FOOTBALL IN CHRISTCHURCH.

Otago Witness, Issue 1854, 3 June 1887, Page 25

FOOTBALL IN CHRISTCHURCH.

By Puntbh.

_. . . ' Chbtstchttbch, May 30. - The interest centred in our winter pastime was enlivened on the occasion of the. visit of the Pirates and Mpntecillo representatives "from - your city la^st week. On their arrival last M6n-.. •day eveningboth teams were welcomed at the?' station; by a large circle of footballers, and through the hospitality of they: entertainers were driven fn four-in-hand drags io'ttieir respective quarters. On Tuesday (Queen's Birthday) the weather, which had hitherto l>een very boisterous and uninviting, cleared up and left us everything'that could be 'desired: ' The" match between the Pirates and East Ohristchureh consequently eventuated on Lancaster Park-, in the presence of fully 1000 spectators, and although the ground was heavy it was nevertheless m fair ' order to enable" those present? to : c witness a pleasant and entertaining exposition of the game? : Drabble was fortunate' in /winning the toss, aid; elected to defend the- eastern goal, •which gave his side the advantage of the wind blowing from that quarter. • • The game had nofr -progressed very long before it became apparent; -, that the Easterns were' too strong 'for their-op'- • iponents in the forward division, but 'whatever ■ : advantage they gained in the straight'ahead work was partly neutralised^ by 'the"' screwing tactics;' • adopted by the Blacks:* The Southerners, how- 'J ever, should have taken more advantage of the wind/ as it wonldhave favoured thefa in faster' ' and more open play,- but as in 'every r case there *' are two sides to a question,' so in this case the 'possibility: of their -doing so was probably pre- - ' vented by the tactics observed by the Yellows; The Yellows for the first 20 minutes were' con- ' tihuaUy 'in dangerous proximity 'to the, Blacks' - goal-line, and forced them down three r or four times in quick succession. lies was hurled back - when on the point of scoriag, and later on was just 'stopped from -getting over through 'the '' "agency) of Montgomery. Foster and Scott ' ' crosßedthe barrier, but were brought' back for f dff-side play, and Dow mauled witti<Wflliairiß. In > the mean while Fraser and Thomson Iwere in- , itiSting.themselveg inio(the gooS graces" of the * •• onlookers -by ; their' smart 'pla^ 1 in punting-- into -^ I touch and down the field, while A. Hobba waa

putting-in-some brilliant .work at threequarter back for the Yellows.- His dashing,. dodgy runs and excellent kicking behig; generally, admired, and appreciated,,by applause from the, public. Francis, Iles,,and Roberts were doing. some excellent passing, and. generally harassing the Piratical backs: -The first. spell terminated in favour 'ofjthe Yellows, -with, one .goal to their credit, through the agency .of Francis. , . <

For some 15 minutes after the re-commence-ment of the 'game the play was, jrendeired rather monotonous and ■ uninteresting,; owing to the Yellow; backs "taking repeated shots at goal, and , thereby, continuaUy,fprc,ing the Blacks. This style of play, however, soon settled down, and the forwards were again allowed to "monopolise the leather. The game now got much faster, and. partook more of an open character. > The Blacks -showing up repeatedly by smart' following up and effective dribbling, while the Yellows were working closer together and making tip their ground 'by continned rushes, and, as had been the, case throughout, their backs were dbing.'some neat passing, smart running, and effective kicking, while the Blacks, on the other hand, were' doing little or nothing in this department behind their half backs. Hassal had one or two shots 'at goal from easy positions, .but got no nearer than a poster on one occasion. Francis, from an unselfish piece of- passing, placed another goal to the credit of his' side. Exasperated by these numberless fusillades at their uprights, the Blacks put more energy into their play, and stimulated by the excited calls of "-Blacks !" " Yellows !'■' &0., from the' spectators, the ball careered up and down the field. Diamond, Black, A. W. Morris, and Buckland being conspicuous for the Piratical- combination, while Blanchard,' Scott, Fuller, Dow, and Fooks were invariably to the fore for the Yellows. ' '' A very pleasant game eventually terminated as recorded above. The Yellows' were evidently the better team, and worsted their opponents in all points of the game, except, possibly, in the loose forward play, but had the Black been better represented behind Fraser and Thomson, I believe we. should have witnessed a more even contest. .The game was played in the mo3t friendly spirit, and the cavilling that invariably follows football was on this occasion ever conspicuous by its absence. The-iumpire- duties were rendered pleasant by little or no unnecessary appealing, and where decisions were given they were always excepted without demur. In the evening the Pirate 3 and Montecillo representatives attended a smoke concert; on the invitation of the East' Christchurch Club, andenjoyed a pleasant evening. With the departure of the Pirates from this direction, rain came down incessantly for the rest of the week, and in consequence thereof the fixture Montecillo v. North- Canterbury did not come off on the Thursday. On Saturday, in spite of rain and a very slippery and heavy ground, the Montecillo and East Christchurch match took place at Lancaster Park! The game terminated, as was generally, expected, in a draw. The prin- , cipal characteristic of the* play was the innumerable serums, which were not .to be wondered at considering the state . of, , the turf. , Every . player was covered with from head to* foot. The ball was* rendered heavy and almost unplayable from the same cause. While "the backs and forwards alike were engaged in cultivating the art of balancing during the afternoon. The play was confined almost solely to the forwards and in this department the - game was fought out with stern obstinacy. . Push being met by push and terminating invariably in a squash, and general " Sacks on the mill."

