Issue 70 : 13 December 2020

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. An archive of earlier editions of the e-zine can be found here. For those who follow Twitter, you can also follow the Association, @AmateurSportNZ.

If you are interested in applying for membership of the Association, please click here.


Association Meets With Sport New Zealand ...

Following an earlier meeting in February this year, the Association’s Chairman, Gordon Noble-Campbell, met with Sport New Zealand’s General Manager, Community Sport, Geoff Barry earlier this week (at the invitation of Sport New Zealand), to gain a better understanding of the potential opportunities that may exist for both organisations in working together.


(An emphasis on "clubs" is a key point of difference in the Association's strategic focus)


The cordial conversation, while not resulting in any specific outcomes, provided a forum for both organisations to highlight their areas of strategic focus, with a commitment made to continuing the discussion in 2021. A key area of difference between the two bodies is the Association's focus on the health and well-being of "clubs" as the fundamental organisational entity delivering organised amateur sport to New Zealand communities, compared to Sport New Zealand's "participant" focus, which is promoted as "every body active".



20 Club Dissolutions in December, 160 In 2020 ...

20 of 50 incorporated society dissolutions made this month were sports clubs, bring the total number of sport club dissolutions in New Zealand in 2020, to 160. Boxing, football, golf, rugby and squash all feature in December’s list of dissolutions.


(115 New Zealand sport organisations have lost incorporated status since 1 January 2020)


Six sports clubs had their dissolutions revoked in December (having retrospectively met their regulatory requirements to the satisfaction of the Registrar), meaning that a net 115 sports clubs have either voluntarily closed, or are continuing to operate without the legal protection of incorporated status. As discussed in the "Viewpoint" article below, more support must be provided to ensure that club volunteers are able to meet their regulatory obligations.


Compulsory Amateur Player Agreements For New Zealand Football ...

The Association welcomes New Zealand Football’s recent announcement in support of amateur sport. The national body has developed a new set of regulations which make amateur player agreements compulsory for all players in top-tier competitions from 2021, place caps on the reimbursements players can receive for expenses, while also creating an integrity and audit programme to ensure compliance with the New Zealand Football's requirements.


(Other sporting codes can follow NZ Football's stance is regulating amateur player status)


Andrew Pragnell, CEO of New Zealand Football said, “we believe that unfortunately player payments also drive player movement and hinder player development. Those clubs that are committed to player development are actually being undermined by those with larger budgets.”


(NZ Football CEO Andrew Pragnell, is asserting the amateur status of the community game)


By protecting the amateur status of the sport, New Zealand Football is ensuring its future by providing players with the opportunity for recognition without the necessity of pursuing professional or semi-professional sporting careers. As football club memberships continue to grow, other mainstream sporting codes could consider adopting a similar policy to preserve their community player base. You can read more here.


Robert Hutton Awarded Life Membership Of Kartsport New Zealand ...

After nearly 30 years of active involvement in virtually every part of the sport from driving to administration, Robert Hutton from Kinloch (near Taupo), has recently been awarded life membership of KartSport New Zealand, the 25th such award in the sport’s 60 year history.


(Robert Hutton with the life membership award he received from KartSport New Zealand)


The New Zealand Amateur Go Kart Association was formed on 19 September 1959. In 1963, an incorporated society was registered as the national body to represent the collective interests of karters (known as the New Zealand Go Kart Federation), with this name later changed to the New Zealand Kart Federation and in 2002, to KartSport New Zealand. Today, the sport has clubs across 18 regional federations in New Zealand.


(There are 20 affiliated KartSport Clubs in New Zealand, across 18 regions)


Hutton remains active within the sport’s administration and is currently patron of the KartSport Wellington club and he is a Trustee of the Colin Dale Park KartSport Development Charitable Trust. The Association congratulates Robert on the recognition he's received from the KartSport community. You can read more about his contribution to the sport, by clicking here.


Viewpoint : “Mind The Gap” ...

In recent months, this Association has received enquiries from community sport organisations from around the country requesting help in resolving various issues relating to their day-to-day operations. In some cases these enquiries are not from organisations associated with "mainstream" sporting codes, but they are nonetheless sports that provide an important community benefit for those who enjoy and participate in them.

