SOCCER SIDELIGHTS PASSING NOTES

Sun (Auckland), Volume II, Issue 408, 17 July 1928, Page 11

SOCCER SIDELIGHTS PASSING NOTES

(By

Perseus)

F.A. Trophy Representatives. —With all three Southern provinces keen and j anxious to challenge Auckland’s claim to the FA. Trophy, the sole selector, Mr. Phil Neesham has promptly released his little list of possibles, and those chosen will assemble on Thursday evening for training and coaching. There are one or two mild surprises in the selector’s choice, but they are players who merit consideration, and from the fifteen listed it should not be difficult to select an eleven capable of keeping the trophy in spite of a recent defection or two from the representative ranks. Batty in goal is the hero of a hundred hard battles in Auckland, and still going strong. Simpson (Trams) has been on the casualty list, and wrjs not in action on Saturday. Gerrard (Shore) and Whowell (Onehunga) are a good blend of opposite types at full back, and played well together for the Shore two years back. Tinkler and Christie of the Trams were both in great form on Saturday, and with Dan Jones (Shore) on the left wing the half line will form a solid middle division, with Dick in reserve if required. The forward line is a much more intriguing problem than the back division. Innes (Ponsonby) has a paramount claim still to the right outer berth, and Chalmers (Y.M.C.A.) played a brilliant game at outside left against the Canadians at Hamilton last year. Grant (Y.M.C.A.) should make a good partner for Innes, and Hamilton (Belmont) has a strong claim to the inside left position. For the pivotal position at centre-forward both Spencer (Trams) and Humphreys (Y.M.C.A.) are playing at their best and scoring plenty of goals each. The selector’s final choice is hard to anticipate, but greater experience may find Spencer retain his possie. Davis (Trams) is a surprise packet, and has played some useful games this season, but was not impressive against Belmont on Saturday , * * * Falcon Cup Flashes. —There were no unexpected shocks in the first round of the knockouts on Saturday, but two outstanding features were the recovery of form by the Shore eleven against Onehunga, and the narrow escape of the holders, Tramways, from extinction by the youths of Belmont. The Shore have been hard pressed this season to secure a reliable custodian between the sticks, but appear to have found a solution by bringing Craig out of his seclusion. The old Shore back broke away from Soccer to become a dashing breakaway forward at the Rugby game, and with a bit of experience in the finer points should make an ideal defender in front of the net. Renshaw is a fine all round player, and it was no surprise to learn that he proved a cool and heady centre forward, with clever ball control, against Onehunga’s strong defence. Tramways fielded a powerful team against Belmont at Devonport, but the Shore suburb is about a two-goal better team there, and in the last four games on the ground have defeated Thistle and Y.M.C.A., drawn with Trams, and lost by the odd goal only to the Shore. It seems strange that the Shore Club which has carefully conserved the local Domain for Soccejr for about forty years, has only appeared on it four times this year, * while Belmont has occupied it on six occasions. The irony of the situation is not altogether appreciated by the local club, but it was pleasing to note that the goal nets were available again on Saturday. The Shore club provides the posts and nets for its own players, pays out all the incidental expenses for maintenance during the season, and when the club property is made a general one the small privilege of taking the collection on the ground by the club was not one which should have been turned down by the A.F.A. without some consideration. If no nets, etc., are available sometimes the fault lies with the controlling authorities, who should have given every encouragement to clubs which can secure, equip and maintain their own grounds. * * * Junior Cup Aspirants. —The junior clubs were very strongly represented for the first time in the Falcon Cup ties, Manurewa, Metropolitan, and will thus see the inconvenience caused to patrons when teams default and do not advise their opponents. Perhaps this timely suggestion will bear fruit in future cases. Junction United had a close call with Wanderers and just scraped home by the odd goal in five. Wanderers kept the leaders of the competition moving all the afternoon, and are playing with better combination than previously. Claudelands Rovers went down by 4 goals to 1 against Thistle under referee J. Bate, Connolly (2), J. Bate, junr. (1), and T. Gavin (1) doing the winners’ scoring. Schonau, the visiting goalie, was in good form, and had plenty to do. Deacon’s play was very sound and J. Darlington, the left halfback, was a thorn in the winners’ side, while McAnally, despite a bad ankle, played a great game in the forward line. Tlie losers had the wind behind them in the first half and appeared to advantage, but on turning round Thistle held the upper hand. For the winners, young G. Allsopp, a promoted schoolboy and a son of Tom Allsopp, the ex-rep. goalie, shaped first class, and is rapidly coming to the front. Stewart was the better of the fullbacks, the half-line being all good, while Connolly, Bate and Gavin were steady in front, the latter having his hands full with Darlington to contend with. It was a clean game, played in the best of spirit. HOCKEY HAMILTON. The Waikato representatives in senior hockey played a picked Hamilton team on Saturday, and emerged victors by four goals to nil. The game was for the most part fast and open, the movements of the Waikato backs being particularly convincing. Hamilton possessed one or two outstanding players, but failed to display dexterity in hooking out. FRANKLIN Tlie knock-out competition for the Smith Cup was commenced by the Franklin Hockey Association on Saturday. The match between Glenbrook and Whiri Whiri proved a very exciting contest, in which Glenbrook defeated the championship winners by 3 goals to 2. Shortly after the commencement of play, Whiri had scored two goals, but Glenbrook, putting great dash into its play, obtained three goals, while the former could not add to its score. Williams, Watson and Conroy divided the scores for Glenbrook, while Turner and R. McNamara netted for Whiri Whiri. The second match between Waiau Pa and Kohekohe turned out to be a marathon. After a splendidly contested game, the scores were one goal each. It was decided that extra time should be played and it was not until three more spells of fifteen minutes each had been played that Waiau was successful in gaining the decision. Elson and Robinson scored for Waiau Pa while Duff found the net for Kohekohe. HAURAKI PLAINS Owing to the prevalence of influenza there were only two Hauraki

