Outside Chat.

NZ Truth, Issue 149, 25 April 1908, Page 3

Outside Chat.

Wairarapa Rugby Union will ask the Umsh Districts Union to play a match at Masterton against its representatives •n May 16th, the team to play the An-glo-Welsh combination to be selected after tat match. . ' „ * Hopes are entertained by. the Kaieraus fliPanganui) of being able to put strong tgams m the field for each of the Cup competitions. They have got one or two Tory good players, including Marriott, a ttree-qua.rter of repute from Auckland, who is said to be particularly fast, present appearances point to the maroons anq Pirates having the strongest fifteens m the Senior Cup competition, hurt the Old Boys are likely to take a lot of beating, while the Wanganuis may prove a surprise packet before the season has advanced very far. -On the afternoon of the Inter-Island match the English and Welsh combination will be pitted against a MarlboroughJfcteon teajtn at I+elson. On the face of it it wpnld APPear Jfcat as the New Zealand «les»oxs would have their optics tramefl m. tba Initt-Islaad representatives m or'd*r that the; very best talent could be jikkfid to meet the visitors m the test match on the following Saturday, the players on the Nelson-MarUjorough side, p» maftft? how brilliantly they performed j pgajasi their opponents, would have no BMifoly "poss" «f ' securing Dominionist hwasrs lor the simple reason that no selector will be present to see flwr performances. I am, however, asKttxed that arrangements will be made so $Mi the man across Cook Strait will be under the eyes of an accredited representative of the Union, who will tender advlee as to their calibre when the task begins ef -sorting out the fifteen to don the All Black colors on June 27. Get out from kome to bag your home B*w.s. From a Wanganui paper the foltowiax is a, clipping :— BB3TISH TEJAM.— Mr Hyams wrote that the New Zealand Union would pay tax entertaining the British team, and If any profits ..resulted they would be divided janumgst tne various Unions." j This is a totally different tale to what w« have been told. It is generally understood that the matter came up before fee great Zoo Committee, and that's aHout all ; so this* clipping will be a bit •f news to the other members, who must have been sound asleep, when Isaac got fee matter through all on his pat. What '% sort ol an entertaining pro-! gramme has Ike propounded that he hopes to get a profit out of, so as to swell the banking accounts of the "various Unions"? - i Bi Cli, one night fan-tan, one night j two-up, every night something ■ else, and all profits and winnings to be divided, up square, and , no deductions barring one] free pass for" Ikey ! Wba' for ? ' Pownall told hjs fellow-committeemen,at j last week's meeting of the Wanganm Rug- J fey Union that m conversation with a j Wellington Rugby Union official he learned it bad been suggested tha* Wanganui should apply to play Wellington on June Brd, and Wellington should play Wanga- < nui on its way to or from Auckland. The j upshot of PownaH's information was a de- > cieion on the part -ofrthe Wanganni Rag- j by Committee to endeavor to arrange] matches on the lines indicated- above. Wei- ; linerton delegates have laid it down on more than one occasion that they are ad' verse to playing so many rep. matches* . during the season, but thg Executive, it Pownaffs statement is-fiorrect, pay no** ,the sligntest heed to their fiat. It is. abous time ttert Jack Murray and Co. ( were brought np with a goodronndturn. ; The champion team of one up-country 4 Union yflJ Mstve their last seasoirVprowess recogtiistfd by a'-preseuUitlon to each ' individtial player trf a jersey of good material ana new style. A Saturday Football .Club has been; formed m Eketahuna. Promises of sap- • port hare been received from prominent townspeople, and ..one or two firms nave . Intimated that those of their employees ! who play the game will be able to get ) •way m good time for the contests ar- ■ tanged. .It is proposed to affiliate with < the Bash Union. P. D. Petting fias beenl the prime mover m the- organisation of the new club. ' Prom the material at their command, { the Wanganui Pirates should have no difficulty m selecting a strong senior ] team /and also good junior and third-class ' teams. ' ; Prom all accounts, it Is only the pro- ■ aedse fhat has been made to about 100 players m Sydney of a cert trip Home with the amateur team that is keeping (hen from coming over to the Rugby l,ealsue. After that team has been defin- i Italy chosen, ttirnstiles will be wanted to Wock the rush of the disappointed.

