RUGBY LEAGUE

Greymouth Evening Star, 1 February 1926, Page 5

RUGBY LEAGUE

CHRISTCHURCH DISSENSIONS SECRETARY’S RESIGNATION. (Special to “Star.”) CHRISTCHURCH, February 1. A special meeting of .the Canterbury Rugby League, held on Saturday evening, accepted the secretary’s resignation. , . ' | ' The Chairman read the following letter received from the New Zealand Council': —“At a special meeting of the New Zealand Rugby League, held at Welington on January 23, the question of the present position of ■’your League and the Board of Control was fully discussed, and the decision arrived at by a large majority of the delegates present was that the action of the Council in regard to the the resignation of your secretary be confirmed. The Council therefore requests you to obtain the resignation of your League’s secretary, Mr W. S.. E. Moyle, to ensure that all books or documents pertaining to your League be handed to you forthwith. Kindly see that this matter is attended to immediately.” Mr E. Healey said that the New Zealand Council had assassinated the Canterbury League. It was accusing them of not acting straightforwardly. A statement had been made tht the speakerhad not acted squarely, but he asked them to judge after they had heard him. '

Mr Healey then .reported on the special meeting of the Council for the election of managers for the tour. Dealing with the demand by the Council for the resignation' of Mr Moyle, he stated that, after the other business had been dealt with, the President (Mr J. Carlaw) said they had a disagreeable duty to perform in dealing with the secretary of the Canterbury League. Mr Healey said he asked for evidence upon which the Council had taken its action. Mr Carlaw said that he had submitted a evrbal report on returning from Auckland on the differences between the Canterbury Leogue and the Board of • Control. The speaker had asked for a special sitting of the conference to file Mr Moyle’s defence, but this was refused. He then asked that Mr Moyle be. allowed to attend the next meeting of the Council at Auckland, hut this, was also denied him. With one dissentient, the conference’ had then carried a resolution confirming the Council’s action. The secretary had been tried, not on written facts, but on hearsay, and a good deal ofheresy. The Canterbury delegate at Auckland (Mr Rhodes) had come to the same conclusion as the others, that the Board of Control was of more value to League football than their secretary. Mr Rhodes had done what he thought best. After the conference had carried a resolution, Mr E. L. McKeon had endeavoured to get a resolution through appointing Mr Carpenter as secretary of the Canterbury League, pro tern. Mr Carpenter said that he had nothing to do with Mr McKeon’s action. The Chairman then read a letter from Mr Moyle resigning the position of secretary. The leter read as follows: “In compliance with the request of the New Zealand Rugby League Council, I herewith .forward my resignation to you as secretary of the local Centre. In this action I have no hesitation in stating that the ultimatum front the New Zealand League is probably without precedent in sporting pastimes of this Dominion. Their decision was the outcome of the opinions and extremist actions taken by the Monica Park Board of Control, principally the adopted by Messrs McKeon, Hooper, Smyth and Hardin'gham and others, who under the protection of meetings of the executive, allowing one or another to be present, have worked •in the interests of a certain section to obtain control of the management of the code in Christchurch. This is borne out by reason of the fact that other members of the Committee, whose ab 7 sence from the executive would be welcomed by the section alluded to, who, gave Mr J. Carlaw their views with 1 one intention. I trust that you will all carry on the good work of the code, which I claim to have assisted in building up from its inception. I shall be willing to give assistance to you on certain conditions, viz-, that Messrs McKeon j<nd Hooper are dealt with as per the resolution passed by the Sydenham club in October last and endorsed at the meeting of the executive on October 14, that F. Smyth and C./ Hardingham are not members of any future management committee. lam quite prepared to substantiate what I have stated. For the future of the code and the hundreds of fine players and youths supporting the game, my opinions are that you should all carry on the administration for the benefit oi the players. The N.Z. Council should furmsh you with a reply to the correspondence asking their reason for demanding the resignation of the local secretary. I wish the code players, clubs and officials the success the game so deserves, when you -are freed from the extremists. I thank the executive and majority of officials and players for the wonderful support they have given me for- the past fourteen years. ’ ’ Mr E. Healey moved that this meeting of delegates from clubs affiliated to the Canterbury Rugby League regret that the secretary resigned owing to the action of the New Zealand Council, through defamatory reports by persons in Christchurch who desire the secretary’s removal for their own purposes. The executive has full confidence in the secretary, and does not desire his resignation, being quite satisfied, with his abilities. The whole of the books are in order, as disclosed by the report of the public auditors. Mr Russell seconded the resolution, which was carried unanimously, although all the delegates did not vote. Mr S. Richardson (Addington Club) was then elected as secretary. On the motion of Messrs W. Healey and Kettle it was decided to i-ecord in the miutes apreciation of Mr Moyle’s services to the code. v

With one dissentient, it was decided to endorse the action of the executive in support of the letter from the Sydenham Club on October 13 regarding Messrs McKeon and Hooper, they be disqualified for ever and their names removed from all records of the local Centre.

In reply to Mr Carpenter, the Chairman said that the disqualification must be endorsed bj the Council. Voices They won’t do that. It was decided to ask Mr McKeon to resign the position of treasurer of the Board of Control. It was decided to hand back to the donor, the McKeon Cup. The Chairman said that the League had always acted above board. Hicks and Ain ger, public auditors, had certified that the League’s books were in or-

der. Mr Moyle had been accused of submitting a '“crookI'’ 1 '’ balance sheet, to which a forged signature was attached, but he could assure them that everything was in order.