ASSOCIATION.

Dominion, Volume 4, Issue 1234, 16 September 1911, Page 12

ASSOCIATION.

are to gaining geotjnd? " I [Bl CENTBE-HAU.] To-day's Match at Christchurch. On the' Show Grounds, Christchurch, tho chosen elevens of Wellington and Canterbury are to meet. Last year Auckland visited Wellington, and after a fairly strong-game-the. northerners defeated "our own" by 2 goals to . niL So the Brown Shield went noTtli. Two weeks later Canterbury travelled to tho "Queen City," and, to the surpriso of everyone, defeated the holders by the narrow margin of one goal. Naturally, the southerners were jubilant at their success, especially as this was their nrst visit to tho northern city. The shield was 'taken back to tho City of the Plains," and there it has remained. loday wo may get it back. Also, wo may nor. Therein lies the interest. No doubt it will bo a game well Worth watching, for tho teams 'composing the respective elevens aro the best that can bo assembled, and, on tho word of an enthusiast from . the south,_ Canterbury has something up their sleeve. Their team will consist of the following :-Goal, Webster; right back, Hettrick; left back, Forrest; right' half,; W. Howie;: centre half, W. Fullcrton (captain); left back. D. Fnllerton; outsido right, Ward; inside right, 'Bissett; centre, Norman; inside left, T. Carey; outside left, \V llliams. There aro two alterations in tho team from that which was victorious against Manawatu. W. Fullcrton, who was indisposed in tho last game, comes back into tho half-back .line, in place of Newall and Carey replaces uarsuale in the forwards. fioth changes make for representatives hnve underEono a bie chango since* the original tcain was' published: This lias been brought about by some of tho first-selected being unahlo to niako tho trip owing to injuries, and, in one case, owing to nniem- ■ ber being susponded until the opening of • next season. However, tho team A\hich i left by tho Ifokoia on Thursday ovcning is stronger, if anything, than the one > first chosen to do battle for tho Brown > Shield. . . T*, , n l : It is anticipated that Ward, Canter- . bury'e outside. light, will be a thorn in

Wellington's side, but lie has a topnotoher to watch liini in Shaw, our left half. Jf Ward can be "bottled up" in the opening stages of the game, and prevent- 1 ed from getting in those beautiful "centres" of his to his inside men, then it is reasonable to suppose that our boys will have a better chance of bringing tlio shield back with them on Sunday. Of course, one man does not make a team, but, if that one man is the mainstav of that team, then, if ho is "watched" closely, combination if broken up, and the opposing team has a better chance of winning. "Soccer" is Growing Hore. It is interesting to note that the _ increase in players of "soccer" in Wellington during the season has gono beyond anticipations. There is no doubt that tho W.E.A. deserves congratulations over the manner in which they foster boys' football. The men who compose tho various committees thoroughly understand that it is from the boys that wo draw our seniors, and they are looking after tho lads very well indeed. Every encouragement is being given to the boys. Representative matches have been arranged, cups and medals presented, and, in fact, everything possible lins been done to tune tho game up. From the Fourth Division down there are 81G boys playing the game in "Wellington, and this number represents 58 teams. Tho total number of players of all grades under the W.F.A.'s jurisdiction is 1522, being an increase of 200 over last year's figures. The total number of teams engaged each Saturday in the various competitions was 89. Even the Rugby Eye Is On Us, A remark passed by a speaker at the Rugby Union meeting on Wednesday night that the Rugby Union might take' a leaf out of tho "soccer" people's book, as regards the junior players, is a compliment well deserved, although there is no doubt that, it was said in the form of a warning, because the "soccer" peoplo are steadily gaining ground, and making inroads to the Rugby stronghold. The following table supplied me by Mr. A. Williams, secretary of tho Wollington Football Association, giving details of tho number of players and teams in each grade played in Wellington this season will be of interest. . Players. Teams. First Division 227 10 Second Division 230 9 Third Division 137 8 Fourth Division 15G 11 Fifth Division 187 12 Sixth Division 213 15 Schools' Division _ 140 10 Wednesday Association 112 4 Boy Scouts 120 10 Totals 1522 89 T ■