"ALL BLACKS" AS AUTHORS.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume XLVII, Issue 81884, 8 November 1906, Page 4

"ALL BLACKS" AS AUTHORS.

•THE COMI'LIITF KIGBY FOOT i,.\ l.i K. AN IX ThkilSl iMi BOOK. A • h'jny:i the Rugby football pub «'<■' -he min .1 m.-r.- e,in. -1 r.cd tii SouUi All i-a tlun wj.li Xow /.'■aland, .he app-arar.c. . : a vaiuin.' di-vut. u tu tao K.,me rn the alter toli.nv and the it..nt tour in hi> country (if the famous "Ail liiacks, says the "DaiK New?, w.il not he regarded as inopp rtune. Such a one turn .h.'_ pres, of Mes rs Met.tuen. It Ltn.itled "The Complete Rugby Foot ' I>i ce io O. The a'a..iou »« D. Ga iaher and \V. J. Stead, re--pect ve y cap'.a.n and vi e captain of tlie 1005 team, names v. 11 cu a uu. ' >uggesi eiricicnt tuatm nt of a subjic. thoroughly under-tu .d. '1 he vo.umdoes r.ot bel.e ils tmiiprc liensive title, li the com e of 1.5 three hundred pag*» prac ically evm- pVse o; th.game ,5 touched upon. The vo.v of the development of the g,in:c in Un land of the Mat ri s ur.fokled so c iattly that the reader nt ver becomes wearied. Football of a kind was p aytd in New Zea'and s- m» years before the coming of .lie "rial Rugbv.' "Mr W. W. Robin-oa, the wellknown Arglo Xuv Zealand player, lias ioi'j us ;ha-. lie remember- seeing a •mall black football punted about b> a crowd of a!: sort- and s z-s and oi both sees on' afternoon n ifW." To h.- entlui-ia-m "I the same Mr Roll r. on. v.e are told, was largely due the -peedy growth of organised Rug by. Sub-equ. ntly the ben'tic al resu'.s of ilie vis.i of A. L. Stoddatt > team in 188s are acknowledg'd : "I. was left to Stoddari's British fain ■ • allow Maori lard tne tin' - points 1 the game and the vast pnss bil lie- of "imb na.ion. T.i»' exhibuons of pacing which hey gav were m;-t lascinat ng and unpie-s v to the NewZca lander, who was noi -1. w to obe:ve th- advantages ..f these methods. Oil.' rnay safely say that from t'aai season da '-- ri. era <>f h.gh-cass Rugby in tli.' colony." It i- con-oia.ory to be assured that though we have much to learn from the N'w Z : landers in ■ hese days, w? have in the past taught • Item s metli ng. Th'- pre ert-day methods of our o lonial kinsman are full, and capably dealt with, though many th.-.'i• t cal le-en un 'Working on the Serum. "Play from the Line out." "A'tack. ' ard so on w. re di men-rated in 00 pract cal a mann' r no, long since 10 b" forgotten. There is still s.inietli ng to glean. n> v"rthe!e-s, by a study of the me'hnds de-cribed. The articles on "Tact.cs in General and "Captaincy" make interesting read ing. as do' 9 to a greater degree that on "The Wng Forward." Not unnaturally an effort is made to defend—and successfully made from 'lie colonial standpo ni, it may be said — ihat much d scus ed individual. The Britisher was certa nlv prejudiced against the innovaton at the beginning, and retained that prejudice to the end. We hardly share the au'h ors" confidence, however, "that if any of the A'l Blacks have the happiness ta pay another v sit 10 Britain in a fev year-" time they will find that the much-critici-ed w'nger will by then be a permanent 'nsiituti. n." We have not yet shared our insular conservat sm in these matters.

One of ihe most readable chapterin the volume is thai headed "Twu Dangers to the Game." In It our come in for -<m f - candid criticism. Frankly, tile writers have not as elated opin on of the home bred referee, though they po'nt out that th? subject is deplt with ;r. an entirely ftiendly and disinterested sprit. They feel compellid to ascribe a deal of the blame fur the deciin ng popularity of th-? game to the officials who are deputed to take charge. They contrive to make the play tedious by a toj Ircjut'nt use of the nhi-tl''. '"The Briti-h reftrse is a vety -l'nv man, and hj? seems to like a slow game. At aU events, he takes vety good care that it is slow." Til s K rough on the -•JJr.tish referee" ; but we are afraid ihut theie is much truth in the soft | impeai lament. The -po 1-sport re fme's 'he fit-'f danger. Tlie second professionalism, "It seems to us thdt unle?s something is (!»ne, and ill- public is aroused to a proper sense of tlie cafger of the suuation. theie w ll be les- amateuri m in Bnia n in ,n> 'uttite." In this connection a well delved !rb^ e is paid to Mr ' Ri.wland ll.Uj whose cK>n>'*aiit and •manful bavtie ior amaicumm of ihc m-'K uncmprcm sing k>nd ti apprec aied to the full in wie colonic? no ithan in "his country by all who have I in-* Ituc "f -pott ,\i ueart. |Th»? writers, incidentally. to b<-' J l«c\v that. giv-n equal y in o; i'-r r« - ! >po* is tin Kt .t *■ ii put)! *w l ul'J pret®* ! to watch pn !' —j -rial rn fr -m "ut^id l, ti; pUy i'or iheni a« *<> much a week than he m-n <)t t fit invn town or « "ih work, who play K->nie th*- l (i ve of it. and who ;m- <-n!> a* 'd by l<'ca! pa : r in tl\*- r o.< - re l" w.n. Aliu-i*m is mad- to the doubt? ca?t upon lije amateur'-m of the All Blacks while I**?> a-> "ur guests. and we are once more clearly a--ured that the members of the u-aiu did nut pro fit pecuniarily -o the smallest exten;. — ai a?-urance qu ie unnece-sary to all who know the circumstance* under which the trip was undertaken and the character of the player* ■ The final chapters review 'he various contests in which the authors and thtir lulosy-tourists engaged. The reHilt? uf these ate n the of ali. The AH Blacks ncturallv lanient the single defeat administered by Wales, but there U no ! attempt made to bel ttle the perf rm- [ ance of the conquerors the reverse bc:nc accepted with commendable grace The writers —a* do the team and its followers generally—profits the highest adrnirat on f"r the IJri'Mier a sp« rt-'man, and r-tain plea-ani r> collect ons of the r vi^.t. Th'y con elude with a h< pe that they may =<>cji be with us again, a hop" that will b< ; . heartily echoed by all who were privileged to witness their play and to a l *- -ociate w*' J h tiu-m a year ago. The volume, it may be staged, contain- several interesting illustrations and instructive d agrapis.