ASSOCIATION.

Otago Witness, Issue 2884, 30 June 1909, Page 61

ASSOCIATION.

By Left Wing. Th« following table- shows, the %posit?ons of the respective teams engaged— in- tho First Grade contest :— ,

* Won by. 2 goals to nil, but forfeited to Southern owing to breach of rules. Kaiter.gat» won by default against RoslynWakari. The special" meeting of the Otago Football Association to consider tha proposed visit of the South ' African team o-n-d matters in connection with Corinthian Park finance had -to be postponed (ov a fortnight. Northern put up a thumping score against Roslyn-Wakari. The surprise was that where one side could get ? goals it was possible-, for the other side to sscure 4 4. Knowles's record has gone- smash. Some of the goals came from capital shots; ab least one came from one whose hostility Knowks had not suspecteu; but 7 goals refuse to be explained away. Two juniors occupied the full back rank for Roslyn-Wakari, and whilst they deserve credit for their efforts to stem the tido of bustling forwards they lacked the dash necessary to check such vigorous onslaughts. _ Ussher risked martyring himself to fill the gap in his team's forward ; line, but lasted only a. short interval. Chad wick (who may bo spared tho hackneyed comment with regard to back numbers, for in reality he is at the age when a. footballer should be at maturitj') completely answered the rumour mentioned last week by turning out with Northern, enabling Morrison to resume his place in the backs and Irvine to be advanced to ths half back line. Chadwick played a good game. R. Simpson was tried on the left wing, Evans being shifted across to right wing. Both did fairly well in the new positions. City; players were interested spectators at this match. Those who were present at the Gardens Reserve on Saturday were repaid with an exciting and at times clever contest. Considering ths slippery state of the ground the full back play of both sides was very sound, and tho forward play of both teams was fast, and frequently above mediocrity. The backs, -it must ba remembered, faced the difficulty of an insecure foothold and a greasy ball which had a perverse disposition to skid. Notwithstanding, the kicking of both sides was fairly safe. Kelly's style of play was admirably suited to the day. His strong kicking was rarely at fault,- and his 6olid tackling kept Cuthbertson, in particular, in check. Grant was also forceful, and, with Kelly, was very largely responsible for keeping out the Kaitangata vanguard. Maxwell, as fuU back for K&itangata.,

was, as usual, a tower of strength. He also, with ' rrcm Stepnenson, <tid most oi the, a ooa.i work lor his SKte. - Oliiver is improving as half back. On SSarurday he piayed a capital ga-nie. Gainpbell maae amsn<ls for his poor display of a fortnight ago. Dobbie would fee more effective if he used the line less. Kaitangata halves were inclined to he too far back. Some of the forwards did not -keep their places, M'lnnes, who did a. notable , amount of good worK, being inclined to ' rove, whilst Stcphen^on, on tiie left wing, ' spoiled one very nice opportunity by being away back amongst tha nalves when i'emnau passed the ball out to ths wing, archerwise Stephenson worked a %cry successful leit wing. Penman played a. steady game, lying well down on tlie backs; and Tnompson and Cuthbartson supported well. The latter, as already mentioned, was splendidly watched by Kelly, yet he contrived to secure two out of the four goals, his second one being from a rattling long | shot — tho bsst of the day. j Notwithstanding the nine goaJs put on i very little fault could bs found with 'the j goal-keeping. It was a trying day for the goalkeepers— a tre-acheious' foothold and a greasy sphere. Both Allen_ and Thompson effected some -very creditable ; saves. The latter -shapes nicely for a ! ' novice. -When, he^ l#arris.Y i to*-,cl©a-ri more strongly, sending the ball" well away from , *his goal, hz will hs mor& effective. '--'"-. .' "-Mdst-*of Mornitrgton's 'goals came ■fairly.-- • easily. Four ol them ..were almost directly traceable to Ybung l^ daoEr-'^He infuses into his forward »play /the- same virility" which animated his play as a"b*ck, so "tlmt he was handy whsnever a- goal .was pend-" fring. '■ Two goal? ' went iwhen tfiepe was no one in the goal mputh, and a. thirst came from a penalty kick. , Mornington left half played somewhat tirmdly, but shaped promisingly. His throw-in needs attention. J.. Baillie reappeared in the forward line, but not unnaturally preserved the memory of his frailty, and played with extreme caution. His goal was a very natty piece of work. Forbes" was rather neglected, and did not chine. Maori Hill entered tho lists with Southern minas the cervices of H. Aspinall, and his absence was felt when Southern" provided Maori Hill with four cornel kicks in succession. Aspinall's ' head frequently directs the ball between the sticks. Poor «hooting lost the match for the hill boys. Attention- to fhis* department would make them a dangerous quintet and enhance their championship position. The play of this team is always* pleasing to the spectator, -but effort is nullified if goals do not result. Southern thi3 year -are- unfortunate in losing the pick of their forward lino. The loss of Griffin, Hally, and Macdor.ald is a serious one for the R-ed and Blacks and their membership docs not easily fill the vacancies. However, they possess some promising juniors who with a little coaching should soon learn some of the finer points of the game. Offen, a Third Grade boy, officiated in goal for Southern, and early gave evidence of latent talent. A little attention to the- finer points- of the {jam© will make him more proficient. Scott and Braion 'occupied their respective "positions with credit, the . latter player especially putting in some splendid com- - bination .'work with Sharp , and Veitch." Ritchie plays T a vigorous- game,- but; lacks, judgment; -while Austin, on ih© left' wing, 'wavered on several occasions anc 7 lost 'his opDor'tunities. ... ■ / D^ Baillie has removed to Kaita"nga,ta for - a time, and desires to play foi - ( Kaitangata. It is more than probabLa that Southern, whoso turn it is' to go to Kaitangata on Saturday, will default owing to the difficult^ of getting a team. • The Southern Club has reached a low ebb- this year, having- only -,two -tiaras - Surely there is something r&dic&fly wrong when a largo district such' as Soiifhern draws from can only produce 22 players ! It is to be hoped that some of the leading spirits -in the district will earnestly inquire into the cause of this falling away, with a view to again buildiner-up a strong club. Ths difficult of r«tting teams of full strength +o go to Kaitangata is a very real one, and matches have been lost to visiting teams because of this "difficulty. But players ars apt to overlook the fact that the thing cuts both wave. Quit© frsauently Kaitangra-ta have difficulty in getting away a full team, far less their best strength. The- difficulty has been ra'thsr acute of late. ;

'; . | S Northern .. .. 7 City • 6 Kaitangata, . . 6 Southern .._ .. 7 Roalyn-Wakari 7 Maori Hill .. 6 Mornineton . . 7 I 5 5 2 2 2 1 2 ~- 1 s s « 1 1 i* ft 2 2 3 2 4 . 1 •3 2 5 0 •2 £° o o cis o 27 13 14 4 13 16 7 ■ 15 13 12 12 15 12 22 "a ii 10 v 6 5 4 4