FOOTBALL.

NZ Truth, Issue 198, 3 April 1909, Page 3

FOOTBALL.

;(By "Pakeha. "i

"Dark Green": (Pahiatua).— Mp. ''G.D." (Wellington).— On attack, yes. -Other- way about when defending. "W.T." ' (Ureymoutb).— The West Coast Hugoy 'Union has lull power to act m the. matter. . : ' ■■'■ ' ■ ■

What an- amount of rot is talked at delegate meetings of the 'W.KiF.U.' At •tlje last meeting delegate after delegate would rise and after meandering generally round the subject under discussion, repeating the previous speaker's argument and his own, if any, would sit down with; a pleased smile. Meantime the' unfortunate chairman endeavored to show- interest, with the reporters practically sleeping, and the main body of members » casting weary .. eyes ■■ on the tiriiepiece and even "Dismal Jimmy" looking quite as if he. had a pain.- . • . Quite the biggest hit of the evening happened when candidates were . b^ing proposed for the Senior Selection Committee. After last year's meeting, with the f ejection from office of the then selectors; /there was much indignation m certain quarters and many remarks of the, "stab,i)ed-in-the-dark," "fchrpwhTOver" order were/ freely heard. : ' Now, m. the light of all that. has passed'before "&nd alter tine' event, the delegates were absolutely paralysed when Jack Murray, of all persons, got on his feet eldquising the famous rejecteds • and spoke of their Auckland selection as be/ing a monument ,to them, /i and •:- hoped they' would * offer themselves for election! When the delegates could get .over; -their astonishments.- soijvewhat genuine surprise was :«xpressed) at- -the • statements, ; and Jack sat down hurriedly, hoping" m vain for a telephone: summons. It too cjuite a little, time before the members got over -th«lr ■'bewilderment and gained their normal condition. < ' ( ■ • Said a recent arrival by the Cprinthic from the r-XOld Country to the \[ writer, whQn speaking on the subject "of the English vy Scottish Union -embfoglio :^- --1 "The football ,'prb'. is anathema 4n Rugby Vcirclee: 'just ribw, because pf -the sham amateur.'; When.', the latter comes , out boldly'-into the light, and declares himself honestly a 'pro' the objection to him will' quickly vanish and -he 'will : be as "much; respected as the prbfessiorial of th» League clubs. ■ Wha-t the ■> straightgoing Executives • of . clubs and patrons want- is ,for/the hybrid-amateur to ! come out into: the .-open so that jhey , m ay kna'wr his; precise -intentions."; .'.?.;, 2 , ; ; •. ..« .. In connection with the Bayly^Memerial it was intiriiated by the treasurer of the Taranaki Rugby Union at' 5 /its lannual meeting last week, that subs'criptibtis amounting to £52 had been v received. 'It was decided that it be a recommehdatidn tp,J all clubs that the proceeds, of <at Ifeast one hiatch during the, season be set aside for the -'fund," also the. proceeds of. one;: of" 'the play-off matches^ n The mbvement doesn't^ seem to be "catching en? m the Cow Province: ■■''";? /-■ ':■ '■■ When riarney Campbell, President-elect of the Otagp Kughy Union stepped into the chair at the annual meeting of the Southern body on Saturday evening, -he let himself go m this style :— "They, were no* -further forward m regard to" ; yie altetatiohs.: m the laws of the game' than they were/ a- year ago. He was not ,m sym'pa-thy wi'tii the English Rugby Union because' they could get no"- satisfaction from that body. He believed Jthat the obstructionist tactics of the'- New; Zealand Union were due to the 'fact that certain members of that body ; were' keen sympathisers with the English '•"-Union, and they • wanted to say at 'the .conclusion of their term of officai (which was near) -that they stuck consistently; to the English body.." To all^.df which "Pakeha'' says "Hear, hear. - : :. ;■ ■ , Wairarapa has lost its most, brilliant back' m Joe O'Leary, brother ;of the Victoria College player of that ilk. Joe is going to take up ' his residence m Auckland, and to mark the occasion his admirers tendered him a farewell social Besides occupying a foremost position m football circles. Joe was captain of the United Cricket Club and a metober of the Fire Brigade and Hibernian Society; ami the gathering was distinctly represehtative of all those organisatioas. On behalf of the assemblage the chairman .(Superintendent Jenkins " of /: -the -- Fire , Brigade) presented the departing, guest with I'-a1 '- a handsome travelling bag,a'bearing a suitable inscription, together with a silver-mounted pipe and tobacco poiicb. The Superintendent spoke appreciably- of their guest's- services to the different bodies to which he was attached, ihis many sportsmanlike qualities arid the general esteem m which he was hield .'.." i^ Masterton. Joe will throw m his lot with Ponsonby Club this coming season. The news that the wife of one cif the WolverJiampton Wanderers had: -/given birth, to triplets was kept .from the player until, the match was over, for fear of affecting his game ! A London ' exchange presumes that, if ili'; had been twins only, the referee would have told him at half time. . •■- ■'■'■ Ted Donnelly, who bosses theJNew.Zealander .hostelry, will appreciate I*is litthe incident, as a reminder of what actually did happen when. Andy Thomson, now Stipendiary Magistrate at Palmerston North, potted his famous goal against Sedddn's team oh the Basin Reserve 21 years ago. it was. up Taranaki way last season, and thb match was of unusual interjest to a sprinkling of. frenzied barrackers on the line- An excited individual, waving his j arms •wildly," struck his next door neighbor one fair on the kisser. ''Look what f ou have done/ yelled the victim, whose j mouth was 'bleeding profusely^' "Well, ! what have I done'?'- "Knocked -a couple ' of my teeth out." "Oh, ip that all; damn it man, what's a tooth t6 v a potted goal like that?" .; Scotland has given England a . slap .m i the -face that will not be forgotten or forgiven.. -If one searches through the records A'of- the past, one will readily find that the quarrelsome attitude of the Scots m former Rugby disputes . discredits the genuineness, of their present plea

