1939 American Karakoram expedition to K2, Progress up mountain, Storm
On July 1 Durrance sent a Sherpa up to Camp VI with a note saying his boots had arrived and giving other news including that they had made no progress during the storm. Receiving the note at Camp V, Wiessner may have misunderstood the contents because he replied starting "I am very disappointed in you ..." – in fact during the storm Durrance had been out carrying supplies more frequently than his leader. There was now a strong rift between Wiessner and the rest of the climbers, apart from Wolfe. After carrying supplies up to Camp III in another storm Cromwell was hurt in a fall and Sheldon got seriously frostbitten toes. He was sent down to Base Camp by Cromwell and stayed there for the rest of the expedition.


1939 American Karakoram expedition to K2, Progress up mountain, Wiessner to Camp VII and return to Camp II
On June 30 Wiessner scaled the House Chimney, set up fixed ropes, and pulled up Pasang Kikuli. Next day, with a very tight rope, he managed to get Wolfe and another Sherpa up the cliffs and the four of them established Camp V. After a three-day storm Wiessner and the Sherpas climbed to the location for Camp VI and next day, July 6, climbed the Black Tower to reach the top of the Abruzzi Ridge: Camp VII at 24,700 feet (7,529 m). During this time Wolfe had stayed at Camp V. No further supplies had been carried up even as far as Camp IV so Wiessner immediately went right down to Camp II to see what was going on.


1939 American Karakoram expedition to K2, Progress up mountain, Wiessner and Wolfe to Camp VIII
Durrance and the others were astonished by the progress high on the mountain. They had been worrying that the advance team might be in trouble and had only made two trips to dump supplies at Camp III. Cheered by the developments, Durrance, Cromwell, Trench and six Sherpas resumed the ascent but found the work very hard in reaching Camp IV. At Camp V Durrance found frostbite in Wolfe's feet but, following in Wiessner's trail, they struggled up to Camp VI with Wolfe having very great difficulty. Overruling Durrance's medical advice, Wiessner allowed Wolfe to continue on up.


1939 American Karakoram expedition to K2, Progress up mountain, Wiessner and Wolfe to Camp VIII
On July 13, ascending to Camp VII, Durrance became exhausted and went down to VI with four Sherpas while Wiessner, Wolfe and three Sherpas occupied the higher camp. Next day the higher party reached Camp VIII from where Tse Tendrup and Pasang Kitar were sent back to move supplies between VI and VII, supposedly to be arriving from lower on the mountain. The other Sherpas were to carry up to VIII to join Pasang Lama who had stayed there. Discounting the eight-day delay caused by the major storm, they had established Camp VIII in the same time it had taken the 1938 expedition. Their supply lines were, however, seriously overstretched.


1939 American Karakoram expedition to K2, Progress up mountain, Wiessner and Wolfe to Camp VIII
Durrance had been utterly exhausted descending to Camp VI – it can now be diagnosed he was suffering from hypoxia together with pulmonary or cerebral edema and he had scarcely managed to get there. He gave instructions to Tsering Norbu and Phinsoo to restock the camps up to VII or even VIII and then, with Pasang Kikuli who had serious frostbite and Dawa Thondup, he eventually got down to Camp II where he found everything in a terrible mess with Cromwell and Trench in a state of complete apathy. Now there was no link between the summit party and those at Camp II or below where no one felt in a condition to move. There was later to be great argument as to whether the team abandoned Wiessner or whether he had abandoned his team.


1939 American Karakoram expedition to K2, Activities during summit attempts
A serious organizational difficulty had now arisen. Wiessner, Wolfe and Pasang Lama were up at 25,300 feet (7,700 m) at Camp VIII, ready to attempt the summit at 28,251 feet (8,611 m) and believing that supplies were being ferried up to the high camps to support them. Down at Base Camp and Camp II they did not consider they had much to do. At Camps VI and VII were four Sherpas, led by the strong but inexperienced Tse Tendrup, but with no climbers, sirdar or deputy sirdar. Their rushed instructions had simply been to carry supplies further up and it is not clear they had understood, let alone grasped the overall logistical situation.


1939 American Karakoram expedition to K2, Activities during summit attempts, Summit attempts of Wiessner and Pasang Lama, July 17–21
From Camp VIII the final assault on the mountain was being contemplated with little understanding that the supply lines were vestigial. They started climbing on July 17 with Wiessner confident of success.


1939 American Karakoram expedition to K2, Activities during summit attempts, Summit attempts of Wiessner and Pasang Lama, July 17–21
By this time Wiessner had spent 24 days above 22,000 feet (6,700 m) and Wolfe 26 days. They and Pasang Lama climbed strongly but on reaching the bergschrund it was clear that Wolfe could get no further so he returned to VIII. Above the bergschrund the snow was easier. Because they pitched their tent lower than they had hoped, next day they moved Camp IX up to the top of a rock pillar. Later Wiessner was to write of his thoughts at this point


1939 American Karakoram expedition to K2, Activities during summit attempts, Summit attempts of Wiessner and Pasang Lama, July 17–21
"Our position on the mountain was extremely favorable. We had built up a series of fully  stocked camps up the mountain; tents with sleeping bags and provisions for many weeks stood ready at Camps II, IV, VI and VII. Wolfe stood at Camp VIII with further supplies (if indeed, he was not already on the way up to us), and here at Camp IX we had provisions for 6 days and gasoline for a longer period than that."


1939 American Karakoram expedition to K2, Activities during summit attempts, Summit attempts of Wiessner and Pasang Lama, July 17–21
The weather was perfect and the summit was only 2,200 feet (670 m) above them as they launched their summit attempt at the late hour of 09:00 on July 19. They then reached a point of decision: to traverse right to reach a couloir, later known as the "Bottleneck", beside unstable ice from the summit cornice or, alternatively, a technical rock climb to the left free from objective dangers but very difficult for Pasang Lama. Wiessner decided on the rock climb which took nine hours and was of unprecedented difficulty at such an altitude.


