FOOTBALL

Hawera & Normanby Star, Volume XLII, Issue XLII, 28 April 1922, Page 2

FOOTBALL

NEW ZEALAND UNION

V BY TELEGRAPH —PB.ESS ASSOCIATION.)

WELLINGTON, April 28. The annual meeting of the delegates to the New Zealand Rugby Union opened torday. The president (Mr J. McLeod) presided, and delegates from all parts of the Dominion were present.

Considerable discussion was occasioned by applications for the formation and affiliation of new minor unions in country districts. These were the East Coast, embracing a large portion of remote country in the North Island, and the King Country, from Ruapehu to the Thames Valley, including the goldfields. The chairman said it was not advisable to allow country unions in thickly populated areas to" become too numerous in the North Island, for the reason of its domination over the South Island. He considered the time had arrived for a new scheme. Other delegates advocated defined boundaries ana lessened powers, but eventually the applications were approved without qualification.

Moving the adoption of the report, the chairman said he desired all secondary schools to take part in the Moascar Cup competition. He suggested international visits should take place every five years. Referring to universal control of the game, he said the meeting would consider representation of the British Empire. Assurances made to the English Union that there was no fear of amateurism drifting into professionalism in New Zealand had made a good impression. He hoped the tax imposed by the Government on the game would be temporary. Referring to the fact that sectarianism was creeping into the code of school games, he recommended a firm stand, and suggested penalising any union that allowed a school to be debarred from taking part. in school competitions. A Canterbury remit suggested that in future in all New Zealand selection committees each island should have equal representation.

A.remit from Hawke's Bay criticising the present method of the selection of representative teams was defeated in favour of a motion "that it be a recommendation to the management committee that surplus players from the teams picked for the A and B teams in the North-South Island match play a curtain-raiser on the day of the match." x There was a lengthy discussion regarding the amended rules of play. A motion was moved by the Wellington Rugby, Union, "That permission to play under the amended rules be not granted to any union." It was contended that if the amended rule was adopted it should be made operative universally over the Dominions. The motion was carried after some amendments were defeated, the woi-ds "in 1923" to be added.

The following officers were elected: President, Mr H. Geddes (Southland); treasurer, Mr E. "Wylie (Poverty Bay); auditor, Mr 0. Kember (Wellington); management committee, Messrs G. W Slade (Taranaki), E. Little (Nelson), S. S. Dean (Auckland), A. C. Kitts (North Auckland), G. A. Howe (Canterbury), W. S. Glenn, M.P. (Wan^anui), A. J. Griffith (Wellington); referees'^appointment, Mr Ward was nominated by the chairman and the referees' appointment committee; trustees, Messrs Slade and Howe.

A motion that the appeal council should sit in Wellington was carried. The appeal council comprises: Messrs G. H. Dixon (Wanganui), E. D. Hales (Wellington), G. C. Fache (Otago). The following appeal committee is to be located at Christ church: Messrs D. G. Garrard, J. F. Peake, G. F. Nelson, F. T. Evans, H. E. Hiddlestone.

As the delegate to the English Union Mr C. J. Wray was elected, and a silver badge is to be voted to him as a token of the union's esteem.

J. Douglas (Otago) was unanimously reinstated.