Page 7

 

DAVE WALSH GRADUALLY RETIRING
By Everett B, Morris

NEW YORK HERALD-TRIBUNE, Jan, 3, 1941----

Davis H, (Dave, to you) Walsh, the Hoboken schoolmaster who has been
blowing whistles on Eastern basketball courts for more years than he will tell
you, is gradually retiring from active officiating to devote more of his time to
the post of associate director of the recently formed Collegiate Basketball Offi-
cisals' Bureau,

When Dave accepted the supervising job with Asa Bushnell's agency, it
was anticipated that he could combine it with a reasonsbly full officiating sche-
dule, so he booked his quota of Bastern Leasue games and took on assignments for
a number of others in the New York and Philadelphia districts,

As things worked out, though, it became evident that Dave had taken on
too large a burden, After all, even a basketball official has to sleep some
time, The bureau, instead of assigning officials for the ten colleges which
were its founders last spring, found itself working for more than a dozen others
and steadily increasing its list of registered officials,

An announcement by Bushnell yesterday explained the situation thus:
"Walsh has been released from engagements to handle games this season for most
of the colleges in the New York-Pennsylvania area in order that he may have more
time to devote to the training of younger officials and to the promotion of the
bureau's efforts to standardize officialing technique and mechanics and to bring
greater uniformity into the interpretation of the rules,

"Nevertheless, he will continue, throushout the present season only, to
officiate in games of the Eastern Intercollegiate Basketball League; this excep-
tion is being made because the league's staff of referees and umpires for this
year's service was made up many months ago and does not include ready replace-
ments,"

Walsh and the other associate director, Ellwood A, Geiges, of Philadel-
phia, have their work cut out for them in trying to carry out the bureau's aims,
If it is any consolation to them, though, the college coaches are as one in
hoping that they eventually succeed in taking the phobias and inconsistencies
out of officialing in the bureau's territory, Then, perhaps, some progress can
be made toward bringing different districts closer together,

Who knows? It may be that at some not too distant date, basketball will
be officiated everywhere as uniformly as football, The millennium approaches!

Eastern College Fives to Vie for Silver Cup (continued from p. 6 )

 

The new tronhy must be won three times for permanent possession, It re-
places the Columbia University trophy, which became the property of Dartmouth,
The Indians won the league title in 1938, 1939 and 1940,

FAN SHAPE BACKBOARD GOOD

According to Dr, Phoggy Allen, the new fan-shaped backboards allow 55 per
cent of spectators sitting behind the basket to see the goal, as made,