FOOTBALL.

Gisborne Times, Volume VII, Issue 460, 2 July 1902, Page 3

FOOTBALL.

MEETING OF NEW ZEALAND

RUGBY UNION. [r.v TSi/EonApn. rasas association.] Wellington, last night. i- At a mooting of tho Now Zealand Rugby s Union to-night, it was'decided to impose a penalty for lifting of foot in the scrum r before tho ball is put in. It was decided to resuscitate the North - v. South Island match, to bo played al- • ternately in different centres. This year's , game will bo played in Wellington. f f | By “ Tho Whistle.”! It is seldom that a player who discards the jersey for any length of time makes a creditable show on deciding to enter the arena again. Still, there aro exceptions to e very rule. Followers of the old Turanganui Club years ago will remember Joe .Martin as one of its most prominent players. Joe made a reappearance on the football field on Saturday week last, when be played forward for Kaiti-City against Huia. I was greatly taken with bis play, and considered him about the best forward on the ground. He is powerfully built, fast, a good kick, and fond of hard work, while ids play proved that he knows ull thero is to know about the finer points of the game. It is cheering to jsco a war-stained veteran like Martin entering tho lists again, and proving that ho can tilt a lance with tho best of them. W. Coleman gave a sound display as full-back for Kaiti-City on Saturday week. Ho took tbo ball surely, and found the line with certainty, whilo the way in which he tackled Kelly, Ball, and Burns, when a mistako would havo meant a score against his side, proved him to be a sound eollaror. Altogether, his work was tho noatest, surest, and soundest we have seen in tho position this year. Baker has struck form again, and gave a lot of trouble to tho Huia men. Ho takes a lot of stopping, and is dangorouß when anywhere inside his opponents’ twenty-five, while his speed is great. Baker is a most chivalrous player. Thero 1 is never tho slightest tendency to rough- 1 ness in his fending or tackling. He is fond 1 of tho game, and plays it scientifically. 1 A section of tho spectators at the Kaiti- 1

City Huia match displayed cxecrablo I taste in hooting Baker for taking the ball off-side. Tho mistake was ono which any player might have made. The ball was kicked from tho ruck by W. Hay right across tho field to Baker, at wing-three-quarter, who took it a yard or two off-sido, imagining, as most of the spectators did, that the ball had boon kicked by a Huia player. Tho roferoe’s whistlo was tho signal for hooting. No one likes hooting at ( any time ; but if some peoplo must indulge in this form of expressing disapprobation they might at least wait until they witness somo unmanly or unfair action before doing so. Thoso persons who hooted Baker on Saturday week for making a simple and perfectly natural mistake only j displayed bad taste and ignorance. Many peoplo wondered why MoCredie took tho kick at goal for Huia on Saturday week, whon ho had a first-class place-kick in tho team in tho person of W. Sharp. It was the first time the majority of those present had seen -Che Huia . captain placekick at goal, whilo everyone knew that Sharp had placed numberloss goals from all sorts of angles on tho junior ground.