that they are actuated solely by a desire for the purification of the game. Some of the sensible rugger people m England are quite anxious to "put their house m order," but they have a thoroughly British objection to being told by their neighbors' over the border that their house is too dirty for them to come into as visitors and that the English must have a general- clean .up ; before they (the.. Caledonians) will " consent to call on them' again. YU'hat is forecasted, hi spite of the' now patched up quarrel '"between' the two unions, is the very deuce of a ■ row, the ostracism of Scottish players m; England, the mutilation of- the international series ol games and a .-general : set-back of Rugby football which has withiiv the last three or four years, recovered its old position , m popular fame to an amazing extent. Appearances indicate that English rugger, folk will lose within the next two years of'- so-' all the advantage they have gained by the boom m colonial visits dating from the "All Black" invasion. A. glance "at the balance-sheet of the New South Wales Rugby League shows the gross gate receipts for last season to have been £484-2 17s ll£d. The revenue and expenditure account resulted m a balance of £551 2s being carried forward. ' Con. Gilray, ex-University Club and Otago rep. three-quarter was one of the Scottish, three-quarter line m the international Rugby match .v. Wales, when the rfeps. of the "Little Principality" scraped home by 5 to 3. The New Zealander had the 'bad luck for himself and his side fo get "woodened-out" twenty minutes after the kick off j and was so badly "concussed" tuat he was unable to resume, until the commencement of the j second pp. ell, but"' he was Very shaky and mare .or.jeJis "a passengers to the end. When "he returned, to- th^.-.h'otel at: wliicli the Scots hatT tueir " h'eadquartcrs, he I . was--in a>state bordering- on; collapse;- ;and was^l6urid- : to ; be .suGefing?. from' a very severe concussion. G-ilray's injury was caused by coming m contact one of ..-'.'Dicky", Owen's (the .famous Welsh half-back) knees as" lie (lived for . the ball..'. .. ... ' For in-and-out running Wellington Rug- . by Union 'delegates sliontttl be pulled lip before George Dixon and his cobbers, , and subjected- to all; the tortures /worthy of the' days of the Spanish Inquisition, At' the annual meeting lust year\ Leni McKenzie . and Barney Gallagher were fir- ; ed right out as a reward, for their, sterling work as m: the previous season, the chief intriguers being mem--b£rs: of Berney's own. clrib. On Wednesday week we saw: delegates 'almost praying "to' tieh to staxjd and ' urging Gallagher's name to g6 to ballot. ; v Both were moral "certs," but , Len point blank refused --tftrJace the music a second, time, and; gave delegates also, to . understand , that ■ ifrtend itemey- was . -taking', ail sorts' of fine care that the crowd of last year were not playing the same game again with him' this ' season: ' • ■' '. ■• " -' George ! Gillett, : the All" Black winger, has joined the ranks of benedicts. By the "'■way;-' how is thai; testimonial promoted by some active spirits m Auckland getting along? When m the Northern .-city- a.few: weeks ago, I heard that not moire fifteen quids, virere collected;- „.Rather. Rather poor response, and .from Auckland sports, too. ':. .In Auckland football., circles the opinion exists that there is very, little chance of the E.R.U. agreeing to the alterations m the rules as recommended by the N.Z.R,U,, and that the probabilities are 'that. Australia • and New. -Zealand .will .. join; forces- ■ and. alter the . code: to suit the existing conditions. . . .;■"< :■:■> Prank Alpe's . successor- as treasurer .of the, Wellington Rugby Union is Percy Smijih,' of the ' Southern Club. Tie 'new keener of the" "gonce" is said to 'have excellent testimonials for the job, which he : . wasn't ; by/ any means hankering; after. The Union's was to ; get a man, and Percy was a' God-send to it. .It is a-:Pity, that delegates to. the W,R.U. ..were not- sufficiently primed up to - a knowledge -of Southern Ulub. delegate.. Peters' qualifications for a seat on the Management Committee. Had they been better acquainted personally with that gentleman, I feel sure they would' haveordiJed'himin the chosen band."Peters is the very stamp of man required for a billet of this kind. Why delegates don't,. give ,... Jim O 1 Sullivan a respite from /executive work, for a year or two wherr pushing young lellows like Horning come along with their services beats trie.:: \ ' . ... ■,■: ' . :-. ..