And that ended the scoring. Coach Driscoll ran on numerous second- and third-string players in the final four minutes and the game became hectic and uncertain, with several penalties and two costly fumbles, shared by the two teams, and Dick having heart-failure every time he called his signals. But, although St. Luke’s worked her way back to Parkinson’s thirty-five yards and looked formidable, the defenders took the ball away before she could try a field-goal and punted out of danger. And before the enemy could start another advance the whistle blew.
On the whole, both teams played good football, and there were plenty who maintained that, given a half-dozen tricky plays, St. Luke’s would have scored a victory. Of course Parkinson had shown plenty of weak spots. For three periods she had been slow in the line and not much faster behind it. Newhall had made a poor showing against St. Luke’s left guard and Furniss, at left end, had had an off-day. Stone had sometimes chosen the wrong plays. But everything considered Parkinson had proved herself a powerful team and shown considerable improvement over her performance of a week ago.
Parkinson’s best-beloved rival Kenwood, had had a season of ups and downs and, as Coach Driscoll said at the first conference following the St. Luke’s game, there was no telling what sort of a team she would present against Parkinson on the twenty-third of November. She had been decisively beaten in mid-season by Bonright School, had turned around a week later and slammed Wainstow to the tune of 26-0, had been tied by Musket Hill and now, on Saturday last, had just nosed out a victory over Chancellor.
“She’s got good material,” said Mr. Driscoll, “but it isn’t running true to form. And she’s had some hard luck, too. Losing her best back, Shotwell, early in the season was against her. But the chief trouble, as I see it, is that she doesn’t seem to have settled on a definite playing policy, unless she’s done it within the week. She started out with light backs and a lot of fast, clever trick plays that worked all right until she ran up against Bonright. Bonright seems to have beaten her at her own game. After that she laid off heavy Browne and that other half, whatever his name was, and took on two heavy men and started in playing a line game, smashing tandems between tackles and using a very good forward-pass with two men receiving. But she hasn’t developed a dependable goal-kicker yet, unless she’s got someone in hiding. Nutting missed two tries, both easy, on Saturday. So, as I say, there’s no such thing as sizing her up. Of course, we may get a sort of a line on her after we’ve met Chancellor this week, but I don’t expect much that will help us.”
“It never seems to make much difference how Kenwood plays during the season,” observed Stearns Whipple. “She’s always top-of-form when she gets to us!”
“We’ll have one advantage, anyhow,” said Bob Peters. “We’ve come along pretty steady and what we know we’ve learned. Kenwood has sort of gone one step forward and two back, and she doesn’t know just where she’s at, I guess. What about her condition, Billy?”
“Oh, she’s got a first-class trainer in Connell and he will do his part all right. You mustn’t look for any advantage there, Cap. Her men will be in condition all right. As good as ours, I guess.”
“We’ll outpunt her, Coach,” said Stone.
“With Kirkendall in, yes. But that man of hers, Brighouse, has a clever foot. And he puts his punts where he wants them to go, I hear. We may outdistance him a few yards, but a lot depends on the wind. I have a sort of a hunch, fellows, that Kenwood is keeping something up her sleeve. I can’t tell you why I think that, or what the something is, but that’s my hunch.”