SOCCER

Evening Post, Volume CV, Issue 89, 14 April 1923, Page 14

SOCCER

liY'"VANeUARD"J

Preliminary matches, played as a. prelude to th£ move serious contests to follow, have given rise to the hop© that a very high standard, of play may be expected in all grades of the competition this season. Players have apparently settled dqwn seriously to the business of fitting themselves, for what, should prove to be a year, and clubs are making every endeavour to strengthen the teams which they intend to place in the field. Entries for all grades mustbe' in the hands of the secretary of the association not later than 17th April, and the competitions will be put under way oil 2gth April. , Indications are that the entries will again be large, although, it is not generally anlicipated that they will exceed last season's entries to any appreciable extent. The* age limits for this year are the sam,e as last, but as the penalty fpr playing over-age players is severe it would be well to repeat them. The following table should, therefore, prove of interest to parents, on whose shoulders tlie responsibility rests to some extent:— Senior—No limit..,.. Junior—No limit. . Third Division-—2l- years on l?t April. , Fourth Division—lß years on Ist' AprilFifth Division—l 6 years on Ist April. Sixth Division-—l 4 yeays on Ist April. Seventh Division—Same age. Eighth Division—l 2 years on Ist April. A high wind a-obbed the match between Watersiders and Marist, played at Association Park last Saturday,' of .anything approaching tht spectacular, but the standard of play was sufficiently good, to indicate both teams are. able to place senior.elevens in the field of which .they have every reason to be proud. On the day's play Watersiders, were the better team, their display being of a pore attractive description in that they combined well together, and appeared to have a good understanding ot each others' play. Such an understanding is essential if good results »v& to be achieved in. competition games, but it can only be brought about by regular. attendances at practices. : Tlie Association game is filling an important part in the sporting life of the community, and those who aspire .to senior represent tation should be willing to give at least one night a week to practice. A feature.of the match, and one that went to show that Wellington is by no means poor as regards, m«n.to fill the important and responsible- position, of goalkeeper, was the'display given by Fitzgerald, the :Marist custodian-. Time. and again he prevented the completion of forward movements by the Watersiders by effecting brilliant saves, which earned for him the N merited ; applause of the spectators, who, by the way, were obvi-' ously supporting the Waterside elqyeu. Particularly in the second spell, Fitzgerald repeatedly saved his sifle, and had it not been for him'it is certain that the score would have been more, like six to nil than three to nil. ■ ■ • Although Watersiders. secured two goals' in the first spell and only one in tho second, the first spell was far more even than tho second, and Marist had their fair share of th& play. Their forward line, however, failed to avail itself of several opportunities to score, and when the leather did go near the goal it was dealt with in business-like fashion by .the custodian, Porteous. The shooting throughout the game was weak, and it would appear, that: the forwards on both sides, will have to devote more attention to this important phase of the. game. However clever v a centre or inside forward nia.y be in the field he is> of little iise in the team if lie is unable to send the ball between the posts occasionally. Those who gave a good account of themselves on Saturday were :—Watersiders : Anton, Gilbertson, Cusack, Jones, Jackson, and Porteous. Marist: M'EUk got, Thomas, and Fitzgerald.; ..'.'. THE HOME OF CUP FINALS. The new 'home for the English Cup Final is a wonderful enclosure. The Empire Exhibition "News," in speaking of the ground, says: "The decision to make the-Stadium one of the central features of the Exhibition was. made at a very ; early stage in the preparation of' theplans. That'decision has never been regretted. The ( ' Stadium as it rises from the ground is fulfilling all the hopes of its designers. > Its completion will be a landmark in the history of British sport, as the Exhibition itself will be in the history of the Empire. There has never been in the London area a sports 'ground capable of giving proper accom- j modation to the huge crowds that flock I to see a final tie of. the Football Association Cup. The Stadium, was primarily, designed for this purpose. Its. accessibility, its multitude of entrances and exits, • and its vast capacity render it peculiarly suitable for this great sporting event, the climax of each season. One hundred and twenty-five thousand persons will be able not merely to get in, but to have a perfect view of the arena and the game, of this great number, approximately 35,000 will be seated, 25,000 under cover, aud 10,000 in four rows of ring seats which surround the playing area. The Stadium is unique, not merely in size and convenience, but in'the object for which it has been built,- which is to provide a national home for- all British sport for which it is suitable. Wembley will become the mecca of' all national sporting events in football and athletics. To bo a victor at Wembley will be to have conquered in the national court of appeal, and will carry with it a distinction which no other ■ ground • can .offer." - ' ■ It is clear that the two teams who have the great good fortune lo play in this! year's final, West -Ham United and Bolton Wanderers, will enjoy a- distinction, which will indeed be unique and got a rai'e picking from Ufa gate as well. A person who witnessed one of. the very | first cup finals recalled the other day« how he, as an apprentice, went to the oval and watched the match while lying on the grass iiea'1 1 the touch line, as scores of the spectators did in a "gate" of not more than 600, ■ Times are vastly c'liang- , ed, Football'in a cominoroiiil proiiositjaii nowadays, which fact is born forcibly