It is not to be wondered at thafthetc* is i little or no real loyalty among the play- 1 ers to the old-union when they look back lat the treatment players have received \ m the past— men who helped to build up j the present strong financial position of i the union, and think that their time as -I "has-beens" is yet to come, and 'the 1 same thing applies to players and JJttion.j m this Dominion. j Football : A leather boot against si leather ball, and a horde of athletes go-! ing helMor-leatber ! i The N.S.W. EujSky League secretary* J i reports that the official document has j arrived, confirming the cable inviting the . Australian team home; and that the i £3090 guarantees has been lodged. Matches j have been arranged against clubs • and counties, and, of course, there are "the-i international and test matches. j Jimmy Henderson .has given „ out. that i he will not be a candidate, for HIS'JN. Rugby Union Selection Committee honors J this season. The "old horse" has realis- j ed long ere this that a selector's lot is ; , ►not a bed of roses. i

Messenger pat on a couple ol stone during his travels .with the N.Z. professional team, bis weight when he landed :.at Sydney t'other week being 13st. ♦•Bumper" Wright says that the Cornstalker was a great favorite with the party, and everywhere at Home the crowd called for him. In one match the Double Bay man kicked three goals right oB the reeJ, and the crowd "went wild with delight." „ . Messenger states that the report that, ►only £150 per man had been made ont< ! of the, "pro." trip was all .tommy rot, Nearer £350, says "Messy/, I ** and his statement is endorsed by -'-'Bumper" Wright. On© thing is certain^ Eijbher the cable-liar at the other end had his palms well greased by Harnett's push when he put that £150 bogey .on to us,, or his legs were stretched to an uncommonly long extent. Australia has put up some tall records,, *ut it^will take a bit of doing to beat , that at Glasgow on the occasion of the Association football, match a few weeks ago. Fancy 180,0.00 saxpences "going bang" m one afternoon ! Booth at the tiller evidently means a far greater measure of power and success m N.S.W. Rugbydom thai* we m this Door little Dominion have ever yet been able to realise. Booth has been writing over to a Dunedin friend- about his missionary exploits m the back-blocks of the Ma State, and he loads him full up to the neck with his marvellous achievements; His conversion of converts to the " carrying code" makes me shudder at the awful fate that is m store for Maoriland from invasion by Boothite Rugger legions m years to cpme. The yellow peril will b« a fool circumstance compared .to this scourge. What a jewel has been lost to New Zealand football Coming • from the "pure and undefiled spring" of amateurism, as known m the Dominion, "jawful" Booth should be worth his weight m gold to the Wood-Mahon-Oakes party m the Ma State. Emboldened by the publicity given to his "noisy nothings," Booth is intent on making more public exhibitions of the tripe he will talk. The babbling barracker for bastard amateurism is shook on himself— very much so— but what the writer would like to see would be, Bo oth on the stump here m pursuance of his three-bob-a-day crusade, and he is not quite sure that his pragmatical pra tings would not be the signal for the biggest riot recorded m the history of the TOtady town.

"WiH Rick Isaacs, J.ack Laughton, qr any other great panjandrum of the "New Zealand Referees' Association have the cast-iron cheek to ask delegates at the May meeting for another contribution towards the funds of the Association ? Last ■ year £25 Was voted, and on that occasion Isaacs, said distinctly that it would be the last time that the cadging pro* cess 1 would he resorted to. Fancy the biggest part of £33 being whittled away last year m bonuses and gxpenses to the secretary f Robb had a nice free trip to Brisbane and saw the New Zealanders play there, and m Sydney, all mind you, at the expense of affiliated Unions of the New Zealand Rugby Union. The trip was nicely schemed for Robb by Richard M. Isaacs, President of the Association, and the long fellow got on a lovely wicket ; what with bis screw going on all the time and a free railway pass on the other side chucked m. One would' have thought that Robb would have been quite satisfied with the trip, but lor* bless you, he wasn't, . and another tenner was iifted by way ot a bonus. The whole thing savors of rascally jobbery, and it is high time that N.Z.R.U. delegates delved deeply into the affairs of about as useless an institution as was ever launched into the Dominion's athletic world. When we find that £33 is expended on trips and bonuses, and the revenue from affiliated Associations shrinks to £9, it is indeed time that, steps were taken to eradicate the cancerous Rugby growth, which should have had the knife long before its smellfui blast was on us. "Quidnunc," the Christchurch writer, has briefly but caustically referred to the balance-sheet of the Association. Will other writers m- the plute press have the courage to follow suit ? It is bad enough, m all conscience; for affiliated Rugby Unions <to be taxed for the -cavorting round of the parent body's officials without them being saddled with junketting exes, of Robb and Co. A Master ton player states that *J., iGlasgow, who was "the manager of the? athletic team that visited Masterton -onvi Saturday last, informed him there is mo' 1 struth m the statement that Neil Galinraith has received a-bonus, or bonuses, from the N.Z.R.U.. He also defended Dixon's bonus of £100 on {he ground-that he earned it, but denied that , the play- < ers bad earned v any 6t the .money. WJI1 V '"Pakeha" jjease <say, asks the cawfittf* ufiaa, witefher j^eil GaibratHi gver receivegl 'a boons, and-if so, the- amount'? i

