SOCCER

Hawera Star, Volume XLV, 30 May 1925, Page 11

SOCCER

(By “Centre Half.”) The approach of the “big” fixture on the iving’s birthday next Wednesday, June a, is the current topic in lineal Soccer circles. Wanganui are sending up a strong representative team this year, and a very good game is assured.

Taranaki have more than held their own against Wanganui for some years past, but if rumour is right the “mountain” province will lie severely tested next Wednesday. The Wanganui Woollen Mills have a very fine team this year, and, with several of tiieir players included in the reps, they wil| be very hard to beat! Hie Taranaki selector (Mr. M. H. Kendal!), has been busy with his pencil, and whatever team he selects can be depended on to put up a creditable performance. On Wednesday he visited a trial game at Manaia, and a very good game resulted. His task is not by any means an easy one, but by today lie will have seen the Auroa v. Hawera fixture, and the team to represent Taranaki next Wednesday will be published in Monday’s Star.

The representative game this year is really being looked forward to with great enthusiasm, as it is being combined with our Rugby friends on the A. and P grounds. The City football club (Hawera) have joined, in with the idea of making •next Wednesday a “football” day, and it is very pleasing to see the two codes working so harmoniously' together. That is the right spirit for aR sports to adopt—the spirit of friendship to each other. The Hawera Municipal Band has very kindly consented to play a programme of music during the afternoon. Its assistance will be much appreciated by the public as wel| as the Rugby and Association authorities. It is to be hoped that the clay will be a fine one, and the public will certainly be provided with a good afternoon’s football.

It is learned on very good authority that negotiations arc almost complete for the English team (.now touring Australia) to pay a short visit to this country on their way home. Possibly the tour through New Zealand will only be about a fortnight, and they will probably play four Test matches against Now Zealand—One at Dunedin, Christchurch, Wellington and Auckland. If it does come to pass, then those in the centres are very fortunate to be able to see these champions in action. What a pity they are not coming to Taranaki! Press reports have already told ns that they are sweeping al] before them over in Australia, and their first Test against Australia they won by five goals to nil. No doubt a good numbe r of Soccer enthusiasts will make the trip to Wellington to see them —and the writer will one!

It is practically official news now that a team from Australia will come over to New Zealand this year possibly in August or September. The New Zealand Council have already promised that a match will be arranged for against Taranaki. We have very pleasant recollections of the last Australian Soccer team at New Plymouth,’ and we can assure them of a royal welcome, a good game, and — who knows—we may heal them !

TRICKERY WINS MATCHES

A SOUTHAMPTON EPISODE. It is remarkable how footballers, even men of wide experience, are caught and taken in by simple tricks which are so old as to be almost forgotten, writes Tommy Clay (Spurs and England full-bahk) in a London paper. Xoii will have noticed that when Southampton were awarded a free kick m their Cup-tie against Liverpool, Harkus ran forward as if to take the kick.

Instead of the expected shot he jumped over the ball and let Rawlings who quickly followed up, drive it at an unanticipated angle past the goalkeeper. That simple dodge put Liverpool out of the Cup. , They might not have known how to work that trick in the earlier years of the Cup competition, but I imagine that it was known to many whose names are now almost among the legendary great men in the game. An experienced player could, if he wished, set out a long list of simple tricks that have been employed from time to time to outwit opponents. The most persistently employed dodge of this type nowadays, of course, is the one-hack game. Regarding the latter some alteration of law is likely to check it. because it has been carried to excess by so many full-backs who fail to regard this ns an admission of their own weakness —of their inability otherwise to check the advances of a fast-moving body of opponents. But the Southampton incident shows the absolute necessity of keeping the eyes open and the brain alert at every phase of the game. As I have written: before, nimble brains do as much to the making of a successful footballer as nimble feet. -

In golf there is a sound adage which says, “Keep your eye on the ball.” In football you want to keep one eye on the hall when it is placed for a freekick and the other on the positions taken up by your opponents.