GENERAL GOSSIP.

NZ Truth, Issue 328, 7 October 1911, Page 3

GENERAL GOSSIP.

"Wellington Rugby reps, loo'xed like going through the South Island tour "all the same as last time'"— all wins. And just when one warf rapidly coming to the conclusion that South Island football was tripe, thc desmsed Otago team steps m and makes a draw. For good solid in-and-out performances Wellington are hard to beat. A Southern writer states that the Wellington-Canterbury match wasn't much of a game, anyway. The only two players who were above the ordinary were Roberts (Wellington) and Burns (Canterbury). Freddy's dropped goal was one out of the box. Likewise the tackling by the Canterbury men was mostly a joke. The City of the Plains appears to be painfully weak at Rugby this season, so it is up to the management to make some "discoveries" before next year. We'll hope for the bestAt present it is a pity to watch 'em. Brother Parata, of Maori Team fame, is nothing if not a sticker. He still has an idea of getting a Native Team away to England, even though leave has "beep declined by the New Zealand Rugby Union Management. Parata is after a conference now, and he is just one of those chaps who will see his idea right through, Rugby football is not on a very high plane m Nelson City, evidently. The College boys won the Senior championship final by 27 points to nil. A Patterson,, the Otago fourteenstone forward, was a bit off his game at th© beginning of the season, but managed to strike form |at the latter end. His game against Southland was th** best performance on the ground. When- Patterson is on it, things happen. Twenty-thousand people watched Eastern Suburbs team defeat Glebe for the League Championship m Sydney, by 11 to 8. The only Messenger's kicking wpn the game for East tat the last minute. Can't see how the devil Mitehinson gets picked for a North Island team on this year's play. There most -have been a lot who couldn't take it on, Mitchey's performance this season has pot been up to rep. form, let alone Inter-Island form. Wanganui Rugby has got a severe fright, and will now get a special meeting of thc delegates to the New Zealand Rugby Union to consider the advisability of altering smd amending the rules, The Northern Union people have put two feet dp'wir 'very suddenly tn the Wanganui disitrict, and the easy-going old PF<>W4 i don't like it worth a cent. Therefore, they are up and into it, but this writer doesn't quite .-'cc what advantage thsy will get by having a special meeting of delegate*. We had one for tl»© same purpose -before, and what happened ? Just toothing. There are not enough stray Ygtes knocking round to carry a motion pf severance from the English Rugby Unios, and, that, appear* to he the preliminary tp altering laws. Southland have got a good, threequarter m McNeece, who has shown capital scoring form all this season. Ue'^ one out of the bag, ftud th.ey are sadly needed down South.. May he prove a hero next season. McK©llar, ex-Wellington and New Zealand rep., didn't manage to hit form for a start w^pn shifted to Dunedin. But he stvuck i£ m time for representative fixtures, appargntly,' and was one of the best m the Ofcag.p-Southland fixture. The Committee- , of. .the Auckland Rugby Union h'a§ decided that it is not advisiablo to e\U-V t* 1G present rules of Rugby football ; nnd yet it only seems but a day or tw^i ago that "Cuply" Ohlson and Co. came to Wellington to ?i meeting of delegates prepared to pull §very r ule m the book to pieces.. A\xn. Aupkjand panted payment, of players for loss iif timo, and nothing short of an Immediate "putting of the painter" was any use tQ' tliem. Why this change ? Is it beuftii.-v qpr U purge JT. Dixon sits m the chair •? I fehjlnk,-' Spectators 40.fi89, gate money £1807 17.8 3d. The figures of the semi-fTiul Au^.j'alian Leairuo gams playr' retw»?i;-ji Ff7£?7K!o>i ami Caijtor ot the .Melboui'iir.' prj^ri-^ff?^*^ on Spelernber 10. The result was a,

