HAWKE'S BAY FIFTEEN.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LX, Issue 18519, 2 October 1923, Page 4

HAWKE'S BAY FIFTEEN.

TEAM AGAINST AUCKLAND. . ■[* TKLEOBAPH.--PBES3 ASSOCIATION.]- / « NAPIER. Monday. The Havrke's Bay Rugby" team to play Auckland on Saturday vvi 11 ■b. selected from the following :-N.Kiveil, :W. : McGresor, J. Kirwan, KB.- Grenade, Lr. Nenfa 'iT Paewai, •' J.> Mill,-. B. r. Kingston, ?. eP Walker, A. Kirkpatrick, W. C' Brownlie, ; M.;Brownlie J. -McNab, S Gcmmell, T. Daly, and U. "Bachelor.

'■'■.•■' •:>'':'■:;■ ;■-.,,.- ■■■,: - : (j.-- 'i?'>' V'>):i'-K y :'■>/■■;■'■• ■■■'-•'■:'!. THE ASSOCIATION GAME. NOTES AND COMMENTS.

As • far as ■< club competitions '■ are \conoerned. the curtain -as rung the 1323 : Association football season Saturday', when :in .the: second -WJPjg Waterside™ defeated .Harbour Board in the final of the Dacre In reviewing the fv s f^r,^:_*ri_- th two factors are outstanding. FusUy. the remarkable increase in-.public Pat r ° which averaged easily. 4000 : each Satur dav : throughout ;,the year, and secondly, the great influx ■of players ?-. pin; the code of < the : round ball. ' -When it is reUmbered / that /many: ; wet : Saturdays caused postponement' of some games,, particularly in the: lower grades, the-hercu-lean task of the grounds' committee in arranging and getting off the huge programme of games can well bo imagined. ■"•■: At the start .of -the season /•; no fewer than 11 teams entered in the senior division. 'After deliberation the local executive decided to confine the competition to the? eight <■ best, and this meant ■; the elimination (of , Watersiders, fDevomport ■Presbyterian . arid Metropolitan, . who were relegated to the second division ranks. In the ; latter competition there was an ; increase of nine entries over the previous season, 16 teams taking part. * ± North Shore won ; the senior competition, while Ponsonby annexed the Falcon Cup, played for in a knock-out competition decided : after the League ; competition had closed. ; Northcote, who- won most points in the second round of the League games, were given the honour of representing Auckland in the .Chatham Cup contest, but were knocked out by Huntly in their first outside match. .4.;.; In the second division : Watersidersproved to: be undoubtedly the premiers, winning : both ! the . League championships and the Dacre Cup -awarded in the annual knock-out ] ; competition. 'North Shore- were runners-up in the championship, and Harbour -Board in' the cup. ~. } Club entries; in the third division were-; also a record, the? 13 teams competing making seven more than the previous year. The contest in this section was extremely keen, and time permitted of only one round being completed. North Shore emerged ; victorious, with Metropolitan,> . a point • awav,; as runners-up, arid One'-. hunga . Methodists in, the third position, closely followed by several other teams. In the fourth division nine teams took part. Here competition was also, excepj tionallv keen, and productive of some ex- | cellent" football. , Belmont eventually won I the honours -after- twice playing-off with Y.M.C.A.. The first game was' drawn, while the : final was only," a?single ?goal victory for Belmont. One r point S? only separated the j first four teams. .Y.M.C. A. were runners-up, with North- Shore third, and Ponsonby fourth.■North Shore won the; fifth' division, with Brotherhood, / Northcote? and ? Belmont, finishing behind \ them in that order. In the knock-out 'competition;: Belmont and Brotherhood 7 played ?: twodrawn games before the ; latter 'team eventually won. The /high standard .;'■; of football shown by these two teams of boys was ; one ; of the ; outstanding features ;of f ; the season. :For/*; Jtjhoir.; eize ; they;- idisplayjed a : remarkable/knowledge 7 of : the 'game, arid played with understanding and pace that swas % really.'; a treat: to watch, there boirig, in comparison, nothing,finer in the higher divisions. Owing -to the > increased ; number of teams entered in ther primary 7 schools competition, there;; were ; not so many clubs as usual competing in v the sixth '. division. 7 North Shore ? were : the r: winders, / with : Belmont ,in : second position, only - a .point behind. North ; Shore i also won the knock-out '•• competition in; this' division beating Belmont in the final game by a goal to nil. /"■-'*'.- The seventh division also lost a lot of its players to. the school teams. Of four competitors /North Shore were . again successful 7 with' Belmont the runners-up. •:. :- No fewer than 16 schools were/ represented '• in. •* the . primary /; schools - competition, ; just double J the. number taking;\ part, last year. This is regarded as 'a, very ' good omen for the future of the game in j Auckland.; TWo / subdivisions were neces- j sary. , St. Heliers won"the A grade, and I -Newton/West the B.;: TJhie latter team's success is all ■-■', the more, remarkable -.when: it is known that this is the first year that "soccer"- has . beep': played at the school. The shortage of grounds :, made -it neces- : sary to conduct - these games after ■ school on ; Thursdays, : and the - boys' sub-com-mittee experienced wTlßtle ;difficulty, in : getting the / programme of % matches,, com- : pleted owing /to the shortage of- referees on the off-day. ;' The ultimate success of the competition , was duo -in ; no; small measure -/to: the ablei- work of the secretary of , the boys' : committee,. Mr. l - G. T. Lee. //In/this; division ; the knock-out competition / has yet to; .be ? finished.. The semi-finals next Saturday will be' contested between Nelson Street, St, Heliers Devonport A> arid Napier "Street. " '

FINAL OP CHATHAM CUP. WIN FOR SEACLIFF. [OX TELEGKATH.—mESS association.] WELLINGTON. Monday. Seacliff gained a well-deserved win by 4 goals to .0 in the final of the Chatham Association ; football cup against ;Y.M. C.A. Y.M. C. A: were feeling the strain foil- Sat- j urday's play, but put up a hard, fight, but ) Seacliff were too - good in all departments j of the game. , Their defence was exceptionally strong, Baxter opened the score just before the interval. ■ Shortly after re-J fuming, Phillips failed J- to equalise six yards from the goal and ten minutes later | McDougall scored for ' Seacliff. ; Two Y.M.C.A. forwards were "passengers" through injury'- and : ir( ; the/closing stages Baxter scored again arid Hooper.'added the fourth ;S goal /through a misunderstanding;* Hooper, McDougall and Hanlin \ were $ the best forwards and the Seacliff defence-was excellent. SUCCESS OF, HIKURA-NGI...' NORTH AUCKLAND CHAMPIONS. [BY TELEGRAPH.OWN COr,.RES?OMDENT.] WEANGAfIEI. Monday, -; Association 1} football thiifv season has. , gained a'firm hold -in -Whan The Hikizrangi, Club proved champions, having gone'through the season .'without defeat. Oh Saturday the club team visited | Portland, where "it was :; matched V with a ;' team • - representative of ,f. all- the .other , clubs in*the district,'; and after a- really gooefgame the champions emerged victors by 1 goal,: netted by J. Qua'ribel, to 0.