1939 American Karakoram expedition to K2, Activities during summit attempts, Summit attempts of Wiessner and Pasang Lama, July 17–21
In fine weather they were now at about 27,450 feet (8,370 m) with only an easy 800-foot (240 m) crossing of the summit snow plateau to the top. Wiessner wanted to travel on through the night but Pasang Lama refused and would not pay out the rope. Wiessner agreed to turn back – he did not attempt the summit by himself – and, despite all the bad feeling that was later to ensue, he never criticized his Sherpa climbing partner. In gathering darkness they went back down the cliffs but while doing so Pasang Lama lost both pairs of crampons he was carrying. Wiessner wrote


1939 American Karakoram expedition to K2, Activities during summit attempts, Summit attempts of Wiessner and Pasang Lama, July 17–21
"We continued down and reached our camp at 2:30 am.


1939 American Karakoram expedition to K2, Activities during summit attempts, Summit attempts of Wiessner and Pasang Lama, July 17–21
I regretted many times on the way down that I had given in. It would have been so much easier for us to go on to the summit and return over the difficult part on the route the next morning.


1939 American Karakoram expedition to K2, Activities during summit attempts, Summit attempts of Wiessner and Pasang Lama, July 17–21
Disappointed that no supplies had arrived at Camp IX they rested next day in very warm weather and on July 21 set off again for the summit, this time choosing the couloir route. This time the snow was in a bad condition and, unable to make adequate progress without their crampons, they returned to Camp IX.


1939 American Karakoram expedition to K2, Activities during summit attempts, Sherpas at Camps VI and VII
For whatever reason, the four Sherpas, left to their own devices and with poor instructions, made no attempt to ferry supplies further up K2. Indeed, Tse Tendrup and Pasang Kitar decided to descend to the more comfortable Camp IV. On July 18 Pasang Kikuli and Dawa Thondup arrived from below and they instructed Tse Tendrup and Pasang Kitar to go back up to Camps VI, VII or even VIII, ferrying goods upwards, and then to wait for news from above.


1939 American Karakoram expedition to K2, Activities during summit attempts, Sherpas at Camps VI and VII
They never got higher than Camp VI except on July 20 when they reached VII with Tse Tendrup venturing further to about 500 feet (150 m) below Camp VIII. Not daring to go on alone he shouted, three times, but got no reply. Seeing signs of recent avalanches he rashly assumed the advance party had all been killed.


1939 American Karakoram expedition to K2, Activities during summit attempts, Sherpas at Camps VI and VII
Back at Camp VII Tse Tendrup persuaded the other Sherpas that everyone aloft had died, and, with only three days before the return home, they decided to descend. Moreover, because they had seen that the lower camps were being stripped they thought it would be helpful to clear Camps VII and VI as they went. By July 23 they were back at Base Camp.


1939 American Karakoram expedition to K2, Activities during summit attempts, At Base Camp and Camp II
On July 18 Cromwell had sent a note up to Durrance asking him to organize retrieving and bringing back down the tents and sleeping bags from Camp IV and below. There was adequate food higher than this and porters were due back from Askole on July 23 for the return journey. Durrance sent the Sherpas up to clear the camps and he himself moved equipment from Camp II down to base. When Pasang Kikuli told Durrance the news from high on the mountain Durrance wrote in his diary "Found out Camp VIII established July 14, Hurrah! ".


1939 American Karakoram expedition to K2, Activities during summit attempts, At Base Camp and Camp II
Also on July 18 Sheldon and Cranmer took their own decision to leave on the return journey giving themselves time to study the geology near Urdukas before reaching home for the start of term at Dartmouth. This left only Cromwell, Durrance and Trench with Sherpas Pasang Kikuli, Sonam and Dawa Thondup. They saw Camp VI had been struck on July 21 and supposed the leading party would be back by July 23, the day the porters were due. However it was the four intermediate Sherpas who arrived down that day – nothing had been seen or heard of Wiessner and party since July 14.


1939 American Karakoram expedition to K2, Wiessner's and Pasang Lama's descent, July 22–24
On July 22 Wiessner and Pasang Lama went down to Camp VIII to collect extra supplies and for Pasang Lama to be replaced by a fresher Sherpa, but, expecting to be going up again immediately, Wiessner left his sleeping bag behind although Pasang Lama took his one. What they found horrified them. Wolfe had been alone all the time, no supplies had arrived, and he had run out of matches, so he could neither cook food nor even melt ice. Wiessner could not understand where the reinforcements were, nor did he realize that, after nine days, people lower down might think he had met disaster.


1939 American Karakoram expedition to K2, Wiessner's and Pasang Lama's descent, July 22–24
All three men went on down to Camp VII, which had been well-stocked last time they had last been there, but on the way Wolfe moved so clumsily that they had a serious fall when roped, almost sending all three down to the Godwin-Austen Glacier; this resulted in injuries around the waist for Pasang Lama and the loss of Wolfe's sleeping bag. Reaching the camp at dusk, they were met with another shock – not only were there no new supplies, but the tents had collapsed under snow; there were no mattresses, only one sleeping bag, and the food was scattered around. Fortunately, they had been left stoves and fuel.


1939 American Karakoram expedition to K2, Wiessner's and Pasang Lama's descent, July 22–24
Wiessner decided that Wolfe should stay at Camp VII while he and Pasang Lama descended, looking for supplies at Camp VI, still intending to make another attempt on the summit. He later said that he agreed to leave Wolfe in camp, at Wolfe's own request, because the weather was good and Wolfe had managed alone before. However, it is possible that, after such a long time at high altitude, either of the two or both men were not thinking clearly.


