Football And Players Of Yesteryear

Chronicle (Levin), 21 March 1949, Page 2

Football And Players Of Yesteryear

(Contributed) With the dawn of another rugby _ season on the horizon, thoughts of i piayers, offlcials and others return jto the team of last year, the year I bef ore and the year bef ore that, and Jfeo on, until the names of real old j timers are recalled. It is surprising [how the spotiignt has never ceased jto focus on them. I A statement that Otaki is the oldest team in the H^rowxienua Union made only the other day was hot'ly challenged almo'st before it was uttered by one who o.ught to know. Bili Bailey, ap/ inted a few j days ago as club capidm for Rahui, played senior for Kia Toa in 1908, and Bill will not nave that Otaki and Kia Toa were one and the same clubs. Be'that as it may, Kia Toa piayers were in the main "resident in Otaki, the exception, cr rather the most notable exception being Tame Parata, whose enthusiasm saw him travel to and from: Waikanae, Fred Winterburn, Bill | WiLon, Bill Bevan (grand-dad cfj the illustrious Vince Bevan), Don! IWilson, Bruce Ferguson, Henare, Tahiwi, Joe and Jerry Ropata, thej late Joe Hakaraia and the latei Kingi Tahiwi, Geo. Armstrong,! Kehu Hakaraia, Arthur Bevan, and; Lyh Griflflths; familiar names all of them, team mates of Bill Bailey in the Tainui and Kia Toa teams of 1908 and 1910, this season will doubtless see their sons and grandsons carrying on once again. Seniors were young in the good old days. Bill Bailey played senior for Kia Toa when winning the Horowhenua championship in 1908. This feat (or Bill's feet, whichever you like) was eclipsed by the one and only, the late Hector Nicolson. Read what a newspaper of 1928 has to say of his exploits. "When Hec. was 13 ytears of age and weighed a little over seven stone, he played for the Carterton seniors. Prior to that, ' he captained the Royal Stars. As boy and man,.he played over a long period of 'years for Carterton. One remembers a certain North v. South match, when North led by some 10 points with about as many minutes to • go, when Hec. upset the pot by seoring three times in that ten minutes to give South the victory by| a na.rr.ow margin." The record book also shows Otaki

up in a favourable light when in 1919 their junior club was formed on Thursday, practised on Friday and played in a championsnip match on the Saturday. No, they did not win, but the hook gives them credit for making a fair showing against Levin, who won 15-^-6. Tne book a^so says "Otaki had a few passengers, other wise the scores wouid have been more even." The following. week Shannon narirowly det'eated them 3 — 0, and the |Week after txie return match was a '"great struggle" with neither team , auie uo sc^re. Bun Tahiwi, Mick .Gidderis, Claude Enoka, Alf. Flutey, Joe Fogden, Bill Bowden, Lima, Knox, Hawea and Nicholls were the shining lights in that year. .' j Tnere are many with a soft spot 1 for Otaki's continued efforts to maintain its place in the football .sun, and the forecast is for an eiunusiastic annual meeting tomorrow night. Witn a slrong counterpart in the Rahui Club looking after affairs at the other end of the town, enrolments have not been as numerous as could have been* desired to -the Otaki club. The promoters and offlcials remain undaunted, however, and they • aflflrm that there will be no relaxation oftheir eiforts to field teams this year that will be on a par with the field$ of yesteryear-. The support of piayers is necessary,- of course, and tho^e who are familiar with the names that appear above should get behind the effort and give the Otaki offlcials the encouragement they deserve.