PROPOSED NEW ZEALAND ASSOCIATION

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume LXXXI, Issue 19058, 10 July 1924, Page 6

PROPOSED NEW ZEALAND ASSOCIATION

On July 19, the occasion of the Canterbury Miniature Rifle Shooting Championships to be held at Christchurch, it has been proposed to call a meeting of Association delegates from all over New Zealand to consider the formation of a New Zealand Miniature Rifle Association. Miniature rifle shooting has become one of the principal winter sports in the Dominion, for there is hardly a town or village where a club has not been established. The Ashburton Association is the prime mover in the formation of the New Zealand Association, and circulars have been sent out to associations all over New Zealand asking them to appoint delegates to attend at the meeting in Christchurch. For some time there has been agitation for a ruling body as at present each club or district association formulates rules as to the size of range and method of shooting. The time has now come when some organisation of the sport from a dominion point of view should be arranged. New Zealand is considered stormy in miniature shooting and modern methods of control are always being introduced but at the same time the Dominion is sadly lacking so far as organisation is concerned as compared with the United States and England. In England there is the Society of Miniature Rifle Clubs which conducts teams shoots on the home and home principle all over the country. In America the controlling body is the N.R.A. and is called the Organisation of Gallery viubs. Here again the system of home and home matches is adopted for both teams and individual shooting. One of the main points which will be introduced by the Ashburton delegate who is the prime mover in the formation of a New Zealand association win be as follows:—On a day to be arranged, possibly June 3, all associations will wherever is possible fire their annual association matches. In conjunction with these matches which will be fired on New Zealand Association targets the individual and teams matches for the New Zealand championship will be fired and all targets submitted to the New Zealand Association for checking. The leading team and individual will be declared New Zealand champion for the year. This method will save the necessity of long travelling to one central range and the consequent three or four days shooting to complete the championship. The Government will be approached for a subsidy and liberal prices will be offered. The New Zealand Association also take in hand the arranging of teams of New Zealand representatives shooting international matches with overseas countries on the home and home principle.