1939 American Karakoram expedition to K2, Wiessner's and Pasang Lama's descent, July 22–24
Wiessner and Pasang Lama descended, camp by camp, finding little food and no sleeping bags, until finally reaching Base Camp on July 24. Both were utterly exhausted, hardly able to walk, and Pasang Lama was in a very bad way. Wiessner was furious that they had been abandoned on the mountain, accusing first Cromwell, then Tendrup, of attempting to murder them, and threatening legal action. The well-to-do Cromwell, accustomed to polite deference, was appalled, and in turn accused Wiessner of abandoning Wolfe – Cromwell and Wiessner thus became enemies for life. Durrance kept quiet about his own role in clearing the lower camps, deliberately omitting telling Wiesnner that it had been under Cromwell's orders.


1939 American Karakoram expedition to K2, Search for Wolfe, First rescue attempt
With Base Camp packed up and Cromwell and Trench starting off leading the porters back to Askole, Durrance set about trying to rescue Wolfe from Camp VII. On July 25 Durrance wrote "I left with Dawa Thondup, Phinsoo and Pasang Kitar to rescue Dudley". However, for the same day Wiessner's diary said "Jack, Phinsoo, Pasang Kitar, Dawa leave for Camp VII to meet Dudley. Jack, who feels well, may go on another summit attempt with me. I plan to follow tomorrow or in two days with Pasang Lama if he has recovered and if the beautiful weather holds...".


1939 American Karakoram expedition to K2, Search for Wolfe, First rescue attempt
This was an absurd idea and Durrance's sole aim was to try and rescue Wolfe, the only person still on the mountain. Durrance's party set off with orders that Durrance should only go to Camp II and the Sherpas were to climb alone after that. In fact they all reached Camp IV in two days but only two Sherpas had strength to continue so they went on up to Camp VI while Durrance and Dawa Thondup returned to base on July 27.


1939 American Karakoram expedition to K2, Search for Wolfe, Second rescue attempt
On July 28 (it is not clear whether  as volunteers or under orders but more likely as volunteers) Pasang Kikuli and Tsering Norbu left Base Camp at 06:00 and were at Camp IV by noon continuing to Camp VI by the end of the day. By climbing 7,000 feet (2,100 m) in one day they made the sort of alpine-style Himalayan ascent only achieved decades later by western climbers.


1939 American Karakoram expedition to K2, Search for Wolfe, Second rescue attempt
With Tsering Norbu staying at Camp VI, Pasang Kikuli, Pasang Kitar and Phinsoo reached Wolfe at noon, July 29. At Camp VII things were in a terrible condition – no water or warm food; Wolfe was utterly apathetic and, because he was trapped in his tent, covered in urine and feces. He was uninterested in the letters they brought and refused to go down, telling them to return tomorrow when he would be ready. Back at Camp VI the Sherpas were stormbound so it was only on July 31 that the same three Sherpas again attempted the rescue. Pasang Kikuli, Pasang Kitar, Phinsoo and Wolfe were never seen alive again.


1939 American Karakoram expedition to K2, Search for Wolfe, Third rescue attempt
Tsering Norbu waited two days before descending from Camp VI. Starting at 07:30 he ran down the mountain reaching Base Camp early in the afternoon. Durrance wrote "The Sherpas are certain something awful has happened." Wiessner thought differently: "No, it seems impossible that anything should have happened to such an able group." There was no longer anyone with any degree of fitness but Wiessner set off on August 3 with Tsering Norbu and Dawa Thondup taking all day to reach Camp I where Wiessner changed his target for the next day from Camp IV to Camp II.


1939 American Karakoram expedition to K2, Search for Wolfe, Third rescue attempt
A storm blew in and lasted until August 7 when Tsering Norbu claimed that what he had said previously was wrong – they had found Wolfe with no food at all at Camp VII. Even Wiessner now lost all hope: Wolfe and three Sherpa rescuers were all dead. The rescue team managed to get back to base but all of them were in a pitiful state.


1939 American Karakoram expedition to K2, Return to Srinagar
Sheldon and Cranmer were first back home and had little to report since they had left well before the tragedy started.


1939 American Karakoram expedition to K2, Return to Srinagar
Wiessner and Durrance retraced their outward route until at Askole they crossed the Braldu River and went over the 16,630-foot (5,070 m) Skoro La to reach Shigar where they started drafting their report on the expedition. They seemed in accord on the contents and there is no evidence they had any arguments. They rafted down the Shigar River to Skardu where they again departed from their previous route by trekking to Gurais from where they telegraphed a number of reports, including to The Times of India.


1939 American Karakoram expedition to K2, Return to Srinagar
On August 27 at Bandipora they met Cromwell and, according to Durrance's personal diary which provides the only evidence, when he saw the draft report he was enraged. He shouted that Wiessner had murdered Wolfe and the Sherpas. Not only this but Cromwell and Trench had already been at Srinagar where they had been making their views known to the British community. Cromwell had also cabled the AAC to give them their first news of the failure of the expedition.


1939 American Karakoram expedition to K2, Return to Srinagar
On August 28 when they reached Srinagar the final draft of the expedition report was ready. This, and letters that had been sent by Cromwell and Trench to the AAC, were to cause major arguments, possibly exacerbated by the imminence of war in Europe.


1939 American Karakoram expedition to K2, Repercussions in Srinagar
Durrance, knowing about the incendiary nature of Cromwell's and Trench's letters and after speaking with Hadow, decided he would not raise any complaints about Wiessner's leadership and he kept quiet until after Wiessner's death. D.M. Fraser, the British Resident for Kashmir, succeeded in blocking Cromwell's and Trench's letters but he read out both of them toEdward Millar Groth, the US Consulate General for Calcutta, who happened to be at Srinagar. Both letters then went missing with no record being kept.


1939 American Karakoram expedition to K2, Repercussions in Srinagar
At Fraser's request Groth held a meeting with Wiessner and Durrance (it lasted seven hours) and then at the US Secretary of State's request wrote an official report for Washington. Groth dismissed Trench's letter as superficial and not worthy of credence whereas Cromwell's accusations he considered vindictive and exaggerated although they also contained some slight elements of truth.