A HIGH STANDARD

WHAT PRELIMINARY GAMES SHOW

PRACTICE KEYNOTE OF SUCCESS

upon one when; one rwtds of the wonder,ful transformation that has. been effected at the splendid home of Aston Villa. Villa Park will now accommodate 120,000 spectators. A magnificent new stand, which surpasses even that at Hillsbrough, Sheffield, has been erected, and it. wilt accommodate 6000 spectators seated. Underneath it will be a restaurant where, spectators may buy luncheon or tea, Turkish, and swimming baths for. the, players, and a special writing-up room for. the Press.' It ..is ahfrost a certainty that if there, is a-dra,wn game in the final at Wembley, the Aston Villa ground will be automatically selected. for the, re* p!ay- ■ " <» It was. cabled thi» week- that en.Qrmou.s'crowds watched the semi-finals of; the English.-cup... The ,g»te. takings in the. Bolton Wanderers—Sheffield 'United game, amounted to £7000, and at the West Ham United—Derby. County to £6038. Derby County lost 5-2, a big score'for a semi-final, and-Boltpji Wanderers won'l-0. ' ■ ,/ PASSING OF GREAT FOOTBALLER. The death-of Baron Kinnaird, president of the English Football Association, occurred at the end of January. He was--75 yeafs of age. Referring to Baron Is in--naird's career both as an active footballer and a governor of England's- national game, the "Athletic News" says: "He joined the committee of the Football Association in JB6B, a year after his first match with the Wanderers; an Old Boys' club that five times won the Association, Cup. Thus fro.toi 1868 to 1923 he was a governor of the game. In all its p transformations and. vicissitud«B he remained staunch. There wae no aloofness about Lord Kinnaird. He determined to assist in the legislation for cdntrol of professionalism, which he eaw t could not be "prevented or stopped. His devotion to modern \Qotball has always appealed .to thoughtful men. The late Lord Kinnaird was convinced, t that sport could not be divorced irc-m the social, the moral, and the religious sides of life. He stood up manfully for the. young man and his games. ' The player's, of games had a champion in him just as much as the ploughmen of Perthshire. This side of his-noble' character siiould appeal to his equalin pedigree, in rank,' ; and in opportunity for service to th« community. . After being at Cheam School the late Lord Kinnaird proceeded to Eton, and began his football w the Michaelmas term of 1861. He-played in every position, and going on to Trinity College, Cambridge, jvas the csptain of the team, but he was nut..'among the football Blues, for the. inter-univer-sity Association match was hot' instituted until 30th Marfih, 187.4, but in 1868 and 1869 he played "the king of game* »nd the game of kings," royal. tennis, for Cambridge University with R. D. Balfour, and was never beaten in the /Singles^ In Soccer he played for all kinds of teams, and assisted London to beat Sheffield at Battersea Park on 31st March, 1866, the ■ first representative game ever played. As a member of the Wanderers.he helped them' to. win the Association Cup in 1873 against Ox.. ford University, in 1877 against .the Oxonians, and in 1878 against the Royal Engineers. For the Old Etonians he was among the victors against. the Clapham Rovers-in 1879, and yet again in 1882 he helped them to conquer Blackburn Rovers. Between 1873 and 1833 he took part .in nine final ties, three'for th_e Wanderers and six for the Etonians, and was five times on the winning side." Mr, John Charles Clegg has been appointed chairman of the English Football Association in succession to the late Lord j Kinnaird. NOTES. - -. i Should referees be called upon to wear a uniform? This waa a question that wae considered at. some length at the annual meeting of the Wellington Referees' Association, and ■ the suggestion was made by.a, delegate that each referee appointed to a senior match, at least, should be asked to ; turn out in black shorts and.-a dark blazer. It was quite rightly pointed.out that some end.eavour should be made to bring about\ uniformiiy in the matter of referees dress, as it is a well-known fact that the public will not support a game that lacks dienitr. Many arguments against a proposed uniform were advanced, and it was urced that if referees were willing to give up their Saturday afternoons for the good of the game, they should be allowed to use tlieir own discretion as to their apparei. Then, again.] one referee, stated quits plainly" that he would jiive up refereeing ii he had to buy a blazer, simply because he could ' not afford the luxury. While one must have some respect for the opinions and feelings of the men who control the game, it must be admitted that it is very desirable that referees Should decide on some proper form of dress. A pair of dark shorts and a dark coat and cap •would filj. the bill excellently, A sei'ies of fortnightly lectures for referees has been arranged this season, and much Rood is expected to- result, ac the. services of: five gentlemen closely associated with the game have been se- . cured. _. . A proposal that an age limit of. 21 years be. made on players in tlie third: division was moved at the animal meetinjr of the Auckland Football Association. Last year the restriction had been lifted, as the fact of all players beint/ requiredto be under that age had resulted in no competition for a period, of three years. The motion was defeated, and the position now remains that age limits only Pfevail up 1* the fourth division. Rumours. that the majority of members of the management committee ,of the W.F.A. were resigning at the aunual meeting did not niateralisoi the only old members who did hot seek' re-election being Messrs. Auld and Dick, both of, whom have, worked strenuously in the interests" of tho game. Mr. Auld has been 1 a member of the committee for many years, and his loss this year N's beingfelt very keenly. He %vas always ready to do Ilia share of whatever work was on hand, and was a valued member of the , grounds inic) championship committee. .Mr. A. X Welle, who iillccl the position of chairman last year, made »-half-heart- [

