RUGBY.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 19696, 25 January 1926, Page 2

RUGBY.

THE CHALLENGE CUP CRAZE. At a meeting of the Finance Committee of the Southland Rugby Union on Friday night a letter was received from the secretary of the New Zealand Rugby Union regarding a cup presented by Mr D. L. Taylor, of Vancouver. The cup is to he open for competition amongst all primary schools playing in school competitions either directly under the control of unions affiliated to the N.Z.E.F.U. or controlled by school unions or boards under arrangement with Rugby Unions, Each win in the school competition to count two points, and each draw one point. Tlie school securing the most points in the 1!)26 season is to hold the cup for 12 months, when it is to be handed to the 1927 winners for 12 months, and so on. “ Full Back,” who is not very sympathetic to the growing challenge cup ciaize, says that he has no knowledge who Mr Taylor may be, but that if there was any need for a challenge cup—which he denies—then it should have been given by the New Zealand Union. “Pull Back” writes; “Serious trouble is going to result, moreover, as the result of the conditions. In a small district one school team might completely dominate the other teams and pile up huge scores. This school would secure the challenge cqp against all the other schools in New Zealand. This arrangement would certainly not help school football in New Zealand, though 1 do not suppose the other non-winning schools would worry much about it. So far as I can ascertain. the Southland Rugby Union has accepted the cup and its conditions. I sincerely hope, however, that the Otago Primary Schools’ Football Association will carefully scan the conditions under which the cup is to be given when the matter comes before it in due course, and I am sure no one will regret it if the association declines to compete for a cup on such foolish conditions. It might also discover who Mr Taylor is and what are his associations with New Zealand football. I do not desire to be ungenerous, but there is no doubt that the ruling bodies of sports of all kinds in the Dominion would have been acting wisely in the past if they had declined to accept indiscriminate offers of challenge cups. From what I have seen of challenge cups very little value is placed on them by the winners. In fact, they sometimes lose them —not necessarily wilfully. I 'shall await with interest the reasons which prompted the New Zealand Rugby Union to accept the cha'lenge cup. While on the subject of the New Zealand Rugby Union a footballer prominent in the administration of the game in New Zealand told me lost week that there was a strong feeling, even in Wellington, that the headquarters of the union should be shifted from Wellington for a few years—-to Christchurch for preference. He also .informed me that there is a strong likelihood that two of the prominent members of the present executive will be defeated for election at the annual meeting of delegates—that is, of course, if the headquarters are to remain in Wellington.”