FOOTBALL.

Taranaki Herald, Volume LV, Issue 13921, 25 March 1909, Page 7

FOOTBALL.

OKAIAWA CLUB. Tho annual meeting or the Okaiawa Club was held on Friday evening last. There was only a moderate attendance. Mr A. Lees was voted to the chair. Tho report dealt with tho diflicultiet. with which the club had to contend last season. It was only with the greatest difficulty that a team could be got together, even on the local ground, consequently the season had been a disastrous one so far as wins were concerned. The best the senior team could do was to play two drawn games, all tho other matches being lost. The bal-ance-sheet showed a credit balance of £i 0 10s 3d. Mr J. Crowley pointed out that if they intended to keep on they would have to work on different lines to last year. A special meeting was called last season to consider the position, and it was decided to play the season out. At that meeting twenty players agreed to play right through, but what was the result? At w no single match could they muster a full team, and they had to stop tho gaps with anyone they could get or play short-handed. It was no good keeping on if it wf- to be a repetition of last year's expf ' i-»nco. Mr Jas. O'Sullivan said they had only half a team last year. Ho did not intend to play this season, and thought it was for the playing members to de-| c;do what they were going to do. Hoj thought if there was to be no improvement this year it was useless to go any further. He would like to know howmany intending players wore presort at the meeting. On a being made for all intending players present to stand up only six responded, but later on the number was increased to ton. Mr O'Sullivan said it was utterly useless to think of carrying on when they could not muster fifteen men at the' annual meeting. At the same time he thought they should send delegates to tho meeting of tho Union and endeavour to retain their district. He would move to that effect. Mr R. Johnstone thought they should either go on or disband. The fact that there wore only ten players present should not be taken too much notice of, as players did not always trouble to attend the annual meeting. The motion was seconded by Mr N. Crocker and caitried. Messrs O'Sullivan and Crowloy were anpointcd delegates to tho Union, and were given a free hand to do what they thought bovt in the interests of the club should any unforseen developments take place in tho meantime. It was decided to adjourn the meeting till Monday, the 29th. Mr johnstone inquired about a cup which had boon presented to the club by ?»!v M'Guire two years ago. '.The Secretary explained why the cup hod never boon competed for. When ilw^eup was first presented to the club it was too Into in tho season to do nuyti.iiT', and last year the death of their president had so upset everyone that \\ was overlooked. , Th > meeting decided that, with Mr M'Guire's consent, tho cup be handed 3v'v to tho school team to bo neH as a| c< nlienge cup and competed for by the -yh<ol teams in tho central division.