Volunteers tasked with the management and administration of their chosen sport are typically passionate supporters of their game, but are they not necessarily skilled in undertaking governance, financial or other roles requiring certain knowledge, skills and experience, which can expose their organisation (and potentially themselves, if their organisation is not incorporated, or becomes unincorporated), to potential risk and liability.


(There is a lack of resource in building volunteer governance capability for community sport)


The Association suggests that there are six-steps immediately needed to help sporting organisations operated by volunteers bridge the current capability gap between “best endeavours” and “best practice”, when administering and promoting sport for their communities. You can read more here.


“Helping Hand” Fund Aims To Help Sport, Help Itself ...

A novel approach to creating relief-funding from within a sporting code has been launched by Bowls Australia, with its “Helping Hand” Fund. In summary, the National Body is calling on all club members and supporters to contribute what they can to a fund which can be used to provide grants to those clubs most in financial need.


(Bowls Australia is focusing on providing a "hand-up", rather than a "hand-out")


In essence, the programme is about Bowls, as a community-based sport, extending a fraternal “hand-up” to its worst-affected members, rather than having them extend a “hand-out” for tax-payer relief funding. This project represents the best of community sport, where those who support the game are willing to roll their sleeves up and financially support it for the benefit of all. You can read more about the initiative, here.


(There are over 2,000 lawn bowls clubs in Australia, many of which are under financial stress)


From The Archives ...

FRIENDLY SOCIETIES' FETE

NELSON EVENING MAIL, VOLUME XV, ISSUE 29, 3 FEBRUARY 1880

“The Friendly Societies of Nelson held their customary fete yesterday in celebration of the anniversary of the Province. Meeting at their respective rooms in the morning, the Oddfellows, Foresters, and Rechabites formed a procession, and, headed by the Battalion Band, which, under the conductorship of Mr Oakey, rendered good service during the day, they marched to the Botanical Reserve, where the programme of sports was commenced about 11 o'clock, and continued until about six o'clock.

The event regarded with the greatest amount of interest during the day was the tug-of-war, the last struggle between the Maoris and the butchers causing such excitement that the ropes were rushed and the police had all they could do to prevent the tuggers being interfered with. The Maori ladies, of whom there were several on the ground, grew very voluble over this contest and were apparently delighted at the victory gained by their countrymen over the pakehas.”


The expression “tug-of-war” was commonplace in the early to mid-nineteenth century, with the first competition taking place under the auspices of the London Athletic Club in 1875, with public schools practicing the sport for some years earlier. In New Zealand, the first recorded tug-of-war contest (touted as “the latest importation from Home, a most exciting contest” and colloquially called “French versus English”), was held on Easter Monday 1876, under the auspices of the Wellington Amateur Athletic Club. By the following year, tug-of-war was a regular feature on the programme of amateur athletic clubs throughout New Zealand.


(A seven man Maori tug-of-war team, in the late nineteenth century)


In the shadows of the Maori Wars, tug-of-war became (among other amateur athletic events) an opportunity for Maori teams to revive old rivalries against Pakeha, in regional sport events from Nelson to Waipawa, from Opunake to Christchurch. The first Tug Of War Association in New Zealand was formed in August 1913 in Southland. In 1918, the New Zealand men's tug-of-war team beat every other Base Depot team at their camp in Etaples, France. Intriguingly, from 1900 to 1920 tug-of-war was an Olympic sport, with Great Britain, Sweden and the United States gold medallists in this period. The Tug Of War International Federation (TWIF) was formed in 1960.


(New Zealand currently holds the Governor General's trophy for tug-of-war in Antarctica)


Today, there are only two tug-of-war clubs left in New Zealand, in Te Awamutu and Hastings. Graham Smith is the President of the New Zealand Tug Of War Association, presently unincorporated. Meanwhile, New Zealand’s global prowess at tug-of-war continues to this day in Antarctica, where the Scott Base team (from New Zealand) competes annually against the McMurdo Base team (from the United States) for the Governor General’s trophy, first established in 1983 by Sir David Beattie GCMG, GCVO, QSO, KStJ, QC.


The Final Word ...

"Remember that the happiest people are not those getting more, but those giving more."

(H. Jackson Brown Jr.)


© New Zealand Amateur Sport Association Inc. (2669211), 2017

Registered Office, Level 1, 57 Willis Street, Wellington, 6011

P O Box 582, Wellington, 6140


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