Sportsman’s Notebook Conference Of Rugby Referees At Easter

Press, Volume XCVII, Issue 28532, 11 March 1958, Page 6

Sportsman’s Notebook Conference Of Rugby Referees At Easter

One hundred delegates from 30 Rugby referees’ associations will meet in Christchurch at Easter for the annual meeting of the New Zealand Rugby Referees’Association. Many matters affecting referees throughout the country will be discussed, but it is highly probable that none will receive as great an airing as the recent amendments to the rules of the game. Copies of the amendments will be sent to Rugby unions and referees’ associations in the Dominion. Most associations are leaving consideration of them until the conference at Easter. The New Zealand association’s representative to the New Zealand Rugby Union (Mr C. R. McCallum) said yesterday that it was likely that after Easter the new rules would be explained to clubs by referees and possibly also to a meeting of coaches. Mr A. Birdsall, president of the New Zealand union, will attend the referees’ conference as representatives of the union. * * * Benefit Match The Crusaders’ Cricket Club and the Western Districts Cricket Association plan to hold a benefit match at Cornwall Park on March 23-for the Auckland and Western wicket-keeper, S. E. Belsham. Belsham toured south with the Auckland Plunket Shield team this season, but on his return to Auckland he was admitted to hospital with jaundice. He is still in hospital The game will be between the Crusaders’ team and a strong Auckland eleven. The teams have not yet been chosen, but the following players have been invited to play for Crusaders: M. W. Wallace, F. E. Hemmingson, G. O. Rabone, C. A. Snedden, H. G. Vivian, E. C. Petrie, D. B. Clarke, A. F. Lissette, T. E. Shaw, D. L. Perry, B. J. Postles, and D. Andersen. * * * International Soccer The 9000-ton Soviet liner, Baltika, has been specially chartered to take British Association football enthusiasts tc Russia for the U.S.S.R. v. England international match on May 18. The passengers will travel by sea to Leningrad, and then on to Moscow by train. They will be away for two weeks, one of which they will spend in Russia. The cost of the trip, including all fares, meals, hotel accommodation and sightseeing and a ticket for the match, will range from £B7 to £125. The match will be played in the Moscow Central Stadium, which seats 100,000. * * * Representative Tennis An interesting feature of the representative lawn tennis match which was played between Canterbury and South Canterbury on Saturday was that all four members of the University club’s senior women’s team were taking part. Misses G. Hopkinson and J. Lambert were playing for the Canterbury team, and Misses Diane Souter and Denise Souter appeared for South Canterbury. Also included in the Canterbury team were two members of the University club’s senior men’s team, W. Dickson and B. Shirlaw. The other two members of this team, G. Judge and B. Crofts, represented Canterbury against Wellington last month. ¥ * * Rugby League Gain Ray Love, who has represented New South Wales as a Rugby Union half-back, will play for the North Sydney Rugby League Club this season. He has been one of Sydney’s leading Rugby half-backs for the last few seasons. The coach of the North Sydney club is Trevor Allan, the former Australian Rugby Union captain. ¥ ¥ ¥ Eden Park Scheme Four hundred and twenty persons from Auckland have already enrolled under the Eden Park ground-membership scheme which was introduced recently. The number of new members rose quickly to this figure after the Eden Park Board of Control appointed a fulltime and two part-time canvassers about six weeks ago. As each member pays £lOO this means the board now has £42.000 in addition to the £25,000 loan the New Zealand Rugby Union has authorised. If the interest shown continues tenders will probably be called within the next few months for the proposed new grandstand. ¥ ¥ ¥ Tennis Visit Frank Sedgman, of Australia, may visit New Zealand in the last week of March with a professional

tennis troupe and give exhibition matches at the Stanley Street courts, Auckland. Sedgman’s troupe would consist of Australians —possibly K. R. Rosewall, K. McGregor and I. A. Ayre—who would play the matches at night under floodlights. ¥ ¥ ¥ Kaiapoi Regatta Seventy-five entries have been received for the Kaiapoi rowing regatta to be held at Kaiapoi on Saturday. The competitors include Timaru, Union, Canterbury, Avon and Cure club crews. They will race over a half-mile course in heats of three. As this is the final regatta of the season, competition between the Canterbury and Avon clubs for the D.C.L. Cup will be keen.

Antarctic Film.—A National Film Unit film dealing with the activities of the Commonwealth transantarctic expedition, as yet untitled, is now being finally assembled and will be released for general exhibition on March 28.—(P.A.)