A Novel Suggestion

NZ Truth, 7 February 1925, Page 11

A Novel Suggestion

Exhibitions By Home- Coming All Blacks. (By j " A: correspondent, G.T. W. Leslie, of Dunedin, Is very anxious to have the: All Blacks m action on their returnhome. ■ Some few weeks back he came forward with the suggestion that the tourists should be pitted,' against the provincial teams of the Dominion, but I pointed out that the team would arrive home at a time when- football was quite out, of the question. Now. my correspondent offers the following novel suggestion :— "Dear 'Tackier': : ;; "Following upon my' suggestion for a. tour of the All Blacks and your reasonable objections to such A comes, my 'amended' suggestion- of a compromise. "I still -maintain that public interest has been aroused to . such a pitch that everyone, desires to give the champions a' welcome, ;and I suggest that such a spontaneous preetirig 1 could be given to the boys by the public. if the team were allowed to, yisit each main, town and give an exhibition 'kick-about' amongst themselves;:"" " ''The objection on account of hard grounds could be easily overcome if. the team was allowed to give, say, a fifty-minute exhibition- amongst themselves. There need' be no hard* match arranged between a picked provincial team and the' All Blacks. What is wanted by, the New Zealand public, is an opportunity of giving their Rugby champions a real welcome and ah opportunity of seeing them m action if only m ah exhibition game arranged amongst themselves.

"Such exhibition games could be ! arranged,, m each chief town of each province: so the [ people ! of each district could at least have the chance of witnessing them at practice.

"I suggest Auckland for Auckland, Napier for Hawkes Bay, Wellington for Wellington, ■ Hawera for Taranaki,. Greymouth for. the West Coast, Christchurch, Dunedin and Invercargill for their respective provinces, m all nine exhibitions. Surely not a hard proposition for a team when we consider what the 1888-89 team did after their return to the Dominion."

The foregoing may appeal to "G.T. W.L.,"- but to "Tackier" it is too ridiculous to be taken seriously/ Nobody is more desirous of seeing the AH Blacks m action than the writer,, but exhlbitions^-oh no. I am afraid that, the only way "we will see the All Blacks going will 'be as individual units of club and. rep. teams.