Issue 15 : 30 September 2018
Talofa Lava, Kia Orana, Malo E Leilei, Tena Koutou, Hello ...
... and welcome to the latest issue of “For The Love Of The Game”, the official e-zine of the New Zealand Amateur Sport Association Inc. We hope you enjoy reading the articles below.
If you have any feedback on this issue, ideas for future articles, or would like to contact the Editor, please click here. And, you are invited to forward the e-zine to others you know, who may be interested in reading it.
If you are interested in applying for membership of the Association, please click here.
What Does “Amateur” Mean? ...
In the Association’s inaugural survey of Amateur Sports Clubs, we asked respondents to describe what the concept of “amateurism” means to them. The word cloud below shows the frequency of words used in responses received, with the size of the word denoting its frequency.
As seen below, the concepts of “club”, “volunteers” and “players” all feature prominently.
Community Sports Events Seminar ...
A diverse group of those involved in "community sport" attended the Association’s inaugural open-seminar on "Community Sports Events" at Victoria University’s Rutherford House Campus in Wellington, earlier this week.
Presentations were made by Dr. Rachel Batty (Massey University), Matt Reid (Hutt City Council) and Will Caccia-Birch (Wellington Rugby), which focused on the challenges of creating and delivering successful community sports events. Across all three presentations, the importance of identifying and understanding “community values” was emphasised, with Matt Reid noting that “ownership and pride” were two key factors influencing positive community outcomes.
Dr. Batty discussed the importance of connecting community values with sponsorship, noting that long-standing commercial relationships could quickly become socially-unacceptable as the values of society changed. Will Caccia-Birch addressed the need for all events to be inclusive of all community members, with Wellington Rugby’s "Game-For-All" Charter a key factor in the code’s success, across varied communities throughout the Wellington region.
The Association would like to thank all three presenters for their contribution and also all those that attended this insightful seminar. If you would like copy of the presentations made at the seminar, please contact the Editor, by clicking here.
Wellington Community Rugby Awards ...
At the 2018 Wellington Community Rugby Awards, the Association’s Club Community Award was presented to the Johnsonville Rugby Football Club. Mid-way through the season, the Club’s Chairman Kerry Walsh called an "Extraordinary Meeting" of all Members, as the Club had “reached a precipice in terms of player representation to maintain Premier status.”
The Club's Management Committee received feedback from around 50 players, members and supporters, which resulted in a number of working groups being established to improve things off-field, as well as attaining support for better on-field performance. The Cub's on-field results started improving, with the Club making the Hardham Cup Semi-Finals and winning both the HD Morgan and Johnsonville Centennium Cup competitions in the second round.
(Association President Andy Leslie and Kerry Walsh from Johnsonville RFC)
In addition to the above results, the Club is now working with the local community and will shortly be starting "community fitness sessions", as well as working with other sports to share the the Club's facilities. As Kerry Walsh noted “ideas are only good ideas, when adequate resources and people power are behind them.”
Association President, Andy Leslie, presented the Award.
2018 National Amateur Survey Closes ...
New Zealand’s inaugural National Amateur Club Survey has now closed, with close to a 20% response rate from those registered incorporated societies who were invited to participate.
Based on the number of responses received (and using industry survey standards), the results will be able to be viewed with a 95% confidence level, with a 7% margin of error.
The data will now be analysed by the research team at AUT, with the results expected to be available for public discussion, in early November.
From The Archives ...
THE WAR AND SPORT
OTAGO DAILY TIMES, ISSUE 24226, 19 FEBRUARY 1940
"There was a lean period for sport during the war of 1914-18. Inter-provincial and national fixtures of all descriptions were forgotten for the time being, and even championship events, in athletics, golf, lawn tennis and so on, were held in abeyance while the interest of the country’s young manhood was more gravely engaged."
"But sport, as such, suffered no harsh or avoidable curtailment, and it is important that it should not do so now that the challenge has come again to moral strength, vitality and manliness. Normality is a condition to be clung to tenaciously in a crisis, and it is not to be denied that sport has its significant place in the normal functioning of society.
Organisation for war, especially as the period of its necessity is prolonged, must make its heavy demands on the resources of all sporting bodies, just as its effects are felt in the conduct of trade and industry. But the urgent needs of youth are not to be neglected on that account.
Nor should it be forgotten that all games impose a discipline that is mental as well as physical, and in that respect prepare the ground for the acceptance of adult responsibilities, whatever their nature may be. That is a sombre reflection in time of war, but it nevertheless contains a truth that should not be ignored."
(A Soldiers Rugby Team outside Hut 101 at Trentham Military Camp, 1916)
Sports Clubs throughout New Zealand were severely affected by both World Wars, with World War One in particular impacting on membership of Clubs; in some cases over 80% of a Club's membership enlisted to fight. Most Clubs relied on "school-boys" and "old-boys" to stay in existence, however by the end of 1917, many Sports Clubs had ceased operating altogether.
The Final Word ...
“I’ve learned that you shouldn’t go through life with a Catcher’s Mitt on both hands. You need to be able to throw something back.”
(Maya Angelou)