1939 American Karakoram expedition to K2, Repercussions in Srinagar, Wiessner's report
Wiessner's report to the AAC blandly described the sequence of major events during the expedition with particular praise for Pasang Kikuli and Tsering Norbu. He justified Wolfe being left at Camp VII because Wiessner and Pasang Lama had intended returning up from Camp VI with additional supplies and equipment. However, each lower camp had been inexplicably cleared so they were unable to go back up. He did not lay any blame for the expedition's shortcomings, simply saying the conditions were adverse and people had become ill and exhausted.


1939 American Karakoram expedition to K2, Repercussions in Srinagar, Groth's report
Groth's September 13 report to the US Secretary of State enclosed Wiessner's report to the AAC but Groth's report itself was not made public nor was it communicated to the AAC. He acknowledged that Durrance had provided additional information over that supplied by Wiessner. He accepted Wiessner's report but said he thought there had been personality clashes that might be due to someone with a German temperament leading American climbers. He thought Wiessner was a good climber and leader but had been too forceful and abrupt. He felt the Americans had made insufficient effort to understand him and that some, particularly those paying their own expenses, had wrongly felt entitled to have an equal say in the running of the expedition.


1939 American Karakoram expedition to K2, Repercussions in Srinagar, Groth's report
Groth considered the accident was due to a combination of circumstances for which Wiessner could not be held solely responsible but that Wiessner should have taken far greater care in selecting the expedition's members bearing in mind climbing ability and temperament. He thought it might be that Wolfe, because of his financial contribution, had induced Wiessner into allowing him to climb too high. Tse Tendrup's false report of the deaths of the three leading climbers should not have been believed so readily. He praised the Sherpas who volunteered to try to rescue Wolfe and did not blame Wiessner for allowing their attempt. He criticized Cromwell and Trench for returning early to Srinagar and considered Trench had been entirely unsatisfactory on the expedition.


1939 American Karakoram expedition to K2, Return to America
Delayed by the outbreak of war on September 1, 1939, Wiessner flew to Cairo on September 20 from where he returned by ship. Durrance, happy the expedition was over, stayed in India for several more weeks and only reached home at the end of the year. Back in America Cromwell again accused Wiessner of murdering Wolfe. Also, Wiessner gave an unfortunate interview to the New York Times saying, in his German accent, that on high mountains, as in war, one must expect casualties.


1939 American Karakoram expedition to K2, Return to America
A very public controversy started with people, including mountaineers, taking both sides but with a lot of criticism of Wiessner for abandoning Wolfe. These had been the first deaths on an American overseas mountaineering expedition and there were many recriminations. Fearing a split in its membership the American Alpine Club set up a committee to inquire into the matter and the bland report that resulted merely stated that it was the members of the expedition who could best account for what had happened. Wiessner and Cromwell both resigned from the AAC.


1939 American Karakoram expedition to K2, Later controversy
Although criticism of Wiessner lingered, matters calmed down until in 1956 Wiessner published a book (in German) about the expedition and an article in the American mountaineering magazine Appalachia. He raised the matter of the camps having been cleared while the lead climbers were still high on the mountain – something that had previously been glossed over. Wiessner wrote that on June 23, 1939 he had picked up a crumpled note from the floor of Camp II after his descent from Camp VII. This note had never been mentioned before.


1939 American Karakoram expedition to K2, Later controversy
It was written by Durrance (Wiessner recognized the handwriting) and it gave congratulations for reaching the summit and it said that Durrance on the previous day had ordered all the sleeping bags to be taken down from Camp IV and that next day (June 19, 1939) all the tents and sleeping bags, including those at Camp II, were being removed to Base Camp. Durrance did not attempt to refute this story and so vehement criticism was directed against him for betraying Wiessner. Wiessner gained rehabilitation, being elected as an honorary member of the AAC in 1966, and by the 1980s the American mountaineering community had developed a great admiration for him.


1939 American Karakoram expedition to K2, Later controversy
In the 1980s Andrew Kauffman and William Putnamstarted researching to write Wiessner's biography. In 1984 Wiessner had told Putnam he had passed the crumpled note to a member of the AAC committee of inquiry without keeping any copy. The note was never reported on and has since vanished without trace, despite careful searches. Interviewed by Kauffman in 1986–1987, Durrance broke his silence to say that he had no memory of leaving such a note. Wiessner died in 1988 and  only then in 1989 Durrance for the first time made his personal, handwritten diary available.


1939 American Karakoram expedition to K2, Later controversy
It records that Cromwell decided to clear the camps and wrote a note to the Sherpas at Camp VII asking them to do this. Changing their book from a biography to one about the expedition, in 1992 the authors wrote that they found Durrance's diary reliable and they believe the most likely explanation is that, if there was a note, it was written by Cromwell for sending up to the Sherpas at Camp VII. Durrance had been keeping quiet for fifty years to protect Wiessner and Cromwell who had also recently died.


1939 American Karakoram expedition to K2, Later controversy
They also regarded it as a serious error that Wolfe was left up at Camp VII while the others descended. Cromwell's decision to clear Camps IV and below was not as unreasonable as it seemed because he had no reason to think Camps VII and VI would be cleared – the Sherpas cleared the higher ones either through misunderstanding their orders or because, believing the lead climbers were dead and seeing the lower camps were being stripped, they assumed the higher camps were no longer needed.


1939 American Karakoram expedition to K2, Later controversy
In 1961 Fosco Maraini described it as "one of the worst tragedies in the climbing history of the Himalaya". On the other hand, in his 2013 book Jim Curran remarks that the expedition was so nearly an outstanding success. On his summit push, if Wiessner had chosen the easier route up "Bottleneck Couloir", they might have reached the top and been able to return to Camp IX all in the one day. With Sherpas and equipment still in place at the high camps they would probably all have been able to return safely. They would have been the first people to climb an eight-thousand-metre mountain and would have succeeded without bottled oxygen. There would have been no recriminations.


1939 Argentine Primera División
The 1939 Argentine Primera División was the 48th season of top-flight football in Argentina. The season began on March 19 and ended on December 2. There were 18 teams in the tournament that was won by Independiente achieving its 4th league title.


