Sideline Sid Sports correspondant & historian www.sunlive.co.nz

From time to time Sidline Sid rabbits on about history and the importance of recognising where we have come from.

While he believes that history is important, he doesn't think that life today is better or worse than in days gone by – life is simply different.

That was reinforced a few days ago when I got my hands on some old minute books of the Tauranga Rugby Union.

The first entry was from the annual general meeting held on March 27, 1915, at Chadbans rooms.

The report from the treasurer showed a credit balance of 12 pounds, two shillings and eight pence.

While the early history of the Judea Rugby Club reveals that rugby was played in the region from the 1880s, a number of administrative bodies rose and fell before the Tauranga Rugby Union was established.

Life was certainly very different as various snippets of the minutes show.

A motion at the meeting held on May 29, 1915, called for the competition to be postponed indefinitely owing to the war (WW1) and lack of interest of players.

While it wasn't shown if the motion was passed, there were no more entries in the minute book after the end of 1915, until the reformation minutes of the Tauranga Rugby Union on June 12, 1919.

It was decided that the Jordan Cup, which was competed for by the junior clubs (which is still played for today), be displayed in Mr Robertson's window by his kind permission.

The draw showed that the teams involved in the local competition were Tauranga, Te Puna and Matakana Island.

The Te Puna delegates protested that it was impossible for their junior team to play as most of the players were over the 12 stone limit.

It was further decided that a letter be written to some Mount people about the formation of a club there (at Mount Maunganui).

The union finances went into decline as the AGM minutes from April 24, 1920 showed a credit balance of four pounds and five shillings.

After lengthy discussion it was decided that the Cadets club be allowed to affiliate without fielding a senior team.

Records of the day showed that Matapihi and Motiti had joined the union, with Rangataua also having played in earlier days.

A later minute stated that Motiti had been unable to play Tauranga as bad weather had stopped them coming in (from Motiti Island).

Another bit of information that I stumbled upon was a report in the BOP Times dated 16 October 1935.

Under the heading, Presentation to Judea Club: 'The Judea natives arranged a very successful function in their meeting house on Saturday night, which was given to the Judea Football Club to mark the occasion of their success this season in winning the Oliver Cup competition, the Green Memorial Cup competition and the McIntosh Shield, the last mentioned being the premier championship for junior clubs in the Bay of Plenty.”

What is relevant is that the Oliver Cup and McIntosh Shield are still contested today. Both the Oliver Cup and the McIntosh Shield are particularly ornate and decorative trophies that attract plenty of interest when they are on show.

Seeya at the Game