THE ALL BLACKS.

Dominion, Volume 1, Issue 41, 12 November 1907, Page 5

THE ALL BLACKS.

ARRIVAL IN ENGLAND. ENTHUSIASTIC RECEPTION AT LEEDS, ; ' "SUBSTANTIAL PHANTOMS." (BY ■ TELEGRAriI—SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT.) - London, - October ,4. "Tho"Now Zealand football team woro surprised "at their reception in Ceylon, and were overwhelmed by the way they wore received-in-Yorkshire. [The team landed al Marseilles on September 29, and. proceedec overland across Franco,--via Paris, to London,' whore thoy arrived tho following day. | Tho English Northern Union. Committee met ub at Folkestone, and'wo returned togethei to tho Manchester Hotol,, London. Wo wen 1 not duo in Leeds until Tuesday night, so day was spont in London. The Northen* Union officials entertained .us royally .there. One party visited the Tivoli Theatre on the ■ Monday... evening, and, tho majority of us formed a party which, on Tuesday morning,: was conducted around and shown the "sights." At throe o'clock wo embarked for 'L'oeds'. 1 1 ; • Tho -first- intimation that -tho' reception wag going to bo out of the ordinary run waa given by tho Btoppago of our train somo. ''distance" from the station. ■ Our special saloon, which luckily was, next tho engine, was uncoupled, and tho' shuntor informed us that we would havo somo, trouble to got tb our hotel :thatf night'.. A- "Phantom Team." Mr. Palliser, of tho Agent-General's office, had given out to. the Press that wo wore a "phantom" New Zealand, team,, \ and 6000 people had assembled' to provo that "seeing is believing." .'Our carriago, was. shunted to a special platform. This had boon barricaded, and the polico also requisitioned to ,kc9p. tho crowd back, but, in spito of their vigilance,, hundreds.; had pushed their .way in, and as we stopped out thcro waj a scrum. - The first man to greet us was A. E Rainsden, an ox-Petono and Wellington ro« prosontativo . player,, who is mow playing fortho Hunslet Club, ono of our futuro oppJn- ' ents. A shout of welcomo aroso from those on the platform. This swelled into, a roar as wo emerged from tho station." It was with tho utmost difficulty that wo pushed our way through tho cheering multitude; -Wo woro dolighted with 'the genuine warmth of itheVolcbme. A brake was waiting for us, and Xvhoto wo managed to struggle ,to it a demand for , the war-cry was satisfied. Before starting . '.to the . Grand. Corittal Hotel, there aroso i •> roar of clicering in appreciation, and then, preceded by a decorated brake, bearing tha Hunslet Club officials and players, we started off.' . 1 • Tho twg principal Leeds' Btreets, Boar Lane 'ani" Briggato, wore paoked with ; anothefjf.crowd.. The crush was so donss that tho electric car scrvico and all othoi traffic was temporarily suspended.' A, Royal Weleomd. , "" 'A right' royal wolcomo was extended al T tho way.. As the thoroughfares wore iiji-* jiassable, the crowd at the station and others who wanted to catch a glimpse of the "spectres" made their way along side-streeta ,to,tho hotel, only to find another enormous crowd assembled around tho doors. We apPTo'ached .tho ; Grand Central Hotel with difficulty,, and on our arrival thero another de- : mand arose'for-a 1 war-cry; a demand which simply had to bo satisfied. This was responded to'by the ( crowd as enthusiastically "as ' it'ftas 'at'-'the'-station. Altogether, too rocoption which we recoived far exceeded all expectations in ' its spontaneous cordiality.. Wo had heard of tho way the 1905 "AH Blacks" wore welcomed , occasionally, but' tho. members of tho party with us stated unhesitatingly that on the previous tour thoro was nothing approaching the scenes t onaoted in, Leeds tlmt night. The enthusiasm, was continued after wo fought our way into tho hotel. Another knot of officials had assembled to groot us, and remarks of tho "Ahm roight glad ter, see th' lad" order again .greotod : us.- ' When tho last of us had struggled in from tho moleo outside the hotel", the orehestra played tho "Nations . Anthem, and wo "Imperialisod"-in song. 1 . A Banquet.-..-Wo wore . afterwards, .entertained to. • banquet' by.',the,Northern "Union Committees. Mr. H. Ashton Warrington, a.typical broad', chested, -kindly-voicid ■ Lancashireman, presided. In;, his owning- speech ho' endorsed the weenie received from tho. public of Lcods. Ho expressod a hope that the impression'that had boon convoyed to ,u's"at the outset of our tour might-not only' bsl mainMi'ned' but' magnified,' and concluded -'bji expressing hope' that': we should provq wbrthy-"-representatives of the country from, which'',wo, capi?'.■;' Mr'. J.' B.' Cook, of Wakefield, proposed tlie, toast of ..the, evening, "The Zealanders." Hia opening remark was accompanied by applauso and laughter.- - It wasy;" I' riso to proposo th 6 toast of tho ' Phantoms.' They look protty substantial, and I feel confident that when tho public of the North of England have had tho pleasure of seeing them on our • playing fields, and when our teams have had the pleasuro of meeting them, thoy will come to tho conclusion that thoy aro very substantial indeed."Captain Wright, Mr. Palmer, and Mr. Baskerville i replied on behalf of the " All Blacks." Mr. J. C. Gleeson then proposed the toast ■ -of "tho -Northern Union, and surprised all by his stirring and ablo speech. The toast was • heartily ' given with musical honours, tho rfliolo of. the New.'Zealanders giving voice t( For thoy aro jolly good fellowshi thf Maori tongue. Press Comments. • ■ . ■ s Tho following. extract from the " Yorte shire Evoning Post," of October 2, 1907, 'shows that wo havo created a favourable impression. If our presontr popularity and tha public interest in our tour oxpnnds in tho samo ratio as did tho last " All Blacks " wa aro in for a very agreeable holiday. It is as follows: —"Tho New Zealand professional footballers" havo undoubtedly created a favourablo impression in Yorkshire. All who have seen and talked with them to-day agree Jbat they aro a splendid set of fellows, magnificently built physically, intelligent and' in"tho''main' bf 'gentlemanly bearing; Socially, at any' : rato, thoy aro quite as rospcctablb, if o'no may uso tho term, a typo of men as tho nmatour '.All Blacks,' 1 who tpurod tho British Isles two years ago. It is a long timo since a' football team, in the North of England had such a rccoption ar thoy got. Thoro was a crowd of many thousands gathered round tho Midland Statior whon tho .team arrived at about 8 o'clock, and tho cheering was continued whilo they progressod from tho Strand to the Grand Central' Hotel, which' they aro making their headquarters."-