FOOTBALL.

Auckland Star, Volume XXXII, Issue 167, 27 July 1901, Page 4 (Supplement)

FOOTBALL.

Hay's disallowed try on Saturday looked perfectly fair from the pressbox, but the referee thought otherwise. It was the hardest of luck not to score after so fine a da.sh. Thompson, if he goes on playing in his present form, must receive the attention of the selector in the trial games. His run towards the end of Saturday's game was worth going a long- way to see. Peter Gerrard waa out aguin on Saturday, but did not play up to form. On his Wellington form, however, he should find a place in the trial g-atnes. The last has evidently been heard of the City protest. Clubs have the right to appeal to the English Union, but any such appeal has to go through tiie X.Z. Union, and the latter body has declared the case to be outside their jurisdiction. The selection of Mr Fred. Murray to be one of the selection committee to choose the N.Z. team to meet N.S.W. shortly has given general satisfaction locally, and it is felt that the claima of Auckland with respect to the personnel of the team will receive full justice. The last time that a New Zealand team was picked to do battle against the Cornstalkers in New Zealand was in 1894, when the visitors won at Chilstcnurch by S points to G. It was said then that the team had been chosen largely on past reputation, with the result that the team waa not thoroughly representative. Auckland was not represented in the t*am, but would probably have been represented bad one or two of our forwards been able to make the journey to Christchurch. This time we may feel sure that the best team possible will be picked. The Committee meet at Wellington on August 17 to choose the team. Mr Murray's visit to Wellington will stand him in good Btead when he comes to select the team to meet the Welling* tonians later on. As was done last year the Union will play two trial matches this season, one before the Thames match, and one after that event. This plan answered very well last year. Though the matches set down for to-day are not being played, the Union may order them to be played at tne end of the round, if necessary. Parnell are in a fair way to finish the season without a single win. "All is lost save honour," a Parnell man nrfght well cry, for the maroons maintain their honour by turning up every Saturday and playing up pluckily. One cannot help remarking" on the way "Bob" Hancock shines every -Saturday, and it is common now to read that "Hancock got away with the ball and made a fine run, but was unsupported." I would not go so far as to say he is the same man that won a place in the 189? N.Z. rep. team, but he is still a forward to be considered in choosing our provincial team. The Wellington Union have relegated to members of the Management Committee power to report players for unnecessary roughness. Wellington are going in for white knickerbockers inr^he uniform of their rep. team, an innovation which will not improve the appearnce of the team. The neat appearance of the team was much admired here last year. This reminds me to remind our local Union to see that our reps, are uniformly attired this year. In former years there has always been an untidy mixture of white and black pants, socks and stockings. The Grammar School fifteen sustained their first defeat within four years on Saturday, Prince Albert beating them by 3 points to nil. The Grammarians have now won the secondary school banner for five successive years, and it is rightly felt that it is time for the sake of competition that it was taken from them. Cuiininghain is reported to have played a gfreat game for Walhi against Tauranga on Saturday, and it is evident that he will again be the "lock"' in our rep. team this year. A young man has been sent to gaol for a week at Dunedin for using indecent language at a football match. A correspondent writes to know what club his won the most matches since the start of the district scheme. I have not the information available, but perhaps some of my readers can oblige my correspondent. A. Bayly -does not intend playing through the 'season H. Good, an old Taranaki represen-: tative threequarter. played,, recently for Waimate against Opunake, but is said not to have been in fdrni. i The Wellington Union hate rejected the proposal to form a provincial union* and hare .in consequence drawn upon themselves the writh of the football writer in the "Times." It certainly seems curious, with the ex-

I ample of Auckland before them that | the Wellington Union do not endeav our to make themselves a provinck.l > union, and draw the members of thei ' representative team from ail parts oi I the province. Stanley Rowley is not such a briliant success after all on the football ! field, to judge by the following par . from the Queensland "Sportsman": — "Rowley is merely a mediocre three- ' quarter, and as such is bound to be a i pigmy opposed to Wiekham, who is the most dangerous man ip. an opponent's 25 at present playing the game. j Surman never was a footballer, and j as such there could be found no use j for him in New Zealand. He was very j fleet of foot, but fast sprinters are invariably failures on the football field. They usually try to run round a field, aud a footballer has to be very fast indeed to be able to run round an opposing team. As a matter of fact, ,I we haven't seen one capable of doing '| It yet." Sergeant C. Y. Adamson, mentioned in recent cable newa as having been promoted in the Fourth or Bushmen's Contingent, is the well-known Engi lish footballer who came to Australia with Muilineaux'a team, and who remained in Brisbane until the contingent boom. Wellington rep. Farrier*sergeant W. J. Hardham, who returned per Tagus, has been recommended (says an Otago paper) for that much-coveted honotir, the V.C., for gallantry in rescuing a comarde under heavy fire. The Governor, in presenting him with his war medal at Invercargill, told him that he would probably hear more of tl»at matter. | A complaint from Otago:—"The 1 southern writer who stated that the Otago team will be a particularly strong one both in backs and forwards is suffering from a highly-col-oured imagination. Outside of Duncan, Otago has not a brilliant back to choose from. The forwards are good honest grafters, but they lack sadly ! the dash and devil of the northern teams' vanguard. It is a rare sight, indeed, to see our forwards taking part 'in a passing rush or a dare-devil dribI bling rush down the field. They did this in the dear, dead days of Otago football-swept down the field with the ball at their toes,but of late year's,and ever since Otairo's football has been brilliant back play, the forwards have j not been of the fast, dashing order ! which characterises the play in the