win for Essendon m the last quar- j ter by 9 goals 3 5 behinrls to their opponents' 0 goals 12 behinds, otherwise 09 points to 48. But it was a fairly good addition to the general cash box, wasn't it ? "Dally" Messenger, thc present, idol of the Sydney football crowds, has put up a record this* station that will be hard to boat. For all matches played this season he has scored 18 tries and 108 goals. While the Sydney crack's goal kicking is as good as ever, it would seem that | his try getting was not so good as on provious seasons, perhaps not quite so keen as- before. However, with the above record tacked on to has jersey. "Dally" can safely stow said* article m the box until called I for. It's a great tally. Southern (Wellington) team can look back with a lot of pleasure to their late trip to Picton. There is onf_ thing certain about that same ! little village, the inhabitants are sports, good sportsi, and they give i their visitors a real good time, and j this was no exception. Bradley and jCo went over to play the Waitohi jteam. not a particularly strong combination, by the way. but one quite twilling to" learn. The Wellington team was a bit too strong for the 'locals. The latter have cot a heap of good stulT amongst them, but they 'don't know enough of the trices of game yet. And no better way could be found of learning the said ' points than to get visits from a few city teams. Waitohi will most eeritainly benefit by this Southern visit. JThe versatile Bradley was the star ■performer of the afternoon, bagging |13 points out of the 16 scored. les i Campbell kept up the good form he ihas shown all the season, and both (Finlayson and Russell did a lot of I good work. Carkeek, Morris, and j Hughes did ' well for Waitohi, and wore ably assisted by Godfrey and IA. Whiting. Southerns won by sixjteen to nil, but it wasn't so bad las it looks. The locals tried hard ;and did real well. but. as stated 1 above, they have a lot to learn yet .m the way of grabbing opportunities. That'll come with experience. Judging by what the Southern chap* say, they would like to go and. live m Picton, mostly with Jack ; Campbell at the Federal Hotel, and il. don't blame them- A good trip, •a. pleasant game, and nice people, that's the verdict. j Om. can't help thinking that it ! was a very fortunate thing for Welj lington that Fred. Roberts went on j tour with their rep. team. Southerners are pretty well agreed that it . was Koberts first and thc rest distanced. It sounds unkind, but is pro bably very true. | The North-South match to take : place to-day on the Athletic Park, j Wellington, has not, so far, raised a breath of excitement. As before stated, it is much too late i'n the season, and certainly much too late m .Wellington to' attempt to get people into a sweat at the mention of the words "Rugby Football." The only people who will sweat will be the players, and they'll be careful 'how much they lose. i The North-South teams are selected, and the selections can scarcely 'be criticised;, because nobody excel. t the selectors knows who were available and nominated by their unions. JBut, judging by the names as pub- ] lished, there are a lot ,of 'em not having any, Taranaki, with all her brilliant backs, supplies five forwards and no backs. Who beat tbe Taranaki forwards"? Auckland, The latter puppliep Sellars, one of their winning forwards. And how the wild Rawiri comes to be m the team Is one of those mysteries that passeth all understanding. Certainly ' he's near handy, and it won't cost the Union much to fetch him down, so possibly that is the reaison. But what of Cameron, Stohr, JHyland, etc. Can't play, eh? Right! j Why, I think we'd rather see Jim ; Ry^-n m the three-quarter line m;- -; stead of the bounding Rawiri m a .hig gome. But it doesn't matter. j .South Island produced, their team lon Monday, and, strange to say, the big Otago pack is only represented by one man — Paterson. The Marlborough carowd, which Was so soundly walloped both back and forward by an A-B Wellington team, got two forwards m, /McDonald amd Forbes —both real good 'uns, if a bit slow. They have been out of work for weeks now, and cannot be expected to show much form. To hazard an opinion should say that the game will be a holy frost (if it comes off). Since the popularising pf the Hoy-. them Union game m New South Wales m opposition to the Rugby Union people, there is one thing very noticeable, and that is the number of people who are now attending the Australian Rule fixtures. Sydney is 'catering hard for four different kinds of football — Northern Union, Rugby Umpn, Australian Rules, and Soccer-. The two latter keep on going, and every year they get more players and ' more support . jn a quiet sort of way without press notices ov fighting on paper. This mjght be called doing the thing ppoperly, Thp , Pprt Adplaid^ team hg.d intended to visit Tasmania this' season,, but dates didn't fit, nor could a Queensland to.ir he ar--1 ranged. Therefor*., the w ertVp " row " ling hot, and the good old races beting on, the party, consisting of Itwentv playgrs,, fivp trainers, four 1 pommitteeirign, and £he secretary to Ithe club will leave Adelaide on November 2, do the big Melbourne Cup 'meeting, etc., and will then spend .four or five days m Sydney. There 'will, of course, be no football at ithat time of the year, but with harjbor expursiong, picnics, and theatre ! partes, the tvavefl'eps wfll probably pull through satisfactorily. Needless to say. their game is Australian Rules, so a bit of a trip now and then is not noticed. How would the New (Zealand Rugby Union Jppk on a proposal of that kind, eh? It would be' enough to make the chairman fall out of his chair. And the vacation of that would be the last thing to be thought of under any circumstances.