1939 Argentine Primera División
A total of three teams joined the division: Argentino de Quilmes (promoted last year) and two clubs from regional Liga Rosarina, Rosario Central and Newell's Old Boys.


1939 Argentine Primera División
Paraguayan forward Arsenio Erico became topscorer for the 3rd. consecutive time, with 40 goals.


1939 Arizona State Bulldogs football team
The 1939 Arizona State Bulldogs football team was an American football team that represented Arizona State Teachers College (later renamed Arizona State University) in the Border Conference during the 1939 college football season. In their second season under head coach Dixie Howell, the Bulldogs compiled an 8–2–1 record (4–0 against Border opponents), won the conference championship, played to a scoreless tie against Catholic University in the 1940 Sun Bowl, and outscored their opponents by a combined total of 212 to 56. The team captains were Wiley Aker and Noble Riggs. The Bulldogs finished 6-0 at home, 2-2 on the road, and 0-0-1 on a neutral site. Hilman Walker was an assistant coach. All home games were played at Goodwin Stadium in Tempe, Arizona.


1939 Arizona State Bulldogs football team, Game summaries, Regular season
In the season opener, Arizona State delivered a 20-0 road shutout victory over San Diego State. The Bulldogs produced another shutout in their home opener, as they beat West Texas State 19-0 in Tempe. Arizona State shut out Cal Poly 35-0 at Goodwin Stadium, as halfback Hascall Henshaw scored a touchdown on a 91-yard kickoff return. The Bulldogs prevailed for a 28-0 home win against Whittier. Arizona State earned a 7-0 road win at New Mexico State, marking their fifth consecutive shutout victory to begin the season. The Bulldogs outlasted Texas-El Paso, 27-7, in Tempe.


1939 Arizona State Bulldogs football team, Game summaries, Regular season
Arizona State's six-game winning streak was snapped in a 19-7 road loss at Hardin-Simmons. The Bulldogs responded with a convincing 41-6 home victory over NAU. Arizona State delivered a 28-6 win against New Mexico at Goodwin Stadium. In the regular season finale, the Bulldogs suffered an 18-0 road loss to the San Diego Marines.


1939 Arizona State Bulldogs football team, Game summaries, 1940 Sun Bowl
On January 1, 1940, Arizona State played to a 0-0 tie against Catholic University in the 1940 Sun Bowl. The game was played at Kidd Field in El Paso, Texas with a crowd of 13,000 persons in attendance. It marked the only meeting between the teams in school history. The Bulldogs held Catholic University to only four first downs, but Arizona State lost four fumbles and threw several interceptions. Fullback Wayne Pitts had 15 carries for 89 rushing yards for Arizona State. It was the first  bowl game in Arizona State school history.


1939 Arizona State Bulldogs football team, Roster
The usual Arizona State lineup included left end Bob Lackey, left tackle Mark Kalastro, left guard Albert Sanserino, center Bob Walberg, right guard Louis Rappaport, right tackle Ted Anderson, right end Sam Andrews, quarterback Walt Ruth, halfbacks Wiley Aker and Hascall Henshaw, and fullback Bill Davis.


1939 Arizona State Bulldogs football team, Roster
Ted Anderson, John Balshor, Leo Burns, Dominic Campolo, and Frank Consentino were also on roster.


1939 Arizona State Bulldogs football team, Awards and honors
Halfback Joe Hernandez, fullback Wayne Pitts, and guards Noble Riggs and Albert Sanserino each earned All-Border Conference honors for the 1939 football season.


1939 Arizona Wildcats football team
The 1939 Arizona Wildcats football team represented the University of Arizona in the Border Conference during the 1939 college football season. In their first season under head coach Mike Casteel, the Wildcats compiled a 6–4 record (1–2 against Border opponents), finished in fourth place in the conference, and were outscored by their opponents, 113 to 109. The team captain was Tom Hargis. The team played its home games at Arizona Stadium in Tucson, Arizona.


1939 Arkansas Razorbacks football team
The 1939 Arkansas Razorbacks football team represented the University of Arkansas in the Southwest Conference (SWC) during the 1939 college football season. In their 11th year under head coach Fred Thomsen, the Razorbacks compiled a 4–5–1 record (2–3–1 against SWC opponents), finished in fifth place in the SWC, and were outscored by their opponents by a combined total of 117 to 115.


1939 Army Cadets football team
The 1939 Army Cadets football team represented the United States Military Academy in the 1939 college football season. In their second year under head coach William H. Wood, the Cadets compiled a 3–4–2 record and outscored their opponents by a combined total of 106 to 105. In the annual Army–Navy Game, the Midshipmen won 10–0. The Cadets' three other losses came against Yale, Notre Dame, and Harvard.


1939 Army Cadets football team
Army tackle Harry Stella was selected by the United Press (UP), International News Service (INS), and Newsweek magazine as a first-team player on the All-America team.


1939 Ashton-under-Lyne by-election
The Ashton-under-Lyne by-election, 1939 was a by-election held for the British House of Commons constituency of Ashton-under-Lyne on 28 October 1939. The seat had become vacant on the death of the Labour Member of Parliament Fred Simpson, who had held the seat since the 1935 general election.


1939 Ashton-under-Lyne by-election
The Labour candidate, William Jowitt, was returned unopposed. He represented the constituency until he was elevated to the peerage as Earl Jowitt shortly after the 1945 general election.


1939 Atlantic hurricane season
The 1939 Atlantic hurricane season was the least active since 1930. The season had below normal activity, with only six tropical storms, of which two became hurricanes and one became a major hurricane, equivalent to Category 3 status or higher on the modern-day Saffir–Simpson scale. The first tropical cyclone formed on June 12, and the last dissipated on November 6. These dates are within the period of each year when most tropical cyclones form in the Atlantic basin.