-.'■ ■ ■".■ . ■■'' .-Stan. Brown, as Chairman of the Rugby ' Union executive^ was subjected to a fairly: heavy bombardment by inquisitive dcV legiates'j;at ... the-,! annual meeting last week, and seemed^, thoroughly relieved t, when the: turmoil was over. Stan is . nq.t the keenest of men m making , his points at . the expense /of 'an adversary,/ aiid his. expianatiqns'are, not always as clear as they, might be., ;;StiU,/Stan/ is a 'real , good/ riian to. have on/the Committee,vliiS'commercial knowledge being a ' handy; asset to the Uriion'when intricate fiitrancial.problems present themselves^ for .solution. , • News corned -.-from. Victoria of the. death of Jv. H. Gardner, who was well known m South Canterbury as ; an athlete and footballer, m the early nineties> .. .The deceased and 0. . M. Mclntosh . were the South Canterbury representatives of : the N.Z. team which invaded N.S.W. and,; Queensland m 1893. v The pair played m; the vanguard and were of the ordinary; type of forwards. j ■It' is now ascertained that the Anstra-* lian ■ footballers are: not, after all* m sucb> a deplorable financial plight , as was' recently: publicly stated. The share which the kangaroos took of the £570 < "gate" at Newcastle and the £270 : ' 'gate at Hull, has \ gone a long way towards securing the financial stability of; the tourists'.. A good. story is going the city rounds 1 which has reference to ' a once noted chaser of the leather who is burning to • repeat his former deeds m the ; playing arena. His hopes and aspirations have been ruthlessly dashed aside by a stern edict from a tartar of a mother-in-law, Whdse possession of much coin is a circumstance making for respectable obedience • on' the part of the "Once-was." A famous football trainer m > the person, of Thomas Dodds has died at Darlington from pneumonia. We was at various times responsible for the condition of Sunderland, Newcastle United, Leyton, and Liverpool players. . In the course of a very' interesting chat on matters Rugby with a new chum from ■= the/Qold Country, I gathered that Rugby has,,, made, up : a rterrib.le .lot of -leeway since : the "AH Blacks" paralysed Bull's, disorganised forces. Matches which for- 1 merly attracted scarcely more than 700 or 1000 are how played m the presence of from 4000 to 7000. spectators. Taranaki Rugby Union has decided to have its headquarters at Stratford. T. Buchanan was obliged to miss the recent annual meeting of the Taranaki Rugby Union— the - first • for twelve years —owing to a poisoned hand. At the annual meeting .of the Otago Rugby Union on Saturday night last, the retiring President (J. Hutchinson) . said 'it was his duty to fay before delegates ■ a letter which he had received from the auditors : "We think it is our duty to draw attention to the somewhat; vague, manner m which account's for entertainment and travelling expenses are m some instances rendered— undetailed ,; items occasionally appear m such ac- ' counts > under . the head of 'sundries,' 'general- expenses,' 'refreshments,' and similar all-embracing terms. .Also, m the accounts of individuals for travelling expenses appear . items which convey the •-. .impression that the claimants treat themselves fairly liberally at the Union's expense, whilst m the expense accounts of ■ touring teams we- notice an outlay for liquor, which often appears ouite out of proportion to the individual necessities of the members, if, indeed, any expenditure under such a head legitimately conies, under;- the category of travelling expenses at all. It may be that criticism of this nature is beyond our pro•'•:virice'r^for we take it ' that the executive examines aH accounts, and satisfies itscflf as to their correctness before passing same ; still, we shall be glad to know if the delegates, by whom .we are elect-

