Football.

Southland Times, Issue 18810, 1 May 1920, Page 9

Football.

ißy “Onlooker.”) t Jpemiig games to-day. \iL playt r.- ko: n to strip. ■to v.aal new clubs appear. S-iuor gatin’- 45-minute spells, ifcriiu.' for referees wauled badly. Ru.fi -y Park in good playing comlition. l ut*iie Serve -a short of some good nn mi ’era. Ena n rep tried to in- strong in the forte:.id uvi-iou, bomb- and Raw will turn out a fast IE e 1 i .-am liii nippy backs. j, iifii >■!! train.ng solidly to retain tie 'i.ons Protection Banner. a ■■ 1 matches commenced best week v. :. a •<>!(; : aa el games were witucs.-ed. J ;a- -uai:- 1 . South bemg a rattling good In lla- match Mifi’lie v. St. George, Mel\m and Jo-ai tor .'.iifidle were responsible tor eeie guu.l play, wild- Robertson for M. (cor::'' was .-I.on;; on defence. il - jemor >»)e ol games were all keenly itoii: : ri, and many of the smaller lads si great prome-e and should be heard o: in i mure motball if they improve as they .■ rnmmle of. 1 m v, , u ,iy at Woodlands- a Returned toddi--!.-. Nt playui the local represen-te-liw.s, ami alter a willing game the score V. a.- a : -rus vacfi. The lorm displayed v. as mv.iade tor the <>]>emug ol the ; in. and 1 e.e Woodlands junior fifteen v.-di ii -a , oD!e beating in the Saturday j'imm' comp, iitiun. Ihe team that will be pm m da In. 1■ 1 will be a heavy one. and '■■■ de no; it,- members acquire a better know.'- i m in handling should make a good

I Uc pb'ymg area of Rugby Park will atforu a cum: -uriace u>r the opening games anil wit it nimble weather conditions the metches should lie last and interesting to v.aicii, Haims and Law again meet 13iu.11" m l be opening game, and after each team has seemei! a win in practice games the match d! carry added interest, as both ■ali s reckon they can secure the necessary l'"iii!s in lii'c I a win. Tile Union v. Public .-e. vice maieh should lie a close struggle as bulb t.-ams have hatl some good country game.- lo shake the players together. ! iiiihe Service will he without Mc--1 Donald, who is still suffering a, recovery irmu Supines received in a practice game a.iic. aggravated at Mataura, and Hazlctt and Mc'ken/.ie will also he missing from the tanks m the wearers of the Black jersey. I he former is reported to be in hospiial smiering fnjrn appendicitis, while the latter will not be available this season. .1 he A vision of the Union in deciding that senior matches should in future be I'layed -minute spells is a move in the right direction, as the habit of laying short spells was becoming too common in Southland. and representative football was sufIdring through players not being able to last the games right to the Finish. It will also have the eiiect of making the teams pm in more training, which wa.s neglected by many clubs last season, players obtaining then- places too easy to bother. With tiie lull 10-minute spells in action all players will lie forced to train in order to last a solid game. The entry ol Woodend into the Saturday .junior competition brings the total of if.e team.- ' nlured in that competition up to eight, and the newly-formed club has been drawn to play Marist Old Boys to-day. Bml’. teams are starting with this game, and their play will be closely watched by their followers, who state that the clubs will give good accounts of themselves, and make some of I ho older fifteens fight for every point scored against them. Accidents to referees are decidedly unu things in football. Unfortunately, one which occurred at Lancaster Park last Saturday will deprive the game, for several weeks, of the services of Canterbury’s most efficient referee of the present time (sayn the Christchurch Sun). About a quarter of an hour after the second half of the game between Marists and Mcrivale started, a player who was tackled in a ruck following a scrum was thrown heavily against

referee J. F. Peake. At the time, Mr Peake was backing away from the scrummage, and the impact upset him more easily than it would have done otherwise. He fell qn his left shoulder, the seat of an old football injury, and dislocated it. Players quickly noticed that Mr Peake was incapacitated, and they stopped the game. Mr Peake was given first-aid treatment and then sent off for medical assistance, and Mr C. Buchanan refereed the remainder of the game. There are many in New Zealand, particularly those interested in Rugby matters, who will learn with regret of the death of Mr Percival Coles, the 1886 captain of the Oxford XV., who died after an operation (says The Post’s London correspondent). For some years he had been fruit farming in British Columbia, and returned to England only last autumn. At Oxford and at Blackheath, Mr Coles had many friends, and members of the original Ail-Black football team will agree that he had a charming personality, and did much toward awakening the interests of English Rugby Unionists during the tour of 1905. It was Coles who refereed the New Zealanders’ first match at Exeter. On Wednesday a team of High School old boys played the school fifteen on their grounds at Gladstone. The heavy rain of the previous day had little effect on what is probably the best football ground in Invercargill, and a fast, open game resulted. In the end the School ran home winners by 8 points to 3. The School backs threw the ball about well and, if at times the passing was erratic, quick backing up kept them out of danger. The School fifteen have already won the second grade banner three times, the last two years in succession, and there should be a keen junior competition this season to decide if they are to hold it for good. Running across the top end of the Gladstone ground parallel to the goal line is a nasty depression which the School authorities will have to attend to before they can reasonably expect teams to play there. The trouble seems to have been caused by a narrow, covered in, ditch sinking a few inches. On Saturday last the Public Service team travelled to Mataura and suffered defeat at the hands of the local players. Although the Service side were rather w'eak in the forwards the honours of the game went to the riversiders, who gave the town team a [ big surprise. In the first half Mataura played with a strong wind to aid them and were 0 points to the good at half time. The Mataura men were weak in the backs and contented themselves with playing a tight forward game. Their forwards, led by Barry and Macalister dominated the game and the Service team were kept busy defending. In the second half the Invercargill team tried to open up the game, but, although at times hashes of last year’s play were evident, they always just missed getting across and the score was unchanged. In the evening the members of both teams were entertained at a social given by the officials of the Ma.taura Football Club and a few pleasant hours were spent until the arrival of the late express. If the play of the Mataura team is an example of the gemcral standard of Eastern district football it is evident that the selectors of the Southland team for this year will have to pay more attention to the claims of country footballers than in the past. Football in the country districts was practically dead during the war period but a big revival is taking place. Macalister and Barry, of Mat-aura, would be an acquisition to any Invercargill team. The season opened in Dunedin last Saturday and the matches were all won by good margins. Kaikorui 29 defeated Pirate 6, Alhambra 18 v. Varsity B nil. Zingari-Rich-mond 27 v. Dunedin 8, Southern 22 v. Union nil. Varsity A 29 v. Port Chalmers 5. In Christchurch the season also commenced last week and double scores prevailed, the largest being Old Boys (50) who defeated Sydenham (22), the scores being 12 ail at half-time. The other matches resulted as follows: —Mariat Old Boys (25) v. Merivalo (8), Lin wood (16) v. Christchurch (3), Albion (13) v. Varsity (10).