Ed attempt to stand down this year, but 'delegates would'not hear of such'a, proballot, and. he was placed at- the top of the list, a good indication of his popularity with players generally. At thi» week's meeting of the management committee he was. a§ajp elected to the position of chairman. ■' A point raised at la»t week's meeting of the management committed was that lower grade teams which we're required to travel out of town more than once during the season were faced with the prospect of paying out a. considerable amount of money in fares, and./a member asked: if it wpijld ijot be possible to give these players some' assistance. At the present. I'me the burden of paying the fares fall| on. the Ehou'defs of the parents, as most j o_i the lower grade playersr—that is, fifth, six.th, seven, and. eißhth---ar« tchoolboys,, earning no money. Members of the committee expressed sympathy with the boys,'but it was generally held that to pay the farei each S»tur4»y would in,< volve the association in too great an expenditure altogether. La*t year, it wa» staged, it cost the Rugby Union £112 for the payment .of fare*. That would be too great a hurdle for the association. Members :djecussed th» question «t some length,'anct.it was finally dec Wed that if a teaim was, required, to travel more than once in a aeason applications for a. refund of fares would be considered by the association. . . The rFootball Association-is falling iii line w'th kindred sports bodies in Wellington in running a points championship in' conjunction, with the ordinary competitions. The club gaining the most r pointe in all grades' will receive a donation of £2 2s from the association, the object .being that the club will provide a medal for presentation to one of its members. The idea of a points _ championship is an excellent one, as it is a great incentive for a club to piowa»e aid foster lower grade teams. It is possible for a club not winning a single championship to win the points trophy. The oft-di»ouse«d question a* to whether it is legal to-play substitutes in Association football matches has been decided by the English Football Asso r ciation. That 'body passed the following motion recently: , ''It having been reported to the> council that it was becoming a practice to allow substitutes _to • take the place of players injured during a game, the council^ decide that such a, praotice is contrary to the Laws 'of the Game, and that it be not permitted in competition saatcW." ' , The association haa decided 1 to aura) a six a-eid» tournament' on 21ot Ap^ril for all E?»dee, below third, and entries for this will, close on 18th April. The, holdin« of this tournament is an excel-, lent idea, as members-of the lower grade teams look forward to such a tourna-_ mentt with, considerable pleasure. Th§ W.F.A. has wisely decided to form a. committee to control the lower grades, and to, eiva it wide powers, the' main committee to review its actions. While much hasi been done for the juniors Mf the past, a great deal more requires-to-be dome, particularly amongst the smaller boys. ' These require all the encour.'agement and attention it is possible to give them. As, the season projfresses the amount of general work for the Management Committee is too great for them to"jtive the.' necessary attention to every grade,,and the, result is that the boys are usually the sufferers. The boy.ttkesi hi» football just ss seriouily. and perhaps more so, than the seniors; and he expect* to be taken seriously by the controlling body. Of- the several sub-commit tees formed bj the W.F.A., one of the most important from a player's .point of view is the Postponement Committee> which this year will.consist .of Messrs Diiffcan and Wells. .With a big programme of matches to .cet through, the weather' will have to be extremely bad to warrant a postponement. But shouldn'tthe ! number have been three? It will be 1 rather awkward if one favours- 'postponing -and the other is against it. Will a toss,of a ( coin then decide? . - Mr. Arthur Morriaon.an old supporter of the Brooklyn Association ■ Football Club, has donated a handsome gold ; medal to be awarded as the secretary thinks fit. A mild sensation wae caused in Pres--1 tea football circles when it was announced that Vincent Hayes, the 'manager of the club since March. 1919,, had : resigned, and that the directors had^appointed James Lawrence, the old Newcastle United goalkeeper, in his place. J The Hospital. Club. has decided to adopt the Pprirua school team and enter I it a» Hospital team in the sixth, division. This is a very desirable step, and ,'ono that should be followed, whenever possible," by every senior team. The advantages are mutual, and the eood of the game_iet incalculable. The" matter was mentioned at the' annual meeting of the W.F.A., and it is pleasing to ccc results »o quickly. , The .V.M.C.A. Club will u t in two teams in the senior grade this year," and ,it is expected that they will give a good ■account of themselves. The A team will contain some of last year's representatives, and it is anticipated, that at least two of these will be chosen to go to Australia in May This year's thirdclas« team will be the same as that of last year, with the * exception of D. Price, ■ who has to play the Rugby code for the College. He is/too gjood a player to lose to Soccer, and ;t is hoped that he will be able to play in his old place again next.year. V.M.'C.A. fourthclass have a- fairly strong team,..and' a new acquisition is Sisson, who played Ih goal for Island Bay last year. It is also said that they are getting the servicesof a young player, who was in a. Scottish representative team against England last year, as centre-forward.