SOCCER Canterbury Team Invited Back

Press, Volume CIII, Issue 30575, 19 October 1964, Page 19

SOCCER Canterbury Team Invited Back

The Canterbury under 18 soccer team has returned from Australia with an invitation to go back next year. The team competed in the inter-state youth tournament at Adelaide for which it entered as winner of the National Junior Cup.

Canterbury lost its first two matches, against Victoria (0-2) and Tasmania (1-3), and failed to qualify for the finals, but ended the series on a winning note by beating Western Australia, 1-0.

national team will be selected to tour abroad, probably to Europe. “In this way, the boys have been kept together for three years, under first-class coaches, and should be ready for the hard matches they will have to play abroad.” Under Floodlights

Although the invitation has been extended by the Australian authorities, it is doubtful whether another New Zea land under 18 side will compete in the tournament in its present set-up. When it was first held, last year, it was for under 18 teams. This year teams of under 19 were eligible, and next year’s tournament will be open to tinder 20 teams.

The tournament was played in Adelaide last week-end. Canterbury played its first game against Victoria on the Friday night, under floodlights, and the second match, in heavy rain, early the next morning. “If we had had a better draw, and had been able to play Tasmania in the afternoon, I feel sure we would have won the second match,” said Mr Storer. “Instead, the boys who had played against Victoria were tired the next morning and did not give their best.’,’

The Canterbury team manager, Mr R. Storer, said yesterday: “This is a deliberate policy of the Australian Federation to increase the age group each year. I understand that after next year’s under 20 tournament a

Canterbury’s final game was played on the Monday, when the team captain, A. Gowans, scored the winning goal against Western Australia from a free-kick.

The three half-backs, Gowans, G. Griffith and P. Skelton, played in all three matches, and all the other players in the party had 11 games or more.

“The majority of the boys we played against were professionals, earning up to £2O a week from soccer,” said Mr Storer. “In these circumstances we did extremely well. If we had taken our ■chances we could have won the first game, against Victoria, which only scored its second goal in the closing minutes.” The tournament was won by South Australia which, in the final, defeated New South Wales, 2-1. Looked After

“The tournament was a model of administration at its best,” said Mr Storer. “We were extremely well looked after, to the extent of having a blazer presented to each of the Canterbury team when it was found we did not have these to wear at the opening ceremony. The Adelaide clubs met to pay a levy for the purchase of the blazers. In addition, all our hotel expenses were paid by the South Australian Soccer Federation."

Mr Storer named the team’s centre-half, Griffith, of Shirley Boys’ High School Old Boys, as the most consistent Canterbury player throughout the. tournament, but added: “All the boys did their part, particularly in the match we won, against Western Australia.”