THE WAR AND SPORT

Otago Daily Times, Issue 24226, 19 February 1940, Page 6

THE WAR AND SPORT

The sensible decision that war-time conditions should not be allowed to bring about the abandonment of Rugby football under its jurisdiction has been reached by the governing body of the game in Auckland. “Some unions are inclined to be a bit panicky about the situation,”, said' the chairman of the Auckland union. “It has been suggested that there should be no Rugby in wartime. That, in my opinion, is rubbish.” The stricture may be deemed to apply with equal force to any proposal that might be made for the abandonment of organised amateur sport within the Dominion during the war period. There is nothing whatever to be said for the unnecessary curtailment of normal recreational activities under the stress of the present abnormal conditions. Rugby football is only one of a number of organised team games which the conduct of war must affect adversely. Standards of play will be lowered as clubs and districts suffer the loss of men eligible for military duty. The. reorganisation of employment necessitated by the departure of men for camp may be expected to, limit, for some, opportunities to participate in controlled games, and there are factors which may make it impracticable for teams to travel other than short distances to engage rivals on the field of play. But those, after all, are minor considerations. There was a lean period for sport during the war of 1914-18. Inter-provincial and national fixtures of all descriptions were forgotten for the time being, and even championship events, in athletics, golf, lawn tennis and so on, were held in abeyance while the interest of the country’s young manhood was more gravely engaged. But sport, as such, suffered no harsh or avoidable curtailment, and it is important that it should not do so now that the challenge has come again to moral strength, vitality and manliness. Games, whatever their nature, bring these qualities to the surface in youth. The tens of thousands of lads who are not of military age, the men who for one reason or another may not be able to serve overseas on the nation’s behalf, should be encouraged by every practicable means to maintain their interest in healthy recreation. Normality is a condition to be clung to tenaciously in a crisis, and it is not to be denied v that sport has its significant placfe in the normal functioning of society. Organisation for war, especially as the period of its necessity is prolonged, must make its heavy demands on the resources of all sporting bodies, just as its effects are felt in the conduct of trade and industry. But the urgent needs of youth are not to be neglected on that account. Nor should it be forgotten that all games, not Rugby football alone, impose a discipline that is mental as well as physical, and in that respect prepare the ground for the acceptance of adult responsibilities, whatever their nature may be. That is a sombre reflection in time of war, but it nevertheless contains a truth that should not be ignored.