INTERNATIONAL RUGBY

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXV, Issue 19991, 6 July 1928, Page 15

INTERNATIONAL RUGBY

QUESTIONOOrl r TOURING TEAMS

THE ATTITUDE OF SCOTLAND.

IMPORTANCE tOF HOME GAME.

[from oim own correspondent.]

LONDON, May SO. A statement, w'hicb has been addressed by the Scottish Rugby Union committee to its dubs will be interesting reading for followers of the game in the Dominions. It is in effect a reply to certain criticisms of its recent actions in regard to Dominion foctball and touring teams.

It points out that the International Board had nothing to do with the arrangements connected with the recent tour of the New South Wales team in this country. These, it is stated, were carried through by a committee composed of two representatives from each of tho unions ot: England, Scotland, Ireland and Wnlea. The invitation asked for by New South Wales was sent in the name of the four countries, and was 50 accepted. The New South Wales men came as the guests of the four countries and the Scottish Union was of the opinion that all toars should be conducted on thei principle of the visiting team being guests. In March, 1927, a request was made by the New South Wales Union that, in addition to the travelling expenses of its team back to Australia, it should be given a grant to enable them to return via Canada and Vancouver, and the tour committee decided that, as the New South Wales team was guaranteed £6OO at the Vancouver end a it vfould grant the sum of £(>00 toward that purpose, bat no more. Most unfortunately, the matter did not end there, as, after the arrival of the Now South. W»l es team in this countrv, the request for an additional £4OO was madia. The tour committee held that that application could not be entertained.

Financial Arrangements. When the arrangements for tho visit to France were Heft in the hands of the New South Wales Union it was not contemplated by the committee that these would be on any lines other than those laid down by the International Board and accepted by the four Home unions, namely, that, the visiting team should be the guests of the country visited. If the committee had had any idea that a profit, w'hicb amounted to £I6OO, was to be made out of the visit to France it would not have allowed the arrangements to have left its hands. The committee strongly deprecated the financial arrangement made with Fra.nce as, in if-s opinion, it was contrary to the spirit in which these tours were arranged. It had been deliberately stated that the l?cottish Union committee alone was responsible for the refusal to make a further grant, which was a very poor compliment to the representatives of the other countries. The. decision of the tour committee was unanimously approved of by the International Board. The Scottish Union was not. out of sympathy in any way with the other countries on this matter and there was no cause for attaching any special onus to it for any failure in the arrangements. Of these it was certainly not aware, though it appeared to exist in the imagination of certain critics. The committee was highly pleased to welcome such a sporting side as tho New South Wales team, which had, of course, no responsibility in the matter of finance.

The committee thinks it advisable to take this opportunity of saying a few words on its position in regard to colonial football generally, which had been constantly misrepresented in certain quarters. When the first New Zealand and South African teams visited this country they came at their own risk, and not as guests of the home countries. The Scottish Unic-n, therefore, decided to hand over to the visitors the whole "gate," so that the anion made no profit, and that was done in both cases. The propriety of that action, which might presumably enable tourists to take home cash in their pockets, wan discussed by the four countries, and the following extract from a memorandum detailing the method of conduct of future colonial tours placed before the committee of the fonr countries may be referred to:—"That all colonial teams must come as guests, no division of profits fo he considered." Home Rugby First.

That was believed fo be a binding agreement between the four countries as to the future conduct of colonial tours in this country. But in July, 1923, the Scottish Union was more than surprised to be advised that the Rugby Union was bringing over a New Zealand team in 1924, and the former was asked if it wished fixtures. That arrangement was so absolutely opposed to the agreement formerly come to that it promptly declined to entertain the proposal, and in any case no fixtures would have been arranged by the Scottish Union, even if willing, under the financial arrangements, which it understood were laid down by the Rugby Union. The Scottish Union has every sympathy with the encouragement of colonial football, Ibut it must always be second in importance to Home football, which was its first consideration, and it could not bo a party to any arrangement whereby any colony w.is to have a say in the government of the game at Home, particularly as the matches between the Home countries and the colonials were only intermittent.

The original .request from the colonial end, that a conference might be held at stated times, at which the colonial views as to alterations in the laws of the game might be discussed, was seconded. Now, however, the demand was for a place ori the International Board, and that a percentage of the gates taken at international matches should bo set aside to pay the travelling and other expenses of thoso meetings, and that those meetings should bo held alternately hero and in the colonies. A School Game.

It was evident the main desiro of (ho colonial representatives was to mako the game faster, and indeed ono colonial representative, in pressing forward a suggested alteration, frankly stated that it had -been adopted by his special union as making the game faster, more interesting to spectators, and had increased the gates. These reasons had not tho sympathy of the Scottish Union committee, vrhich was satisfied, from the public interest at present taken in Rugby, that tho gamo was both sufficiently fast and interesting enough. It must not be forgotten that Rugby football originated as a school game, and tho Scottish Union would never consent to it being made so fast that schoolboys would be unable to play it without undue strain, and in that they were satisfied that they had the support of tha schools themselves. Regarding tho request from New Zea~ land that a British team should tour thero in 1930, the feeling was definitely expressed that, in view of past experience, it was useless now to send a British team abroad unless it wero absolutely a firstclass team, failing which it did more harm than good, and in view of that the four countries regretfully had to decline tho invitation. As it would mean a period of six to seven months to undertake the tour, it did not seem fair to induce a young man, engaged either in business or at a university, at a critical time* in his career, to undertake such Si mission, in addition to having to provide a certain amount of cash for his out-cif-pociket expenses during that period*