The several changes made in the local side from the team that lost (0 Meiji on the preceding Saturday were great improvement for the match on Christmas Day. Tingle came scrum half and Bowerman moved to inside three-quarter, a posttion that suited him better. ' Among the forwards Spryer, Humphreys, and Wheeler worked in well with the rest of the pack and Shanghai saw much more of the bell. The pak also pushed better and more than held their opponents.
The teams were: half than on the previous game, cut through brilliantly, passing to McGill near the Japanese twenty-five. McGil_was bundled into touch near! the Japanese line. From the scrum that' ensued—for Meiji preferred scrums to lineouts—Tingle got away on the blind side and scored far out, Taylor, given a long kick, made a good attempt but could not convert, Shanghai 3, Meiji 0.
That this early success might no! raise Shanghai's hopes too soon, Mel} swept right down to the Shanghai line, straight from the kick-off, There were some thrilling moments near the line, and Shanghai relieved—the immediate pressure by a clever bout of passing. Meiji quickly came back again and once a last minute knock-on was the only thing that saved! Shanghai. Eventually the pressure! was relieved by a too hearty' dribble over the line being touched down by: Tingle. For the next ten minutes, however, Shanghai were kept on. the defensive. Bidwell did some g004 kicking to touch and Poole was conspicuous in spolling. The forwards got the ball and made ground at several dangerous moments, and_the threes did their bit by Keeping on top of the Japanese outsides and not letting them get away. Taylor was several times called upon to. kick quickly and he found touch shvays, well back.
Japanese Follow up Well Though it looked for some while! that the Shanghai defence must croc under the severe pressure, a frst class Tush took the ball for the frst time! for a long while back into the Japan if. A punt ahead by one. of the Japanese that was so quickly followed up that Taylor was caught with the ball, brought the game back 1o Shanghai's twenty-five, and it was! not until Bidwell found touch near the half-line with another excellent kick that Shanghai looked to be anything like on the offensive again, From the scrums that followed this kick, Tingle got the ball nicely away
who picked up a low pass cleverly, and Bidwell passed to Bowerman. and sent McGill away down the wing. In a run that brought the crowd. to its feet, McGill got within a couple of yards of the Japanese line before: being pushed into touch. But any hope of repeating the former manoeuvre and scoring was knocked on the head immediately. 'The Japanese forwards, rising to' the occasion, wheeled ' and took the ball, being stopped only when they had reached the half line.
A number of very good moves by both sides followed. Once the Japanese broke through by exploiting a Feverse pass from Ohoka to Tsujita when the threes were moving this point, however, ing quickly, they several times ca to the rescue of the defence. Bidwell and Grieve between them executed clever run that looked dangerous for Meiji. A froe kick for offside enabled them to relieve.
SRUF.C—C. J. A, Taylor; G. 8. Me-
'S. Watanabe, K. Senzaki, K. Yamaguch! 'S. Matust, 5. Nichigara, L. Ohta
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.