FOOTBALL

Southland Times, Issue 20002, 16 October 1926, Page 19 (Supplement)

FOOTBALL

THE BEST EVER. “BERT” COOKE. NEW ZEALAND’S WONDER FIVEEIGHTH. A fortnight ago New Zealand saw the last appearance on the Rugby field of the greatest five-eighth that she has produced in a generation—“ Bert” Cooke, of Auckland, Hawke’s Bay, and New Zealand. Like Sulla of old, says the Sun Sports Review, he has made his retirement from the game when he has been at the very height of hits power, a five-eighth whom England, and now New Zealand, hails as the greatest in the world. His exit was made in no ignominious fashion either, for in that memorable Ranfurly Shield match between Canterbury and Hawke’s Bay he played with a brilliance that left an impression of glittering opportunism upon the mind. With his side-step, his flashing, straight run, and his eye for an opening, allied to wonderful speed off the mark, he made gaping holes in the Canterbury defence, which were stopped by solid tackling only. No other man in the Dominion has Cooke’s ability of kicking accurately and powerfully when going at top. He is a man who was made for football, that rare person, the born Rugby player. His record shows that. Cooke started his football career in Hamilton, at the Hamilton School, and then went on to the Hamilton High School, which is coming to the front as a Rugby school in the North Island. He played for the fifteen there, and captained the side for two seasons. After leaving school, he went to Auckland to work, and played for the Grafton Club, in the third-grade side. He was a full-back then. He was a member of that team for two years, and played, off and on, for the first fifteen. In his third year with the club, however, he had played four games in the first grade, and could not go back to the lower team. He went to second five-eighth, and in his first season he represented Auckland and New Zealand. His play had earned him that right, and had made a record. From third grade to All Black in a season is a wonderful step, and only a great footballer could make the stride. Cooke, however, was an emergency for the Auckland side when he was in the third grade, for, in 1922, he was sent down to Wellington and Christchurch, as an emergency for the Auckland touring side. He did not play against I

Canterbury that year, though. Every ! Rugby follower knows what Cooke did in I the year 1924, when the All Blacks went j Home. The English critics could not say I enough about his play, and it is certain j that his name will be remembered always ; when a New Zealand team is mentioned in the Old Country. Last year Cooke captained Auckland, and played for New Zealand against Thorn’s New South Wales team that toured the ■ Dominion. This year Auckland lost him i to Hawke’s Bay, to which province he was ; transferred, and the Bay rejoiced at his I coming, for he was a fine link for its al- ; ready fine rear-guard. In the Hawke’s Bay team Cooke has played great football, and he made yet another tour as an All Black to Australia. He played his last game the other Saturday, but he does not i intend to leave his home in Napier for a ! long time, for is to settle down there in I earnest. i A totally different man is Cooke from 1 Maurice Brownlie, his captain. Where Brownlie is inclined to be dour and rather I grim, Cooke is the ideal type of the-cheer- . ful sportsman. He is modest and does j not like to talk about himself. He is a ; man who has a level head, and he leaves ; a very pleasant impression indeed after I one has made his acquaintance. Cooke is an ornament to the game that he has playj ed so finely. j As regards training for football, Cooke |iv one of the marvels of the game. Those i who see him play on the field must go ■ away with the impression that he has to ' train like an athlete to keep that great I form of his. The peculiar part of it all is ! that he does not train at all. Even when his side has to struggle for its life, Cooke I docs not worry about keeping fit. He i has no need to, for he is a clean-living • man, with the power of always being fit, j without having to sacrifice or scarify himself to attain that object. He ’does not i forgo his cigarette, even. He is one of ! the marvels of the game in that respect. ’ And yet, when one sees him, it is not hard jto find a reason for his fitness. He has j the build of a boxer, with a deep chest ’ that speaks of tons of reserve energy; rei serves are what a footballer plays on. His | face is clear, and his eye bright; he is the ’ picture of fitness. | The games that Cooke enjoys most are j not the struggles between international i sides, but rather the interprovincial fixtures, where everyone knows everyone else, and the game is played from beginning to end with the keenest pleasure. Speaking of playing for New Zealand teams, Cooke said that the best five-eighth whom he has played beside is Neil McGregor, of j Canterbury. McGregor uses his head all the time, and can be depended upon always. He will stop anything. On the last tour of the All Blacks in New South Wales, Cooke was greatly impressed with H. W. Ross, the New South Wales full-back. He considers that Ross is on a par with George Nepia in England. That is high praise. Cooke has had his day in football, and he has left the field- in the brightness of noon-day, when the crowd was still applauding, not in the dying rays of a setting football sun. But what a pity what a pity! A WOULD BEATEIL SPRINTER BANNER IS BRILLIANT. DONALDSON’S RECORD EQUALLED. “Tim Banner is running more brilliantly than ever, and but for him I would return home to Australia the champion sprinter of the world,” remarks Frank Schultz (allround champion of Australia) in a letter to J. J. Maher, the writer of this article in the Melbourne Sporting Life. In the course of his interesting remarks Schultz mentions that on July 31 he and Banner went to Glasgow, where they had a very successful day, and met the champions of England and Scotland. In the 100 yards handicap Banner met C. J. Brittee (both being on scratch) and other j runners, so Banner not only won by three I inches from Chester (3 yards), but i equalled Jack Donaldson’s British record jof 9 11-16 see., made some , years ago. I Chester is regarded as the Scottish profesI sional champion. “Banner has been declared to be the greatest runner seen in these parts since the days of Postle and Donaldson. CMdtimers have been greatly impressed with him, while newspaper critics have spoken glowingly of Tim as the ‘Flying Australian? ” Continuing, Schulte says the control of foot-running in Scotland is on similar lines to the Victorian Athletic League, but deplores the fact that in England the control is far from satisfactory’, and warns any Australians who may think of going there. He says that ridiculous limits are given—--34 yards in 60 yards event, 37 yards in 70 yards—so much so that world’s records would have to be broken before a man could hope to even get into a place. They have been sponsored by Mr Albert Bird, a l well-known boxing and sporting promoter, and were it not for his hospitality they would have made their stay in England much shorter. “Australia is the only country worth living in, barring Scotland, which I think I comes next,” concludes Schultz,