League Rugby

Sun (Auckland), Volume IV, Issue 1073, 10 September 1930, Page 13

League Rugby

Notes and Comment.

The Big Surprise There were few who thought when Marist and Richmond lined out in tho chief attraction at Carlaw Park on Saturday, that the Greens, last season’s winners of the Roope Rooster and tho Champion of Champions trophy, the Stormont Shield, would be downed by the Maroons. However, that turned out to be the case and there is no denying that on the day Richmond was the better team. Three Men Missing Richmond always makes a habit of coming with a rush when the knockouts start, even though it may not always shine near the top of the list in the club compeitions. Marist on Saturday was minus three men, who ha£ they all been playing, would have made a difference to the team’s showing. Brady was still in hospital with injuries received in the Auckland-New Zealand match, Jock Graham was nursing a thumb he had injured against Newton, and Brisbane did not think the injuries he received on Australian soil sufficiently recovered to permit him playing.

An Unfortunate Incident The ordering off of big Jim O’Brien on Saturday was an unfortunate incident, thus far, that it is very probably the last game of League football Jim will bo playing. He has retired from the game before today, but came back this season to pull the team together during tho absence of Greg Dry and Brisbane in Australia. As far as could be seen from the stand on Saturday, Referee Vic. Simpson ordered Jim off for some remark the player made to tho official. Jim did not get a very hostile reception from the spectators as ho slowly wended his way through the crowd to the dressing-rooms. A piquant curtain to a great career, surely.

The Season’s Close As a result of Saturday’s matches in tho first round of the Roope Rooster series, the season has now virtually closed for the following tea.-.s: —Marist, Newton, Kingsland-Athletic and Ellerslie. A team may be picked from among the players of these clubs, however, to travel to Hikurangi and meet the Northland League’s representative thirteen in the near future.

The New Order Ahead Now that tho Auckland Rugby League lias approved of the principles involved in the recommendations of the conference of its representatives with the representatives of the Now Zealand Council, it remains for the Auckland League to take steps to formulate ways and means of bringing those recommendations into effect. Tho second steps could be taken between now and the close of the season and tho scheme as a whole finalised during tlio summer off-season.

Which are to be the Six? One thing is certain at the outset, and that is that there will only be six teams in the Auckland League’s competition next season. That means that two will have to be dropped, and in the dropping heartburnings are sure to be caused somewhere. One could not help drawing some conclusion as to which teams are to be dropped on last Saturday’s performances. The authorities may not have looked at it in this way, but it certainly opened up interesting speculation. Narrowing It Down The four winning teams on Saturday, Richmond, Ponsonby, Devonport and City look certain of xilaces in the new order of things. The only team whose chance could be challenged would be Richmond, on its showing in competition football this season. But against this would be the fact that tlic Richmond Club is the largest club of either Rugby code in Auckland, and perhaps New Zealand, and the dropping of its senior team would probably mean the breaking up of a club which is as well run as any, and a good deal better than many, at present in the game. Marist Will Be There Of tho losing teams, Marist is certain of a 1 place among the select six, for its form on Saturday was too bad to be true. We now have five of the six teams which could well be constituted next season’s senior grade. The three remaining clubs to fight out the last place would be: Kingsland-Athletic, Newton and Ellerslie. Now, of these three, Newton has* the oldest traditions. It is backed by 21 years of history and was one of the first clubs formed in Auckland. Kingsland-Athletic is comparatively new, but it includes some very old elements. Ellerslie goes back very nearly to the beginning of things. Possibilities of Grouping Thus it will be seen that something more than tradition will have to be considered in deciding the fates of the clubs left over at the end. One way of getting over the difficulty would bo to amalgamate Newton with one of the present City clubs, to amalgamate Kingsland-Athletic with Richmond and leave Ellerslie in the senior competition on the understanding that it be allowed to draw further strength from Otahuhu and other outer suburban clubs in that direction of the country. * * * Grouping Gone Mad This scheme has no official basis whatever. It is merely one of several schemes which suggest themselves as possibilities to the writer, and the authorities themselves may adopt absolutely different ways. One suggestion has been that the clubs should be grouped in districts, as South Auckland, North Auckland. East Auckland and West Auckland, as in Sydney, but | this would be too big a revolution and i breakaway from club tradition, which, j after all, is one of the binding factors ; in tho code.

The Gate Percentages The principle of granting each of the clubs in the senior grade a certain percentage of tho gate takings week by week lias already been affirmed, and nothing is likely to change it now. It is easy to see that the clubs themselves will welcome it, instead of the somewhat limited means of financing themselves which they have enjoyed in tho past. Nevertheless, the beneme is still open to criticism. Some of the likely developments were pointed out in this column last week. Mr. Adamson’s View At the meeting of the Management Committee of the Auckland Rugby League last Wednesday evening, Mr.' C. Adamson, chairman of the Junior Management Committee, criticised the views expressed in that article, and stated that the percentages of the gates'* to bo devoted to the clubs was to be divided in six equal shares, and not in any graduated fashion. It now transpires, however, that in reality nothing has been decided. It has merely been suggested by the conference that the clubs’ share of the gates be divided equally between the six. Removing the Incentive To some extent, such a system of equal divisions of the gates will defeat tho ends which the scheme was expected to gain in the first place—that is, to act as an incentive to the clubs to produce and keep on producing the goods. Now, if every club is to get exactly the same sum as every other club evt‘ry week, why, apart from tho winning of championship honours, should one club aspire to be better than another? There would in reality be no more incentive than at present, and apparently there is precious little now, or the suggested scheme would not have been set in motion to ginger things up. # # “Not Sport, But Business.” The scheme for the granting of a percentage of the gates to the senior clubs is one which is onen to some objections, and if there is none mare serious, this one is certainly significant. When the scheme was first placed before the A.R.L., one of the senior B club delegates protested that what was a sport was being turned into a business. Apparently trophies are no longer a sufficient inducement for players to attain the best. It may only be a base of new times demanding new measures, and that the football type has changed greatly. If this is so, the more’s the pity. , Herewini’s Return Herewini played again for his old love, Ponsonby, on Saturday. He was a member of the club some three years or so ago, but had transferred his attentions to Newton. On Saturday he filled the vacancy at fullback caused by the injury to Wilson the week before. Bill Seagar Out Again Bill Seagar, of the Shore Leaguers, is out of action again. lie broke his collar-bone in the last few minutes of a game with Kingsland some two months ago and again on Sa curday this unlucky player cracked the .weak arm about three minu^* 5 before the final whistle in the game with Newton at Carlaw Park.

Newton Down Again The 15-2 defeat suffered by New’ton at the hands of Devonport on Saturday was the third that the men from over the harbour have inflicted on the Red and Whites this season. The previous clashes resulted 15-8 and 5-0 respectively, and after the fine showing Newton made against Tykes the week before, it was expected to extend Devonport farther on Saturday.