FOOTBALL.

Press, Volume LVII, Issue 17111, 5 April 1921, Page 9

FOOTBALL.

REFEREES' ASSOCIATION. ANNUAL MEETING'. The annual meeting of the Canterbury Rugby Referees' Association was held in the Carlton Cafo last overling, Mr P. H. Goodeir presidrrvj over a largo attendance. The chairman, in giving a resume of tho past season, said that it was a matter for congratulatiori'"that last season complaints regarding tha conduct of players by referees were of a minor nature, and very few in number. The Association was compelled to record the fact of a great shortage of member?., and a regrettable indifferenco was shown by players who had retired from the active side of the game. Assistance was badly needed, particularly amongst the ranks of- the junior players. Every, year saw a. considerable increase <n the competitions entries, and unless a considerable number of new men came forward, it was quite possible that this year some matches in the lower grades might lapse fpr want of referees. All clubs should -assist in the direction of securing more members of the Association. Tho Rugby Union's decision that matches should commence sharply to time was a step in the right direction, and one which all referees would «appreciate. Tho Association did not overlook tho injportancc attached to sub-unions, and it was suggested that, during the coming year, members should endeavour to attend meetings of both referees and players of sub-unions. Some very m ' portant matches would be played in Canterbury during the coming season, and the Association would have every opportunity of proving that its members were equal to the occasion. In conclusion, Mr Goodsir referred to the cordial relationship existing between tho Association rind th? Rugby Union, and the Association's sense of" gratitudo for the Union's assistance last season.

Officers for tho «nsuincr year were elected os follows:—President, Mr P. H. Goodsir; exacutive committee, the Rev. W. B. Scott, Messrs J. F. Poako G. Gray, J. Weaton, W. Harman, and L. W. Guiney: lion, secretary, Mr -H. Macintosh; membter ou Can-terbury-Rugby Union's Competitions Committee Mr H. Macintosh.

The chairman said. that lhi» year theru •would be 78 teams in the various competitions, •as against 72 last year. That accentuated the lack of numbers of the Aflso-, ciation, and it would be necessary for the Association to conduct a. campaign for new members, in which venture Mr Goodsir hoped, the Rusby Union, and all clubs would assist. The province, depended on its juniors for its future representatives, and it •would be most unfair to the younger players if there were not sufficient referees for their matches. The referees, Mr Goodsir added, should' take every opportunity of attending ooeratiorre flt the training giound which tho Rugby TJnion we© going: to establish in Hauler Park. Mr L. TV." Guiney said that one thing that kept cx-playevs out of the ranks of the referees was the "slating" which they were liable to get from newspapers. The Rev. W. B. Scott stated that, though criticism "hurt"" at the timo and it might sometimes be incorrect, yet it worked out for the best in the long Jim. Criticism wds good for the referee and for the game. Mr Goodsir eair? tliat he did not know of a sport in which all connected with the game, players, officials, and epeetatfcrs, did not get a "slating" now and again. A little "slating" through the Press, he thought, did no harm. The chairman assured' Mr Guiney that tho matter i would be fully discussed at the first meeting of the executive. Some discussion took place on tho question <if the methods of appointing referees in senior matches, and w matches away from hoxne, the opinion being expressed "by several member* that th« 63 referees who served right through the season should be considered when matches Away from homo were being played. „.,.., Mr,A- Dey, cbainnan of the Rugby Unions Competitions Committee, e»id that .the committee did its beat to share the senior matches equally amongst the referees. Frequently, however, the contesting teams asked for a certain referee, and the committee had no option but to appoint the man asked for. There was only a. certain number of matches, and every Tefereo could not expect to hftV* senior matches or representative matches. ...

At the conclusion of tho meeting the Association ■ was'** entertained to supper by the Rugby Union. . Tho toast of. "Tho. Canterbury Rugby TJnion" was proposed by the chairman, and responded to by Mr S. F. Wilson, presideni of the Union, who said that the Referees' Association and the Union alike were out only for the betterment of Rugby football, and the refereea were really more important than tho Union'e executive. Without tcood referees good football was impossible. This vear 39 referees would' be needed every Saturday, which was a very big hurdle to face.- The Association needed .at -least GO members, «,.nd the. Eecuringof that number would be best obtained by. individual effort. The Union greatly appreciated the efforts of the referees in the past, and' hoped that those efforts would hi' even greater in the strenuous season with which they were

cd. ' Mr A. E. McPliail proposed the toast of "Tie Referees' Aesaciailfc-n," to which Mr P. Gooiaix briefly responded, empbaeiisiiig the cordial relations between th© Association and. the Union, and expressing tho hope that the two bodies would be drawn etill cleeer totoaether. Mr L. /W. Gniney proposed the health of .the late secretary of the Association ami the Union, Sir H. E. Neale, who has now left Chtiateburch for the South, and it was decided tt> record the Association's opjjrcciatuHi of ■ Mr N*aJe'« serrkev Other toaftte honoured were "The Oyster Bote" {Mbbbttb G, P. Payne sad €. & MoCully, who had supervised the, arrangements for tho eupper), and the "Press/' . , During the evening Mr B. W.' Brittdit contributed a song, and Mr A. Dey.a recitation. . ,

