OUT DOOR SPORTS

Observer, Volume 6, Issue 137, 28 April 1883, Page 86

OUT DOOR SPORTS

. — They are going to form an Amateur Athletic Club in Dunedin. — Edwards and O'Leary at it again in Melbourne on April 30th. — The junior footballers are arranging a programme of matches for the season, and intend getting it printed. — Up to time of closing this column, nothing has been decided as to the big yacht match, Rita v. Arawa. Bar accidents, the Arawa -will "win in any kind of breeze. — The various football clubs have held their meetings this week. Ponsonby meets to-night at the "United Service Hotel, when I hope to see every member present by 8 o'clock. — The Auckland Bicycle Club, advertise in another column their races to be held on the Domain ground, on May 12th, next, at 2 p.m. The entries close on May 6th. — Ivo Bligh's team say that Giffen's younger brother is superior in his cricket to the well-known ' South Australian himself, and is one of the most promising batsmen in Australia. — Pickering's reason for not running Hulston is that Ins backers won't put the money up for a match in Christchurch. But if Hulston will agree to come up to Auckland, he can be accommodated to the extent of £50 or so. — S. Goodman says, in reply to Jenkins' desire for a match for £50 at a mile, that Jenkins has no right to offer such conditions as were expressed in his letter to this paper ; he having originally challenged Goodman to run for £5 or £10, which challenge Goodman accepted, and now Jenkins attempts to bluff Sam by talking about £50. Goodman expresses his willingness to run Jenkins for £10 a side, should the latter want, a mat -. h he can readily have it, for that amount. — The following will represent Ea-'. and West in a footbal match of Junior clubs in ihe Domain hollow to-morrow, 18 inst. East : — Ari;ott, ]3'-uce, Cosson, Damon, Goodman, Gellespi , >la;<.i--nck, La Roach, Miller, Marshall, Manyard, iJ\. liVwson, McKinlay, Olson, Pulman, Ridings, .-.Smart, Scot, Swanson, and Taweria. West : — /j.^lrews, Binney, Brabison, Clark, Culpan, Danks, .i.\:war, Flnlason, Goodacre, Hobson, JVlacluo, Muttlrie, McDermott, Pritchard, Stewart, .Smith. Salt, Tucker, Wilson, and Williamson. ? — The Lancet having about playe. t out it::- dismal groanings on the utfcer distrucLou ie the human frame consequent upon snxf'in:.-. nieouolic indulgence ; eating bread, meat, an.-' vctrutaiiles ; ■walking, running, sitting still,, b^.-atl'.i-ig, r >r in fact living at jjJLV'£' J Eas no^ commence' i\ ensade '^^^atnst'eEat matchless gam\ football. The Lancet is only too evidently run bY a " medicine man," who would like to see the generation.- of r., growing up clisoiples of the v too, i.'v. I' n<J '' school of namby-pamby, greenery -yf ''--'y ;*'Oi. ••'_: men. Of course the tribe of clofct '-'"••■ >•■ [I - >;' apt to find sturdy young fellows wln> ir.i.i :yo ii: such active pastimes as football and cl"i' ;1 '"'- ; - ■"• poor customers indeed, while the contra' v inevitably be the result of soft feed and ■.;.., room dandyism. __ -*** m — Land and Water has an o-':c'ior- t(; wan £ the modern amateur. I great] 1 _ cxtenso I of space precludes my rio -ie following short must, however, give siuubted truth and interest ■ extract which is of, before the development of — " In the old rVport, there was no necessity for -wgr-vife.injuwh'of the word amateur or professional The terras "gentlemen" and "professional" were tound to answer every purpose. There could be/no possible mistake as to which of the two classes anyone belonged, and the gentleman could, if; he chose, make a match for either money stake, qp cup with a professional, without the former losing cast or reputation. In those days it was not considered derogatory for a gentleman and presumably an amateur, to row or run for a money stake. The deed instituting the Win^field sculls defines the competition as open to "gentlemen scullers," the word amateur being probably hardly known or understood in those days in connection 1 with rowing." How true this is, must be evident to any one who has read of, or seen the numerous contests between "gentlemen" and " professionals "in the good old days. Mr Budd Lord Frederick Beauclerc,Captain Ross Lord Kennedy or the Hon. Colonel George Anson, never thought it beneath their position as leaders of society, to match themselves or their friends to run, ride, jump, play cricket, shoot, or even box against " professionals " for a money stake Yet now,when admittedly, there is less class distinction than was then the case, we strain, and twist, and shuffle to preserve an amateurship which is to often disgraced by quibble and subterfuge to be worth the keeping. If a gentleman's own instincts and actions cannot preserve his rosition it can never be preservedby rules and regulations which are too apt to assist, and cover from public criticism, acts which would disgrace even the looked-down-upon " professional." The Auckland Rowing Association will (weather permitting) hold its first series of rowing contests to-morrow (Saturday) afternoon. The entries are ±airly good, and I expect to see some keen contests gfor the trophws&l am very much surprised to see spat Ponsonby will be unrepresented in the pEaiden and Senior Bona Fide Amateurs Surely *in the last especially they could have put in a crew. Auckland ought to win both these •rents easily if the crews entered are anyway fit ■^he latter race the North Shore crew a/™-- I K *°° much weight behind, two men oflbst. ! - HH ISst lib (as No. 3 and stroke), with lU< \~ mßßki^ No. 2 and bow), seem a bad ; di B posi- - |^^HBugnt, and will nave,the effect of '"trim- ' HBR^l 16 t™?" I n >» ttnior -»*»<* hide's t ■H^^^^v better than.fflEher of the others ( ■mn| aII good crews , but Alf Jones and keeps it up well. The

