ASSOCIATION NOTES

Otago Witness, Issue 2509, 16 April 1902, Page 52

ASSOCIATION NOTES

Ti:e past two Saturday^ have been anything but encouraging for footballer*. Mid consequently practice ha= to a ceii.un extent been gi\en the go by. There rrrupin-. only one more Saturday to practice, aftei whuh the battles for ISO 2 will take placo, I hope with the same \igoiu - as at the early part of last seaion The Rangers juniors ha\e got to work, and promi-e big things. Undci such \aluable management as Messrs P Peters and R. O'Connor this club is bound to have a fair amount of success. By the way they ha\e already settled themselves on the Oval, and after the practice-, they ha\e had thrre, the ground is not bad as one would imagine. They havt selected one of the prettiest colours it has been my lot to sec — viz., red an:l white shirt and white knickers. Otago has suffered a severe loss, and Roslyn in particular, in the departure of F. Smallbone, who left for the West Coa=t last wesk, where he will reside for -onic time. His services for the Blues will be ■<. cry «adly in iP.sc d. W. Sparrow, biotLer to Ben of th,,c ilk. >\ iio played with Southern two ycir-j age. has thrown in with Mcrnmgton. Northern are going big guns tint yepr, anc! I will be amnngit the surprised r)ii.*s it ihx'y are not at the ton or thereabout-, t hit -?:ion •Judging by latent accounts, la-t yeai\ premie'- will not he s o finmidab!" a- luthei to. .So = ay tbo c nnc-,. When the numbers are i,p I \fntun: to -ay that they will i'ot '>c far :iwtiy. So far Ro-lvn ha\e ik l put in :i great deal oi piattuc and aaumr;, for which they are famed. The following playci ? will be m;c-ed l>y Roslyn this vrar: — F. Sniallbon^. R. 81-nwn,B l- nwn, W. Harlow," <;. Calder. and F. .!< hiiMoi,. A meeting of cbib -e«iet.>ii'-, is ca'lei! r or ro morrow night for th" nurpo-e of ,ir langmg fixtures and giouuds for the m i-oa/on. A'-socniiou hie recently "caught on" oi. the West Coast of thr> South Island. The Blackball team has amongst its players two Edinburgh Uni\er»ity m»n, a .Sunderland T^eague player, a Queen's Park (Glasgow) l'itt inaliona', and a Wolverhampfon. Wanc'."ier. Truiy Blackball should be able to j)ii*. i. Qocd tcixni i : the field. Tt i« to be liopecl they will be seen competing for the Brown .Shield this season, and that they will make a good fight goes without saying The Intcrnatiocial League Association match between Scotland and Ireland took place at Dundee on Saturday, February 15, in the rivs-enee of 12.000 people. Scotland winning by three goals to nil Of the 10 matche-, played. Scotland ha- won eight and Ireland two. Our A^oc-.ation footb«tlWs seem likely to experience some difficulty in obtaining -uitabic playing grounds tins &eaion (wires my Aui kland corresponcJent), but if thii cl)^ta<!t' if- puccp'-sfully oxcrcome, we may > \pect to vpp an incroa-ed interest in the game, as it is already announced that two or three new "-ofkoi"' clubs aie to be formecl here, while the presence m our lVidst of a competent Knglish coach hhould t< nd to bring about ao impiovement in the ■4ancLrd of play. The new arrival is Mr John Reynolds, who comes armed with very high credentials, both a= a player and a coach, having as Lite as last 'ea-on played for the Celtic Club, before joining which ho v. as a member of the far-famed Aaton Villa Kle\en. and on no less than seven occasions, rAiyed for the. team against Scot'and Reynolds was led to come to the colonies by the ii Tif r-entations made by the wcllkur w n AVellington fiithu-ia-t, Mr Gibbp, during las recent M^it to the ejld country, when it will bo remembered that he pointed out to the Home authori'tie* that tl.ere wat an, pie room in New Zealand for two or llnee fir-t cla->= coaches. In the c our»e of a chat during the week Rej'iiolds -tated that both the F.ciglish J^eague and A- S ociation authorities assured hi n on -the e\e of bis departure that tho Britif-h A?-o- < latiou team would be sent out to the colomo^ in the course of a season or two, pro\idcd it was found that the "socker" game ia iho-.e parti wa^ =uffic icntly ttrong to warrant a tour bring uiidei taken The new .irinal ha-, already found employment in Auckland, and ha* made arrangements with the- committee of the local football iu-oc ia tion to take tip dnti»-> here as a coach. Reynolel- ia a liiiff b.u k The following fiom Wellington Freelance \. ill be read with interest by Association j layen- — 1\ liell, a ScQL'Jib i»fclk«»Dero*lionlav<!cl

for St. Miram's in its fir-t league competition in Glasgow, in a letter from West Australia to the Wellington Football Associa tion. applied to that body for a position as goalkepper. Evidently, he was under tho [ impression that piofe^icxia. 1 football is . utaycl here. Hoive\er, an attempt is to be ! nije'i' 1 te> obtain his seivice^. i The New Zealand Association will have , to grapple with =orne serious business during tho coming season. The "Wellington , pro^ince mu=t .-end a repr"?cntati\e eleven to play Otago, in teims of the Auckland • Coiiftreme. foi the Biown shield, fi'id Otago mini tra\ d to Auckland and play Wei- . 'p gton en loute as an exhibition game. | Repre-L ntation lias been made to the As- I Eociation fi om A\ ii*tern Australia iclai"ne to | an Australian tcMin \isitiug England. A proporlirfi of si\ i^layer? fium New Zeaianel i- irt'.udecl in the proposal. A Ne.v Zealand Msit to Englaivl i= al=o on the tapi--. Mr A A-bury. the English football cru'ch, is keen on a team the J old country, but to tour tlio different town? t e,f England in which ?otkrr is cry promi- | l.rnt it would ne^l £1000. which would <-ic!ud<' =a!aric-. of p'.aycrc during absence fimn their rcipcctne employinciit=.

CANTERBURY RI'CBY UNION". CHRISTCHURCH. April 9 At a meeting of the Canterbury Rugby T'niO'i yesterday it was rc=olved that the cl*-!egate to the Now Zealand Rugby I'niou be instructed to strongly support the pro-po-a'. to s-enel p team to England, and a? it is undei^Lood that t !> e secretary of the Now Zealand I"*.nou i^ \'->itm£> England, achautr.j;e will be taken of the opportunity to piaeo the portion of New Zealand player-rajja-ding English ni!u- e..n profesNionali=m clearly before the English body vith a Mew to nces»ary amendmrnt in the English Kugbv Utiicm ruko to permit a team being ■ <=t-nt Home. I The -un-cnmi/iittecV recommendation that i lunior repicsentatne game- be arranged, if j pot-ibh . with Otago and Wellington was •ulopti-d. i