SOCCER CONTROL

Dominion, Volume 5, Issue 1370, 22 February 1912, Page 7

SOCCER CONTROL

REPORT ON SYDNEY CONFERENCE. A meeting of the New Zealand Football Council was held last evening, lIY. J. .!. Roberts (Canterbury), nresidiiiK. There were also present: Messrs. W. J. If. Ilev-, nolds (Poverty Bay), W. K. Wells (South- , laud), C. i'ordham It. Yeoman (Marlboroujjh), 11. ;M'Keo«eu (Mawke'e liiy), and F. Newbold (Auckland). Air. C. ,f. Ward advised the council that he had tendered his resignation as Canterbury's delegate on the Zealaiwl Association. In view of the fact thai: he was the New Zealand Council's delegate on the Wellington Association Football Grounds Committee, Mr. 11. M'lCeawcn, was elected in his stead. A letter was received from Jlr. A. E. Gibbs, New Zealand's representative on the Football Association, Ltd,, , London, in which the writer expressed the opinion that thn English body would send a team to New Zealand provided expenses were guaranteed. J. Harrison, au.Otago player, now resident in Auckland, wrote asking the council to. remove the balance (two years) of his suspension of five years. A letter was received from tho Auckland Association iu support of same. On the motion of Jlr. Wells, seconded by Jir. Fordham, (he application was granted. Mr. 8.. T. Salmon, • secretary of the N.Z.F.A., who represented the couucil al: the recent Australasian Conference held in Sydney, submitted his report. Tt referred to matters in connection with fostering the Association camo, which have already been published. The exception was the reason Riven as to why New Zealand did not affiliate with the Australian Board of Control. Fivo reasons were given-and they were.as follow:—(a) That New Zealand has niorc affiliated tennis than the whole of Australia put together. (The numbers are: New Zealand 300, and Australia 282. Most of the latter's teams aro in New South Wales and New Zealand has obtained its,number of teams in a niuch shorter tinio than Australia.) (b) Difficulty in obtaining a suitable representative, (c) The fact that if New Zealand was represented, it would only have one delegate to seven Australian delegates, (d) Tho distance between the Dominion and Australia, (e) That most sports bodies in New Zealand prefer to remain ns a separate national power. After hearing Mr, Salmon's reasone Mr. C. l'i. Fordham moved: "That the time was not ripe for New Zealand to affiliate with the Australian Board of Control." This was seconded by Mr. M'Jvcowpn and carried. ' A hearty vote of thanks to Jlr. Salmon and Mr. H. N. Holmes for the way in which they had carried out their duties as delegates concluded the meeting.