OTAGO FOOTBALL ASSOCIATION

Otago Daily Times, Issue 18319, 9 August 1921, Page 8

OTAGO FOOTBALL ASSOCIATION

The usual meeting of the Otago Football Association was held last night, Mr Anderson presiding. The Secretary, Now Zealand Council, wrote stating that the council was. pleased to note the action of the Otago Executive in the matter of schools’ football. It considered that the executive was working in the right direction by giving the teachers some interest in controlling the /gajne in the schools. The whole position with regard to the cautioning of players had been considered by the council, and he had been directed to*j inform the Otago Executive that the procedure adopted by Otago was improper and must be discontinued. This meant that players who had been merely cautioned by a referee must not be reported in future. The council had been extremely disappointed at the opinion expressed as to arranging a New South Wales tour in 1922, and did not think the Otago Executive quite understood the position. This season the council sent an invitation to Australia to send a team to New Zealand. and this was declined. The position now was that the council oould receive a combined Queensland-New South Wales team to tour New Zealand next season. The team, of course, would be very much stronger than a Now South Wales team as it was to all intents and purposes an Australian team, and, as such, was bound to prove n pood attraction, despite any counter attractions bv the other codes of football. The council considered that the tour must be looked upon from a dominion point of view, and not purely from an Otago point of view, and pointed out that if Otago’s argument was a good one for Otago in 1922 it would be an equally good one for Auckland in IS2-* and, therefore, no tour of an overseas team could over eventuate. Under ordinary weather conditions there was every prospect of such a tour being extremely successful, and the fact that a gate of £l5O had recently been obtained* at a Brown Shield match in Wanganui could only lead to one conclusion, that the tour would be successful. If tho visit were not accepted there might not be another chance. It had been agreed to receive the team provided the finance necessary to oomp'ete oiTan—’ments could bo raised. Approximately £I4OO would be required, and towards this sum Otago would be required to guarantee unconditionally the sum of £3OO. In the event of the necessary funds not bein" available by March 1 the tour would have to bo definitely abandoned.

fin the motion of Mr Deuchrass it was decided to forward on to the Referees’ Association rbnt part of the letter relating to cautioned players. With regard to the proposed visit of a Queensland-New South Wales team next season it was decided to write accepting the terms and guaranteeing £3OO, with a proviso that the visiting team play a match against an Otago team on one Saturday and a matrb against n New Zealand team in Dunedin on the following Saturday. The mover of the motion (Mr Deuchrass) stated that Otago had been starved for want of outside matches for some years. The matches in Dunedin must be played on olf days otherwise they were doomed financially; mid-week matches would be of no use whatever as it would be impossible to “get the- crowd.” . . It was decided to accept a visit of Wellington and Canterbury primary school teams to take part in a tournament in Dunedin on the 19th, 20th, and 22nd mst. The proposal is that Canterbury and Otago play on the 19th, Otago and Wellington on the 20th. and Wellington and Canterbury on the 22nd. , In view of tho foot that the I f irst and Second Grade representative matches take place between Otago and Canterbury on the 20th inst., and of tho above school matches, it was decided to decline with regret a visit by a Fourth Grade Canterbury team on that date. The necessary arrangements weye made for the entertaining of the visiting teams. It was resolved to hold a training meeting of the representative team at the YJII.C.A. rooms to-night (7.30).