1939 Atlantic hurricane season
All of the storms affected land to some extent. The first two cyclones of the season made landfall along the coast of the United States, collectively causing only minor damage. Hurricane Five, the strongest of the year, peaked as a Category 4 hurricane on the modern-day Saffir–Simpson scale with maximum sustained winds of 140 mph (220 km/h) and a minimum atmospheric pressure of 941 mbar (27.8 inHg). It took a northeastern path through the western Atlantic, striking Bermuda on October 16. The fifth and final storm was a minimal hurricane that wrought damage throughout the western Caribbean Sea, most notably in Jamaica and Cuba.


1939 Atlantic hurricane season
The season's activity was reflected with an accumulated cyclone energy (ACE) rating of 34 units, far below the 1931–1943 average of 91.2. ACE is a metric used to express the energy used by a tropical cyclone during its lifetime. Therefore, a storm with a longer duration will have high values of ACE. It is only calculated at six-hour increments in which specific tropical and subtropical systems are either at or above sustained wind speeds of 39 mph (63 km/h), which is the threshold for tropical storm intensity. Thus, tropical depressions are not included here.


1939 Atlantic hurricane season, Systems, Tropical Storm One
The first tropical storm of the season developed in the extreme western Caribbean Sea on June 12. Reports of the storm first came from the Mexican Weather Service office in Chetumal, Quintana Roo, and during the afternoon of June 12, vessels just offshore recorded squally conditions and choppy seas. The cyclone moved northward, parallel to the coast of Belize, before moving over the northeastern corner of the Yucatán Peninsula.


1939 Atlantic hurricane season, Systems, Tropical Storm One
It continued steadily northward through the Gulf of Mexico, slowly strengthening to a peak of 50 mph (85 km/h) on June 14 with a minimum central pressure of 1,000 mbar (30 inHg). An area of high pressure to the north caused the storm to execute a counter-clockwise loop. A trough of low pressure turned it back to the north, and the cyclone made landfall near Mobile, Alabama, as a minimal tropical storm on June 16. Turning to the northwest, it quickly weakened to a tropical depression and dissipated on June 17 over Mississippi.


1939 Atlantic hurricane season, Systems, Tropical Storm One
In advance of the system, officials issued storm warnings for coastal areas of Alabama and western Florida, and residents in low-lying areas were advised to seek higher ground. Damage associated with the cyclone was generally minor, and only one life was lost when a boy fell into the swollen waters of a river and drowned.


1939 Atlantic hurricane season, Systems, Hurricane Two
On August 7, a tropical storm formed north of the Leeward Islands, likely from a tropical wave. It tracked to the west-northwest, slowly strengthening to a hurricane as it moved through the Bahamas on August 11. Later that day, it struck the east coast of Florida near Stuart, and crossed the state in around 15 hours. After weakening to a tropical storm, it quickly re-strengthened upon emerging into the Gulf of Mexico, and made another landfall near Apalachicola, Florida, on August 13. Over land, the cyclone slowed considerably and quickly deteriorated.


1939 Atlantic hurricane season, Systems, Hurricane Two
By August 14, the storm had weakened to a tropical depression as it drifted through Alabama. The depression turned to the northeast, and remained a tropical depression until it dissipated just offshore New Jersey on August 20. Due to timely reports and warnings, the storm was reportedly forecast with "exceptional accuracy".


1939 Atlantic hurricane season, Systems, Hurricane Two
In Florida, damage was minor, amounting to uprooted trees, broken windows, moderate crop damage, and downed power lines. A few flimsy structures and small watercraft also sustained damage. Along the Florida Panhandle, the storm's winds impacted power, telephone, and telegraph lines, and inflicted $2,000 worth of damage to a dock warehouse. A man in Cedar Key, Florida, drowned after rough surf overturned his rowboat, and at least two other people suffered minor storm-related injuries. Torrential rain fell in Alabama as a result of the storm's slow forward movement, leading to severe flooding. Further inland, the storm spawned a tornado in North Carolina which caused one death. As the depression continued heading inland, it dropped heavy precipitation throughout the Mid-Atlantic States, exceeding 14 in (360 mm) in Tuckerton, New Jersey, and 18 in (460 mm) in Manahawkin, New Jersey.


1939 Atlantic hurricane season, Systems, Tropical Storm Three
An operationally unnoticed tropical storm developed on August 15. At its peak, sustained winds were 65 mph (100 km/h) and the minimum pressure of 1,000 mbar (30 inHg). By August 19, the storm dissipated.


1939 Atlantic hurricane season, Systems, Tropical Storm Four
An area of disturbed weather over Central America organized into a tropical storm in the Bay of Campeche on September 23. Uneventfully, it moved generally north-northeastward through the Gulf of Mexico and its winds strengthened to a peak of 50 mph (85 km/h). The storm made landfall on south-central Louisiana on September 26, and dissipated later that day. The Weather Bureau office in New Orleans posted numerous advisories, although the effects from the storm were minimal.


1939 Atlantic hurricane season, Systems, Hurricane Five
On the afternoon of October 9, reports from the Leeward Islands of low pressures and unsettled weather indicated that a storm was forming in the vicinity. The disturbance strengthened into a tropical storm on October 12 to the northeast of Puerto Rico. The quickly escalating storm tracked northwestward before turning towards the northeast, away from a high pressure area building in from the west. Early on October 15, the storm attained hurricane intensity and continued to mature until October 16, when it reached its peak at a strength corresponding to Category 4 status on the modern-day Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Scale. That same day it passed just east of Bermuda. It weakened as it accelerated to the northeast, and became extratropical near Newfoundland a couple of days later.


1939 Atlantic hurricane season, Systems, Hurricane Five
Numerous ships encountered the hurricane along its course. On the President Harding, en route to New York, one crew member drowned due to the rough conditions and 73 crew and passengers suffered injury, of various severity, requiring a call for emergency medical supplies. The ship itself sustained a bit of damage. As the storm passed near the island of Bermuda, it generated strong winds—gusting to 131 mph (211 km/h)—and heavy precipitation. Damage was fairly significant; the winds uprooted trees, shattered windows, and disrupted public utilities. In Newfoundland, the remnants of the storm destroyed a house in St. John's and caused minor flooding in other areas of the province. Six people drowned offshore Newfoundland.


