FOOTBALL.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LV, Issue 209, 5 April 1913, Page 7

FOOTBALL.

110 VEILS ANNUAL MEETING. Tie annual meeting of the Rovers Football Club was held last night, when there was a fair attendance. Mr. ,1. Tarry presided. The following new members were elected:—A. Bacon, K. Stohr, D. Lusk, 11. Mander. F. E. Stewart, J. Jenkins, L. Leary, F. Shepphard. 11. Bisehop, 0. E. Jago. B. Glasgow, J. Ilothery and J. Pott. Officers were elected as follows: —President, ,T. IT. Quilliam, vice-presi-dents. Messrs. A. Mellardv, J. Terrv, E. F. Blundell. B. H. Chaney, A. H. Standisli. W. F. floghill, J .11 Roy, 0. Weldon. J. ('. Nicholson, N. K. MacDiarmid, E. F. Fookes. J. Paton, Drs. Blacldey and Walk»r: lion .secretary and treasurer. Mr. Reid; lion, auditor. H. W. Stowe;. club captain, A. C. Thompson; management committee. Captain and Secretary, end Messrs. J. P. Grant. D. Webster and Ellis; selection committee, Captain, and Messrs. J. P. Grant and D. Webster: delegate to the Rugby Union, D. Webster.

The subscription was fixed at 2s (id and the season will he opened next Saturday..

The n-ronnd will be the same as before. Ladies will not be charged admission to the matches. Tf funds permit the Hub will pay half insurance. The question of entering the Saturday competition was discussed. Members were of opinion that ifiiless four teams entered, it would be better to form an Association on the lines worked three years ago, when piavers could plav for Thursday teams as well. This would do away with the bve. An effort will be away with the bye. Au effort should lie made by those interested in Saturday football to get a fourth team to enter if possible. Left in the hands of the Management Committee. ■ The medal presented bv Mr. Hore for. the most improved plaver was presented bv the Chairman to Mr.-P. K. Brown. J lie Chairman intimated amidst applause, that Mr. Hore was predentin-.- a medal each year. Conditions to be freed by the committee. • The usual votes of thanks terminated the meeting, r NEWS AND NOTES. All football clubs in Taranaki have now held their annual meetings, with the exception of Stratford, Inglewood and Kaponga. The two former are holdin* their annual meetings early next week" Rovers held theirs last night. Saturday evening last was a very busy one in South Taranaki football circles, no fewer than four clubs holding their annual meetings, viz., Hawera, Waimate, Okahiwa and Opunake. The intervention of the Easter holidays was probably the reason why the meetings were not held prior to the annual meeting of the Union.

It is pleasing to note that the need for training is being emphasised by practically all the clubs at their annual meetings. There is difficulty in many places, no doubt owing to want of facilities, but even where the facilities are available the spirit is lacking. New players rush enthusiastically into training quarters at the beginning of the season, but in many cases the effort is only spasmodic, and cools away down to zero very rapidly.

Some of the clubs are getting to workearly. Okato and Star both open the season to-day with practice matches. The former play Koru, which is part of their district, and the latter Fitzroy, who have thrown in their lot with them. It is a pity that Fitzroy could not retain their-individuality and again enter the arena, as it will mean that onlv three teams will be out in the Saturday competition. If possible, Star will enter two teams. It is to be hoped that a fourth team will materialse and obviate a bye. though with three even teams a good triangular competition should result.

It is on the cards that the Saturday competition will be three-sided, too, with Clifton, Tukapa and Stratford as rivals. Ingle.wood \cvy much doubt their ability to raise a senior team, and Eltham will probably be playing on Saturdays in the southern competition, taking the place of Patea,

; Petitions have gone forward for polls .on fhe.Saturday half-holiday question in the six towns. .There is bound to be organised opposition in some cases, so that it behoves all interested in sport to be up and doinsr. Unanimity on the half-holiday would be for the benefit of all sport. Members of (he Stratford Club are going in for solid training, and the club has had some useful practice. Dcwar (captain). Woods and Crocker, of the Star Club, have thrown in their lot with the inland town club. Harney Fearon will probably not be available this year. A recent practice revived on old football injury. This is unfortunate, as Barney is a true sport.