Corinthians surviving for tlie more strenuous contests in the second spasm. Manurewa gave a very pleasing display at headquarters, and both Metropolitan and Corinthians showed prolifiic scoring capacity in settling their opponents. Glen Eden was the only junior team to draw a senior opponent in tlie first round, and was by no means disgraced as the result of tlie encounter with North cote at Victoria Park. The good showing made by the junior clubs demonstrated that the margin between the weaker of the seniors and the better of the juniors is very small indeed, and next season the A.F.A. might again consider the institution of senior A and B divisions, with relegation for the “bottom dog” in the A, and promotion for the B winner. It would be a sporting method of determining all claims to senior status. * * * Interpretation of Rules.—Some further interpretations of the laws of tho gamo issued by the local referees are the subject of comment among players and ciub coaches. The “splits” tackle has now come under consideration of the "-local Referees’ Association, which still seems very uncertain how to regard this practice, which consists in sliding one leg along the ground across an opponent’s path in tho ungraceful posture usually known as “the splits.” According to tlie local referees, this form of tackling may be regarded as (1) “obstruction,” (2) “jumping,” (3) “kicking,” (4) “tripping,” (5) “dangerous piay.” Yet, in spite of it so being declared a complicated form of all these causes for complaint, tlie slide or splits tackle is usuc*s.iy allowed to pass unchecked here, ewn when the player with the ball is brought to Mother Earth—or mud. It is undoubtedly a fou tackle, out to label it (1) “obstruction,” when there is no such offence in tho laws is absurd. Nor is it (2) jumping, as both legs slide along the ground, and rest on the ground pointing in opposite directions. a piayer who ‘jumped” and endeavoured to land in the “splits” posture would be a cot case after the first attempt. Nor can the slide be considered (3) ‘kicking’; kicking is usually interpreted as raising one foot off the ground to apply the boot to tlie ball —or elsewhere— and in the “splits” tackle neither foot usually leaves the ground. Nine times out of ten, the shdo tackle is a “trip,” and the tenth time the advantage is with the player tackled, and to “blow up” the offender would probably penalise the player with the ball. The only fair, clean, and honest way to tackle a player and rob him of the ball is face to face, or shoulder to shoulder. If deliberately sliding a leg across an opponent’s path is not an attempted “trip,” what is v It may be argued that the slider’s “intention” is to play the ball and not the man, but “intention” can only be judged by the probable result of the act, and the inevitable result of a split tackle is a contact between the tackier and the tackled. * * Un gentlemanly Behaviour.— lt is highly regrettable that so much time of the judicial body is occupied with reports of ‘‘ungentlemanly behaviour,” but one point about this offence is frequently overlooked by referees. Under law 13, the duties and powers of the referee are widely defined, and it is for that much-maligned gentleman to do his duty fairly and fearlessly, but to beware of exceeding his powers. In the event of a player ins °* ent or insulting to a referee, ü be H ler the remarks are accompanied 3 language ’ or not, he must first be cautioned about his ungentlemanly behaviour, but if he repeats the offence he must be ordered off the field. The caution for the first offence is mandatory, and not discretionary, and the ordering off for a repetition is compulsory. It may be very galling for an official to have to hear some unpleasant comment and not be able to act severely at once, but on reporting the matter the higher authorities hav > full power to deal further with the culprit. The point is that he cannot ba sent to the sideline for his first offence in this regard, only for “violent conduct,” when he should get his march--1 ing orders pronto. Plains Ladies* Hockey Association interclub games played on Saturday last. At Ngatea the high school team beat Turua by two goals to nil, the scorers being Miss V. Bertelsen and Miss If. McKerchar, and at Kerepeehi the Ngatea ladies were beaten by five goals to two by the Kerepeehi district team. Miss D. Courtney scored three and Mrs. Callender and Miss E. Thomson one goal each for Kerepeehi, while Ngatea’s two scores were registered by Miss E. McPlioron.

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