Other formats

    TEI XML file   ePub eBook file  

Connect

    mail icontwitter iconBlogspot iconrss icon

The New Zealand Railways Magazine, Volume 12, Issue 5 (August 2, 1937)

Panorama of the Playground — The Ranfurly Shield

page 63

Panorama of the Playground
The Ranfurly Shield
.

Just what does the Ranfurly Shield mean to provincial Rugby? Financially, the shield is worth untold wealth—this fact will be vouched for by Napier shopkeepers who were indeed sorry when the shield was lost after a lengthy tenure.

But, finance aside, the shield has an invigorating effect on the standard of play. Contrast the calibre of the Hawke's Bay and Wairarapa players of to-day with the standard being displayed this season.

In 1924–25 Hawke's Bay had such renowned players as Maurice Brownlie, Cyril Brownlie, Jimmy Mill, George Nepia, Luis Paewai, Alec Kirkpatrick and “Bull” Irvine; while, during the period it held the shield, Wairarapa had such sterling players as Quentin Donald, C. Stringfellow and A. E. Cooke.

Apart from the fact that many good players will mysteriously find employment wherever the shield reposes, the local players, determined that the shield shall remain in their city, play superlative football. Then comes the loss of the shield. Mysteriously enough, a subsequent loss of form is immediately noted. Such is the power of the Ranfurly Shield!

A Famous Boxing Tournament.

The “Golden Gloves” boxing tournament, organised and staged by the “Chicago Tribune” is America's most amazing amateur boxing tournament. Thousands of young American boxers enter, each year, for this tournament and the winners receive miniature golden boxing gloves. Do they treasure these symbols of victory? Ask Joe Louis, present-day world's heavyweight boxing champion.

While employed at the Ford Motor works in Chicago, Louis entered the Golden Gloves tourney. It was the first stage of a boxing career full of sensation, incident and riches, but Louis still retains his “golden glooves”—his mascots!

Although boxing is controlled in America by the Amateur Athletic Union dispensation is granted to reputable newspapers who stage tourneys. International teams are invited annually, the latest being a European team including two Olympic champions. The Chicago boxers won four bouts and the European boxers a like number. A Chicago negro defeated the Olympic heavyweight champion.

The New Zealand Boxing Association might take a leaf from the American system and arrange for something of a similar nature being staged in New Zealand.

Played against the Springboks in 1921.

H. E. (“Ginger”) Nicholls, one of the best half-backs New Zealand has produced—he had the distinction of being chosen as the best player in the New Zealand team in the test against the Springboks in 1921, and was then omitted from the next test for some inexplicable reason—considers the test team to be one of the best ever fielded in New Zealand. The team included George Aitken, who later resided in England and Scotland but has returned to his native heath. Here is the team: Full-back: C. N. Kingston (Taranaki). Three-quarters: P. W. Storey (South Canterbury), G. G. Aitken (Wellington), captain, J. Steel (West Coast). Five-eighths: C. E. O. Badeley (Auckland), M. F. Nicholls (Wellington). Half-back: H. E. Nicholls. Wing-forward: J. G. Donald (Wairarapa). Forwards: E. E. Hughes (Wellington), W. D. Duncan (Otago), J. E. Moffitt (Wellington), J. Richardson (Otago), A. White (Southland), E. A. Bellis (Wanganui), R. Fogarty (Taranaki).

Work of the Rugby Football Coach.

A good coach of Rugby football is able to make good money in America, teaching American “grid iron” players some of the tactics employed in “Union” football. The University of Southern California has been in touch with a Canadian coach in the hope that the American players will become more proficient in the art of handling the ball on the run. The Canadian coach, Ernest Butterworth, using Rugby tactics, coached a little-known American side to victory over two of America's most famous university sides and attracted nation-wide attention by his methods.

With better opportunities New Zealand coaches should be more proficient than the Canadians, but distance is the great barrier.

Wellington Railway Cricket Club, Winners, Hayhow Cup, 1936–1937. Standing, left to right: Messrs. R. Knapp, E. Adams, W. Sullivan, M. Leineweber, J. Donald. Sitting: B. Fisher, J. Collin, M. Knapp (capt.), B. Turnbull, G. Weston. Absent, B Hills.

