“A FAIR DONNYBROOK"

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume LIII, Issue 16378, 28 June 1927, Page 8

“A FAIR DONNYBROOK"

BOUGH PLAY AT OVAL. REFEREE'S DRASTIC REPORT. “'A fair Donnybrook” was the way a, junior match at the Oval on Saturday was characterised by the referee, Mr. E. X. Tasker, when he was speaking at the weekly meeting of the Poverty RayRugby Union last evening in connection with an incident which led to a player being ordered off in the llovcrs-Y..M.P. junior game on the grandstand ground on Saturday.

In this connection, the referee had submitted a written report, which set out that he had ordered off a Y.M.P. player for misconduct. The report added t-ljat (lie game was particularly rough, and played in a, bad spirit, both teams being to blame.

Mr. Task er, who was in attendance outside, was asked to appear before the meeting and to explain the matter more fully.

The Rovers team, said Mr. Tasker, asked for an extension of time, and the game was late in starting. Before the in at eh commenced, a player warned him that the game would be rough, and Mr. Tasker was. according to his statement, soon to liml that this forecast was correct. It was not long before he had to warn players on both sides, particularly the Rovers’ men for rough play. He said that he at first attributed this to ignorance of the game on the part of the players concerned.

Tn the incident as a result of which the man was ordered off, the referee said he ble\v the whistle for a mark, and saw the Y.M.P. player dash into a. Rover man and use both fists. At another time a Rover and Y.M.P. player were clutching each other by the throats. Had the referee exercised his full authority, lie said, lie would have ordered off all the Rover forwards, with the exception of two, while the Y.M.P. forwards were just as bad. tie warned at least six players. One man, continued Mr. Tusker, went as far as to say : “I’ll see you after the game.” “lie was looking straight at me,” said Mr. Tasker, “hut I do not know whether he meant me.”

Commenting further on the rough play, Mr. Tasker said: “I put it down to. the spectators, who encourage the boys, especially the Maoris. They speak in Maori and 1 can’t interpret their language. It was a, hard game (o control, and it is not worth going out to refereu such games.

“It appeared to me to be fair dinkum.” maintained the referee in reply to a questioner, who wanted to know whether the striking incident was intentional. He also added that three times he asked a man for his name without obtaining any answer, but lie was told after tliat the player was deaf. “These sort of things cannot go on,” remarked the chairman, Mr. A. S. Parker, in thanking Mr. Tasker for his report. “It evidently was a Doniivbrook,” lie added.

Mr. O’Neill suggested warning the, teams.

“If these fellows arc going to biff and bang each other, we will have to take some more drastic action,” said the chairman.

Mr. Burge said he saw the game, but he did not see the amount of foul playreported by the referee. The player ordered off certainly did strike at his opponent twice. Mr. Burge suggested that the Union should advise clubs that if a player was ordered off tho field, he must attend the next meeting of the Union without notification, and if not the player bo automatically suspended. Tfc was further suggested that both captains should be asked to attend the next Union meeting. The chairman: Why should one of the plavers tell the referee before the game started that it would he rough?

Mr. Lang said the trouble bad been brewing for two or three weeks. It was decided to ask the man ordered off to meet representatives of the executive at the Oval next Saturday with his club captain, and in the meantime the player be suspended. It was also decided to write to the secretaries of all clubs, warning them against rough play. •