FOOTBALL.

Dominion, Volume 3, Issue 817, 14 May 1910, Page 10

FOOTBALL.

, RUGBY. 'TWEEN SPELLS AT THE PARE; ■j .-■■ ' (Br Amstobolu-'s.) Half-time at the Athletic Park matches is invariably the occasion upon which .swarms of schoolboys troop on to tho playing field, and proceed to "boot" about any stray football. It sometimes happens that only one football is-found available by the juveniles,, and the: sight of a hundred or so eager and vigorous boys—tho footballers of the-' futurechasing the leather all over the ground is most diverting for those assembled to watch more serious, if only "a little more scientific, football. '.."'■ Now, the statute book of. ihe football authorities does'not contain express prohibition of this "kind of.trespass, but,a 'veto was very nearly issued this week. ■The;;matter was brought up'at the meeting 'of the Management Committee of the Rugby;,. Union, some members urging that anything which could be construed into trespass at the Park should .be promptly stopped. The majority of the committee! agreed, however, that the boys did na harm in < the interval, and a suggestion that captains should take the ball off tho ■ field, with them was hot much warmth. Strong feeling was expressed, on'the other hand, that Court proceedings, should be taken against any. fence-climbers or others whose trespass might not be so ' much for tho public, good as the "trespass" of the boys durir? the interval. . ■■-.' -, The New Zealand team will play Wei-' 'lineton on June 3, before leaving for :' Sydney. ..•■■■ The Maori team to visit Sydney will leave New Zealand on May SO. . -". ... Advices to hand point to the coming, American team as likely to surprise. Australians by their strength and ability on. the Rugby field. The British team for South' Africa will leave England on May 24, arrive at Cape Town on June 7, and will spend three months in the colony. The uniform is to. be red, white, and blue. The jerseys will be blue, the knickers white, and the bos© of Welsh scarlet. ■ The blazers will ba ■green;. '•■'"■■ ! - . • • -.-'.■ " Otago Player-in 'Internationals;;" \ . -~ Referring to,'the'Anglo-Scottish'lnter-national' mntch, a London paper says ~— "Sioro were two or. three great, individual feats in the game, apd.■Macpherson's was" perhaps the greatest of them all. He had-received; a pass' froih' Scott in ,the. 'English 'twenty-five,', and,.had. cut., the centre, not stopping iix his dazzling effort .'until the ball - was ■ placed beneath the : goal-posts.: M'Callum' goaled." Have you-' ever.hoard a Scottish roar? :It'did fifteen.Englishmen good. Certainly, MaCr .pherson w as nearly • over-ag'aih' a, minute' or two-later, but in trying to jump over Johnston hejust jumped into touch in•6tead,\ The. on,ly ohahces -Macpherson- got were when he'iriade: them,;and, like.the clever little- New- Zealander,' the Hawick representative,' Sutherland,'-on"- the"other wing,;; could-have done' well /with'- more'opportunities ;for-.he:had 'the pace of- the' very sound Chapman."' '■:.■.■-'■ .-■'" V'" ; ''', ■■:" England's victory over Scotland- by If points to- 5 not only gave them the,- Calcutta? Cnp, but also' international championship,, an honour they hadi riot" secured since ISS2.' ■'. -. 1'..,.i .;..:..,..';:

The. International ■'. Board.-has- de'cided : that neutral- touch-judges shall '.have, pqweiv. to viep.ort;tb;»t]ie :reforee' players: guiHy-of foul plni&'-This is an innovation' neetfefl in'football .for'years; it has been' in.force in Wales for some.time, and is incorporated in the laws of the Northern Union Rngby. < • ~ -.•'

