FOOTBALL.

Auckland Star, Volume XLII, Issue 137, 10 June 1911, Page 16

FOOTBALL.

RUGBY. A sensational drop-kick bus lioeti uncart lid in Wales 111 the person of .1 piavcr ..t Bridgend uaiiii'd J. Roger.-, .lie im.- kicked ihiriy licld goals this .season, and I In- performance i- all ll.e more 1 . •in.irk..l.l.- viewed in conjunction with tin' fad lliai he .'-, only' IS years .it age He [days as hall back. or. us it ;.-> si \ led h, re," iive-cighih. '] In- "Kvciiing F.xpres.-." published in I'.irdili, thus ramlin cats on his perforinai.ee: "Arthur - : 1.0u1.1, in the heyday ot hi- hrillau: • j career, w.i = v perfect terror in iron; 10l goal, ; 11111 in more recent limes I'ercy 1 llu-l. and Fred Hut have prove,l •.i.....i- ---', selves upl p.!|ii!s of the great A.-1.. hut i.o! one of ine three, I vein lire lo ;;.-- -•it. dropped liiirtv 1:'...i1s in one season." The accomplishment is remarkable. As , the Welsh Hugger season i- longer than ■ our own. an idea may lie gathered of ! the merit.- of the performances when compared will, the number of dropped goal- 10 the credit of any phiver out I here. The following resolution was passed !at a meeting of the Central Western j llugi.y I'nion on Monday. May '22nd: 1 "In view of the apparent fuel that the rule- of the Northern Rugby I'ninn provide .1 ........ attractive frame for tin; ; public, this I'nion. while adhering strict--Ily :■. llii- amateur status, i- strongly lot' ..pinion ilia; ihe rule- of football as j played under the N.S.W.R.l'.l'. be ! 1 neigh; i,,,,, line with those of the Northern Rugby I'nion; that this proposal : I nveve.l lo tile various I'nions iv j N.s.W. .villi a view to placing a case I before the N.S.W'.K.F.I'.. and that to I present, tl.i- cas.. satisfaeinrilv. the I X.S.W'.R.F.I'. he requested lo arrange a I eimfcivi.ee. 11.. delegates to which shall I consist of duly-accredited representatives ot' the various aflili.'itcd I'nions. such conierenee to be held iii Sydney at a date to he fixed by the head union, preferably between the middle of .lime and the middle of duly next; and thai each I'nion to whom thi- proposal is forwarded, be i requested tn furnish the C.W'.K'.K.I". and I tin- N'.S.W'.lt.l-'.r. with an opinion on I the subject." .\n English comment o t] Charles Seelin..': —"I have referred to the forwards. The brainy ......1 of the I.IIIIHI was again .Charles Seeling He followed up will, the pace nf a li.uk. and his resource appeared unlimited." A Sydney comment on the Eastern Suburbs and filehe mutch:—"The tit-hit was the work of W'ylie. the ex-Auckland forward, in scoring debt's second try. W'ylie took the ball al his feel In the goal- , line, and as the full-back came at him he foot-passed to darken, who finished .. j brilliant ell'ort." I 1.. B. Stringer, the New Zealand (Christelmreli) threequnrter playing for jduy's Hospital (London), is referred to il.v Kngl'.sli critic- as quite as clever as, I . and faster than, any wing in the country. 'J'his'is tho only comment by an English , paper on the English Association football final: — I FOOTBALL FINAL. 1 Cup—7o.ooo mugs. The English Football Association have - decided |o include in the regulation- for j the control of referees a decision of the . council that any person requiring to wear glu.-sc- for short sight should not he placed on an oflieinl list. This regulation has been in existence for three, seasons, but its inclusion in the rulebook has been adjourned for further consideration.

Says a Sydney writer on the Northern I'nion game:—"There is no mistaking the popularity of the Rj a-side game, but the officials will need to deal severely with players who are adjudged guilty of foul play. A referee does not derive any pleasure in sending 11 man off the field, and the authorities who den] with the matter should bear this iv mind. Suspension for a week or two is not sufficient to put an end lo the evil. An example should bo made of one offender, and others would be extra careful in letting their tempers secure the upper hand."