Occasionally Noel effected some sharp, dodgy runs on the one side, while Hobb's aud Francis figured by kicking on the other; but on the whole the backs had little or no say in the issues of the game. At the call of time every player appeared' well satisfied with his individual share of the Park's surface and, thoroughly sick of the questionable, enjoyments.' ' , ' , : ' ' The Mon^e'cillos came* to our quarter with a reputation of being the rough diamonds of your district, but if the roughness exhibited by them on Saturday can be accepted asa fair criterion of their capabilities in this direction, then I., can only say that you get rough play in a very mild form in your province. The, Reds play keen and hard, but beyond this I witnessed nothing more objectionable. • ' ' . t •„ On Sunday afternoon the Montecillos were driven to Sumner, and took their departure by Monday's express. ' ' ' „; Mr W. V. Millton, so well and favourably known in connection with Rugby football, has been laid up with a severe attack of typhoid fever, out of which he is emerging as well as can be expected. '," v At a meeting of our local union, held lastThursday, it was decided to send a representative team as far as Auckland during the ensuing season. The team will play Auckland, Hawke's Bay, and Wellington. The date of the team's departure is to be settled on the date being fixed with your union for our annual interprovincial match. The Rev. J. Hoatson has been elected to select our representative teams during the ensuingseason. Members of former selection committees wish him joy. ' , • The inter-club fixtures on Saturday nest should terminate in favour of Sydenham and East Christchurch against North Canterbury and Merivale respectively. THE ENGLISH RUGBY U^ION.. The annual March meeting oi this body was held in the Westminster Palace Hotel oil March 31. A-: ..-.; "'lose present were Messrs S. E. Sleigh (Oi <g > Union) and H. H. Mathias (Canterbury Union) The following resolutions were moved by G. Rowland Hill (hon. sec), and seconded by A. E. Hudson (Yorkshire) : — ... 1. That the Rugby Union Committee: shall (under the powers, given them, in Bye -law 2) invite two representatives with voting powers" from the Scotch, Irish, and Welsh Union Com? mittees respectively, to attend any committee meeting at which they intend to discuss proposed alterations in the laws of the game. -• 2. That the Rugby Union shall pay. the travelling expenses of any. such representatives who are not resident in London. * > , . 3. That the officers of- the- Scotch, Irish, and > Welsh Unions, as well, as two representatives from every club belonging to any ,of those unions, be entitled to attend all general meet? ings' of the Rugby Union; such officers' and re?* presentatives . shall have the same rights and; privileges, and be subject to the same restrictions, as the officers and representatives, of the •clnbs of the Rugby Union. . ■ ,< • - 4. That the bye-laws of the Rugby, Union shall remain under their sole jurisdiction, and that none of the powers abovementioned shall be deemed to confer on the Scotch, Irish, .or Welsh Unions any right of legislation or discussion except upon the laws of the game. - The Hon. Sec. explained that from the establishment of the- .Rugby' Union in 118711 1871 until ecently .the Rugby Union alone had made the the laws of the game, to the complete satisfaction < f players in all parts of the world, ., The course

