RUGBY LEAGUE.

Press, Volume LXIII, Issue 18892, 6 January 1927, Page 13

RUGBY LEAGUE.

i DUTIES OF THE HOOKER. i i MR MAIR'S VIEWS.« i _ {TROK OUI OWK COREESroSDEST.) LONDON, November 27. I At the meeting of the Yorkshire j Society of Uugby Leaguo Kcferees in ! Leeds, Mr I!., Robinson, of Bradford, in the chair, Mr G. H. Ponder gave an interesting address on New Zealand. He showed what iine possibilities the Dominion offered to the emigrant. Mr E. H. Hair (coach-manager of the team) thanked the English referees for the help they had given the New Zea--landers ever since they landed. Everyone recognised, he said, there w r ere differences in the interpretation of tho rules of the game. In New Zealand, they have a penalty for a forward pass, arguing that the man to whom the ball was passed was offside when he took it; and it would have been noticed that in Australia they had ruled that when the ball went dead it should be dropped out from the goal-line. He was glad this rule had been adopted, because ho believed it was for the good of the game, but he was sorry the rule had been adopted because it was not in agreement with the English Rugby League, which was the body when all was said and dono to make the rules. Mr Mair said when they picked the New Zealand team to come here "we thought the 'hooker' had to stand up practically all the time and we eliminated four 'hookers' who did their work down on the ground. We found things different from what we expected, but your referees have helped us greatly in our efforts."