ENGLISH SOCCER SIDE

Timaru Herald, Volume CXLVI, Issue 21244, 14 January 1939, Page 12

ENGLISH SOCCER SIDE

Recent Tour of Dominion SURPRISED AT PUBLICITY V The fact that the members of the English amateur association football team which visited New Zealand last year has been surprised at the “amazing amount of publicity” accorded them was mentioned by Bernard Joy, one of the team, when speaking at Woking. After they had gained several successes, he said, the team was described in the New Zealand press as the finest side in the world, and, partly as a result of this lavish praise, the visitors came to the conclusion that they would have little difficulty in beating any of the New Zealand teams. Therefore, when they left for the North Island, it was decided to give five of the players a rest. The first match played in the North Island was won B—4, after the English team had been two down at half-time, but, after this, the remainder of the matches were won with considerable ease. The team’s record for matches played in New Zealand was rather a remarkable one—played 9, won 9, scoring 85 goals against its opponents’ six. Less publicity was given the English players in Australia, as the majority of Australians were under the impression that their own teams would prove the better, in spite of the fact that Rugby football was more popular. Only two matches were lost in Australia, both by a margin of but one goal. Before one of the test matches the visitors had some cause for complaint. Only four days had elapsed between this match and the previous game, and in the meantime the team had travelled a distance of over 600 miles. When it did arrive, a strenuous programme was arranged for the team on the day previous to the match, with the result that it lost by the odd goal of seven. During the tour most members of the party commandeered a football on which were collected the autographs of all the well-known people met in the two countries. When visiting Adelaide for the last match but one of the tour, not one player neglected to obtain an autograph from Don Bradman. The team’s good average for the entire tour was 138 goals for and 28 against, so that the English side obtained a large measure of success.