THE ALL BLACKS.

Waipa Post, Volume XXIV, Issue 1578, 25 November 1924, Page 5

THE ALL BLACKS.

Sir, —lLast week a paragraph appeared among your Otorohanga correspondent’s notes lamenting the fact that the Government had decided to grant £IOOO to bring the All Black football team, at present touring Britain, home through Canada. If your correspondent could suggest a better method of advertising New Zealand for £IOOO no doubt the Department _ responsible for keeping our Dominion before the world would be pleased to have the suggestion. The 1905 All Blacks, it is claimed, put New Zealand on the map so far as the Old Country is concerned, while the present team .is certainly bringing very forcibly before all the English-speaking nations the advantages of our little island. What better advertisement, could we wish for than the columns which all the leading papers in England are writing on the exploits of our boys in the football arena, and all of which are loud in their praises of the gentlemanly behaviour of the team both on and off the field? If your correspondent could only measure up the space devoted by each of the papers in London alone and secure their rate card for advertising per inch he would undoubtedly be astounded at the amount of the bill the Government

would have to foot if the same amount of space .was. devoted, to. advertising New Zealand in the ordinary way. If the Government, has taken no steps to .further advertise - the advantages offered in this Dominion to my mind a gol.den opportunity has been missed. What could be better than haying thousands of booklets printed setting out the advantages of N.Z. and handing one to each person as they entered the gate to see our boys in action. It is only natural that while they waited for the game to commence they would glance at the booklet and then save it up to read when at home in .order to learn more about the land of All Blacks and Butterfat. Of course there are those among us who can see no good in sport .of any description, but what better advertisement has this Dominion had during the past twelve months than the exploits of A. E. Porritt on the running track at the Olympic Games and several of the leading cities of Europe; Miss Gwitha Shand (swimming) and C. Purdy (boxing') at the Olympic Games and the Tailtean Games in Ireland; closely' followed by the triumphal tour of the present All Black team. A defeat registered against this team (which would be viewed in the nature of a national calamity in N.Z.) would undoubtedly serve to increase the value of the advertising side of the tour, as instance the only defeat registered against the 1905 team by Wales. Although played nearly twenty years ago this game is still a bone of contention among newspaper critics as to whether Wales actually won the game, which all serves to bring the name “New Zealand” before the public at Home. I am bold enough to suggest .that, if the Government thoroughly considered the advertising value of these visits it would want to send a team Home every year and pay the whole of the expenses, not a paltry £looo.—l am, etc., PATRIOT.