FOOTBALL

Northland Age, Volume XVIII, Issue 42, 1 March 1949, Page 6

FOOTBALL

Considerable controversy on senior football in the north has gone on throughout the off season. We append the following excerpts from a circular sent out by the Management Committee of the North Auckland Rugby Union. We offer no comments, but would v like to hear from our readers, their tl opinions on the matters quoted : c With a view to improving the standard of our senior football I have been directed by the Management Committee to outline the scheme re- , ferred to in this circular. This scheme provides for sub-union representative football throughout the! ' season with club football carrying on * at the same time. The necessity to “j maintain and preserve club football is fully appreciated and it is suggested that the scheme will assist club football rather than nullify it. J 1 The primary purpose of the scheme < is to provide keener competition in < our senior football not only as be- J tween teams but also among players. , If we can attain that keener competi- , tions the resultant benefit to our sen- , ior football must be obvious to us all. The basis of the scheme is the div- , ision of our sub-unions into two zones , as follows (with certain sub-unions fielding two teams) : < North Zone Mangonui 2 teams North Hokianga 1 team South Hokianga 1 team Bay of Islands 2 teams Total 6 teams South Zone Whangarei 2 teams Northern Wairoa 2 teams.. Otamatea 1 team Rodney 1 team Total 6 teams It is suggested that players from the Whangaroa Sub-Union should be available for selection in the Mangonui and/or Bay of Islands representative teams. The arrangement may well be that the players in the northern portion of the Whangaroa area be available to Mangonui while players in the southern area available to the Bay of Islands. It is not intended that the Whangaroa Sub-Union should be non-evistent or be absorbed by either Mangonui or Bay of Islands but it is thought that, just at the present, their representative team is not sufficiently strong in comparison with the remaining teams in the proposed North Zone. The Whangaroa Sub-Union will continue to administer and control its own senior club football. The scheme envisages the following : 1. —Two rounds with a home and away match by each team. 2. —The Sub-Union winning the North Zone to play the winners of the South Zone for the Harding Shield. 3. The competition to commence at the beginning of the season, i’e’, early in May, say on Saturday 7th May, and to continue through to conclusion towards the end of July. 4. —Method of selection of Sub-Un-ion teams or team purely a matter for the Sub-Union concerned. For instance, in the Bay of Islands, that Sub-Union may decide to draw one team from the Western portion of its territory and the other team from the Eastern area. Players, however, would be interchangeable between the tw 0 teams if considered necessary. 5. —Each player, irrespective of the fact that he may play the season in his Sub-Union’s representative team, • must be registered with a club. His Sub-Union would have the first call on his services and if not required for the Sub-Union team he is then available for his club team. At the same time a player, selected for the Sub-Union’s representative team, stating that he w r as not available (possibly with a view to playing for his club) would not be permitted to play at all on th e particular day.