Scullers' race should lie between Tom Earquhar and E. Bailey, while Jones will give a bit of trouble. I shall expect to see Ponsonby win the Junior Amateurs', though in Gault they have a perfect green man at the oar, still he is a strong young fellow, a handy weight, and able to get himself fit, owing to his frequent training for running. Emery I don't know, but the other two, Cooke and Watson, 3 and stroke, are " nuggets," and pretty fit. The Senior Amateurs is the most open, and likely to be the best contested race on the card. The Auckland crew is splendidly balanced as to weight, and, bar number one, is the same as pulled so well some years ago. They know one another thoroughly, and stroke (Harry Henderson) knows exactly how much he can set them. North Shore has a great four, as far as strength goes, and Greenwood and O'Connor will last to rights. Their weakest point to my fancy is their stroke, who is always pounds above his form, and never seems able to train down. The only time he was reduced to something like hardness was when he played in the football match against Dunedin some years back ; how the work he had put in helped him on that occasion many will remember, and he lasted grandly. This time lam afraid condition will find him out if the pace is forced. The Ponsonby crew is a good one, and in Smith has the best stroke and most experienced in the lot. Bow (Leatham) is a grand little bit of stuff, and will stay. J. Bigelow (No. 2) has been at the oar all his life, and is as hard as nails ; no fear but that he will last it out. No. 3 (Edmonds) is the ouly one I have any doubt about, and then my doubts are only vogue, as he has pulled some good races behind Smith before to-day. I rather fancy I won't attempt to tip this event, as I don't suppose, (bar accidents) that a boat's length will divide the three at the finish. — While sincerely regretting the disagreeable turn the affairs of the late Taraniki Cricket tour have taken, I cannot let the account which has been copied from the Hawera Star pass unchallenged. Erom frequent and bitter experience of the appalling way in which the expenses of such affairs mount up, I may be absolved from egotism when I claim to have as full and complete a knowledge of such matters as anyone in Auckland, and certainly a better than the writer of that would-be witty effusion. On tbe strength of such knowledge, and having carefully noted the attendance at the matches, I am surprised that things came cut even so well as they did. It never does, for instance, to compute the takings at the gates by the number pi*esent. Two-thirds of such would be an outside calculation, as, no matter how smart the gate-keepers and rangery are, fully one-third sneak in over the fences, • r refuse payment at the gates. Then the expense. There are no less than seven entrances to Uncricket ground, and such requires a gate-keeper. There is £3 10s per day at one swoop, even at the very lowest computation. Then you require at least six rangers, at payments varying from 7s 6d to 10s per day. Lump that at (say) £3 per day, and add printing and advertising, £5 a-day for use of ground, and the not-to-be-avoided " incidentals " —jiind where are the " nett gates"? The only t«K I can see wrong with the balancesheet put Osmond was the charge for complhnera^M^^^ets, which cost the committee nothing, dß^Bßß^never appear as a charge, liiif j,;-.v,-.-«]^^^^^^^^^^f -, ruvr.r.u 1 for '.I - 'lUi.'iliPi " - ': '. ' ; '". ' " ' :!•• " { <i - ' ■ - ' , ■■ :\i< - :■ !'V -'-.-.-■ ■■■'} {*■* vwV.bh- ■■■ ri..-., -. .-.; i. i:,ai . -id i-f :o.U\ .f!jo -vit o? jK>r-k.--t ■■; I' _•■-■■ 'y;'- inP f f l^' -■■"* to ra:i -..*: i. t , t L.- Mi.-.ouiit - ± -o: , nn.f.: Lv iv not ihv only member of the committee who had to " stump up." While still another thing that should be mentioned, is that Mr Osmond foolishly credited the receipts with ±.250 received from the lessee of the booth, thus making a large item, of which the Taranakians had the benefit, and to which they had no earthly right, the agreement being that they should receive "two thirds of the nett gates" only. And if that agreement had been carried out the visitors would have actually been m debt instead of receiving anything. Jf the laranaki cricketers only came up here to make gate money, ot course their object bus not been attained, and there is an end of it. But I was under the impression that they came as a team of gentleman " cricketers, simply to play a series of Iriendly matches, and have a pleasunt holiday trip at the same time. That their cricket was so very poor as to utterly fail to draw, while their ex s ran up just as fast as if they were first-class, was their own fault, or misfortune, and Auckland can hardly be blamed for the result. A team that could only just barely defeat an ordinary country cluo eleven could scarcaly expect to draw big gates, even in cricket loving Auckland ; and I may suggest to our late visitors that they made a considerable blunder in playing any match before they met the reps., thus exposing their form before they got the shillings.

iraffwe: adhere to the views Kbytgre/'the State cannot sup■ra^yice, it should regulate lentil effects. However, we ■Experienced men like our ■fcunity of ventilating their JBin the hope that some l^rougbt out which may be |Bion of Parliament. — Ed.