. If two teams were tied then the trophy would be awarded to the team which had scored the most points for the whole season.[5]
Ground Availability
An ongoing issue for many clubs in Auckland was the availability of playing fields as the number of teams grew. During the season Northcote opened a new field at Stafford Park which is still in existence adjacent to State Highway 1 just north of the Auckland Harbour Bridge. Devonport also had a deputation present at the Devonport Borough Council meeting on 10 May to ask about the shortage of grounds in the area. The club asked for permission to use some of the spare cricket grounds for matches. The Mayor, Mr. E. Aldridge said there would be a ground available at Stanley Bay.[6]
Rule Changes
After Round 5 the issue of time keeping in matches at Carlaw Park was raised at the weekly Management Committee meeting. The bell had been rung in the match between Richmond and Devonport at Carlaw Park before the ball was dead which was against previously arranged rules. Agreement could not be reached on whether the timekeeper or referee should be responsible for calling time. In the end it was decided that official timekeepers should attend the Referees’ Association meeting for instructions.[7]
It was noted that the dead ball area on both fields at Carlaw Park had been reduced from 12 yards to 8yards in accordance with the laws of Rugby League.[8]
A rule change came into effect during the season after the annual meeting of the English Rugby League. They decided that no forward at any time in the scrum could have both feet off the ground. Also forwards could not drop to one knee to attempt to hook the ball. The game in New Zealand would adhere to these rules.[9]
Richard Stack Benefit Matches
The opening weekend of the season saw 4 first grade matches played at Carlaw Park, though these matches were not part of the competition. The round was dedicated to Richard Stack (commonly known as Dick Stack) of the Newton Rangers who had suffered a broken leg in the Stormont Shield final the previous season and the injury was so bad Auckland Hospital staff were forced to amputate it. This meant that he was unable to continue in his profession and so the league fundraised so that he was able to start his own business. A total of £500 was taken at the gates. The day also featured a program of boxing matches with the prizes donated back to Stack. After all the accounts were balanced it was worked out that the fund for Stack totalled £610 12/3. An oddity of the games themselves was the low scoring nature and that all 4 losing teams failed to register a single point. Given the timing in the season and the fact they were for charity and competition points they were largely treated as practice matches with the City Rovers side using 18 players.[10]
Round 1 saw the newly promoted Ellerslie upset Ponsonby. The season was ceremonially kicked off by Miss Peggy Rhodes, daughter of George Rhodes, the chairman of Auckland Rugby League Management Committee.
Round 1
28 April
Richmond
18-10
Newton
Carlaw Park 1
3:15
Try: McCarthy 2, Turton, R Jenkinson Con: L Taylor 3
It was decided by Auckland Rugby League after the 3rd round that they would no longer play curtain-raiser matches by Senior A Grade teams at 1:30pm. This was due to players having difficulty getting to the ground on time as they often worked on Saturdays and had to travel from the outer suburbs. A recent example had been the Newton Rangers v Devonport match where several Newton players had arrived late and the match was so late kicking off that the second half lasted only 25 minutes instead of 40.[24] L Letton, a well known rugby player transferred from rugby union where he had been playing for Marist, and scored 2 tries for Ponsonby on debut in their 18-14 loss to Marist.
Following the conclusion of the first round, The New Zealand Herald published the individual points tallies of all the point scorers. This was the first time this had been done. Taylor of Richmond led the standings with 46 points, Len Scott of Devonport had 33, while Craddock Dufty of Newton was third with 26 points.[37]
The New Zealand team was playing the 2nd test against England in Dunedin this weekend so all the Auckland players in the New Zealand side were unavailable for their club sides.
Marist won the Roope Rooster for 1928 after defeating Ponsonby in a closely contested final. It was the first time they had won the trophy in their history.
Extra time was played in the Ponsonby match with Newton. Craddock Dufty was tackled into touch going for a try and the match ended a 5-5 draw with a replay required the following weekend.
Marist won the Stormont Shield (named after their former team mate) for the first time when they defeated the Monteith Shield champions Devonport with a late try by 9 to 8.