Now, what sort of,a?co6t'4s Glasgow, I to talk m this strain ? He appears to (have opened his jaws pretty widely on the country trip and to have yapped on subr' jects that he knew next to nothing about. iWhat will Glasgow say when we tell him that bonuses voted to G.albraith what ; time Jie-has'-been treasurer pf theN.Z.R.U. .aggregate £72 ss, axe made-up as follows , £10 10s; 1906, £36 15s; 1907 £2.5. ■ks Glasgow professes to be such an'authority of Rugby happenings," will he please give the writer a little correct information concerning that presentation of, sovereigns to his brother at Eltham a few : years ago? In view of the fuss being made nowadays about professionalism, it ! .is just as well if this matter were cleared <up to the satisfaction of everybody. Readers of the "Evening Ghost" will .doubtless have taken a mental note of > ■the remarks made by H. O'Leary-at the w smoko" tendered to the Athletics m Masterton on Saturday night. For the* benefit of "Truth" readers who were not privileged to peruse O'Leary's fulminatipn •I will reproduce them m a condensed, form m these columns, have," he:i said, "heard a great deal during the last twelve months of the introduction of professionalism into. New ..Zealand and the efforts' of the Executive to stamp it: out. But," he continued, . "be that as it may, I contend that there are no greater . professionals m New Zealand to-day than the members of the Executive of the New Zealand Rugby Union (applause) . They get bonuses — it may be a small amount, but they get them all the same-*and they get their little trips up and down the country and to Australia, whilst the poorer . country unions of New Zealand are left without adequate funds, and have to hand over the proceeds of their matches ■ against '■ the Englishmen to the N.Z.R.U., ■which is distinctly unfair." It -is said that 'Arthur Thomson will take charge of the Old Boys m their first Cup match.' He should make a big | improvement in ' the-team. Mr A. E. Devore, who has held the position-^ of President of the Auckland Ru?;by. Union for 21 -years m -succession,.,,, "has, been appointed a life member of the Union.

;'■ By .deciding to admit ;the press to themeetings of the Managing Committee, the Auckland Rugby Union has made a«complete change eff front. On the previous : year the proposal was defeated, and the <cmnp;e is no doubt due to the increased interest which the clubs " are now taking m the doings of the committee. Another new departure was that th* delegates to rthe N.Z. Union were elected by the unison, and not pxe committee, and four dele--' ■fates are being sent to Wellington to co- ! •operate "WithxG. Dixon m place of l two > '} last yjox. ' '■•- - : . ■■■' I "Efae Sitgby season proper .will star*. [ tfiis afternoon, when the iirsfc series: ot ', the senipr championship come up for de- \ cision. Petone meets Soathern, GrieffiKalsi ; try coimlßsions with AtldeSc, Victoria. Oollege t>umps up against Ojjd Pojys, Wel-i , lingtpn has a tussle with-^St- James and Eoneke plays Melrose.,^Tab several games.;■should furnish interesting expositions oil > .the winter sport. That little item on the N.ZJR.TL's hal-J ance-sheet, showing the expenditure ol ,over £19 odd for sending a delegate to) jSydney what time the N.Z. team was ; "playing over that way > last year, willjj vhaVe my closest attention m next week's -, 4ssue df '"Truth." The circomstances un~, ■der which the said delegate was cheaply! jaunting abroad with the fern-leaf com- if fbination is enough to stir resentment m, the ranks of footballers .from the North. v •Cape to the Bluff. No Wonder the pro-' fessjonal question looms up so largely on tthe tbminionist Rugby horizon when out--srageons payments from the N.Z.R.U.^ frgasHrj such as this is, is winked at. [4y iss Executive. The delegates oaght '4o "Rax elogueni on this shameful scat- . ter oi tneir union's splosh when they •foregather on the-Mth prox. At the Queensland Rugby Uniou's an-. ipual meeting a delegate 3ared\to disturb/ jabhe chairman T s flute solo by asking how rshe Executive reconciled its gift of £21 , 'io the retiring treasurer witti its professions of strict amateurism, seeing that cash testimonials are contrary to the. < iaws>of the^Rugby Union. Carefully avoiding the point at issue, "the old bird," m a voice broken by emotion, said he •was astonished* that the delegate grudged •this testimonial. Then~having paused. for -the applause, the insulted joss sat down, highly annoyed. a ' Sai4 that the Executive of the'N.Z.K.U. . is still casting covetous eyes about for a chairman at the May gathering who will adopt G. F. C. Campbell's notorious axe policy of last year. Queensland Rugby Union shows acredit balance ofov,er £1000. the result chief- , ly of the New Zealanders' visit last year. "Vanguard," m the Wellington "Evening Post" of last Saturday, referring to the English-Scottish . International "Soccer" match, gives the names of two teams as the representatives of the Rose . and Thistle respectively. "Pakeha" does not pretend to know everything about the "Soccer' 7 game, but has sufficient knowledge of the dribbling code to know that the teams quoted by "Vanguard" were sot the International elevens, but on the other hand, were the Inter-League elevens. Apparently "Vanguard" does ,not know the difference between the InterLeague and International matches. As a matter of fact, the former are practically always composed of professionals, who i are selected from the clubs taking part" m i the League competition's, whereas the £ latter are representative of the whole s of Association football and frequently m- c elude amateurs m tbejr ranks, t