hitherto adopted by-the Committee was- to consult the 'other unions' before 'submitting proposed alterations to the general meeting, and this plan? had worked well until:' the .unfortunate dispute"' with Scotland, led' to the establishment' of an , International Board for the settlement of differences arising in international matches, ' It was t now claimed that this board- should have control over the laws of; the game, but he: considered this scheme impracticable. It was absurd, to expect that the English clubs, numbering more than 200, should be represented at • the international conferences on an equal footing with each of the other: unions; whose:: combined forces could hardly reach the, half of that-. number; .while, on the other hand, if; England received proportional representation," the board could do nothing: but ratify the decisions of the English general meetings. -The only sound principle of proportional representation) was that embodied in the present proposals. /•.•--:. j ; -> - ? A. E. iHudson deprecated- the insistence of the Rugby Union on _the divine right or claims of apostolical succession derived from its founders* in 1871, and urged that all possible concessions . should be made to the demands of the other countries. •. ■ ■ ■ . In answer to W. Aitken (Manchester) it was elicited .that no preliminary steps had been taken to securje the approval of the Irish, Scotch, and Welsh officials: .i The were then put to the meeting, and' carried unanimously. - '* A. T. Kemble proposed, on: behalf of the Lancashire County F.,0. :— • ;>/ •' * s ' " That Bye-law 5 be altered by the addition of the following words: — *.The' general meeting to be held in the month of October 1887, shall be held : in the North of England, at * place to be determined upon by. the Northern section of <the Committee. ■' Subsequent Ootob'er general meetings shall be held' in London and the North of England alternately. The. general meeting to be held in .March 1888, shall be held in London. -Subsequent March general meetings shall' be heldjin the North of England and r London alternately.' "••- ... W. Gail (Northumberland), in seconding the proposal, urged the consideration of the expense entailed on Northerners by the long journey to London. He also combated the objection that harm would result from an occasional northern majority controlling the policy of the Union. A. G. Guillemard (past-president) opposed the' motion,' arguing that nothinghad occurred since a 'similar [motion was rejected six years ago to: make such a change necessary. > Siac& that time ■ there had been noshadow of a difference between North and .South. ■ The advantages of having fixed headquarters,- and .the superior accessibility of j London from all parts >of England, especially from the Western counties (where, as Lancashire players would admit, football was very flourishing), were reasons against the change.! The speaker .also read a letter from J. Maclaren in! support of his views. A. Bubb (vice-president) pointed out that the wealth of Northern clubs enabled" them to send j delegates to London without difficulty. ' <>- The motion wasf also / opposed by R. Walker (Manchester), :S. JB. Sleigh (Ota^go R.U.); and W. Aitken,' the last-named urging, in a humorous speech, ithat football had claims to free quarters in the Imperial Institute. , On the other hand,' R. J. Hodgson (Old 'MUlhillians) argued that concession to Northern claims 'should not be delayed until differences arose.' The motion' was also supported by W. A. Smith (Rochdale Hornets), A. E. Hudson (Yorkshire), and H: Beardsell (Huddersfield). The meeting then divided, and the motion was lost by 79 votes to 70. , . ' *'• - • A discussion then took place on the motion of H. H. Biathias (Canterbury R. U.) to increase the penalty for outside, play, and to adopt the rule of the Yorkshire Union, which empowers a referee to order off the field any player guilty bf . foul or unfair play; ■ The proposer urged that in the colonies, where the game .was learned Irom the letter of the law, it was an advantage to make its provisions more stringent .than might ' perhaps ■be -necessary ; among jclubs where the fashion- was set by .the example of university and publio school men. j .; ?' ' S. E.) Sleigh (Otago R.:U.) seconded the proposition, reminding the. meeting of a. flagrant case of jjmfair play that had recently occurred in a first-class match in London. It was explained, however, that .the Yorkshire rule only' applied to cup ties which were ur.der the management of responsible referees. . The proposition of an offside penalty was favourably commented on by H. Vassall and other officials, but I it was agreed that it was .-inexpedient to make alterations in the laws of the game pending the consideration of the new proposals by the Scotch, Welsh, and Irish Unions, and the question was not put to the vote. AN ASSOCIATION GAME. , I clip from Pastime the following extracts from a .report of the final Association' tie.' ' It ,w,ill be interesting reading even to Rugby footballers :— " The sixteenth year of the cup competition has closed, and for the first .time a Birmingham club has obtained the "blue ribbon" of football. The great success achieved by the Preston JNortb. End, who early this .season appeared to beinvincible, pointed to them 'as the subsequent winners; -and as they disposed of powerful rivals—one ' after the other — without losing' a goal, their claims to favouritism, when they reached the ante-penultimate round were indisputable. Every footballer— -i.e., everyone of the Association " creed " — knows how the Old Carthusians were first to threaten the famous prdfessionnl tt-«n . '■- i- cc, and how, after a fearful • tussle with the •' Old Boys " on a Wednesday, they met West Bromwich Albion on the follow-, ing Saturday and were defeated — although having none the worst of the game— by three goals to one. On 'the same day Aston Villa disposed of the Glasgow Rangers, and thus the' Midlands had the honour of supplying the two club 3 for the final tie. The Villa have had a most successful season, having lost ° only four matches of the SO they have played;- bat the Albion were the favourites. Two reasons can be adduced for 'this — viz., the victory of the West Bromwich men over the North End and the fact that in the two matches played between them and the Aston men this season' the latter have been beaten once, the other match resulting in a tie. •■ ■•<• • ' ■•■*

