PICKING THE TEAM

Evening Post, Volume CVII, Issue 14, 17 January 1924, Page 10

PICKING THE TEAM

ALL BLACKS FOR ENGLAND

TRIAL MATCHES PROPOSED

HEADQUARTEKS AT HOME,

Various matters of .importance regardingt;he ; tour' ; pf.a Newv'Zealandteam this year'at the" invitation of the: " English • Rugby Union were discussed by ihe Management Committee of the New, Zealand 'Rugby evening;-' Among them was the question of a set line of action for selecting the players, and in this connection three schemes were mentioned, each of them providing for a series of matches heing played before the final selection of the team was made. Another matter of special interest was an invitation from the Nowton Abbot Urban .District Council, forwarded throughv-the High- Commissioner (Sir James Allen), for the New Zealand team to,make Newton.Abbot its headquarters, as was done by .the,1905 AH Blacks. Mr. S. S. Dean presided over, the meeting, the others present being :—Messrs. A 0 Kitto, E. Little, E. Wylie;' W. Hornig, T. A, Fletcher, and H. E. Combs (secretary). In opening the question of choosing the team, the chairman remarked that the union definitely committed to picking th<£ team on. the-4th June, and would have to hold the trial matches before that date. ■':'■''..' "-.i.- ---■ SUGGESTED-MAXCHES. ■:'.' Mr. T. A. Fletcher, intimated that he had already gone into the matter; -and had drawn up a programme-of inarches which'he thought would be' tho means' of obtaining the best possible team.- He, suggested that matches should be played' in both Islands, .before 'final trials '■ at Wellmgton, as, .follow :— -■ '- '--. '-'„',. . North Island.—Saturday : '.'AucklandNorth Auckland v.. Waikato-Thames Valley-Bay ..of Plenty, at Auckland. Se-' leet Team A from above players. Wednesday : - Taranaki v. Wanganui-King Oountiy, at New Plymouth; Select Team B from above players. ■ Saturday:Team A v. Team,B',-at Wanganui. Wednesday: Hawkes Bay-East Coast-Poverty Bay v. Wairarap'a-Bush Districts, at Napier. Select Team C from above players. Saturday: Wellington v. Mana-watu-Horowhenua. at Wellington. Select Team D-from above players Wednesday; Team C v. Team D, at. Masterton. Select- two teams for North Island^ South Island.—Wednesday:" Nelson- ■ Golden Bay ; Motueka v. Marlborough, atNelson. Saturday: Canterbury"" v. South Canterbury, at "• Christchurch. Wednesday: Buller v. West Coast, at Greymouth.' , Select team from,, above .-matches., Saturday: ...Qta'go .v. Souln.;land, ■- at Irivercargiil;-''.''*-..AVedhesday ot 11 'Saturday: OtagOrSbuthland'v. The Rest, at-,..Dunedin.- '-Select-;:two ' teams -'■ from. South;lsland.:"'>;>'-;l: *;,':■ '■'•' : V ' :,-•' Ehial" Jlay i''.-P|ossibles:' v. -Erpbable«.-fcurtain-j;aiser), and' Nbftlf v. South,- at Wellington.. 3rd June-: Possibles v. Probables (curtain-raiser), and North y. South,',at Wellington. ' "FIFTEEN CERTAINTIES." Another proposal was offered by Mr. .-E. Little. ; "This may he-revolutionary,"^ :he sa^dys ;.>'!£ has not' keen-'triea 'before;? Any selector can pick practically,: fifteen" men as a result of the matches we saw last year. I do not think it is going to be satisfactory to spick men on form shown in two or three;matches'l this : year. My idea-is .that we. should 'ask a -selector to pick as soon as possible a team of fifteen. The members of that team will be certainties for the English tour., Then, in order to'choose the other players for the tour, a team should bo pio«cd from the country (minor) unions of the North- Island to play a match, with a team from the country unions of the South Island. Teams from the major unions of both Islands should also be chosen to play a niatch. From those matches -the North and South Island teams should be chosen, the final selection to be made from the inter- : Island i match." ' QUESTION OF SELECTORS. ' "Who is going to select the team? ;.The Chairman: -"The question of selectors is go:a- to he a pressing one ,Mus year. .- . . ■Mr Little: "I think if you get one selector for those first fifteen players you will eliminate all this fancy business of flaying a forward in the backs and such like. fW*\, A' m! ." That will mean be picking players on reThe Chairman: "I would like 'to see those chaps tried out this year. We have seen ; men playing brilliant football r,vl t yeff'*f nd the sime men have gone right off the next year. "TRY-OUT" MATCHES. pHn*li f- Hornig said that he was intlhete favour Mr- V- Meredith's The proposals made by Mr. Meredith were : That ttere^houl/be one sector who should be prepared, to give the whole of one month to watching^ series' Mnn7 lni g"n Ut **'$?>■ fcr -hic-h each Island shall be subdivided into two mTh; p m, T h T* Ui e two are^ two' matches to ; be played .on a. Wednesday and a Saturday; the teams for such ' "•ying-out • matches to be picked and ..assembled by the selectors of the ami ated unions.,i„, the' area; the "tryinso tl, a T^ heS '? x? arran^d in seViel, sh-.1l L M' S°c NeW Zealand Ml«te No, 1, n 6 I™ all 0f them; the to yew th % d ?°Utn Island se'^°rs to view the "trying-out" matches in their,-partcnilar Island; from "tiwinl out" matches the teams to represent lfe North and South Islands to Z Sect d are fuZT^,'**?, tVM to be ™™h° Th k°- make tIM triP t0 England. The Cljairman:."Under that scheme 'the selectors, have . four opportunities of seeing the'men. The selectors should see the men more than once for a tour of this description. I do not think any man should bo a certainty without being tried out even though; he may have' yea?." besb' man in New Zealand last fi-n^n^K I'/ "Y°U ™"->' find a man-get-ting, m the-team on two brilliant -ames in the trials and he may not be worth' anything afterwards." The. Chairman : "You will always find e/tW ', d,Seuss,on> ifc vas decidl ed that a sub-committee comprising Messrs Hornig, Little, and Dean go into the question of playing- mnt ' ch S e ° To^rr t0 the s^rti»o' the New Zealand team a report to be made to the next meeting of the. committee TRAINING IN ENGLAND Letters forwarded by'the High Commissioner^ (Sir James Allen) ?,,dicated that the Newton Abbot authorities were .very anxiou, to ;again have the New: Zealand footballers ouartered in their ?"• V O,"- 61; fr?. ra u,e Nwt»"' Abbot Urban District Council to tlie HWi Commoner staled that' the 1900-00 Isew toam made Newton Abbot their, headquarters- for -training, and the town placed at their disposal a training ground, and o her facilities during their stay In addition, the town entertained the team at van OUS functions, and generally, made them : comfortable' hyV tending to them a cordial hospitality

