The Daily News THURSDAY, JULY 16. THE FOOTBALL MATCH.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LI, Issue 176, 16 July 1908, Page 2

The Daily News THURSDAY, JULY 16. THE FOOTBALL MATCH.

The extent of the hold New Zealand's national game has upon the public of i'arauaki was strikingly exemplified yesterday, when nearly a fourth of the province's total population turned out to see their representatives meet the chosen team of England and Wales. It is haul to imagine anything other than a football match that could attract such an attendance—an- attendance which must rank as a record for New Plymouth and the province. The conditions were almost ideal—the weather, which 111 the morning looked as if it would be anything but favorable, turned out fin.:, though cold; the ground, with its mirivalled terrace views aiul picturesque surroundings, was, despite the wretched weather obtaining up to yesterday, in capital order (thanks to tluii indefatigable body, the Sports Ground Committee), and all the arrangements in connection with the match were as perfect as they could be made. The teams appeared to Ik! evenly matched. It was a Same of few mistakes and few opportunities. J fat main feature was. its closeness, and closeness of play in football detracts, to a great extent, from spectueular interest. Still, it was a great game, and in winning it our team put up a performance that will live in memory for more than one decade. On the day's play, Taranuki, impartial critics must acknowledge, deserved the "win, the five points scored representing the difference in the play of the two teams. U is a pity, however, tlmt the merit of tlie score should be qnestione 1. as it is in some quarters. There was nothing illegitimate in the play leading up to the try, and, in our view, 110 exception can be taken to it. ft is true, j some of the Britishers expected the game to be stopped 'on account of two of the players, a visitor and a Taranaki man, being temporarily incapacitated, but the whistle did not sound, ami the local backs continued to play the bu:l, and .play it in a particularly skilful way; ami, what is more, the, British backs, or any other backs, could hardly have done in ore to stop the movement that ended in Dive touching down. It may be considered a lucky score in so far as some of the v.isitors were not in their right places; lint even if they had been, if is believed by authorities oil the game that the result would not have been different, so quick and unexpected was the execution of the piece of work. The Britishers "fought gallantly and "played the'game" from start to finish. There was no roughness or anything unsportsmanlike in their methods. The game, indeed, though so keenly and determinedly contested, Was devoid of rouglmess. In f comip]imeilting the Taranaki players, on their meritorious performance, we would express the hope that they will meet ■with similar snecess in their other engagements during the next few weeks, and that, win or lose, they will, like the Britishers, always "play the game."