LEAGUE TEAM RETURNS.

Auckland Star, Volume LVIII, Issue 50, 1 March 1927, Page 10

LEAGUE TEAM RETURNS.

OPEN INQUIRY WANTED. SENSATIONAL DISCLOSURES EXPECTED. ALLEGATIONS OF FAVOURITISM. ALSO OF MISMANAGEMENT. Despite the very evident agreement which members of the New Zealand League team have arrived at to say nothing of the troubles which occurred during the tour abroad, it is equally clear from the little gathered on board the Marama this morning that there will be some sensational disclosures when the incidents of the tour form the subject of an inquiry to be held by the New Zealand Rugby League Council on Thursday evening. The council a week ago discussed the holding of an inquiry, and decided that it would be held in committee, which ntpans, of course, that the Press will not be admitted, and that all the public will pet to know will be what the council cares to supply to the news- j papers. That would be the position if the council is allowed to carry out its programme, but the players, and at least one manager of the team, were emphatic that the inquiry should be open to the Press, and Mr. • Ponder, financial manager of the team, in his own words said: '"Well, if the inquiry is not to be open to the Press I am not going to say anything, and I .am done with the game." If Mr. Ponder adheres to this attitude, and he has the support of other members of the team who were questioned, then the public will get the whole facts of the case as given at the inquiry. - , . But in addition io the manager, there are the six "strikers"—Messrs. Singe, Mouat, Devine, Thomas. Petersen, and Carroll —to be considered. They were not inclined to discuss, the troubles of the team beyond saying that they would demand that'any inquiry should be a public one. The Captain's Regrets. "It has. been a wonderful trip.'' said ,the captain, Mr. Bert. Avery, "but we were unlucky that there "should be trouble shortly after the team left Auckland. However, I canno' say anything about that now as there is to be an inquiry. Our team was a great one" if all had held, together, and I think we j did very well. Owing, to the refusal of some players to take. the field, we were left with only five forwards to carry on for two months.Players were being shifted about all over the field, and under the circumstances the record of winning 50 per cent of the matches must be considered satisfactory." The Manager's" Summing Up. Like the captain, the managers, Messrs. Mair.and Ponder, thought the result had been satisfactory, but while they would not discuss 1 the discontent which' obtained they said the tour from the managerial standpoint had been a most trying one. Would Remain in Englind. One of the "strikers" said that the trouble arose early when t'hey were only two or three days out from Auckland. It was alleged that Mr. Mair displayed favouritism towards certain players, and this was objected to by others. "From that moment he had me 'set,' and others who- also took exception to what we considered and still consider was gross mismanagement. As a matter of fact we (the 'strikers') consider the tour was mismanaged from the start." The Same for All. The nineteen loyal members of the side who saw the tour through were a bit disappointed that they had not been able to put together a better record. The one or.two spoken to on board the ship this morning consider that the malcontents were quite wrong in the attitude they adopted. "There may have been conditions imposed which we did not entirely agree with, but most of us were prepared to put up with them, and it was the same for all. If a player had a grievance it was always heard before the whole of the members." Setback to - Game. "If the inquiry to be held is not going to be open to all, then it is not agoing to do the game any good," said ona prominent member. "Already the tour has done harm to the game, and to hush matters up is not going to help any with the public. Offer to Players. The form of many of the players was considered high-class by English Leagueites, and if the two years' residential qualification is lifted it is expected* that R. Davidson, Brown and Mason will have good offers made to them-to go and play for clubs in England. Henry did not return with the team, he remaining behind to play for Hull.

REGRETS AND HOPES.

MANAGERS INTERVIEWED. (From Our Own Correspondent.) LONDON, January 19. Interviewed by the "Manchester Guardian," Mr. E. H. Mair. the team manager, and Mr. G. H. Ponder, the financial manager of the New Zealand Rugby League touring side, expressed their regret at the internal troubles which had done much to spoil the tour. Mr. Mair said that although there was a financial loss the .tour had done them good, and had broadened the outr look of most of the players. He and Mr. Ponder felt that .any future tour would be more successful, as the New Zealand authorities would be more careful about thoir selection of players. Mr. Ponder wished to stress the fact that, while they were New Zealanders. they were still British, and he expressed disappointment that some members of the side had thought fit to strike*. They had created a bad impression, and, to some extent, had caused certain people to assume that the whole side was discontented. He pointed out, however, that nineteen members of the team had remained perfectly loyal. "The nineteen," he said, "have played the game on and off the field, and have been staunch to the country from which they were sent. Our boys have tried to show the British Rugby League public that they can plav an open game of football. In proof of this, it may be pointed out that in every game but two they have reached double figures. We won 50 per cent, of our games, but our success morally was far in excess of these figures, because the games were played in very trying conditions."