1939 Atlantic hurricane season, Systems, Hurricane Six
On October 29, the fifth and final known tropical cyclone of the season developed in the western Caribbean Sea from a tropical wave. It initially moved northwestward, but turned toward the east shortly thereafter. Drifting due eastward, the storm grew into a minimal hurricane on October 31 while passing over the Cayman Islands. The hurricane's center passed just north of the island of Jamaica later that day as it weakened back into a tropical storm. Eventually, the storm turned abruptly northeastward and crossed the eastern tip of Cuba. By November 3, it had emerged into the Atlantic and entered the southern Bahamas. Beginning to accelerate, the tropical storm passed to the west of Bermuda before becoming extratropical on November 6.


1939 Atlantic hurricane season, Systems, Hurricane Six
At Grand Cayman, winds from the storm reached 92 mph (148 km/h) with a minimum pressure of 990 mbar (29 inHg). According to press reports, the hurricane inflicted considerable damage on the Cayman Islands. In northern Jamaica, property damage was also widespread. The hurricane brought heavy rainfall, high winds, and pounding surf to the island, leaving one dead. Another death was reported in Cuba, where the torrential rains also caused extensive flooding and losses to livestock and crops.


1939 Atlantic hurricane season, Systems, Tropical depressions
In addition to the six systems reaching at least tropical storm intensity, there were four cyclones that remained a tropical depression. A tropical wave developed into a tropical depression over the eastern Gulf of Mexico just offshore Florida on July 7. The depression moved generally westward and struck southern Texas on July 11 and dissipated on the following day. Houston observed a sustained wind speed of 46 mph (74 km/h). However, no weather stations farther south observed tropical storm-force winds, while the wind speed recorded in Houston may have been associated with a squall line in advance of a frontal system. Thus, the Atlantic hurricane reanalysis project did not retroactively upgrade the depression to a tropical storm.


1939 Atlantic hurricane season, Systems, Tropical depressions
On August 19, a disturbance that may have detached from Tropical Storm Five developed into a tropical depression. However, the depression was soon absorbed by a frontal system. Another depression formed from a tropical wave near Bermuda on August 25. The cyclone moved northeastward for a few days, before transitioning into an extratropical cyclone on August 28 and then being absorbed by a frontal system. Early on September 30, another tropical depression developed over the central Atlantic. The depression initially moved southeastward and later curved to the south before degenerating into a tropical wave on October 3.


1939 Auburn Tigers football team
The 1939 Auburn Tigers football team represented Auburn University in the 1939 college football season. The Tigers' were led by head coach Jack Meagher in his sixth season and finished the season with a record of five wins, five losses and one tie (5–5–1 overall, 3–3–1 in the SEC).


1939 Auckland Rugby League season
Mount Albert United won their first ever Fox Memorial Shield title with a 13 win, 1 draw, 2 loss record. North Shore Albions were 6 competition points further back. After 12 rounds Mount Albert (17) trailed North Shore (18) by one competition point before North Shore could only secure a win and a draw from their last 5 matches while Mount Albert won all five to run away with the title.


1939 Auckland Rugby League season
Marist Old Boys beat Mount Albert in the Roope Rooster final 13–11. This was the 5th time Marist had won the Roope Rooster. A week later Mount Albert beat Marist 15–9 to win the Stormont Shield (champion of champions) for the first time. City Rovers won the Phelan Shield when they beat Richmond Rovers 15–12 in the final. This was the first time they had won the Phelan Shield which was played for by first round losers in the Roope Rooster.


1939 Auckland Rugby League season
Richmond won the reserve grade competition ahead of Mount Albert and Ponsonby Ponies. They also won the reserve grade knockout competition (Stallard Cup) when they beat Otahuhu Rovers in the final. Otahuhu had competed in the senior B grade but asked to compete for the Stallard Cup after they had won the senior B championship (Sharman Cup). Otahuhu also won the senior B knockout competition beating Ellerslie United 5–3 in the final. Ellerslie claimed the Foster Shield.


1939 Auckland Rugby League season
The representative season to an extent was focussed on helping the selectors choose the New Zealand team to tour England and France. Auckland played matches against South Auckland and Wellington while the traditional Inter-Island match was also played at Carlaw Park. Two New Zealand trial matches were played at the same venue and were heavily populated by Auckland players. The Tāmaki (Auckland Māori) side played 2 matches against Auckland Pākehā with the sides splitting them, one win a piece. On June 11 the Māori side played South Auckland in Huntly with the South Auckland team winning.


1939 Auckland Rugby League season
They also played the first ever Bay of Plenty Māori side for the Waitangi Shield with the teams deadlocked 3–3 at full time. Another Waitangi Shield defence was scheduled for August 31 but was postponed due to bad weather. It was then cancelled altogether because of petrol restrictions due to the looming outbreak of war meaning the Taranaki Māori side couldn't get a license to travel. At the start of the season an Eastern Suburbs side (though with several players from other clubs) visited Auckland and played 4 matches against Auckland club sides. They beat Marist (22-9), lost to Richmond (16-17), lost to Mount Albert (11-16), and then beat Manukau (23-10).


1939 Auckland Rugby League season, Auckland Rugby League news, Annual meeting
The report which was to be presented at the annual meeting on March 8 stated that “there was again a marked increase in revenue from gate and grandstand receipts and ground rates, the respective figures being: 1937, £3410; 1938, £3761 18s 5d [ with] the tour of the Sydney Eastern Suburbs team [being] a material factor in this increase. There had been an increase in expenditure from £160 to £312 due to the increased length of the season, more travel, and more insurance payments to cover injured players hospital treatment.