ed, require us to do more than see that the payment has . been duly made.'-' He (Mr Hutchinson) believed that that portion of the balance-sheet against which criticism was levelled were items over which the committee had no jurisdiction — items of expenditure incurred on behalf 'of the New Zealand Union by its representatives. C. Orroube, formerly of Melrose rearguard, won the gold medal presented to the Car-terton Club by W. Halley, for the best buck m its senior team last season. Wanganui Union has reverted to the one-selector system, and W. Glen, onetime Taranaki and New Zealand rep. scrummager, is Undertaking this thankless contract. They say that- Iky' Hyams is sorely grieved over the action of the Wellington Union delegates m its choice: of representatives at the coming big picnic of the N.Z.R.U. Iky has had his fill of disappointments since that superannuation retirement dodge failed to work. Nuf sed. Passed through Wellington last week en route to JDimedin,- Percy Macassey, who, a few years ago, was a prominent figure, at the council board of the Otago Rugby Union. Percy had been on a holiday jaunt to Rotorua and Auckland after patting m a long course of stiff legal work m the Sabbyterian city. "Pakeha" hesitates not to express theopinion that the retirement of Percy from Rugby administration m Dunedinwas generally regretted by all broadminded footballers and that section of the. public which admires a straight-going | and able sport. [ Easier club fixtures include the following : — Poneke v. Albions (Christchurch) at' Wellington ; Melrose v. Kaierau (Wanganui) at Wellington, St. James v. Pirates (Napier) at Napier ; Christchurch y. Wellington at Christchurch, " Athletic, y. Wanganui . at . Wanganui. ■ ■■■(, ■'- „ A proposal t in th? way/ of' instructing the Management , Committee to . arrange, as far as possible, to have all cup matches finished before representative matches take place was not favored by delegates at Saturday, night's annual meeting of, the *Wanp:anui Uriidn. President Spr.iggins thought . that, perhaps there were too many ' representative fixtures last season — 15 m all had been played. .. Chairman Brown and his colleagues of the Wellington Union / Kxecutive, were ; Icnoclced, Mte high .when Col. , Campbell's motion to increase the Unions-contribut-ion to the Insurance Fund from £20 to £40 was carried by an oyerwhelming majority. . Stan had reckoned on delegates swallowing his statement as to the, ne-, cessity far wringing further subs from [clubs m aid of the Fund. . ,