FOOTBALL.

Dominion, Volume 1, Issue 158, 28 March 1908, Page 9

FOOTBALL.

[By Ahisiodulus.] ; ,A. Asher, tho one-time Auckland rep.,,.is at present in Wellington. : j; C. M. Dyke (pf the British . team) accomplished a fijie goal-kicking, performance for Coventry against Stroud. Ho converted four tries in succession 1 and then added a penalty goal with -a-drop-kick. • , - E. E. Booth, the New.Zealander, 'who was ono of tho famous "All Blacks,"- and who showed! very good form for. New Zealand in Australia last season, ..is now in New South Wales: ~ ;,{ '.{! .;- v It was' stated "at. tliis week's mooting.of the Wellington Union that there is a probability of the. Railway Club entering .the lists again 'this season. / . : ■ The grass on the ■ fine new Rugby football ground at;- Eastend, Invercargill, ' has not come away as well as ; might have been ex..Dccted, but it is the intention of the Southland Union to use the; area this coming .season;''' v !'V ' ;. '• .''All Blacks" ' Stead and Glasgow Intend • re-entering the field ill' Southland r this sea- . . G. V. I'ortus, of Sydney, who. gained ,Ins cap for England this season, is a variable quantity : in club, football, says the, "Sportsmail." -At'his best he is a strong mdividu- < alist and a good tackier. A half more to our liking;; however; /is Davey,' of Cornwall, who", has been' selected:. lis a member, of tile British team.'-,.' • ;■,'V ~'■ His many-friends :will regret to learn that Davy Gage, who,, in . His: younger days, was a - tower -or /-strength ..to 1 the. Poneke, Wellington,''. andvNew Zealand teams,' has medical' attendance lately. The seat, of the trouble; is: stated to be an injury- which' had its origin on the -football, field; The' New Ze'aland'ers' "war-cry" greatly amused the crowd at.Stamford Bridge.: The laugh was loudest when- a contingent'. of Colonials -on- the, sta'nd. lustily gave, vent to : a "'chorus ;on : '.their{own account. J ' - ! V. -. At a meeting of the General .Committee !-of the Norther.n Rugby -Union,' '{.held at Hu'ddersfield'. recently,' it ..was reported- that the Australians had accepted an" invitation to, visit this country to play under-the .auspices, o^ : the..Nortliern; Unioiij and that -an/invitation'had been received for a Northern Union,team, to go to Australia •tlio'fpllovfing season.The latter matter 'was left ; bvor. for. further {'consideration, >.*. ; »The ,'headmaster, of . the. ■ Cardiff • • Wood Street' Board ' Schools,. iwhere 'Percy Bush, the '.famous . Cardiff .and . Welsh' International half-back, is ail assistant,- wrote to ,the' Car-' dill. Schools" Management; Committee recently complaining; of the ''International's- absencefrom 'school.'- "Mr.' Bush ;"'-'ivr'oto' the. master, "is "constantly unahle > to attend .'school owing : to' illness' and Injuries received; while, 'playing 'football. A .This make's.' the "seventh. ;occasion, ; 'on which Sir.-Bnsh. has; been absent ;thr'ough" illness,. or, injuries! since .-September. 1; last, and' bis; absences' have been", equal' to forty-two , days."'.. Mr. ~J. ;J. Jackson, a director of education, said that during tho last' eighteen .months Bush'.had- been, absent 'fifty-eight{days, and ;a 'half, '-etiual to eleven weeks' and .'three days,' in addition to his; 'holidays'. It • was resolved,:.after /"sbnie dis'cussion, to' write,to Mri.Bush'.,calling, liis at-, .tention to : his absences, \ andi'-poiiitirig out' that - the\committeo'-,'cannbt{ allow-ity,to.-, cpiitinuo.' ' .i j... ' % It is..understood "'that : H.- .M'Kay;ii a':Southland rep.-, will .play-'for-rtho Southern .Club this :■ season!; •{.: .< .On: ;-the,>.ieve: ofvhis : departure for Wellington*': "Harry".-, was t niade^thd-'re-cipient-' of; 'a-i si I ver-m6iinte'd{: wai[ki ng-stick -, by ■tho members'cf the' Invercargill ' Football Club. {";•'

