Kiwi again seeks clearance

Press, Volume CXII, Issue 32862, 10 March 1972, Page 20

Kiwi again seeks clearance

(By

J. O. COFFEY)

The former New Zealand Rugby league second-row forward, J. K. Dixon, may yet be able to play for Addington in the Canterbury premier grade championship this year.

A letter from the national council to the Canterbury board of control last Monday evening indicated that Dixon might be released by his former Sydney club. CronullaSutherland, to play or coach in this country if he still wished to seek a clearance.

This possibility was the outcome of talks between leading New Zealand administrators and Cronulla-Suther-land officials in Sydney recently. The board decided to retain the matter in committee until yesterday so that Dixon and the Addington club could be told.

Cronulla-Sutherland paid the N.Z.R.L. a negotiating fee of $6OOO when it signed Dixon before the start of last season, but he elected to return to New Zealand after fulfilling only one year of his three-year contract The Syd-

ney club then claimed a refund of $2400 to clear Dixon from its books. Dixon successfully applied for the coaching position with Addington in a nonplaying capacity but it was later understood that he was disqualified from this sphere of the code also until his contract expired in late 1973.

A member of the Addington committee (Mr D. Murdoch). said yesterday that after hearing of this his club had appointed Mr A. Turnbull to guide its premier team in Dixon’s stead. Since the board meeting on Monday, Dixon had re-opened negotiations with Cronulla-

Sutherland on a personal basis, Mr Murdoch said. However, Mr Murdoch said that Dixon had already received correspondence from Australia indicating that there might still be some conditions attached to any clearance issued. The matter was now one between Dixon and his former club. Mr D. G. Gaynor, the

secretary-manager of the Canterbury Rugby League, said that he expected any clearance to have to go through the usual channels—from Cronulla-Sutherland to the New South Wales and Australian leagues before reaching New Zealand-— which would cause quite some delay in its finalisation.