HOCKEY NOTES.

Manawatu Times, Volume XLVII, Issue 2741, 6 September 1923, Page 8

HOCKEY NOTES.

(By "Bully-")

To-day sees almost the end of hockey in Palmerston North for this season. The ladies' competition Has concluded with Kongotea on top ana H S O.G. a good second. A Manawatu ladies' team is being picked to play Feildlng on Saturday and Rongotca is playing a match with Johnsonville, after "which the fairer sex will put away their sticks for the season. On Saturday, too, a Manawatu men's team is playing Wanganui at Wanganui and this too, will be about the final mens' rep. match for the season, as the Sportsgrounds are already being prepared tor the coming of King Cricket. Saturday week sees the final match of the scaled handicap competition, postponed from this Saturday on account of the men's representative match named. "The boys of to-day are the men or to-morrow" is a very threadbare, yet very true saying, and the primary school lads and lassies of to-day are our representatives in local and Dominion combinations of to-morrow. It is pleasing to sec that the Manawatu bady has realised this, and is endeavouring to procure sticks for the primary schools, in order that there may be no obstacles in the way or youngsters who possess more keenness than cash. It speaks much for M r J- E- Fitt, that, before the idea of good used sticks was struck upon, he expressed his intention of raising tho necessary by porsonal canvass, so essential did he consider the keenness that follows in the wake of the introduction of the sticks. The Association is further displaying its interest in primary schools hockey by financial assistance with a primary schools team visit to the Feildlng tournament. The promise oi the Association to supply a referee for the final in the primary schools! girls' competition shortly is also prac- j tical interest that will do much gooa for hockey locally. Norman Hansen, Manawatu's sole representative of the New Zealand All Black team .which toured Australia recently, has returned to Palmersto/i North. According to all reports, Hansen fully justllied his inclusion in the team, and proved himself a worthy representative. It has been said that Hansen and Kiwi Perrin, the ex-Man-awatu player, now of Wellington were the mainstay of the team. While possibly an exaggeration, it cannot be denied that Hansen is a great player. It was wise of the ladies' selectors to decide that Manawatu be unrepresented in the tournament to be held in Otago this month. With the tournament in a centre so distant, It Is' certain that but a fraction of the picked team would have been able to go, even if their work allowed them. The cost per head -would lie about £lO for such a trip, which is rather out of the reach of the average ladyplayer's purse. Local players are lucky in having Mrs J. Rawlins present the Manawatu Hockey Association with a silver trophy, named the Cleaver Memorial Cup for competition. It was suggested by a member of the management committee that the cup, which of course, cannot be played for this season, be allocated to the men's senior competition next year, calling such the "Cleaver memeorial competition." The cup is in memory of '.Mr A. E. Cleaver, who, it will be remembered, was prominently connected with hockey in the Manawatu for many years.