Dud. Cameron will be playinc; for one of the Wanganui clubs. Don of that iik mav not sport the jersey this season.

Clifton loses the services of that verv promising three-quarter, G. Bertram], who is now in New Plymouth and will be plaving for Star. Another probable defection from the Clifton seniors will be YV. Fuller, who played full-back Inst season. Knee trouble will probably prevent his taking the field, also Eggleston. who scored the winning trv against Stratford, but is now in Melbourne. Waka mav be tried out as full.

Tt is to be Imped that that promising nlaycr. C. Tate, will be able to don the jersey again this year. It will be remembered that last season he met with a serious injury to his leg, preventing him from taking part in the matches at the latter end of the season.

Crowley will be again found in his old position as half, and new players for Clifton will be. Eggleton, who represented Otago some three years back; Gordon, an emergency player of the Wairarapa team when tber weiv, in Taranaki last vear; and IT. Abbott, now domiciled at Tongaporutu. M. Cain is keeping in good form and should strip cherry ripe when the whistle blows. His training for rowing has kept him in good buckle. McKay, the heady Okato forward, who shows great nromise. will this year be 'dating for Waimate. Should a place in the southern team's senior vanguard b" available lie '-iionld have a great oppev,.unitv for shining.

The sii'.'sestion thrown out. at th" annual meetipf of (he Taranaki Ru?h v Union that the various clubs should take an interest in the schools in this district was nn excellent one. Tf headmasters throii!:hont Taran«l;i could only be induced to take up the matter—and man" of I hem are old and present-da v players —the formation of a Schools TJivbv Union shou'd not he an impossibilit--. The difficulty, of course, would be i'l some of the smaller schools, where the fact that the sole teacher in charge being a ladv would preclude the bovs from anv exneri n ne n d coachin<r. This would be where the interest of the local clubs could be evidenced by m-ovidinrr some old plover to coach the lnds occasional! v. The bo-" of to-day is the reIT'esnnfative of to-morrow.

This vear the Taranaki reps, travel to Wellington. There is also the probability- of a trip to Auckland, as the TJiio-bv management committee fivnr the offer made hv the Auckland Union fov a ma+-h in Auckland, allo"'ing the Taranaki Union half the gate

J and ,t25 towards expenses. The same i offer has been made to Wellington. This | is Auckland's lean season in the way of J home matches, as Auckland has to tour, and the proposed matches would attract big crowds. Jt is probable that an endeavor will he made to arrange a special Wellington match at Hawera during show week. A New South Wales representative team will be touring the Dominion this season, and a match in Taranaki is practically a certainty. The Wellington Rugby Union has decided to issue men's season tickets at ±'l 10s and women's season tickets at 10s od. The Athletic Park trustees have also approved of the proposal to raise the price of admission to matches, as a temporary experiment. The proposal is to raise the price from 6d to Is. One of the most thrilling Rugby internationals England lias ever seen was that which took place on March 15 at Twickenham, when England beat Scotland by one try to nothing. There were 25,000 people present, and Brown, an Australian Rhodes scholar, scored the try of the game, amid a scene that has been unparalleled in the annals of English Rugby. The crowd went frantic with ' delight. England, by winning the game, takes the international championship of the year. L. G. Brown, who won the great game for England, was the first Queensland Rhodes scholar. He is captain .of the Oxford University R\H>y Football Club.

A one-iirmer player in a Rugby football match is not a very common spectacle, but it was witnessed at the Athletic Park (Wellington) on Saturday. The player In question was E. Perry, captain of the Oriental fifteen, who played as front-rank forward in the. match against Poneke. and gave a capital account of himself. The loss of his right, arm (caused by a building accident some months ago) seemed to hamper him very little. He was active at every stage of the game, and seemed equally at home in line-ont. scrimmage, or in open play on the field. Although he did not succeed in scoring lie came very near doing so on more than one occasion.