The day was fine, and an enormous attendance—yearly'l2,ooo—took'advantage of it to v visit the- Oval and witness the match. Some three or four thousand supporters of the team's had come tip from their respective districts by the; numerous excursions put on by the railway" .companies, -while many provincials' interested ' in.> the game <run' up to town for the occasion/ It , was' evident,' however, from the shouting, which was ' by no means' general, -that the Londoners were in a considerable majority, and' doubtless .the attendance of metropolitan footbailers was very large. The arrangements of the Surrey C.C. were, as usual,' very good; and everything passed of satisfactorily. ' Partisans* of the contending clubs, bent of getting points -of, vantage, were at the Oval fully an hour before the commencement of the play, and many ,

-wore- in; -their toats -some "strange-device," such as,. "Play up, Throstles,"- "or npjayj up Villa/ Whether the wearers thought; these silent appeals would have 'any effect on the game we are unable to state, 1 : but it was astonishing- to note the* number >tbat r were worn.'.' The play was not , darat-classj but we do not wish to' convey the im.pression that'theiinatch.waa uninteresting. Far from it, for the- play was at times most exciting, the shouting of the partisans of either team doing much to keep one's feelings at a high pitch. > The* fact that no.scqre occurred for some time, and 'that untii'within a minute of time only one • goal' separated- the teams,' kept, the attention of the spectators keenly ou : the play until the finish. Wei have said that the Albion had the best of the game in"' the first half. In the second prriod- the Villa had an even greater-: share of the' 1 attack; A' little more than ten' minutes after change of ends Hodgetts scor«d for the Villa"*, and the Astonian's joy knew no bounds. ' Among the< spectators, and even in the committee's enclosure, 1 were men throwing'up their hats, shouting, and gesticulating wildly, and- generally' behaving like candidates for » lunatic asylum, and all because their "side,'' had -scored a 'goal. "The scene' must have been very • amusing to anyone not used to 'Such > 'matches,' and what. ■ the ' <• intelligent foreigner" thought we will not venture to imagine. We, though, can excuseythe demon- ! strative souls, for' have we not known the time when nothing but the fact 'of bur hat being ' a new one and our dignity being at stake prevented us. giving way to such outbursts of -joy ! The goal, though, was- a very doubtful one. We thought it was off-side, and our impression- was confirmed when we saw the quicknesss with which the Major 'looked round to the umpires,' both of whom were about 60 yards from goal at > the time, and -were, therefore, in a position to give a trustworthy opinion; As, i however, neither allowed the I'.claim,-the1 '. claim,- the goal, scored, and the Villa" were "one' to the good." After this the Astonians had decidedly the best of the play; ■ Roberts had to save several 'shots, while the back had a merry time. ■ On the other hand, .the Albion had ;many opportunities of equalising, all of which, however, they spoilt by their tactics. I Just before time Hunter made a capital run, -and Aldridge missing his kick, the Villa captain rushed 1 past him, and by a clever shot scored a legitimate goal. - This settled the match, and when the whistle blew Aston Villa had won by two goals -to love.