FOOTBALL PENALTIES

Bay of Plenty Beacon, Volume 10, Issue 30, 27 September 1946, Page 5

FOOTBALL PENALTIES

CLEANER FOOTBALL WANTED The following letter has been directed by the Opotiki Referees’ Association to the Opotiki Rugby Union:— “I have to advise that a special meeting of the Opotiki Referees’ Association was held on the 12th. inst., to discuss the handling by your Union of. players ordered off the field by referees. “I have been instructed to advise that the referees view with alarm, the leniency extended by the Rugby Union to the two players recently ordered off by Mr L. Davies. In the case of both players, it was considered that a warning was not sufficient punishment, and in taking this view we would refer you to your Union’s letter of 4/6/46 wherein referees were assured of the Union’s full backing in suppressing dirty play. We consider that this promise has not been fulfilled in the recent cases, and we must ask for, your full co-operation, and infliction of penalties other than letters of warning, if you expect clean football, and efficient and willing referees for your future matches.

“We consider it regretful, that whereas the motion was carried at our meeting that this letter of protest be forwai’ded to your Union, several referees have taken a personal stand and withdrawn from our active list for the remainder of the season on account of the above happenings.”

Union’s Letter

The letter referred to by the sec-retax-y of the Referees’ Association was as follows:

“June 4th,, 1946: At a special meeting of the management committee of the Opotiki Rugby SubUnion called last Saturday night to consider what action was to be taken in respect of the five O.M.P. and Kutarere senioi- players ordered off the field by Mr H. Hawkins that afternoon, I was instructed to write to your association commending the action taken by Mr Hawkins and to inform you that our committee will be right behind the Referees’ Association in any . action its members may take to suppress dirty play or bad behaviour on the field.

“After much discussion it was felt that the position re the five players concerned would be met by a sharp letter of warning from the committee to each player.”