Rugby

Bay of Plenty Beacon, Volume 14, Issue 32, 31 August 1949, Page 5

Rugby

CLUBS MUST PENALISE ILLEGAL TACTICS ' (By “Kai ti tiro”) In every football team there are players who iresort to anything but legal football, and so expert do some of them become that they are able to escape the eyes of the referee. Such is the case with some individuals in teams in the Bay of Plenty.' It happens at Whakatane, but it is just as bad in other centres and because the referee cannot always catch the offenders the responsibility of stopping it must necessarily rest with the clubs and the club officials.

A glaring case occurred at Whakatane last Saturday in the Wai-raka-United match. The United right wing was tackled on the'Wairaka 25 right in front of the stand near the sideline. A ruck- formed and both packs went in. The United back was on the ground when one of the Wairaka forwards, on the pretext of hooking the ball, started to kick him. It was so openly done that spectators nearby saw it. The referee glimpsed the boot going in but he apparently was not sure who the culprit was so he penalised the team.

That player must have known he was at fault. Because of him 1.4 other players, who had been trying to play hard, clean football were penalised. As he was not punished by the referee the matter is now up to the club. Illegal tactics on the field will not help any team and in most cases they do immeasurable harm to rugby. When a player earns a name for dirty play pa;rt of the blame must be attached to the club he plays for in allowing him to continue. Unfortunately it often happens that the top players resort to illegality so that it is not surprising that younger players follow the lead given them. An example of this is seen in the Whakatane United junior team. One player has been sent off the field three times this season for fighting and the club has apparently done nothing about it. This is not the only case. There have been more. The main corrective measures must be taken by the club, and until they adopt a policy, of seeing that their members play football as it should be played, then referees and the sub-unions will not be able to ,do much to prevent the unsporting tactics which are being adopted' by a minority of players. WH AK AT AN E-R AN G! T AIKI COMBINED The Whakatane-Rangtyaiki com!bined rugby team will be selected from the following players selected to play against Opotiki-Apanui combined at Opotiki on Saturday:— Welch, McGougan, Bluett, Newdick,. Burt, M. Riini, Schuster, N. Raureti, T. Riini, L. Raureti, Black, Merito, Mundy, Parsons, Woods, Goodall, Hughes, Moses, Ball, Falwasser, Pryor, Gardiner. Any player not available is to notify either D. O. Stewart, C. Thompson or F. Harawira.