The ‘Labour Day Tournament’ was played over two days (the official holiday, and the following Saturday). It featured Huntly from the Lower Waikato competition and Pt Chevalier who had won the second grade competition. Marist won the trophy despite having to win two games on the first day, and two more on the second. For their efforts they were awarded £50 in prize money.
For the second year in a row Ellerslie and Grafton met in a match to decide who would play in the Senior A Division in 1929. Ellerslie scored a converted try in the closing stages of the match to remain in the A Grade.
6 October
Ellerslie
15-13
Grafton
Carlaw Park 2
3:00
Try: Speight, Allen, Davis Con: S Crewther 2 Pen: S Crewther
Round 1 saw the opening of the new municipal ground (Stafford Park) at Northcote prior to Northcote and Birkenhead Ramblers match with Point Chevalier. The ground was opened by Northcote Mayor, Mr. A. E. Greenslade who kicked off the ball to start the match. During the season Otahuhu asked the Otahuhu Borough Council for permission to take up a collection at the Princes St. Reserve and they also asked the council if they would erect a building. The council agreed to the collection but declined in regards to the building.[76] Prior to the Round 11 matches W. Mapi, the halfback of the Mangere team died after a short illness. The team wore white armbands for their match with Newton in honour of him.
Grafton Athletic won the competition after an undefeated season.
In the first round of matches the referee (Mr. Hill) in the Otahuhu v Kingsland game stopped play early and awarded the game to Kingsland due to the rough play of the Otahuhu side. There were several fights during the match and the referee had difficulty keeping spectators off the field. According to the writer in the NZ Herald this “was not the first time the spectators at Otahuhu had made trouble, and they were really the cause of the players getting out of hand”.[92]
The final saw Grafton and Point Chevalier tied at the end of normal time necessitating two extra periods of five minutes before Monaghan of Point Chevalier kicked a penalty goal to win the cup. This handed Point Chevalier their first ever senior trophy.
[97]
Grades were made of the following teams with the winning teams in bold:
Second Grade: Akarana, Devonport, Mangere, Newton, Northcote, Ponsonby, Remuera, Richmond (Won by Devonport who were 6 pts clear of Remuera, Ponsonby and Newton), (Newton won the knockout competition)
Third Grade Open: Athletic, Devonport A, Devonport B, Ellerslie, Glen Eden, Kingsland, Mount Albert, New Lynn, Northcote, Otahuhu, Parnell, Ponsonby, Richmond (Won by Richmond, 2 pts clear or Mount Albert) (Richmond won the knockout competition)
Third Grade Intermediate: City, Devonport, New Lynn, Newton, Newmarket, Point Chevalier, Ponsonby, Remuera, Richmond (Won by Richmond, 8pts clear of Ponsonby), (Richmond won the knockout competition)
Fourth Grade: Akarana, City, Devonport, Ellerslie, Northcote, Otahuhu, Point Chevalier, Ponsonby, Remuera, Richmond (Won by Richmond, 2 pts clear of Remuera, Richmond also won the knockout compeitition)
Fifth Grade: Akarana, Athletic, Brown Brothers and Geddes, Devonport, Mount Albert, Richmond (Won by Akarana, 6pts clear of Devonport), (Devonport beat Richmond 15–7 in the knockout final)
Sixth Grade A: Akarana, Devonport, Ellerslie, Kingsland, Marist, Newmarket, Northcote, Otahuhu, Richmond, Point Chevalier (Won by Point Chevalier, 6pts clear of Richmond, Richmond won the knockout competition.
Sixth Grade B: Akarana, City, Devonport, Marist, Newmarket, Newton, Point Chevalier, Richmond (Won by Point Chevalier, 5 pts clear of Marist, Marist won the knockout competition.
Primary Schools: Ellerslie, Mangere, Mount Albert, Newmarket, Newton, Onehunga, Onehunga Convent, Otahuhu, Otahuhu B, Papatoetoe, Richmond (Otahuhu won the final of the school knockout competition after defeating Onehunga Convent 13 to 3).
Richmond were awarded the Davis’ Points Shield for most junior grade wins. They gained 75 points, with Devonport finishing second.
Exhibition Matches
Richmond travelled north to play Hikurangi in the first rugby league match in the area. The local rugby team had become dissatisfied with their treatment by the rugby union and had switched to the league code. Richmond won the match in poor weather by 5 points to 0.
