FOOTBALL.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume XLVII, Issue 7995, 6 December 1905, Page 3

FOOTBALL.

THE SI'KHEY MATCH. SYDNEY, Dec. 5. The Lenden Daily Mail, commenting on the* Surrey match, says : "■'Probably the greatest football farce in the history of the game was enactid at Richmond. The spectator* expected to see some wonderful l.all, but) reckoned without the rofc e.\ This gentleman, a Londoner, and a member of the Rugby I'nion Committee, was evidently under the impression that everybody had come to hiar him p<rforni on his whistle. The fantasia commenced in the first minute, ami continued, with brief inttrvals for respiration, throughout the game. Ilain fell in torrents, ami Ictwe, n the rars of Mie refoive's 'interminable selections the players flip peel ami flopped about the slippery grou.d lite seals on an ice doe, but there was no (ootlipll. Twnrty-fivc minute; from the start the referee showed signal fatigue, and the New Zcalaiiflers seized (he opportunity to cross the line, and they kicked n ifcal. Several explanations were ad-vonr.-l.fe.r- lb-.- r.-f. nv's extraordinary the two most gk-nernllv K-re.-i.il were that he had either dropped the whistle or the ]t a In it had sMck. Inal;nshod by his temporary eclipse, he 'l.l. w harder -than ever fir the remainder of the spell. a--.d f.y.tball was out of the ipicstion. Ilurirg the interval he was the rec pi.nt of congratulations on his sus t.lined musical effort, and fern- wan expnss-d that the severe exertions woiiM tell on vhim in the second slel. This was only too true, and ' N he whistle failed on two occasions, ami a score followed. Still there was no fotrti/all in it. It was an exposition of the power ol music to the game, evin of the New JValand footballers."

Mr Percy Cole, Rugby I'nion Secretary, published his opinion that the Frulifh Rugby team would beat the cob nials, leaving Wales out of'il altog.-ther. KISU MEETS 01 R HOYS. WELLINGTON', Hoc. 5. Mr Stthlc-n r ,s received the following cable from the High Commissioner :—"A Daily News representative stahd that the King met eight of our footlal'.-is' team to-day (Monday) ,-it I'e Agricultural Hall, •■hook hoi's v lit Tyler, and con!>rat'i i .1 tin-in. nn, their success, n- ' -- .i iie took special iM. rest in ' .- uiatrh reports," THE INTERNATIONAI, MATCH. The ctble messag<{ published on Tuesday giving the attendance at. the big match on Saturday as I.VOOO is palpably wrong, as previous messages wen; to the (fleet 1 that the 100.000 point would be reached. The attendance, from all accounts, must have lioen well on to 100,000.