Football or Riot.

Horowhenua Chronicle, 29 June 1910, Page 4

Football or Riot.

I—' —- SCKX'KS AT A LEAGUE MATCH. A wild and disgraceful scene was » \vi.tiß'Ssedi in the match between t/ho linglish Not,thorn Union team and a eoimlxinatioii from the .Motroipolitan League clulbs of Sydiney, ait the Agrieul!tur.al Ground yesterday, says i;lio Sydney Daily Telegraph of June l(j Probably it was just "as w<il ,t'liat it was not the ordinary S®tuvd,a,y crowd that 'Witnessed them, olse .the ground might shave 'been rushed. lVnplu usually cool aind collecitwl wen* nJisolutely carried away with Iwlings of disgust, and somo lefit the {jqroiintl early in the socoud half. [-[nw the ivhole tiling sitailted; if) hard to tell. The first half was a capital display of' Northern Union rules, and showed some of the best features of the name; hut the second half developed into a wild rioit, in which a player very often when lie was tackled let looso

rights and: lefts at his opponent. With only eleven men on the field (two hntl' been accidentally injured) the Englishmen had to defend desperately. So desperate was tho dofenco, and so persistently did. the frvdney men storm itilio lii'itish line, that the visitors must hiavo lost tihieir hoads. This is the- only thine; that can lie siigjested as having started the figihtiiig. The further tho gamo progressed !tihe more hitter became the struggle. Tiho roughness was just a trifle over that which ordinarily takes, place in a vory 'hard _ game, until Kershaw, an English forward, who had bec.n sent ouib on the wing to replace Bartholomew, lost his temper. Mrpsenger hail kicked the 1) ill hard ('own the field, and. Tver- . shaw misjudged its flight in til it? air. Messenger. raced up, and just as Kershaw gathered the hall the tbreec|U!irter tackled him, and l both players fell heavily. Messenger being underneath. Kershaw immediately punched Messenger on _ the face with both bands, .and rising Ito his .feat kicked the prostrate man repeatedly on tho side, and on tee logs. The crowd rose angrily. anrl for a in nine lit it appeared <is if some oil its ni'Miiher were going to rush the ground. For three or Pour minutes the noise was deafening. Hoots, <rreans, mid wild shouts of "Send .him off!" were hurled ai! Kershaw. The air was deafening, wind, when the referee called Kershaw over, tlie crowd knew he was to 'be ordered off the field of play. Rut no! A caution was merely administered! And then Bedlam broke loose. Some of the words iburled .at tilt Englishman were exceedingly strong and throughout, the remainder of the gnnie. every time Kershaw tie-died tho ball lie was lustily hooted. For a while n.ft-er this episode the players ponied down. But it w>as net fcr long. Hie forwards of

h.th side* took to okirsmc: in. si 'kmlv ivit'i tho ball it- iheiir feet. When t.he bodies met «tliero was a. T?"Hi sides kicked onit in--Players reeled Ivvk ihnldino: hnads nr_ legs: lmit, ij'fer n moment's respite, delved into the frav e.n?e mor.e One Rvd-iv,-'v in".n's face was covered witjli bVcd. never Fr:r a -momout did rhix Viif efi'i:pl"s. ,\u"iv in the ail 1 tlie hall soared, •ind Tfickev. shindins - firm on his I'erit, wiitel for a mark. TT« e.-UlffM Ml. 1H ; there was a hicr ma.n '•cj:r. : t:-r tt-rb liim. T.t wvs "\V--iV ">,t. Hn'kev got tilvere fif cf . Ore.cvli-.*- :i 1 if.t. and ejtar \v."4 oiinirnt fiirlv in ill? face bv AVi-ibster ordv Irs ■is imr'i us tn r:v. ''Von wnt..'' hV» '*"lvV r->**e:l from o'ie end • f the field t". th" r. L her. Plnycr u-, "laid 'outand the itndiiilai'oe men were busy prrQ 'r, v^.

Cr.'.i<£. It'it* Balmain forward, phr.v----■:1 •! o-i'tvit sanvo; biiit l{i!ie exc.itet'oviti was t'"> nitmli ovon foi' lm'm. Ditf-i?- 1:p an*l Tint-t' l ll, who -also pi 'i.v■d 'i very clean <j;ame, «'sro nt lo<iierhtnds. Both t.he men slumped up ns if t:> fiu;M. hut there w'as iu:rt i hlr:\v struck. Tliev were p'a.rt<\d lul'oiv dam.au'e could he done. in I'ntnt of the Press t'ulile a disgraceful scene o-euri'ed. Farn.su';:rt.!i was tackled round the neck, and the Isri.ti.sh man \rl:lo held ]i> ; =iu uppi-rcut him with the T.ijrhit on tihe

1:1c; 1 . Kanr-worth sni'ilwl! Tn the dying moms'liit.s of tlio gillie tlie light was dim, lint s)oil.i the l>;:.btle went on with tinailxat-tnl vigour. When only albaut five minutes femai for the content t<; it: go one of the biggest "mix-nips' : of tlie ganiie occurred. Hiekey h-aci Ik.II, and was racing .along tlit wing. when lu was swopt iiuto ii nrcwd (.if Knglish and Sydney forwards. Ki«ifs flew in all directions, iiiyl for a time the game was for'j;nr,r:ui. Anybody could hare |>i"k i-'l op the I),I'M an:l .<■- or-rl. It hi\ idlv < '".f-.sitle wlk-re the struggle was The referee's whistle was hoard, ant the .it-niggling erase:!. From ow

i)l" the medley of players Hickev (Metropolis) and Boyleii (England) were called. Tliey were told to leave the field, audi tliey did so, the crowd cheering wildly. If the refere .had oilv .taken, a similar cours-i earlier in the actions tiring* nwrlit Have Ueeni different. Hut 'he w:as t:'o 1 pn.iflit, 111 d the .players took advantage of i/t. Incidentally it might 1m nieiution<v] that England won tihe TooU'vall portion of the contest by 31 points to 25; and honours were .also on th-eir side in the fieriit—^eoause they diid most 'Off the leading. Rickey and Bovlen ap pa red before a meeting of the League Committee last night, charged with indiiscrimiliats? kicking, wand were, cautioned. Tt Wia.s decided to write letters to the English and Mntropolitan teams on the matter.