CHANGES IN RUGBY POOTBALL. "The changes in ths gtumo of Rugfay 1 oatball," from -earlier dais down to the present season, are discussed in much, detail in ih« January number of the "Windsor-Mag«-aihe" by tho woU-knomv ijlayer. and writer on Engby muttera, E.. H. D. Sewoll. In tho course of his theme, Mr SeweJl says:— The abolition of tho two umpires and ono referee system an favour of single control was riot, in my humble opinion, o. move to the edvantago of-football. It .created iv "blind side,"* and in tint fact lurks great danger. Thai region is tho home of the player of dubious, morals, and;-wit3iin it is usually tobe found the agent vtrovooateur, if there is one in cither fifteen. Many tries annually recorded woriirl not bo recorded if there wi to be a. reversion to tho old system of seeing fair play; but, inasmuch, as iefcrees ur* n«nd 100 jileutiful *nd it n-ould bo very difficult to cot three neutral officials for every match, wo have to mate; the best of tlra single and much-harassed individual who gets all the metaphorical kicks and extremely few of the ha'-pene*, while ho gives up wractically ■every Saturday afternoon throughout 'the season for. tho general good and enjoyment of others. That this-.paper may not suffer the charge, of being too technical, it is necessary to pause here to eta-te briefly what the "blind side"mtanj. Tho blind side refers 4p that part of tho game, land especially tho side remote-of the ecnunmags, which it is a physical impoesiblity for v. singlo referee to see. Naturally Mie black sheep of ,the flock favouT thia side of the g&ine, which suffers accordingly, though, h-appily, not excestivcly, tho black sheep being few in num-

hpr, and extremely well-known in consequence. & could, and I would, cite chapter fcnd verso of one of the season's most important games that was won out and out by ;m cct committed on iihe blind side of the scrum, it having been quit© impossible for the Tcfereo to fee what happened \'et that result stand*, end is included in the annual articles which are written, and which state how tho Boom as between those two Unions 6tande. Sinco we shall never rerart to the old system of two umpires and a. referee, ib» euro'for all blind-side evils rests with tho players, the captains of teams and tho selection committees. They know. . . . If one thing is certain, it js that until the three or four years immediately preoedin" the war, when the standard of play had improved out of all knowledge, pky under the four three-quarter system ruled as much across <he fkto aa in the Jays of three threequarters it had ruled up and down the field. Everything seemed to be subordinated to a form" of combination that was move apparent than real, the fine individualistic fcndencies of. the old game being stilled by the rather laboured attempts to excel at what was known as the passing game. "If the touch-line was tho goal-line, ours would bo the bett school team in the United Kingi dom," said a famous coach to me, when I ' was seeking to estimate the public school form of 1917-18. 'What he said applied to a good many club teams during tho early years of this century. The New Zealand t«am of 1905 came «nd showed the players of the United Kingdom that, after all, tho poal-lins was tlie one to cross, and they had mme- different ways o£ getting across it than any fifteen before or rince them'. Their viMt provided the great- awakeninsr, and it-would be a most extraordinarily different lesistance that an equally Rifted X«w Zealand team would encounter if it w«re to tour these islands now, in spite of the enormous sacrifices the Rugby game made in tEe war.

CANTEEBUEY ASSOCIATION. The annual meeting of the Canterbury Football Association wa3 held last night, Air R. English presiding. The report and balance-sheet snowed a very good financial position. . Tho president urged members of all clubs to rjush tho game ahead. The election of officers resulted:—Patrons, Mr H. Holland and the Mayor of Christchurch; president, Mr E. English; vice-pre-sidents; Messrs H. B. Bunt, E. A. Wilson, E. A. Knights, W. Deans, W:'H. Tiadall, J. Flood, P. Cornish, A. B. Sherwood, I. R. Sanderson, W. T. -Lester (Mayor of Lyttelton), S. Eastgatc, H. Baecand, B. Ashworth, E Bagrie, W. Ramsay, S. Robinson, H. Frogett R. McCllehmd, J. A. Ainger, H. Hill, P. S. Kieholls, Dr. Marks, Father Graham, and the Rev. W. Hughes; trustees, Me*sr3 B. English, P. L. Daviee, and Dr. Marks; management committee, Messrs R, Cornish, P. Davey, C. Mullen, B. Priddis, —. Barr, H. Rhodes, and G. P. J. O'Callaghau; delegate to N.Z.F.A., Mr Bryce; solicitous, MaEsrs Wynn-Willinms, Brown, and Grosson. • A letter from the IC.Z.F.A. regarding a tou r of a Uew South Wales team was discussed. .

A letter from Blackball asking for a. visit from « Canterbury team was also referred to the incoming committee.

WAIHQRA CLUB. The AVaihora Club opened their season oil Saturday, when the annual match, Kaituna v. Motukarara, took place. A lively gum* reeulted in, a draw, G points a n, j£r Rennie wtffl referee. ' On Saturday next-the annual match, Married v. Single, will take place. The following are the teams:— Married—F. Carroll, .T. Woods, B. Bowley, E. Hodges, L. Harris, E..Rvde, J. Sangstex, A. Songster, G. Wheeler, T.' Stroeter, J. Watson, E. Paul, F. BrittlifE, J. Hodgiu, \V, Murphy. Single—A. Jackson, C. Miller, J. Mi'lst, ~W. Joblin, T. Wheeler, W. Gebbie, I. Gebbie, J. Wells, B. Duncan, C. Gray, H. Thomas, L. Coop. F. Brady, E. Brady, W. Dwinaa, H. Jloßkin.