SCHOOL HOCKEY.

Southland Times, Issue 18853, 19 June 1920, Page 2

SCHOOL HOCKEY.

To the Editor. Sir, —We bog to draw your attention to a paragraph which appeared in your issue of Saturday, dune 12, in which, under the heading Hockey, "('ircle” makes an unbridled and unwarranted attack on the Schools Spoils Association. This body is composed of teachers from the various Invercargill and suburban schools, who, ably assisted by prominent business men, among whom are to he found several of our most respected citizens, endeavour to inculcate a sporting spirit among the children under their control. These gentlemen arc receiving considerable encouragement from the citizens of Invercargill, many of whom are enrolling themselves as members of the Association. It is upon such a body as this that “Circle" launches his attack. Though the paragraph as a whole is most objectionable, highly offensive and insulting, certain allusions are particularly so, inasmuch as they arc calculated to place the Schools’ Association in a false light in the eyes of those to whom it must look for •support in carrying out. its "constitutional aims," of which “Circle” admits he has little or no knowledge. As light goes with knowledge and for ircle’s" special bent-lit, we will show that these said “constitutional aims’’ have advanced considerably beyond the stage of “pretty won Is on paper.” “Circle" states in extenuation of his tingen'lcmanly anti discourteous attack that he has: been "provoked to this moralising by the protest from the Ladies’ Hockey Association. . . ." etc. It is difficult to conceive that such an organisation as the controlling body of any branch of sport should adopt such means as lhe.se of getting into touch with our Association, for at the outset we endeavoured to enlist the sympathy of that body, because wc considered the initial steps to fur!her the interests of any game should be mafic by the controlling body. However our advances met with no success and at our inaugural meeting no ollictal representative of the I,ad,cs' Hockey Association was present, and this accounts for the lack of co-operation between (he Association, an unfor-unatc occurrence certainly, hut one for which our Association is in no way responsible ami cannot be justly blamed.

Regarding the protest, we wish to state that our Association took the initiative in calling a meeting as a result of repeated inquiries from the various schools- as to when the hockey competition would begin, and as we had no authority over this branch of sport until such time as the Ladies’ Hockey Association placed the control in our hands, nothing could be done. In our solicitude for the “interests of the game and of the children” (for we have the welfare of both at heart), we called a meeting on May IS to discuss the matter. Members of the Ladies’ Hockey Association were invited to be present and meet the Schools’ representatives, and it was decided to draw up a set of competition rules in preparation for the of the season. Even with the delay the competition will commence as early as, if not earlier, than last year, despite the fact that we have had misunderstandings, influenza, and effects of vaccination to contend with.

To continue, ‘‘Circle” accuses our Association of “somnambulism in sport.” Let us see if thus is so. In the matter of those sports it has already taken up, it has shown itself to be very wide awake. As a result of its activities four more teams have been brought into its cricket competition and three more into its football competition. This means that from 120 to 150 more boys than formerly are playing these games. Besides which the conditions of play have been so improved as to render the competitions more uniform by placing players on an equal footing. This in turn has produced the eminently laudable result of the games being played in the true sporting spirit. The Association is providing competition for over 250 boya in football and equally as many in cricket. Do these facts, for they are facts, suggest “somnambulism,” or that the control is “so wide as to be ineffectice ?” We do not think so. So far as these two branches of sport are concerned, it has fulfilled its “constitutional aims” while confining its energy within the limits of its constitutional authority, and is deserving, we claim, Sir, of more consideration, more respect and fairer treatment at the hands of one, who, by his own admission, is ignorant of what the Association is; what it

haa done; what it is doing, and what it purposes doing in the future for the physical well-being of the rising generation. Our resentment would be imcomplete without some reference to "Circle’s” advice to followers of hockey—"that it would be well to strangle the infant controlling body.” This is exactly what we would expect him to say, and it is quite in keeping with other statements made—provides, as it were, a sort of crowning glory to his brilliant How of invective. However, we leave the matter here in the hands of your readers, who will decide for themselves as to whom the drastic treatment proposed might, most littingly, be applied. With apologies for trespassing at such length on your valuable space. — We are, etc..

GEO. CAMERON, BRO. ANASTAS] US, DONALD F. MACDONALD, For the Schools’ Sports Association.