FOOTBALL.

Auckland Star, Volume XVIII, Issue 156, 5 July 1887, Page 5

FOOTBALL.

The Selection Committee appointed oy the Rugby Union have made a preliminary choice of a number of players from which the team will be selected to play against the Canterbury representatives next August:— .J. Braund, Pv. Lusk, L. Meldrum, Snow, T. Brown, Pritchard, Masefield, Dauk, Madigan, W. Wynyard, A. Bmund, Whiteside, Jordan, Stephenson, Elliott, T. Poland, Arneil, Wooller, Murray, Muir, G.Johnston, W. Meldrum, Marshall, Murphy, O'Connor, Lindsay, Twiname, Stone, Otway, Lecky, D. Stewart, H. Poland, Crowe, Firth, Keefe, P. Gould, Spencer. As usual, practice matches will be held, of which due notice will be given.

The athletic scribe in last Saturday's Christchurch "Weekly Press" writes:— The news recently received from Auckland to the effect that Whiteside would not play for his province unless paid, should be noted by our -local Union. 1 believe that one or two hold that we here are not bound by the Rugby Union's regulations as to professionalism. I consider that an utter mistake. The Union declares in its rules thab it 'upholds the Rugby Union rules and adopts all the alterations and.amendments the Rugby Union of England thinks fit to make.' Surely that refers to rules on professionalism as well as to ordinary rules, and special regulations like those referring to officials. 1 believe that our de-le-gate was present and voted at the meeting when professionalism was dealt with : and we here are bound to abide by the regulation? adopted. Moreover, to abide by them is to help to nip in the bud what would be a gross evil. If Whiteside should be elected to play and be paid in the forthcoming contests, neither Canterbury nor Otago, as affiliated to the Rugby Union, can conscientiously play against him. But lam hopeful enough to believe that Auckland will not select him under such conditions."