II- H. Vassall (ono of the three-quarters in the British team) was a. great success;for. •England! against: Ireland.'Ho was','; says an' eminent {. critic,{' a; centre of real 'with, great: gifts of ' pace, ij resource, and . skill! Long -may he 'play,'- for - England 1 iHe.. aided {and abetted Hudson very considerably; his Tilterhational debut was most promising • in" 'every respect.-'.";{ Says . ..the;! "Sportsman".: That Oxford was a''leading factor in . England's wini must have been apparent to all, for. Williamson; and H. H. Vassall were tho predominant-;partners tin All. England's' ac-. trial' scores,', and {in a, great. number {of-.her {attacking' movements amongst.VrtHe backs. • -

/' . An;ong .'the j new'members of tho.-Excelsior .Football Club at Gore; are two of th'e.sihart-est-pedestrians'in; tbe ; lDi(>mihicin, : '"viz.v.; Trembath, amateur half-mile''champion'.' of Australasia, and' J: Cur^y,"who has'few su--periors in the"cash ranks'of 'the colony for sprinting jibility.'. ;" { . '.The|'follov/ing;. letter received 1 by> an English! M.P., .who, had beeni"prevailed upon {'to., become president; of, ; : and; .of course, subscribe, to, the, local Iboys' club; tells its own story :. "Honoured Sir,—l sorry to tell you that: cannot: get ground to play on. The club is therefore bust: up. '{We spent your guinea' ; oh; the'panto, {with a- supper after. •The expenses oft, ussthree committee.come to .•255.{ 6d. V Perhaps' 1 you'll 'send. ! .tbo odd four-and-a-tanner by return.'' The M.P. - sent it.

■ The: arranging 'of the fixtures-of the NewSouth Wales team which .is.jto'.arrive iu .Eng-. land next September, is, as in the case of the South Africans, to be'left in ithe hands of ai Rugby .Union sub-committcet. The {fixture {list will include, all counties,' and be much on the same lines as'that of South" Africa, except that no matches' will be played in Scotland or Ireland, ancl'that .Wales will have allotted.to .herself, and. her clubs a dozen fixtures. : . ' ' •

i- Rugby Unionists in 'the •' metropolis have been wondering what was the object of bringing the New ; Zealanders into. their' :midst., : If the venture'.;were merely -a financial'one it may be allowed to pass; on the other. hand,', if the idea was to spread' "professionalism, .the Northern ;Union '.will, be fought with the' samo keenness as has characterised tlio struggle : in ,the/North;, ■ Our own opinion .is-that tliero is a -very small chance' of professional. meeting with favour, in ,London! I—"Tho1—"Tho Yorkshire Post." .

In a recenfr match between Cornwall arid Devon . E.: J. Jackett ( .(ivho is a member of itho British team) .dropped a goal from' a, penalty kick almost upon the. half-way . lino. . I' have, often been asked whether :< captaincy .counts in football ,a's it does m. cricket...'Tho answer is, yes anU., no.. It. counts differently. In football a .captain cannot direct operations: they happen. What he .can-do is to inspire effort .by ,bis personality ; and: that is about all'ho 'can,da,nn;. a particular inatel:. -But he can exercise enorinfluence on'the tactics of his'team* if he take's the trouble to work hard •at developing styles of play, in practice gamos. In fact,'captaincy counts; heavily in a match if its functions, have been exercised in the .preparation which takes. placo,: and •'can.".only take placo, weeks beforo the niatch . is played: In , cricket tactics cannot be re-| lifiarscd. 'in football;, they can';, and this is. what differentiates : captaincy in the two j'garnes.— C. B. Fry in "Lloyd's Weekly."

According to the Sydney "Referee," the Hunter Ilivcr Union, at a meeting in West Mnillnnd on March 10, received a communication from the Rugby League, inviting that branch union to join tho League. Au offer of-a match by tho Now Zealand'professional, team at Maitland, arid a proposal to bring a. Maitland team to .Sydney every. Saturday, and pay all tho expenses was mado, but it was unanimously decided not to entertain tho offer; ' r - . • i.. .

With a' view to encouraging football,, tho Lancashire Football Association proposo to deduct 2} per. cent, froni all gates in'tho senior and junior cup 1 ties to form a, special' fund to subsidise minor clubs called upon to travel moro than .20 miles to the extent of not mcro than £3. At Bristol . recently ' two brothers named Francis arid Frederick Bracoy. were convicted of issuing hotting slips on football results. . Much betting upon football was being done, it was stated, in Bristol, arid defendants made it a practice to commission men in factories .to collect money from fol-low-workers ,arid hand it .to them in certain publichouses. The elder defendant was fined £10,: and the yonngcr brother was bound ■over.'