Wellington Railway Cricket Club, Winners, Hayhow Cup, 1936–1937. Standing, left to right: Messrs. R. Knapp, E. Adams, W. Sullivan, M. Leineweber, J. Donald. Sitting: B. Fisher, J. Collin, M. Knapp (capt.), B. Turnbull, G. Weston. Absent, B Hills.

Learn to Swim.

The Minister of Transport, the Hon. R. Semple, has been drawing attention to the high ratio of motor accidents in New Zealand and has set about to page break reduce the appalling list of accidents; but an amazing fact has been brought to light by others interested in statistics. During the summer months there are more people drowned in New Zealand than there are killed in road accidents!

The proportion of young New Zealanders who are unable to swim is alarming.

It has always been a matter of wonder to me that so many of Wellington's youngsters are able to swim at all.

Freak Contests in Sport.

In these enlightened days “freak” contests in sport crop up every now and then. Wheelbarrow races have had their day, but a recent contest in Sydney between a greyhound, cyclist and an athlete attracted much attention.

The greyhound started from the scratch mark on the 100-yard track, the cyclist and athlete were on 60 yds.

Although attracted by means of a “tin hare” on a wire, the dog could not bridge the gap, the athlete defeating the cyclist by a foot with the dog only inches away.

Visit of the Springboks.

“Our mission is to play football,” is the confirmed outlook of the Springbok Rugby players who will be spending much of their time in the comfortable carriages of the New Zealand Railways during the next few weeks. Those of us who might criticise the visitors for their attitude to the game should pause and consider! New Zealand has made a fetish of its Rugby and we have, in the past, imagined that our players are the best in the world. Recent tours of South Africa and Great Britain have done much to restore our true perspective but, naturally enough, the Springboks are keen to retain the proud position their country occupies in Rugby.

Australians confirm the opinion that the visitors are a team of sportsmen; that they play the game according to the rules, expecting no favours and giving none. They are assured of a hearty welcome throughout New Zealand—and record attendances, too!

“Some men will tell you that women can't tell good baccy from bad,” said the tobacconist, lighting a cheroot, “but I don't know so much about that, I've a lot of women customers and they seem to know what's what when they buy cigarettes, anyhow. But bless you, ready-mades are fast dying out, the roll-your-own brigade's seeing to that! Look at the run on Riverhead Gold and Desert Gold!—the two most popular cigarette tobaccos on the market. Yes, cigarettes are in huge demand, of course, but you take it from me, the pipe will never go out of fashion. Pipe tobaccos? Why, their mere names would fill a book! Which are the most fancied? Ask me another! But the three toasted pipe brands—Cut Plug No. 10 (Bullshead) Cavendish and Navy Cut No. 3 (Bulldog) sell like hot cakes! Customers used to ask me what toasting was supposed to do, but everybody knows now that it cleans up the nicotine and improves flavour and bouquet. What?—are you off? Well, tooraloo! Be good!”*

An Amazing Coincidence.

Four years ago Al Foreman was one of the world's outstanding boxers. Then he met an “unknown” in Jimmy Kelso, an Australian who defeated him twice, and then amazed Australians by saying farewell to the ring after a few more ring battles. Foreman, who holds the record for the quickest knock-out, is contemplating a “comeback.” Foreman's brother, Maurice, was his guide and counsellor. I met Maurice in 1932, and in the meeting of him I encountered an amazing coincidence.

I was standing on the steps of the Wellington Town Hall, waiting for the custodian, “Dorrie” Leslie, the Olympic starter.

Two men came along, and one of them approached me and asked if I could direct him to the leading boxing promoter.

I replied that there were no promoters in New Zealand, but offered to take him to the boxing writer of a sports paper. He thanked me and then introduced himself as Maurice Foreman, and added: “George Simpson, our Olympic sprinter, gave me the addresses of three Wellington people, and asked me to look them up and give them his regards. Could you direct me to them?”

He produced a sheet of paper on which Simpson had written three names—“Dorrie” Leslie's, Stan Phil-potts (secretary of the Wellington Centre), and my own.

Imagine his surprise when I introduced myself, then turned around and introduced “Dorrie” Leslie! But his amazement was almost comical when, on observing Stan Philpotts on the other side of the road, I called and then introduced him to Foreman f The first three people he had spoken to after arrival in New Zealand were the three he had been asked to seek out! Truly an amazing coincidence!