Men's Hockey Club

From the point of view of numerical strength, this was the best season the club had enjoyed for some years. Seven teams were entered in the local competitions—one in each of the First, Second and Fifth Grades, and two in each of the Third and Fourth. Club Captain Ken Kiddle was somewhat embarrassed at the beginning of the season with the wealth of talent available, especially in the lower grades, and it was unfortunate that many of last year's players who deserved promotion had to remain in the same grade. However, since no team has shown itself outstandingly superior in its grade, it is safe to conclude that the teams were fairly well balanced. There was, however, a noticeable tendency, as the season wore on, for teams to play short, and it may have eased this undesirable difficulty if the Committee had entered six teams only instead of seven.

The Club was pleased to welcome back to the College, many of the pre-war members. Eddie Latham, Stan Braithwaite, George Shaw and Max Christie were those who saw the beginning of the season with us, while Harry Scott, and Ted Breach and Hec Lawry 'fresh' from their Indian tour, strengthened our ranks later.

The transfer of Ken Kiddle from Wellington was a sad blow to the Club. A stalwart of this Club for many years and a keen and solid Committee man as well as a valuable player, he has been greatly missed in all phases of Club activities.

Although there have been no outstanding team performances this season, the showings of V.U.C. teams, assessed as a whole, have been satisfactory. Indeed, the Club will run close to lifting the local Association's Club Championship honours.