THE DAVIS CUR

Dominion, Volume 4, Issue 1149, 9 June 1911, Page 6

THE DAVIS CUR

« — : WELLINGTON OR CHRISTCHURCH ? WHICH WILL IT BE? OPINION VERY EVENLY DIVIDED. i The vexed question as to where the world's championship tennis match for tho Davis Cup will bo played is still agitating the minds of , tennis authorities throughout the Dominion. . Last year it was decided that the Cup conteests should "take placo in .Wellington, but circumstances prevented the match being'play-ed-at all that year. Tho whole ground has had to be gone over again,- and matters have arrived at an interesting ( stage. The matter was brought to a, semifinal," so to speak, by a resolution passfv.l by tho Council of tho New Zealand Lawn Tennis Association, which is contained in a notice issued to delegates on May 24 convening a meeting of the coun-' oil to be held on Juno 27. The business Of tho meeting is— . ■■ To recommend location of Davis • Cup competition, and to fix New Zealand championships, 1911; also, to nominate i)avis_ Cup Management Committee foi: New Zealand. Appended is the following notice:— j-': .Your association is requested to Withhold consideration of the. abovementioned business pending.receipt of ■ data to be supplied by the Auckland, Wellington. Canterbury, and Otago Associations. This is expected to be .received by tho Management Committee within ten days of date hereof, and it is hoped will be available for the various associations in sufficient ' timo to allow of careful.' consideration. ... - ' .: •'The data mentioned has been received by : Mr. C. Pethcrick (secretary of the j association), who is dispatching copies -to the various associations for their coni federation. It is contained in the fol- • lowing letters:— From the Wellington . "The 'Wellington.'' Association considers ithat in tho interests of the tennis play,ei's and the general pnblic of the Dominion," and in the interests of tho Australasian Association, the_ Davis Cup match .should be played in Wellington. Of tho unany obvious advantages of Wellington jas the location of this important fixture, \my committee • would commend for your '■consideration the following:— i "Wellington is, geographically-.the best f situated city in the Dominion. It is the icentre of all the important travelling 'services, both in the Dominion, and with oversea, ports. It is tho most central City for the largo majority < of . tennis players, and also for fully two-thirds of /the population of the Dominion. It is I the capital city pf the Dominion, and, itherefore, the proper place' for any in'tcrnational event. It can provide a better gato for any sports gathering than any other city in the Dominion, as shown by the following reliable information, and by letters enclosed from secretaries of" kindred associations. On tho occasion of the last visit of a cricket team from . Australia, the New Zealand Cricket Association proposed to finance the tour by pooling the proceeds. The .Wellington Association refused to stand (in on these conditions, being content to ■stand or fall .by the result of its own gate. The result was that.the Wellington Association made a clear profit of ,£l22* against Canterbury's profit of .£lO, and- Otago's profit of .£56. All the. other associations-lost on; their matches during this tour. On all occasions for a num"bcr oftyears past' the Wellington Cricket ■'Association .'has made bigger profits _ on" I ynatches 'than any other association.. ■ Theso facts are obtained from the> annual reports of the New Zealand and Associations. • • "Tho principal sports associations have larger memberships in the Wellington province than in any other province. The Australasian Athletic Championship ■ meeting is to be held in - Wellington about the same time as the Davis Cup, and will he sure to attract a large num■beC 'overseavisitors to tho city,: DC-,. sidc§; offering ail' additional attraction"tb ■holiday-seekers. • ■. - "In the matter of grounds, tho following formation is available: _ From inquiries made, my committee 'finds 'that' two. excellent _ grounds can lie obtained on which the match courts' can "be prepared. One' of these grounds, is in the city, easy of approach, and convenient to the principal tram services. It is sheltered, and has splendid advantages for the arrang■in" and erection of stands, etc. It is sheltered. .This ground is large enough to provide 1 for six additional courts should they be required. The cost of {preliminary preparation for the Davis 'Cup court will not exceed .£3O, if the '.match should not be played. The cost ;of preparation and maintenance of the (court will cost between «£7o and .£IOO. ;A hill adjacent to the court would ac- ; commodate about 2000 people. The second i ground available is at Day's Bay, and } the cost of maintenance and preparation would be nil, becauso the Wellington Asjßociation has a lease of the ground thirling the tennis season. : "Practical courts can be obtained tree of any-charge at the following places:— Two at Trentham, one or more at Day's ;Bay; Mr. T. C. Williams's court in Hob-' j son Street. Two courts belonging to the ■'Thorndon Club would be placed at the •disposal of the visitors. Grandstands to '■accommodate 5000 people could be erected on cither ground mentioned above at a cost of .£550. _ ..... ~ ; "My committee places this information before vou as being thoroughly reliable, and in'the. event of Wellington being as the location of the Davis Cup match, will assist in every possiblo way in furthering the interests of tho Davis Cup Committee.—l am, yours faithfully, jD. Murray Kean, hon. secretary, W.P. ! L.T.A." From the Canterbury Association. ' "With regard to the claims of Christchurch as a suitable centre for holding tho Cup contest, I am inclined to point iout its-central position, it being easily , accessible from all partis of New Zealand. It is decidedly tho most convenient oentre for Canterbury, Otago, Southland, and West Coast people, and as •regards North Islanders the difference in ■ cost anil time between Christchurch and Wellington, the only other city with i equal claims in respect of its central (position would be merely nominal. Those from any place outside Welling■ton would have to come into that city on Itho day before tho contest and spend, the inight there, and they would bo losing •nothing if they had to go on to Christchurch bv steamer arriving on the morning of tiie match, whilst tho boarding ,and lodgin. l ? expenses would ba an ofi''6«t against' the steamer fare. .