The football team enjoyed their stay at Newton Abbot- very much, and during tlie Great War when the New Zcalanders came overseas on service a very large number visited : ; Newton Abbot at- the request of';,members of-the Rugby Club, having been assured that .a hearty welcome would be extended to them." The council extended a hearty invitation to the New Zealand Rugby team and the officials accompanying them to make Newton Abbot their' headquarters for training as in 1905-06. Everything pos-, sible would be done for their comfort and to provide, all the facilities necessary for their training, if the invitation was accepted.

KINDNESS APPRECIATED,

On behalf of'.tho High Commissioner, a reply was sent acknowledging with many thanks'.-'the. letter .conveying 'the invitation, and stating' that-the "High Commissioner was aware how much- the Rugby Football team of 1905-015 enjoyed their stay at Newton Abbot, and of the many kindnesses extended by the people of Newton Abbot to members, of .the New Zealand Expeditionary Force during the war. He appreciated highly the further interest taken by the town of Newton- Abbot in his countrymen by the extension to the New Zealand Rugby team of the present invitation. It was decided that the chairman (Mr. S., S. Dean) should confer with Mr. G. Dixon regarding the invitation ' from Newton Abbot, and that the High Commissioner be advised that the matter is being dealt with. Mr. Dixon was manager of the- 1905 All Blacks. "A SOLID FINISH."

Brief information in connection with the tour was contained in communications from Mr. C. Wray, the New Zealand Rugby Union's representative on tho English Rugby "Union. A copy of the provisional fixtures for the tour, as announced recently by cable, was also forwarded by" Mr. Wray. The waiving of the question of a daily-allowance to players was regarded- by him as the ri^ht .thing.' ... '.',.,".'■ -'•-■■

When the fixtures had been read to the meeting; Mr. Little- remarked :—"lt is "a pretty solid finish up-: • The French matches will "not be too easy."' ' :' ■ The Chairman (Mr. S.'S.'Dean) : "And the- English international' will not be :e'asy. We can only receive communica-tions--in'the.,meantime.".

•The: suggestion of the chairman was adopted.--/•■ . ;,,. >

• ; VISIT TO AMERICA. ■ 'It was 'stated by the chairman that the question of a visit.to'jCariada would have to be dealt with. Regarding matches in other countries, the New Zealand Union was really.in.the hands of-the English Union. -.' ■'-. . -

A member: "Have they'given us permission to play?" - ■ The Chairman :' "Yes; to play River Plate if we. want to.'---' We.could make formal application to' Canada." :'• / Mr. Wylie'-intimatcd that it was'Tpossible that a. team'in, New York would fkjj .to. play the.New Zealand iteam. ' ;.; The...question of matches1 in America was'not proceeded with. / '-„..,-.' SEGARDING /-N.S.W.

:. Advice was received''from New South ;AV ales|in-:^ohnectipn: with-the proposal' that the:, New' Zealand'team play there on the' way to' England. Mr. Dean stated that the information supplied to New South Wales had hot been quite correct. The three matches there, last of which was the probable sailing date of the vessel by which the team mi^ht travel to England, were subject to the 4f'W' arrangements being- satisfactory It bad been-.found,- however, that the vessel referred to carried only two classes ot passengers, first and third The agreement with the English Union .provided that the New Zealand team should .travel second-class. New Zealand was anxious'to meet''New South Wales, said Mr. Dean.

Further consideration of the question fcVed S°UUI Wales "as,' de-