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The concluding game on the
Continent, between England and Austria, was played at Vienna on Tuesday
evening, the result being a win for the visitors by 8 goals to 1. There
was a brilliant sun, a large and enthusiastic crowd, and a high
expectation on the part of the onlookers as to the kind of football that
Woodward and his colleagues would provide. Fleming and Lintott stood down
for Halse and Richards, the rest of the team being the same as at Buda
Pest. The Austrian side was the strongest that the Selection Committee
could command, but they, like their opponents, were somewhat leg weary
from previous games. The game was played at Hohe Warte, and this was much
too narrow to suit the Englishmen, who were always met by a crowded
defence, and it was not until they completely altered their tactics in the
second half that they scored as frequently as they should have done on the
run of the game. The play was not of such good quality as at Buda Pest,
but this was due to the inability of the home side to really extend the
Englishmen, whose finished methods were noted and heartily appreciated by
a delighted assembly.
The visitors
started off in such a style that the Austrians were immediately engaged in
a hard struggle to keep their goal intact. They concentrated their defence
to some purpose, dozens of shots being diverted. The visitors could do
everything but score. All the forwards and the halves sought opportunities
to open the account, but twenty-five minutes elapsed ere Woodward
succeeded in breaking through, and he concluded with a shot from close
quarters that gave the goalkeeper no chance. The Austrian defence was
subjected to severe pressure, but the backs and halves struggled gamely,
and there was only a minute to the interval when Halse obtained a second
goal, after some clever footwork. The home team had never looked like
scoring, as on the few occasions when they broke away the forwards shot
wildly, and Hardy was not troubled.
The
second half was quite different. The Englishmen adopted more open methods,
instead of a close three-inside game, and the outcome was much more
satisfactory from their point of view, as the Austrian defence was
outplayed and out-generalled. It is to their credit, however, that they
never gave up trying, and again and again they burst away, and it was
always a difficult matter to overtake the forwards if they got clear, as
they were extremely fast. In three minutes from the re-start Woodward
obtained a third goal, and Austria then scored from a penalty given
against Pennington. Holley added a fourth goal, and two minutes later
supplemented this with a fifth, both after smart work. Woodward next
brought his head into play to some purpose, as he guided the ball past the
goal-keeper from a corner, and Warren having put on a seventh from long
range, Halse concluded the scoring with one of the cleverest goals of the
match. The English players had a splendid send-off from the ground, the
crowd cheering them lustily.
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