Popular sportsman

Press, Volume CVIII, Issue 31781, 11 September 1968, Page 15

Popular sportsman

choice of Colin Morx ris (Y-Boys) as the Canterbury men’s basketball

"Sportsman of the Year” was a popular one and a fitting reward for his contri.

bution to the sport at club, provincial and national levels. Morris has now completed his fourth successive season of basketball in Canterbury and if his recent form is any indication, he will be a strong candidate for the New Zealand team to play against Japan in a test series next year. However, he has already made his name at national level. In 1966 he was chosen for the New Zealand team which visited Australia and since then he has played in numerous New Zealand invitation teams. Morris was introduced to basketball in Nelson, his home town, but it was not until he came to Christchurch that he began to make his presence felt He joined the University club in 1965 and the same year won a place in the Canterbury side. He has been in it ever since. Until this season, Morris has not been renowned for his play at club level. He showed commendable courage switching to Y-Boys at the beginning of the season just completed and the improvement in his club play was remarkable. At least partly inspired by his example, the team finished runner-up in the A grade championship—its highest placing for almost a decade.

A relatively short player by basketball standards, Morris is, nevertheless, the finest defensive player in Canterbury. His tremendous reflex play and active approach to the game more than make up for any lack of inches. He scored 124 points in club basketball this season—double any of his previous totals—tangible evidence that his offensive powers were not lacking either.