‘Mr Basketball’ steps down, reluctantly

Press, 20 December 1978, Page 22

‘Mr Basketball’ steps down, reluctantly

By

ROD DEW

Basketball in Canterbury will have to get along next season without the diplomatic leadership of Ray Thomson, one of the sport's most knowledgeable and respected men. It will be an unusual experience for it, because this popular figure has been a driving force behind basketball since it was in its infancy some 40 years ago. Mr Thomson recently stepped down after a three»year term as president of the Canterbury Basketball Association, a time of great progress for the sport. It was a matter for widespread regret that he was unable to officiate at his final annual meeting.

A short time earlier, he suffered a heart attack. Now he is recuperating at his home and looking forward to the time when he can return to his work as the master in charge of physical education at Christchurch Boys’ High School. His sudden illness had nothing to do with his decision to withdraw from the Canterbury administration.

Ray Thomson simply felt that it was time for scane new blood at the top. But his interest in the sport will never waver. When this reporter visited him at his home, he was relaxing on a deck chair in the sun in his garden. By his side was a basketball ring and net from the school gymnasium. “I am turning the net inside out. If you do this, they last twice as long,” he explained. If a criticism could be made of him, it could only be that he has always been far too ready to carry more than his share of the administrative burden. Nevertheless, he has derived a tremendous amount of satisfaction from being associated with the sport. He has seen it grow from a mid-week social sport into a major Saturday sport in Canterbury.

He gets a special satisfaction from having been involved in two controversial decisions which subsequently proved to be correct. The first was the decision by the then Canterbury Men’s Basketball Association to move its inter-club competitions from the Y.M.C.A. to Cowles Stadium. “People said Cowles Stadium was too far out of town. One person even told me that the move would mean the end of basketball in Canterbury,” he recalled. The other controversial decision was to switch the main inter-club competitions from a mid-week slot to a Saturday. “This was harshly criticised at

the time.” Instead of being the disaster claimed by some, it proved to be a major milestone in the development of basketball into a major sport. It has never looked back since.

Before the men’s and women’s branches of the sport combined in 1971, Ray Thomson was always a key figure. He was one of the original members of the Canterbury Men’s basketbail Association, which assumed control of the sport in the 19405, became its secretary in 1957 and three years later was elected president. For more than a decade he was the administrative leader of the sport. He stepped down briefly, returning as an executive member of the new combined association in 1974 and becoming president two years later.

Mr Thomson has also served the sport as a player at Canterbury and South Island levels, as a nationally graded referee, and as a coach at all levels up to representative.

Mr Thomson is freely acknowledged as one of the finest basketball coaches in the country and it is perhaps this aspect which now concerns him most.

Many sports, not only basketball, were being handicapped by lack of coaches, he said. People were afraid to take on coaching because they felt they were not knowledgable enough. “You don’t have to know very much about a sport to start coaching it,” he emphasised. “Ability to motivate people is the main thing, ability to get people working together as a unit.”

He recalls that Henry Dyer was the finest coach the Christchurch Boys’ High School first fifteen ever had. “I don’t think he ever played the game.” His theory is supported by his own experiences. For four years he helped coach the High School Old Boys senior rugby team. He admits he knew nothing about forward play, although his experiences as a wing for Canterbury in 1945 and 1946 no doubt served him well. Before the Canterbury team was scheduled to play the Springboks in 1956, he was called in by the Canterbury coach, Mr Neil McPhail, to provide the team with physical training. His efforts over three months undoubtedly contributed to the team’s historic win.

For eight years between 1967 and 1974, Mr Thomson coached the

Boys’ High School first cricket eleven. "I was no great cricketer. All I knew were the basic fundamental skills.”

Such prominent players as Richard Hadlee, Robert Anderson, John Calder. Dave Dempsey, and Geoff Smith all passed through his hands. “You can always call on the experts for help if you need it,” he said. In basketball coaching, Mr Thomson has, more often than not, been the expert others have called on. His coaching career is studded with successes. Only two years ago he stepped into the breach as Canterbury men’s senior coach and guided the team to victory in the national championship. But it is the first national championship win which Canterbury gained in 1955 which still remains as his most cherished coaching memory. “The team was so far down at half-time in the final against Auckland that the spectators were

going home,” he recalled. The amazing recovery of the Canterbury team was a talking point for years afterwards. Mr Thomson has also coached Y.M.C.A. and High School Old Boys first division teams to provincial success. But it is in the lower grades that his greatest contribution has probably been made. A great many players who have gone on to representative honours owe a debt of gratitude to him for the foundation they were given at Christchurch Boys’ High School. While reminiscing during his recent spell in hospital, Mr Thomson selected the 10 players he would most like to have in an “all-time” school team. They are Alan Hounsell, Geoff Orchard, Simon Guthrie, Tim Guthrie, Kim Luxton (captain), Stewart Ferguson, Ed Manco, Allan Manco, lan Simpson and Hoji Kawaguchi. The names are very familiar. AH except Kawaguchi, a brilliant Japanese player who spent a year at the school, have represented Canterbury. Fergu-

son is the present vicecaptain of the New Zealand team, and Ed Manco

is a former captain of the New Zealand junior side.

Mr Thomson coached the school basketball team from 1960 until last season. The only reason he is not still coaching it is because his son, Hugh, is now a first-string member. Instead, he concentrates his efforts on even younger boys who will provide the nucleus for the school’s top team in a year or two.

Mr Thomson is very satisfied with the way basketball has developed over the years and he has no doubts that it will continue to progress. However, there are two matters which have worried him — the pressures being put on young players by some coaches and the lack of responsibility being shown by players towards scoring and refereeing duties. “Intensity of competition is being instilled in some players at far too early an age. I have seen many young players pull out because of the demands put on them.” If players continued to refuse to do their scoring and refereeing duty, people would have to be employed to do the job. The players would then have to pay for this indirectly through increased subscriptions. “I refereed more games last season than I did in my last season of active refereeing. I don’t think it is a fair go,” he said.

Mr Thomson was for a great many years one of New Zealand’s foremost referees. One of his few regrets is that he did not do more to encourage people to become referees. However, he can take credit for setting two on the path to national recognition in refereeing. Robin and Keith Milligan are currently ranked among New Zealand’s top three or four coaches.

Ray Thomson was recently made a life member of the High School Old Boys Basketball Club, which he helped establish. A few weeks ago his services to the sport were rewarded with the award of the Ryan Cup. Such high honours can go only a part of the way t o recognising the enormous contribution he has made to the development of the sport. He has been “Mr Basketball” in Canterbury for so long that it is impossible to think of one without the other. But, at least as far as administration is concerned, this is just something basketballers are going to have to get used to.