FOOTBALL.

Otago Witness, Issue 3005, 18 October 1911, Page 61

FOOTBALL.

ROTES BY FTJLL BACK. It is reported that a well-known Rugby football player, -who has represented Utago in interprovincial fixtures, has been expelled from his club in consequence of alleged offensive and disparaging *«»»*** made in regard to members of the oiuo Committee. ~ ~ _ A correspondent, writing under the nom de plume of " Old Timer," has forwarded the following letter to the • New Zealand Herald for publication:—"Now that the season is finished, I would like to make

a few remarks. In the first place, it. is apparent that the Union game is losing ground. Wellington, Canterbury, Otago, and Southland have not had weaker teams for years, and the Auckland team on tour were very fortunate in this respect. Vn. the Booties in the south Taranaki were superior to Auckland. The latter were fortunate on meeting'them on a day quite unsuited to the game, and Mynott and others were quite off, probably caused by Taranaki playing, I think three more matches than Auckland 1 on their tour. , Lt is fortunate for the New Zealand Union, and the pride of the New Zealander, who thinks he can 'lick creation at Rugby, that a New South Wales team were not touring New Zealand this year, because they must have had a triumphant march from Auckland to the Bluff, and so avenged previous tours, when they havc been beaten practically everywhere. Auckland and Taranaki are the best of a very weak lot, and make one wish for the days when Auckland's three-quarter line consisted of Whiteside, B. Madigan, and. Tabby Wynvard, with Paddy Keogh as half back and Billy Warbrick, I think, as full back. How would that team run over our present representatives? And there is certainly not a three-quarter back in New Zealand to be compared with Armit (fatally injured), of Otago, the very best lightweight scoring back whoever donned a jersey in New Zealand; also Jimmy Duncan, of Otago, a most brilliant hack; A. D. Thomson, of Wellington, now S.M. at Feilding, a very clever centre _ threequarter; Davy Gage and Tom Ellison, of Wellington; Jack Taiaroa. Joe Warbrick, of Hawke's Bay—all superior to the pre-sent-day backs. In those days there was none of this idiotic kicking out. of bounds to gain ground, the amount of time wasted being probably 20 minutes at least in the course of a game. In the "Victorian game kicking out of bounds, deliberately or not, is rightly penalised with a free kick, and yet their ground is about three times as large as the Rugby playing space. In that game there is no off-side, hand ball, or throwing forward, or other petty rules, lining out, etc., but the game is marvellously fast, and the ball often goes the whole length of the ground by high marking or long kicking in less than two minutes. It would, be an eye-opener for the young New Zealander to pay a visit to Melbourne in September and see the semi-finals, and hear the continuous roar of the 45,000 spectators. The only remedy for the Rugby game falling into the 'hands of the League •—and this wouldn't .be a disaster—is to leave the English Union and join New South Wales and Queensland in thoroughly revising the rule more esDecially the kicking out of bounds, and' reducing the forwards to four; there, would then be no eorum, and the game would be fast and open." The long and distressing football season is over at last, and. there are no regrets at its conclusion.' Never was a season so fraught with possibilities but so poor in its realisation as • the one just closed. Club football promised much in good material for the representative matches, but with rare exceptions tire' playeirs who were consistently in form during the championships signally failed in representative company. iSdrrie, the Otago University three-quarter, is a case in point. Norrie was the best scoring back in his team and the most promising three-quarter of all the clubs in the championship. He scored more tries than any other man, and at the end of the grade matches was. easily the first of the backs. Norrie played one good game against 'Wanganui, and though he was tried in all the other representative matches following he never reproduced his form, and was a failure to the end. This was characteristic of- all the Otago backs. Scott, the "full back, alone excepted. To Scott, who played consistently well throughout the club season, and at times brilliantly in the representative engagements, rising to the highest standard in the Wellington match, Otago owes much of its freedom from defeat.

The standard of play in representative football was low, not only on the part of Otago, but by visiting teams, and in no match was it so poor as in the OtagojCanterbury game. Canterbury certainly gave the poorest exhibition of football seen here for years, and indicated a great falling away in the standard of that province's football. The Otago-Wellington match was the best of the series, but nevertheless below the standard of a. few years back. Having seen Auckland. Taranaki. Wellington, Canterbury, Southland, and Wanganui teams competing against Otago, one cannot help the conclusion that Rugby football has fallen degrees from what it used to be in New Zealand. Despite the poor quality of the play in club and representative football, public interest has been well maintained, and the attendances at all matches have been large. A record has been established in the matter of gates, and the Otago Rugby Union will come out with a profit of about £BOO on the season.

A matter that should be considered in the off-season is a better system of arranging representative fixtures to prevent, the swamping of one province with touring teams in one season. Otago has, for example, played no fewer than eight foreign matches on its own ground this year, and goes totally unprovided for next season. The matter, too, of the date for the interisland match should be. settled for good'. The New Zealand Union made a farce of the whole business this year by playing the North Island v. South Island match on October 7, when it was hopeless to expect anything approaching representative teams to line out. Unices this fixture is to be productive of good as indicating as well as may be the standard of the play and players in the two islands, of what use is it? Better to abandon it altogether than have a repetition of this year's farce. There is no reason why the North and! South Island match should not be played in June, and the date agreed upon in that month to be recognised as a standing date for the inter-island fixture. There is also the matter of dragging- the North IslandSouth Island match to Wellington at every

conceivable opportunity. The geographic position of the Empire City is made too much of when it comes to allocating biff fixtures. Out of the 11 matches played, Wellington has had seven, Christehurch two, and Dunedin and Auckland one each.

SOCIAL TO PROFESSOR BLACK. The name of Professor Black has been closely associated with the history of the Otago University Football Club ever since there was such a club in existence. He hag been its faithful friend through thick and thin, and his enthusiastic- and loyal support has in seasons when the club "has fallen on evil days " been, if possible, even more pronouncedly generous than when the club was high in popular favour. The students have not been slow to recognise how much they owe in this direction to the popular professor; and his approaching retirement from active work at the University was deemed an appropriate occasion to express their appreciation. Accordingly on Saturday evening a smoke concert arranged by past and present members of the University Football Club in honour of the professor was held at the Trocadero Dining Rooms. There were some 60 or 70 present. Dr Marshall presided, and was supported on one hand by the guest of the evening (Dr Black) and on the other by Mr L. J. Potter (captain of the University Football Club) and Mr S. G. Smith (president of the Students' Association). Toasts were proposed and duly honoured. Black was presented with an elaborate and handsome liqueur stand, suitably inscribed. He was also presented with the football, mounted in silver, used during tne past season, and with a framed and enlarged photograph of last season's team. The Professor was most enthusiastically received when he rose to reply, and his remarks were frequently drowned by the vociferous applause. Before the close of the evening the professor obliged the company with a song - .