Basketball. NAPIER TOURNEY

Hawke's Bay Herald-Tribune, Issue 105, 20 May 1937, Page 13

Basketball. NAPIER TOURNEY

"Centre").

Some Criticism of ffil Altingements HASTINGS GAMES DATI

(By

N© ipecial toUrnament was playefi in Hastings ott CorOnation Day, bfit speeial Cdrotiation games aftefnodis were heid ofi ThurSday and Saturday Of iast Week iti hondUf of the oeCasi6h, Thurjday players were abie U hold their aftertibon Ut Ebbett Pafk, bnt the saturday people were not te fortunate, the damp courts and iuaiement weather causing the officillS to decido on the Driii HaiL Jttlt Harris, president of the Haltitigs AisdefiatiOti. was present, alio Mts. Hingstou, who by the wajr, Mfc Been re eiOfctift president of tiie HaWke 'a Bay Association. Eith iftOtfiOBfi WhS opened "by the singiflg Of 4iBod SaVe the King," folloWOd By three hoarty cheers for Her MkjeSty, Queen EliiaBOth. A VOry OhjoyaBle afternoon WA* spent, Both By the onlookers axid ihe partieip&nta in the varions ribveity events. The bursting of paper bhgs iii thO Obstacle Tace was noise enoiifli Ofi itS Owfi, but many of the girls hld ScreOmed themselves hoarse loxig befOfe the filiish of the programmO, sudh Was tho eiCitement which pretailed. Afterneofi tea was a very cheerftil interlude, and the helpers innthis cOnnection wero given hearty applatise for ttieir very kiaid help. MembefS of the teams gaining most points dtirixig the afternoon, High Sehdol A (Saturday) and* EOach's (Thursday), wero preaented with a smaU Coronatidn memento by Mfs. Harris. One and ali voted the afternodtis a great success, and many thafiks are due to Mrs. SifigstoU and Mrs. Harris for their organisifig efforts, and to the other mernbers of the executive who nssisted in ihe carryiag' out of the programme. Ooronatios Toumament. On Coronation Day a speeial opsa tournament was eondueted by tha Napier Basketbali Association. All teams throughout the North Isiand, including representative terms, being eligible to eomplete. Thirteen . teams, Competed fdr the Labour Day PiCttic Und Sports CdMinxttee's handsoxne CUp for the first time. The Morse Cttp, for competition bCtween representative

teams throughout Hawke's Bay and Poverty Bay, was also to have been Competed for, bttt, as the Napier team were the only competitors, they WOa this cup by default. This point wa» not made clOaf tO the listeners, hOWCver, when the cup was presented to the Napier team at McLean Park. Enthusiasts were led to believe that * Napier had beaten all the other teams, thus winnitig the Morse Cup. Exclting Game. Four teams from Hastings, one each from Puketitiri, Palmerston North and Otaile, five teams from Napier atid the Napier representative team — thirteen teafflS in all— tdok part iti a tWo-llf© tournamdnt, and the best game of tho day was that between H.S.O.C. Utid Havelock A. At the COmmeneernent Oi the game Havelock had the b&ll to themselves, and at the change-oVer ihe score was 3 — 1 to Havelock bUt O.G. put in a determined effort atid brotight the score up to 4 all at the eall of txffie. Play had to continue for another goal, and side-line cheers rent the air as the ball was sent from end to end of the field, both sides having unsuccessful attefflpts at the goal, addxng ©ven toore to the excitement. With & great sigh of relief, Bay Scton shot thO deciding goal for O.G., thus giving O.G. the runners-up position for the Labout Cup. Foregone Conclusion. The Napier representative te&m, oi the vote of ihe emergency comliiittc© were declared the winners, havilxg lost no games, and H.S.O.G. runiiers-up with otid lOSs. ThiS decision, of cOUrse, was contrary to the Tules of a two-life system, but, as it happefied, and' which Was a foregone eoncluBiOti, the Napier representatives were superiof iti all divlsious to any team on the field. Therefore, instead of the game played at McLean Park being the final i'o* tlie tOUrnamdnt, as part Of the Coronation celebrations, it had to becoillfc what was called an "exhibition" match. It soemcd to me to be a miAtake for an exhibition to put a repfdsentative team against a club tealti, H.S.O.G., Hastings, wherein there w&# not one girl who has been a Hastings representative. Spectators, believitig the team to be a Hastings representative team, iti the majority of casCS, have been sadly disillusioned as to the abilities of our Hastings representatives With all due fespcct to the very hard fight put up by the O.G. teaxm Clttb atld Representative Teams. II seems unfair atid ulll'easotiable ti) expect club teams to eompete in a tournament where fCpresClltative tealtis are given the same status,* and espeoially w^en there is a cup for representative teams only. The Napier teatn showed excellent understanding Of each othefs movements, aad it was a great pity that tio other teams had exxtered for the Morse Ctip competition. We cotigratulate this team on their win* ing the fine ;fOphy, as they well desex'ved to win ou their excellent play. H.S.O.G. and Havelock are also to be coiigratulated on g&in'ug pl&ees ia the semi-finals. More Rules. When re-ertteritig the court after a throw-in the player inust do so at the spot from which she threw the ball into play— that is to say, she must not run along the outside of the court to gain a better position to re-enter. Practfcally her first step must be into the i court.