NATIONAL SQUAD

Press, Volume CXI, Issue 32568, 30 March 1971, Page 28

NATIONAL SQUAD

T. M. McGirr (above), of Canterbury, is one of three New Zealand water polo players who have been competing in Australia to be named in the 31-strong national water polo training squad, by the selectors (Messrs W. H. Dyson, N. R. Chambers and J. de Haan). The other two players are W. E. Martlew and C. R. Gough, of Wellington. All three were In the national under-23 team which toured Australia three years ago. McGirr has just arrived back in Christchurch after a full season with Balmain, Australia’s outstanding club side. Martlew and Gough both played for Queensland which, however, is probably weaker as a state than is Balmain as a club. The selectors have named 15 South Island players and 16 from the North Island —a deliberate policy at this stage, so that island coaching schools can be held in Dunedin and Wellington. Pruning will take place for later schools. All those chosen for the national tournament team are included.

Wellington has nine players chosen and Canterbury eight. The Canterbury representatives include the three in the tournament team, B. G. Spear, B. M. Mustchin and J. K. Cookson, the captain, M. C. Scott, and two who were unlucky not to be chosen, B. R. Hazlett and P. R. Tweedie. D. J. Reid and McGirr—stiH in Australia at the time of the tournament—complete the numbers.

The squads are:— SOUTH ISLAND. Spear, Mustchin, Scott, Cookson, Hazlett, Tweedie, Reid, McGirr (Canterbury), L. D. Mclntosh, K. G. Stoneman, L. Frost, J. Willis, F. R. Smith, T. Loutlt, I. Brown (Otago). NORTH ISLAND.—R. Freear, A. M. Trotter, G. Martlaw, W. E. Martlew, D. Farkas, G. Schuster, K. Mark, Gough, B. A. Crowder (Wellington), A. Ellis, T. Rlchmont, H. Pollock (Auckland), D. Hinton, R. Shields (Waikato), M. Harvey (Wenganul), B. Britten (Manawatu).