BRIGHTER RUGBY

Timaru Herald, Volume CXXXIX, Issue 20146, 28 June 1935, Page 14

BRIGHTER RUGBY

IDEAS OF OLD PLAYERS CLUB SYSTEM CRITICISED There has been a good deal of discussion of late concerning the standard of football in South Canterbury, and the need for some action designed to bring about an improvement has been emphasised in many quarters.

A representative of “The Timaru Herald” discussed the subject with a number of followers of the Rugby game, and old players, and several suggestions were offered. Opinion was diveded as to perseverance with the club system, which holds sway in all forms of sport. In some instances it was argued that no progress whatever would be made in the game if the clubs were abolished, it being contended that but for the club spirit which prevails, it would be impossible to hold players together. In support of this it was claimed that there were many old players who gave up a great deal of time in the interests of clubs, and that if the system were dropped the services of these men would be lost to the game, because having played for a club in their younger days, they were anxious to keep the club flag flying, and so gave their leisure time in coaching the younger players. They could not be expected to take an interest in strangers. The chief argument advanced against this was that if the men concerned had the interests of the game at heart they would make their services available, whether clubs were in existence or not.

Two or three persons who were approached spoke in support of the abolition of clubs, but made it clear that in doing so they were not aiming at any particular club. Their views were not the outcome of the supremacy of any club over a period of years, but they were convinced, after having seen the interest of the public dying as it had done during the last few weeks, and the position was the same every season, that it was the club system which was the root of the trouble. Asked what the substitute was for the club system, the speakers stated that they were inclined to believe that there was something in a proposal which had been advanced on a previous occasion, and that was a district scheme. The town could be divided into districts, similar to the various Ratepayers’ and Householders’ Associations, or even the school districts could be accepted as a basis. Players residing in these areas would be obliged to play for these areas, and the teams would probably be of more even strength. If a player shifted from one area to another, then he could be transferred to that area, just the same as he could from one club to another.

Old 2-3-2 System A majority of those interviewed were of the opinion that the game would again be brightened up if the old 2-3-2 scrum system, with the wing forward, was reverted to. Along with this should go the rule requiring the ball to bounce into touch. They contended that there was too much time wasted under the present kick-into-touch rule, and that play would be speeded up if it was done away with. “To my way of thinking, there are too many teams in the competition,” said a man who has followed the Rugby game in Timaru for many years. “I think the fact that there are seven seniors teams is responsible largely for the poor standard of club football today. Some of the clubs are unable to field 15 men of senior standard and, consequently, have to draw upon their juniors to make a side. That does not make for a high standard of Rugby, for the result is that we have seven teams of which half are only mediocre.” He suggested that better football would be obtained if the number of teams was limited to four. To bring that about, wholesale amalgamation would be necessary and, while he realised that strong opposition would be raised by clubs, the scheme was well worth trying. Under his scheme Star and Old Boys would retain their identity, but Celtic and Zingari would merge, and the three country teams, Temuka, Waihi and Geraldine would amalgamate. To preserve the sentiment attached to a club name, one team could be called Celtic-Zingari United, and the district team could be Country. The result would be four really strong teams, capable of fielding players who were up to senior standard, and the public would be assured of better and more evenly contested games than were provided at present.

New Allocation of Points A new system of allotting points in the competition was advocated by another enthusiast. In contradistinction to the present system of giving points for a win and a draw, he suggested that points should be awarded according to the standard of Rugby played each Saturday. A judicial committee of, say, three authorities could be set up to watch each mat:h, and they would award points according to the standard of football played by the respective teams, irrespective of the result of the game. It was held that under the present system it was possible for an inferior team to defeat a better team by a stroke of luck, and that team was awarded two points for a win, which gave it a false place in the competition ladder. As an example, a case was quoted in which one team, after having been outclassed in all departments, but with no score having been registered by either side, had won by a potted goal on the call of time. It was considered that although a team were beaten it might play better football than the victors, and should, therefore, receive more points for the competition. It might be a good idea not to reveal the points scored until the end of a round, when they could be totalled up, and in the meantime teams would be kept at concert pitch to play their best football, whereas now a strong team was capable of defeating a weak one without having to produce its best, to the detriment of the spectators. “The result of the scheme would be that each club would soon realise the necessity of assiduous practice and careful coaching, and automatically an improved standard of football would be obtained. That is just a rough outline of my ideas for improving the game in South Canterbury, but they might be worthy of consideration by those controlling the sport, who could probably evolve a good workable system from them,” he said.