English Tennis Team Tour Commences At Wilding Park

NZ Truth, Issue 1195, 25 October 1928, Page 16

English Tennis Team Tour Commences At Wilding Park

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Policy of Dominion Selectors \ Awaited With Acute Interest, ■ '_.'■• --(From "N.Z. Truth's" Special Tennis Correspondent.) They are here, these young cracks of the English tennis world. "Bunny " Austin, Gregory, Gollins and Higgs will make their first appearance at Wilding Park, Christchurch, to-morrow,when they will meet the south Island team. All New Zealand will watch them.

- - \ THEIR second irfatch will be against Wellington,, next., . Tuesday ' and . Wednesday, .and then the' combination .will face New Zealand m a test match, at Auckland the following Saturday and Monday. . On November 9 the Englishmen leave New Zealand for Sydney. ...-'. r Of course, everyone is interested m the composition of the New. Zealand team, and rightly- so. Edgar. Bartleet, Geoff. -Ollivier arid- Murray- Kean are the .selection comihittee', . and this year the result of their work will come m for more approval_or disapproval than has been the case "for' many a' day. New Zealand tennis has reached a high place m the realm of Dominion sport and. is quite as much in'the limelight as cricket and Rugby. / Nop that the New Zealand parent body has .dojie. the .right, thing during the past two or .; three years. '., Oh, no! This year the heads will have to watch themselves .or .the. crowd will howl and the first test to be survived will- be the visit of. the , very. English team that is with us now. . \ "Truth" is interested m the welfare of tennis. in the Dominion, and it throws out a. hint to the selectors. "Truth"- suggests that if the N.Z. Association knows its business it will include m the first test team the tennis youth of, the country and at that the very best of the available" talent. Last season > when . the French team stopped over m Wellington on its way to Australia the New Zealand team pitted against it contained singles men who were as good as could be got. Oilivier, after his record -making win m' the New Zealand singles, and Bartleet," on the great form he showed against Borptra, were entitled ' to their places. ■■■" % - ■ But Ollivier is past the.timeiwhen he is going to be .much use' to, national tennis for a measureable • period — indeed, he has announced his departure for the professional, ranks.

q: '',"/''..",.'■... — -: •''.. ■' ." .' — =-r Edgar ßartleet, also, though he has now had eight seasons of fame— he wor the University singles championship ir 1920— has. failed, to fulfil his early promise. He is as .good as he ever wil] be and that is -riot good enough. 'llllinilllllllllillllllNlllllllllMlllllllllllllllllllllllllllMllllMMllllllMlllllllllllllllllmi

iiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiuumuimtiiiimiiiiuiiiiiiiiiuuiiiiiiimiuiiiiiHiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiituui There are ; too' many bbys who promise great things for either o£ these men, to. find a. place m the national .side..- '. , .'■"..• ',;■ . ..-'.• \ .' :■ -' > ■ Malfroy, at. ; 20,. Noel Wilson • and '■"■ ■'■■": ■ ' ■•■"■'•• •■*,'.•

-©-- — • 3 Charlie Angas at a couple of years i more, and the fine colt A. C. Stedman, i all offer too many possibilities for ■their claims to be set aside m favor of I men who are older and who have much : less chance of getting out of their groove. 1 When it matched Malfroy against : Boussus and brought the Sturt-Knott combination to Wellington to do battle with France, s - the N.Z. Association showed that it knew its line. It should be the prayer of ;every tennis fan that unless something unforeseen happens, the youth of the country will get first choice for the next' New 'Zealand team. It is, of course, possible that the Englishmen may catch us. out just as the Frenchmen did. It is nothing less than a tragedy that Cam. Malfroy is m. doubtful health and that Ivan Seay is definitely out of the running for selection either m the South Island side or the New Zealand four. Seay, indeed, is reported to be laid aside until national championship time. But even with these two men missing there remains a great team "of youngsters for the Domin- , ion selectors to run their eyes over. J Don France, Wilson, Angas, Sturt, and Stedman offer themselves for selection. They are certain to claim at least two places m the •side — may they find more! Ollivier, it must be said, is too unreliable for national tennis. The New Zealand Association showed that it was not afraid to drop him when it sent the last side to Sydney. It should not hesitate to include a young player ahead of him unless it feels compelled to grant him a place. These chances of experience against the best men from outside are not frequent enough to warrant their being wasted upon a man who is about to be lost to New Zealand tennis. Nor should they be tossed away upon another man who, m spite of great opportunities, has . always failed to get there m the national singles championship. >