FOOTBALL

New Zealand Mail, Issue 1611, 14 January 1903, Page 55

FOOTBALL

(By “Touch.”l

“Touch” emulates the lizard and 'he bear by indulging in a six months' hibernation each year, but the receipt of tho following interesting items from the “New Zealand Times” London correspondent has awakened “Touch” for one day only. The first paragraph will come as something of a surprise to the average follower of football in these colonies. As to tho second one, the news that the Yorkshire County Committee is favourable to the scheme should considerably strengthen the hands of the New Zealand Rugby Union in its endeavours to send a representative team of Maorilanders to England. The two communications, which; are dated 29th November, are as followi Tlic statements made in some of tho Home papers regarding the personnel of the Corinthian lootball Club’s team which is to visit South Africa and may go thence to New Zealand and Australia, or to Canada, are very wide of the mark. I have the best authority for stating that no attempt has been made to select the team as yet, and that the extension of the tour beyond South Africa is by no means certain At a meeting of the Yorkshire County Committee, held at the Queen’s Hotel, Leeds, last Monday night, a letter waa read from Mr Rowland Hill, stating that the question was being discussed for a New Zealand team to visit England next season; but before going into details, the Rugby Union decided to get information •* as to whether a good list cf fixtures could! be arranged. The Yorkshire County expressed their willingness to arrange a fixture, and decided to write all the leading clubs, suggesting that they should' communicate with Mr Hill on the subject. I trust such a visit may ensue, but without wishing to interfere in a matter that is not my ccncern I may. I suppose*, venture to express the hope that the New Zealand team’s programme will not be arranged on the lines of that of the team captained bv Joe Warbriclt. If Tom Ellison, Willie McCausland, Tabby Wynyard, David Gage or any of my old friends in that team are available now for consultation—l presume their playing days are o’er—they could give .the promoters of the proposed tour a few valuable bints as to how not to do things. For one thing, the team should not be asked to play more than twice a week and at least two and twenty men should be sent in order to give a fair margin for accidents'. Many and many a time the hard-worked “Maori” team took the field with seven or eight really sound men, three or four partial cripples and as many absolute "passengers,” and so hard were they worked at times during their tour, that the wonder is they retained their form, so well and Avon as many matches as they did.