An ex-Ot.igo representative nt present in Sydney writes a Dunedin writer that Rugby Union football is pretty dead at present, and that the form is from 20 to HO per cent below that of last season. The amateur game, however, will survive, lv connection with the Australasian Northern I'nion team for England, leaving in August, the correspondent says that there is great rivalry between the players to get into the team, which will lie quite the next best to the Itcst of nil colonial tennis, the "All Blacks."

Thus a Southern scribe:—''Despite frequent disqualifications, breaches every week are witnessed by players in Dunedin. and in referring to this an exchange states that a three years' disqualification was imposed on a player for tripping. The Otago I'nion are setting up a long record that brings additions every week, and gives more scope to the opposition game." Say- a Sydney writer:—''A comparison of the Xew Zealand and New South Wales I'nions' balance-sheet is interesting. The Xew South Wales statement, which is to December 31, 1010, shows New Zealand a debtor to the amount of £15(1 15/4: while the accounts of the Dominion union shows an asset New South Wales Rugby Union £330 7/5, while an amount of £1513 2/2 is shown us an asset on the American Universities' visit. This last amount is specially hard to understand, as, in view of the expenses of the Americans' tour and the small gales, it is difficult to realise how an asset Iron, the tour remains when no mention of profit or loss.on this tour is shown." It is high time that tho International Hoard ceased to be secretive (writes lliiiuish Stuart in the London "Daily Chronicle"). Regarding " foot up in the scrum." a renin, to the old -rule by reason of tiie difiicidty of enforcing the penalty and the fact that, referees differ in their application is probable. It is. of ! eolir.-e. trite knowledge that both sets of j forwards are frequently guilty of a simultaneous broach of tiic rule, and that, after this has occurred once or twice, in the same scntm. referees penalise the the side with the man who is next guilty if he be a little quicker than any man in the oppo-ing pack in getting his foot up. Whether the ride should be abol-i-hed is another matter, while it is doubtful whether the rule' which penal-ji-es wilfully preventing the ball from j being fairly put into a scrum tould. r>" applied as v substitute in a case of '-boot up" because foot-up would no longer be j illegal. The discretionary powers of a referee would, of course,"remain, and could !»■ exercised in punitive and deterrent fashion. In any case it s beyond dispute that the "foot up" rule is not observed, in spite of penalties, and that Ino rule leads to more ahsurd situations land more unjust decisions. Referees | rarely promptly penalise the first of. I fence, and it is tn this fart that much of tne. trouble in administering the rule is due,

The committee of the New Zealand Rugby I'nion, which i- tv deal with the suggested lour of the .Maori team through .New Zealand, would do well to put a slop to all such tours of a private nature. .Mr. l'aruta, the organiser of ihe team, make- a sliiiement that he is very anxious to keej. the Maori players witi.in ti.e amateur rank.-, hut ii it is

necessary to keep I hem touring every year to do so, they might just as well become professionals, (hie of the biggest argument- against the professional is that he eca-es to work, and expects to live by football alone, will, the consequence that the game becomes n business. If players have 10 be taken on tour this year to keep them lion, becoming professional-, surely it will be the same every year, and if they are to be spoon fed to keep 1 hem amateurs, why not let then, declare for one game or the other a. oueeV Over-touring is the curse of football, and has done more to cause unrest amongst the players than anything in connection with tin' game. It i> bad enough in all conscience al present with the provincial union.-, but if permission is to be granted to private tours, such as the one under notice, then the New Zealand liiion is nuikiuir a rod for its own back, and one. ] venture to prophesy, that will strike pretty bard when it does strike. ASSOCIATION. A correspondent, who signs himself "did Referee." writes in a strain too personal for publication. Should the writer reconstruct his letter in less offensive language and sign hi- name to it for publication it will be published, provided lie confines himself to fair criticism.