FOOTBALL.

Stratford Evening Post, Volume XXXI, Issue 24, 13 September 1911, Page 5

FOOTBALL.

ASSOCIATION CLUB’S DINNER. A dinner was held at'Mrs Brown’s rooms last night under, the auspices of the Stratford Association Football Club. ,-. Mr S. Clark, president of the club, occupied -the' chair, and there were 'about, thirty , present. After • doing justice to the good things provided a toast list was gone through. “The'King” was drunk with musical honours.' 1 ’ The chairman ' proposed the toast of the Taranaki Football Association. He said the present was the first dinner the club . had held during the four years’J’if.ha'd (been" in “existence. ,1 The-club'had had fairly successful sea- ■: sons./ ’For the first two seasons the s club was -iu the cup final, and they had always'held their own well. The Association game was making great strides dn all the centres. When he (the speaker) first arrived in Auckland, he and two of his brothers had formed the- first team in Auckland—the Y.M.O.A. team, now the Corinthians. Then there were only a feAV senior and junior teams, but now the fame ran into three or four grades. Ivery steamer- coming to New Zealand brbugh about two teanm of Association. players, but it was chiefly desired to make the game popular among New Zealanders. It ' was well-known that it was the visit of Stoddart’s team which had given Rugby the hold it had, and the New Zealand Association had been trying for years to so- - cure a' visit of a first-class team from i England*; and if such a visit eventuated he was sure: the i game would be given a great impetus and people ■ would get interested in the game. At present soccer... was played in the pro- ' ‘ vincial centres very much as schoolhoys played Rugby and those who saw the matches were not greatly impressed by them . However, he did not think if would bo long before they i saw the game well established. This year the New Zealand Association had managed to get the gdme into the public schools. That was where the game should.be played if it was to become popular among colonials. He drew attention to the fact that the whole of the,company that might with the exception of three or four were Old Country people, i. He was pleased to see how the game had succeeded in Manaia. It said a great deal for the team that they could win the cup in their first year. ■ Mr Schofield, in .response, said he had watched soccer in New Zealand for ten years, and he thought the hold the game now had was very encouraging, but it was highly neces\__sary to get it played'in the schools. At present the youth of Now Zealand were great patrons of Rugby, which had come to be recognised as the national game. Particularly worthy of note was the increase of the game in the chief, '.centres. In Wellington there were 95 teams playing, with a total membership of about three thousand. In his opinion soccer was the best game’of all, Mr D. Butchart proposed “Old Players.” He made feeling reference to the late W. Sparrow, who was captain of the team last year. Mr F. Edwards, in response, said that six' years ago at Hawera he and Mr Campbell had started the soccer game, and within a short time teams had started at Eltham, Kaponga, and Anroa, and last season the Manaia team bad sent Rugby ahead, and now predate game of football. It was beyond doubt the visit of Stoddart’s team, that had sent Rugby ahead, and New Zealanders claimed to bo. able \ to teach Englishmen how to play the game.. He suggested'that if a good English soccer team played a series of matches throughout the colony the .time might come, when a team could be sent Home to teach the Old Country how to play the Association game. (Laughter.) He was sure the game would hold its own, and once the public became interested in it, it would go ahead quickly. Other toasts honoured wore: “Kindred Sports,” Mr Smith—Mr Ricklehen ; “The Committee,” Mr Allen—Mr I Clark; “The Ladies,” Mr Anderson— I Mr J. Butchart; “The Press,” Mr f East; “The Hostess,” Mr Gorton—Mr . Allen (on behalf of Mrs Brown). During the evening songs were rendered by Messrs Allen, Anderson, Weston, Schofield. Gorton; East, Bonnell; Pearce, and Ricklehen, and a recitation Ly Mr Smith. Mr Richardson supplied the accompaniments,