The first representative fixture of the season was played against South Auckland for the Northern Union Challenge Cup which the visitors had won from Auckland in 1927. Auckland won the 1928 match by 22 points to 3. The game was played in poor weather and was notable for the number of serious injuries with S. Prentice of Auckland breaking his nose, W. Smith of Huntly suffering a severe back injury, and S. Raynor of Huntly breaking his ribs. All three of them were taken to Auckland Hospital.[107]
A midweek trial match was played between the Possibles and Probables in order to select the Auckland team which was due to play the touring England side later in the season.
Auckland trounced Canterbury in a Northern Union Cup match by 66 points to 22 with winger Roy Hardgrave (son of former Kiwi Arthur Hardgrave) running in five tries. The match was played in good conditions for the most part and was witnessed by a large crowd of 15,000.
A match was also played by Auckland in Whangarei. This was the first time an Auckland representative team had played in Northland and they were up against a fledgling North Auckland side. The area was relatively lowly populated and it was thought that they could not sustain both competitive rugby union and rugby league sides. Auckland win relatively convincingly and rugby league was to continue to struggle in teh area for some time. The final match of the season saw Auckland go down to South Auckland both physically and on the scoreboard by 21 points to 7. The Auckland team was below strength.
The following Auckland players were selected in the New Zealand team to play the first test versus England at Carlaw Park.
C. Dufty (Newton), R. Hardgrave (Newton), C. List (Kingsland), L. Scott (Devonport), M. Wetherill (City), S. Prentice (Richmond), F. Delgrosso (Ponsonby), L. Hutt (Ponsonby), W. Somers (Newton), J. O’Brien (Marist), Reserves: T. Peckham (Ponsonby), and T. Hall (Newton). New Zealand won the test by 17 points to 13 in front of 27,000 spectators.[119] Brisbane who had not been considered for the first test due to injury was selected for the second test to be played in Dunedin and replaced L. Scott in the side.
Annual General Meetings and Club News
Details of annual club meetings were as follows, along with notable news during the season.
Akarana League Football Club held at Carlaw Park. They stated that the 1927 season had been successful with two of their three teams winning their grades.[120]
Devonport United League Football Club held at the Buffalo Lodge Rooms on 19 March. During the season Devonport asked the Devonport Domain Board for permission to use the football ground for a match on 23 June and for the authority to charge spectators for entry. Permission was granted provided the charge did not exceed 1 shilling.[121]
Glen Eden At the Auckland Rugby League's weekly Management Committee meeting in April saw them decide to give financial assistance to the Glen Eden Club toward paying off its ground.[122]
Mangere United Football Club held at Cook's Hall on 26 March. During the season W. Hapi the halfback of the Mangere senior team died after a short illness. The Mangere team wore white arm bands on the jerseys for their round 11 match at Carlaw Park against Grafton.[124]
Mt Albert held their first ever meeting at St George's Hall in Mt Albert. It was decided that they would form a club in Mt Albert though they did no decide on a name at this time. They would enter teams in the third and fourth grades.[126] During the season Auckland Rugby League made a grant of £3 to Mount Albert for a dressing shed.[127]
Parnell League Football Club held at Donovan's Gymnasium in Parnell.[128] It was noted at the meeting that Parnell had lost its ground as the council was going to put roads through it. They were going to make arrangements to use the Auckland Domain for training purposes.
Ponsonby United Football Club held at The Leys Institute in Ponsonby. Ponsonby were being called “Ponies” in the newspapers during the season. Ponsonby played the newly formed Hikurangi during the season and also toured the area with a senior and junior team.
Richmond Rovers Football Club became the first team to play a rugby league match in Northland when they met the Hikurangi side.
Auckland Rugby League Primary Schools’ Management Committee.[130] It was stated that eight teams were entered in various competitions in 1927.
Junior Management Committee held at Gray's Buildings on 27 March.
Referees Association held at the League Rooms on 26 March. During the season they asked that a written report submitted by its members should suffice for players ordered from the field, rather than requiring them to attend judicial inquiries as it was difficult to attend.[131]