yThat Auckland Crisis. / -~; -■Tho crisis in' Aucklar.d Rugby affairs .•has. naturally increased; interest in this V season's prospects (says the "Weekly Ji'ews"). There is still a fair, amount of • speculation' us to whether the club system will be an improvement on the district tohemc, but many good judges consider that tho competition will be keener. By itha average Auckand footballer' the change is not yet fully appreciated, for the:, present-day player was very young when' .the, district scheme was . inaugurated, and ins, thorefore, been educated to recognise his residential quarters as the only plaqe ho could play for. Southerners,' however, have never taken 'kindly to the Auckland system, even though they havo beon able, in the majority of cases, to go and reside in whichever district they wished' to - play for. After careful rperusal of the'.qlubs' prospects, it will generally be conceded, that' the outlook for: good matches this year .is' bright.' In addition' several • repressnta:tive. matches will played. Of those the one.that will, no 'doubt, attract the greatest attention is that between Auckland and ; Wellington. Other matches contemplated are against Taranaki and' Canter- : bury. ■■.', .;. . •'■■:• ;" '.V ■' ,"""f n B" has the following reference to the .Californian converts to Rugby' who, ara.to visit -Australasia:—"Tho gniue as .played . is. not striot, English Rugby',"' states a professor of the University .'of California. "It is more of .the "Australian type, but has gone even beyond.them in-' the character of the Tlio"spirit of the. old game, which,' of coursi 'had beoh played by all members of the teams in their high school: days, still, remains with them, so that the-playing is much and more violent :than in the 'case of the English - ;game."; A professor: of Lolan.d Stanford •■lUirivor-' .'sity;' says:—"Spectators seem' to/ prefer Rugby to the old game. .•', . ..'Wo have, ''■at present no less bruises, cuts, sprains, .and. dislocations than, in the.'old game. ■; : J say 'at present' because I think the injured list will'grow smaller each year.' ■■We will have much unnecessary tackling •and holding to the ball brought over by jmon schooled in the old gamo. In addiction, the'men wear the regulation Rugby

■costume (with no padding), and play on i very hard fields, usually of dirt. Wo 'have had, howover, no cases of 'knockout' from concussion of the brain or spine —a, form of injury common in past f years.". - . "Cornstalk" Activities. The complete programmo of the New South Wales Rugby Union has been approved by the council. To say that it is a fine ono is to mildly : .put the case (says the Sydney "Telcfor nowhere in any part of the "world has there been such on aggregation of Rugby talent as will be found in Sydney during tho month of Juno. Nor will numbers alono make for the success of tho programme.. The best men playing the Union codo will be included in the bunch, and they will como from three different countries.

"Tho Sydney programme," said tho •secretary, "will be n prodigious one, and for tho first time in the history of Rugby in this Stated-extending over 37 roars— will four visiting tcanis bo in our midst.. Tho programme bears a most striking JnternLtional aspect, tho inclusion of tho American Universities' sido opening up anew', tiio possibilities of the development of the game all round the gjobo. ,In cricket, South Africa, Great Britain, and Australia are the chief contending forces; but in Rugby football, ndded to, these three' are the giant New ZealnndeTS— Maoris included—America, ririrl some' of the European countries. Slowly the game is taking on a world-wide significance. It: is travelling faster than the Pence Society's propaganda work, and gives promise of yet following tho missionary into tho wilds of countries now being pioneered by these useful workers in the catiso of civilisation. Now, tako the programme of Juno 18, if you would glean some idea of tho great, bill-nf-fare the .union is offering. On this dato the American and New South Wales Universities will moot as an early match, to bo followed by a contest between the Maoris: and New South Wales representative .tram. Then on Saturday, June 25. the representative New Zealand team will engage Australia as tho star fixture, tho curtain-raiser being a match between tho Maoris and tho Americans. It will be remembered' that' on the occasion of the Inst meeting of New Zealand and Australia, 52,000 spectators crowded themselves into the

Sydney Cricket Ground, being rewarded for their. patronage by 6eeing the Australians put up a grand fignt. _ In the country, the people will be given full opportunity of witnessing the visitors in action, tho larger towns on the Northern, Western-, and Southern Lines being visited on convenient dates. In addition to this, tho Now South Wales team to visit Brisbane, instead of playing a. Wednesday match in the northern capital, will be sent on a tour of , the northern ~ rivers districts..'- : Brisbano. will have : tho gap created made up for by a. visit from the Maoris, and will also . see . tho New Zealanders after they'have'recovered their sea legs, and may be considered at their best."