BRITISH RUGBY TEAM IN MAORI LAND.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 14381, 26 November 1908, Page 10

BRITISH RUGBY TEAM IN MAORI LAND.

THE GAME IN NEW, ZEALAND. ! Bronzed, and looking 10 years younger t than when ho left Old England for New t Zealand last April, Mr Georgo Harnett was I foUnd at his office, 3 Brick court, London. ! In a chat with a representative of London t Sportsman, Mr Harnett was most ent.hu- I siastic. concerning the 33,000-mile trip he t has so recently managed. It had, he said, given him a wider outlook of life; he was able to sympathise with the aims and ambitions of .the colonial, and' the change of air, ho linew, had greatly improvod his liealth. • ' Our first question drew attention to the < attacks made on the tour in 'the north. It was understood, replied Mr Harnett, ' after the visit of the All Blacks, that we should return the compliment, and Mr f Rhodes, president- of the New Zealand, liiU., two years ago gave the Rugby Union a 1 most cordial 'invite. He visited London ' and personally conveyed the message from 1 his union. I must say we were splendidly 1 received. Every class in the Dominion united to do us honour, and even the 'Government went out of their way to provide J us with special trains for our long journeys. 1 What has been said of New Zealand will < also apply to Australia. We found wherever the Rugby Union game was played I we were welcomed as good fellows /and sportsmen. ,' What about th(s results in New Zealand? i Well, we wire undoubtedly handicapped by the recurring injuries to some of our best players, and also by the fact, that the , referees do not interpret the laws as we do over here. Speaking.as a referee (Mr Harnett is Uie lion, secretary of the London Society of Referees), I think the New , Zealand'.officials are far too fond of the strict letter of the law; they do not enter sufficiently into the spirit "of the game. Both in New Zealand and in.Ncw , Wales referees are looking forward to some amendments, -and, if there should be a rcvi- , sion, are anxious that the l-ule3 shall be to Explicit that they can't bo Jniatakijh jther- , ever the game is played. l New Zealand lias already proposed certain alterations, which ' will doubtless,, come before the Rugby • Union. There is also a proposal for a general conference to be heljd in London next year, at Which the whole subject will be discussed. Did the tour help amateurism? I think it did. Northern Union, football, or pay.'for play, has made a start, but it must (jneounter immense difficulties. At present I cannot seo how it can be made successful. Tou sec, all the best grounds are managed by the unions under 1 tho jurisdiction of the New Zealand R.U. •And then again the important towns are far removed from one another. Considerable financial suppbrt must be necessary for a paid team to succeed. The" travelling ' expenses; alone would ho very heavy. Please remember also that the amateurs are thoroughly organised. The district'unions meet,every week, and they kcop a tight grip on football affairs, the conduct of players and officials. The public schools are keen supporters of our code, and tho psoplc—well, I have .never seen such perfervid enthusiasm. It is almost a religion with many of them. And what would you say as to the strength of New Zealand at present? wo next asked.—ln my opinion the best team of All Blacks .would beat any team in the world unless a very exceptional side was • turned out in opposition. We ought, however, to have beaten New Zealand in the second test match. They scored ! a-penalty, goal, and our team a try -behind tho "posts, which Harding ought to have converted, hut did not. At its best New Zealand football is wonderfully attractive; they hive perfected their system, and, if J .anything! their back play is superior to their . forward play. 'But backs and forwards can lie admirable, as we have already seen in England. There are, however, '.some objectionable- features which should be eliminated. First, the win# forward should be abolished at all costs. Our team suffered heavily from his offside and obstructive '' methods. "Pointing" ought also to bo. done . away with. "Pointing" I should define as ; clover, obstruction. Respecting the players, Edgar Morgan headed the list for matches, having taken 1 1 part in 25 out of a total of 28. Then came R. Dibble-with 24, P. Down 22, Polity Jones 22, T.« Smith 21, .T.. Williams (Cardiff) 21,. and J. P. Jones 20. R. Gibbs was - the most prolific scorer with 17 tries, J. Williams coming next with 11 Gibbs also 'kicked 15 goals (four penalties),' \