ROTARY CLUB

Wairarapa Times-Age, 19 April 1940, Page 7

ROTARY CLUB

INTERESTING ADDRESS ON RUGBY BY WELL KNOWN AUTHORITY. Mr S. S. Dean, chairman of the New Zealand Rugby Union, and manager of the 1924 New Zealand team which visited Great Britain and France, was the speaker at the Rotary Club luncheon in the Y.M.C.A- yesterday afternoon, and over which Rotarian J. Hunter presided. There was a very large attendance of members and also a number of visitors. The latter were received in the usual hearty manner and Mr Dean received a very warm welcome. Mr Dean, in the course of a most, interesting address on Rugby football, traced the history of the game from the earliest times, from the days of Henry VIII onwards, showing how the game had developed from contests between rival villages up to the present scientific method of play. He stated that the first player to run with the ball was William Webb Ellis, who in 1823 "with a fine disregard for the rules of Rugby in those days first look the ball in his arms and ran with it. thus originating the distinctive feature of the Rugby game." lie told in an interesting manner how the game 1 hud developed from village contests to organised club fixtures, demonstrated the various methods of play, emphasising that some of the methods which were considered to be modern were in reality old. showed the progress the game had made in New Zealand since it was first played in an organised manner in the 60’s, dwelt on the various tours of overseas teams to New Zealand and All Black and Maori combinations abroad, and incidentally pointed out that the wingforward was not introduced into New Zealand by the late Tom Ellison, of Wellington, but had been played in the 70’s in various matches. Covering a wide field of operations and interspersing his remarks with a number of pithy football anecdotes. Mr Dean held his audience’s attention throughout, and those present were sorry that time prevented him from elaborating further on his most interesting subject. Mr G. W. Sellar, as an old footballer, "and one who also played that game, golf, to which Mr Dean had referred.” moved a hearty vote of thanks to Mr Dean for his most interesting address, which had been delivered in a manner that had held the deep attention of his hearers throughout. The motion was carried by acclamation. and was suitably acknowledged by Mr Dean. Mr Dean's reference to the prospects of Rugby in New Zealand will be found in another column of this issue.