OUR FUTURE IN SPORT.

Hokitika Guardian, 14 May 1923, Page 4

OUR FUTURE IN SPORT.

WHAT LORD HARRIS THINKS. (By R. Cb Reed in “Daily Mail.”)' With the possible exception of Lord Hawke no one has done more for our national game of cricket than Lord Harris. Eton, Oxford. Kent, and England, all alike have benefited hy Lis prowess with the hat and his remarkably safe pair of hands in the field. A stylish, attractive bat. with I'dliant strokes and great driving power, few batsmen bare performed better against fast bowling than be, while little or nothing that lie could get to with those long arms of bis has ever escaped. Lord Harris is 'emphatically not of those who believe in the degeneracy of British sport, and lie doits not read into our recent defeats a. sign of decline. fTe thinks that wo are as good as ever we were, blit that other nations are better than they were. They have been taught by us for so long that they are now beginning to profit by our benching ami example: and whereas years ago we were only called on to ovene'e again:*) novices front n lew countries,- we are now compelled to cuter the lists against the world's athletes, who have attained a great degree of proficiency in the several branches of sport. In the circumstances Lord Harris does not see how wo can hope to keep our old-time supremacy in all games, but, ns be says, this decs not mean that we are deteriorating.

British eyes, he thinks, are as keen, British limbs are as .supple and active •is ever they were, and ho cannot see any reason why they should not continue so. At the same time, there ino reason. in bis view, why other countries should not be able to produce individuals a fid teams of athletes every hit a - good as our own. It is there- ! "'i'i'i* only natural to expect that we shall have to fight hard now, and hard- 1 i-r still in the future to hold our own. j But Lord If.i it is is of the opinion ! 'bal these well-known qualities ol the, British athlete—-grim, vim. detormina- j Halt, courage, and indomitable perseverance—may be relied on tn keep us in the. forefront of the nations of the world. That calmness of the English nature which is so helpful on till occasions where nerve is required, and is 1 great a national asset, will probably pull us through contests in the future tvs it Inis done in tbc past. In some races this trait or cliarne-teri.-lic is even more marked than it is in our own. and Lord Harris instances the Dutch, who, ihough more phlegmatic than wo are, showed themselves when need arose, quite capable ol taking a leading position in the world. This calmness, together with activity and oxtieri vice. lias produced in the Anglo-Saxon race a very athletic uali.pY. and Lord Harris sees no reason why these qualities should fail us now. ft inav R\ of course, that we shall g-t into a had style of playing our games, but failure will show that it is a bad style, and it will be eradicated—•■l least it will l e eradicated if v.c are [,, |• ;,vu ;In lessons of lailuro. Defeat he- its .greatest value, or ought to have, in .tenchitilt us wherein our failure lies, and although by nature we

are it urv conservative race. Rorcl | lends has sufficient c.inlidem e in Ft"

ability of Englishmen not only to remetuk',r their faults, but- el-o to profit 1,.- a tie-tiling ibe I o reign or lies to teach.

'ln cricket, which i- the game he knows most about, end the one, therefore, on whirls he is best qualified to . l-.je-i- (l<>, ad'u: e. libretti Aus-

trc!i;iu vhfioide- ate if.t. he thinks, prool' of our decline. The Australians, as be pi tints out. have always been good cricketers from the very first, and it m.,v will have been that the la-i team limn the Antipode' was heifer than auv which we could put into the field. Where Rot I Harris thinks we have possible made ft mistake is in not playing a. few young cricketers and lie considers that’ a judicious infusion o; new blood wP! s->on put us right again.