SOCCER SIDELIGHTS

NZ Truth, Issue 881, 14 October 1922, Page 9

SOCCER SIDELIGHTS

WV'VVUI VIVkMUIIW Professionalism v. Amateurism WHERE THE PRO'S WIN OUT*/ (By "Tynecastle.") In New Zealand there is a very strong antipathy .'to the. word "professionalism" m any branch^ of sport, arid,' generally speaking; the writer is at one with that opiriion.-Nevertheless it might be wise to take a broad view of the subject and see 'exactly where any particular game stands under the two systems. I suggest taking "Soccer" football for an example. Any old player or enthu&asj from the Old Country will remember that m the old (lays "Soccer" football was • altogether an amateur sport. We saw good football • OP A KIND m those days, especially amongst the Scottish teams. At that period, and for many years later, Scotland easily, held the 1 palm and the International mostly went m her favor. But eventually England, or at least Lancashire, introduced the ipaid player, who had to train and be coached, and as he was paid for his work he had to do = it — it was, his profession. The famous old Preston North End team was the first to bring "Soccer" football to, a fine art. Their first enscounter at Glasgow with the worldfamous Queen's Park team, who up till then were practically the topnqtehers m; football, ia still spoken of by , old-timers. The play of 'the Preston North End, or, as they came to be called, the P.N.E., was AN ABSOLUTE/REVELATION to a Scottish football crowd, their combination, placing and general conception of the game being beautiful to watch. They played with machinelike precision and the result was that the Queen's Park were beaten and ■practically played to a standstill. So thi3 famous P.N.E. team carried all before them; nothing could stand against them. Now this team was not; composed of men who had. be 4 en^ stars, m their own teams before being 'drafted to Preston. They had beea only average players and had been formerly mostly members of second-rate teams. They wei*e mostly Scotsmen and had been reckoned only very qrdinary when playsing as amateurs in' Scotland. The training and coaching they had m Preston changed them out of all recognition, and the play of the team created a new epoch m "Soccer" football. It was not long before other teams m England followed Preston's example, and the Blackburn Rovers, Accrington and later Everton, Sunderland, Newcastle and many other teams turned professional. ' I Poor old Scotland paid a heavy toll m players to the English teams, and soon such famous teams as Dumbar- ' ton, Renton, "Vale of Leven, Heart of Midlothian, through loss of players, be gan. to go back. The Football Association of England had, of course, legalised pi-ofessionalism, while the 1 Scottish Association for- years would not legalise it. The Result was that for years England was easily ..the top dog and t won the International time after time, more particularly as the Scottish Association ■•; REFUSED TO PLAT. any of her sons playing . m England, and, of course, that -was where most of her brilliant men were .playing. About this time there was ' introduced by certain, of the big clubs m Scotland what became k^)own as "Veiled Professionalism," which was, m effect, I paying their players, but doing it m an Indirect way. They were thus keeping the better, of the law, but breaking its spirit. . This unsatisfactory state of matters -couldn't go orf, as it was palpable, to everybody, and eventually the^ Scottish Association legalised professionalism. • This brought the level back again, as the Scottish clubs could retain some, at least, of their players. The migration to England was not so Wholesale, and .since that time England and. Scotland have pretty well -divided the. honors. Now the point of ' this article 80 ' far as it has reference to "Soccer" football m New Zealand is . this: If we want the best football here there must be strict training and wise coaching. None of us ever want to see professionalism introduced here, but if we want to see the game played brilliantly we must copy the methods of the professional teams so far as these, two points are concerned. .How many teams see each other only' on Saturdays at the match? They haveno common scheme of action; they have not the stamina to stand a gruelling game; and, i altogether, their methods are haphazard, crude, unin- . teresting, and not calculated to impress those who see the game for the first time. ' < However, we see the dawn of better things for football m New Zealand. And where do we see it? We 11, .1 ask you which teams have played THE BEST FOOTBALL during the season just closed, m Wellington, for instance? The Watersiders, senior, junior and sth grade, ' and the Institute juniors and the YM.C.A. 3rd-class teams are the only ones that have gone m for consistent week-to-week training and have been under able coaches. Men like Dan Jones, Bill McCardle, R. Henry and Colin Reid have given of their time, week' by week, ungrudgingly, for these, teams particularly and consequently for the game generally, and they have the reward of seeing their teams mostly at the top of their grades and carrying off aIL, the honor's possible for them to gam. It is the hope of the writer, and of all those who love the good old game, to see their methods copied next season by all the teams, and just accordingto the measure that they are copied BO shall we see better football. It is futile to look for an improvement otherwise. .