"My association has obtained from the Board of Control of tho Canterbury .Cricket Association. I.td.. the body controlling Lancaster Park, an offer to tho 'Australasian Association of £500 for the contest. The board to provide a firstclass ground thoroughly suitable for such contest and to pay all cost of stands, advertising, and preparation of ground, ctc., pay thy Australasian Association a clear sum of .£SOO, and take the whole of tho takings from all sources. In case "this offer should not meet with the approval of the Australasian Association, my association has obtained from the Board of Control of Lancaster Park tho following alternative offer:— '"To provide and prepare ground for play as in the offer already set out. Tho cost of'the stand accommodation for say 4000 people, expenses of advertising, and gate-keepers' wages to be a first charge on the gate takings. Tho Board of Control to take 20 per cont. •of the net takings. leaving 80 per cent, for tho association.'

"In view of the alternative offer the ntieries that would probably be raise<l by Hie Australasian Association are dealt with in detail. One of these (a) is as follows: 'First-class.sport of any description has always recoived liberal support from the Canterbury' public, as witness the attendance at the matches of the last Australian cricket team to -visit New Zealand, and my association lias no doubt but that Canterbury would produce as good. 'A gate as any town in Now Zealand.'"

Continuing tho letter states: "In addition to the above financial and other claims, my association desires me to point'out that Mr. Anthony Wilding (to whose efforts we arc indebted for the fact, that the contest, has been allotted to New Zealand) lias expressed a strong wish that the match should be

played in Christchurch, that being his native place, and to urge that his wishes aro surely entitled to great consideration seeing tliat Christchurch is so suitable in other respects. As 1 understand you are anxious to get tho applications round to the Provincial Associations at once, I am writing without waiting to get the written offers in the form desired by your association. . . . Yours truly, Stanley u . Jameson, lion, secretary to the Canterbury Lawn Tennis Association." How the Voting Will Go. As tho Auckland and Otago Associations have signified their intention of supporting tho Canterbury Association in nominating Christchurch as the locale of the big fixture, it Is interesting to analyse .tho'voting-.strength .of the various associations, and to assume in which direction their, votes will be cast. This has been done with the following result:— For Wellington. For Christchurch. Votes. Vo K' Wellington 8 Canterbury < Taranaki i Otago •' Hawke's Bay ... I Southland J Wanganui I! Wcstland 2 Nelson 1 Auckland <> • Marlborough ... 3 _ - ' ■ 23 If .the voting is cast as above at the "meeting to recommend the location ot tho Davis Cup competition" on Juno the task of deciding where the Davis tup will be played will practically rest with the chairman of the New Zealand 'Tennis Association. That office is jk present held by Mr. C. W* Griffiths, of Blenheim. „ . .