1939 Auckland Rugby League season, Auckland Rugby League news, Annual meeting
The surplus for the season to be transferred to the appropriation account was £1439. Grants to clubs had amounted to £628 4s 7d. Mention was also made of the loss of several “notable stalwarts, including the late Messrs. C. Seagar, William James Liversidge, T. Bellamy, and R. Badiley”. The annual meeting was held on March 8 with Mr. John A. Lee, M.P. presiding. He said that “the code was steadily progressing so far as the quality of players and public esteem were concerned”. Ivan Culpan was congratulated on reaching his twenty-first year in office.


1939 Auckland Rugby League season, Auckland Rugby League news, Annual meeting
Mr. G. Grey Campbell referred to the generosity of vice-president, Mr. R.H. Wood who had presented “the handsome Edith Wood Roll of Honour for the inscription of the names of men who had given 25 years of continuous special service. The gift was dedicated to the memory of the donor’s wife. The memorial was draped with the flags of all the clubs”.


1939 Auckland Rugby League season, Auckland Rugby League news, Annual meeting
Election of officers were as follows:-Patron Mr. J.F.W. Dickson; president, Mr. John A. Lee, M.P. ; vice-presidents, Sir Ernest Davis, Messrs. J. Donald, C. Drysdale, H. Grange, R.J. Land, W.J. Lovatt, E. Morton, Frederick William Schramm, M.P., W. Wallace, W.H. Brien, L. Coakly, H. Luke, R.D. Bagnall, O. Blackwood, E. Montgomery, T.G. Symonds, G.T. Wright, R.H. Benson, auditors being Messrs. Allan Moody, E. Grey and J.C. Gleeson; trustees, Messrs. G. Grey Campbell (chairman) and E.J. Phelan and A. Stormont; control board, Messrs. G. Grey Campbell (chairman), E.J. Phelan (deputy), John F. McAneny, T. Davis, J.W. Probert and Jim Rukutai (re-elected by clubs), William Mincham (Referees’ Association), D. Wilkie (chairman junior management), R. Doble (delegate to New Zealand Council), Mr. Ivan Culpan (hon.


1939 Auckland Rugby League season, Auckland Rugby League news, Annual meeting
secretary) and Mr. J.E. Knowling (hon. treasurer); auditor, Mr. Robert Arthur Spinley; solicitor, Mr. H.M. Rogerson; time keepers, Messrs. T. Hill and A.E. Chapman; representatives n referees appointment board, Messrs. R. Benson with T. Davis as deputy; appointment board, Messrs. Percy Rogers, R. Benson and G. Grey Campbell; committees were allocated the same as last year; hon physicians, Drs. F.J. Gwynne, H.N. Holdgate, S. Morris, G.W. Lock, J.N. Waddell, M.G. Pezaro, H. Burrell and W. Bridgman.


1939 Auckland Rugby League season, Auckland Rugby League news, Annual meeting
Following R. Doble's July appointment as co-manager of the New Zealand team to tour England and France a reshuffle was needed of officials at Auckland Rugby League. Mr. Francis Thomas McAneny was asked to deputise on the New Zealand Council pending a permanent appointment. Mr. E. Chapman was chosen as Press and call steward at Carlaw Park and Mr. Probert was elected to the insurance committee.


1939 Auckland Rugby League season, Auckland Rugby League news, Junior Control Board
Their annual report from the 1938 season stated that fifty five teams took part in junior competitions with 1123 players registered. The ladies social committee “paid over 200 visits to the sick and needy” with many players expressing their “thanks for their generosity and kindness”. The ladies committee also managed all the social functions of the control board. In 1937 club delegates had formed the Amalgamated Senior Clubs’ Officers Association and through their efforts £300 had been contributed to help players in need.


1939 Auckland Rugby League season, Auckland Rugby League news, Honours board
At the control board meeting on February 15 “consideration was given to the list of names to be inscribed on the honours’ board, which will be a record of those who have given 25 years of continuous service to the code in Auckland". At their March 1 meeting chairman Campbell “stated that the roll of honour … would be unveiled at the annual meeting” the following week.


1939 Auckland Rugby League season, Auckland Rugby League news, Honours board
At the annual meeting on March 8 the memorial was unveiled with the names being D.W. Mclean, founder of the New Zealand Rugby League, and James Carlaw (deceased), Messrs. Ernie Asher, R.H. Benson, A.J. Ferguson, Ivan Culpan, B Longbottom, C. Raynes, A. Campney, Freeman Thompson, W.J. Liversidge, W. Mincham, and M.J. Hooper. Chairman Campbell said that other names were to be added. On August 7 Mr. W. Mincham reported that the name of Mr. Les Edgar Bull was being added to the Roll of Honour board. He was the association president and had been a key figure in Auckland refereeing for many years.


1939 Auckland Rugby League season, Auckland Rugby League news, Pre-season
At the board of control meeting on February 22 it was decided to notify clubs that Carlaw Park “would be available for regular training after next Saturday and to engage a coach to attend the park to conduct free physical culture and loosening exercises for players from 7:30 pm to 8pm tonight week and the following Tuesday and Thursday evenings” with “his services open to all players”. At the same meeting the board congratulated Verdun Scott of the North Shore Albions who had scored a record 235 not out recently in club cricket.


1939 Auckland Rugby League season, Auckland Rugby League news, Sydney combined side tour
It was organised that the Balmain club would tour Auckland playing three matches over the Easter weekend before returning to Australia to begin their season. A week later however the club informed the authorities in New Zealand that they would not be able to come as "several players were not available". The Auckland Rugby League then engaged in a “lengthy radio-telephone conversation with Australia” on February 15 that left them “practically certain that one of the leading club teams of Sydney will play at Carlaw Park at Easter in lieu of Balmain”.


1939 Auckland Rugby League season, Auckland Rugby League news, Sydney combined side tour
Ray Stehr of Eastern Suburbs had also been reported as saying that he could get together a very strong composite team made up of Eastern Suburbs and Balmain players to tour. The team was eventually granted permission to tour and four matches were arranged for Carlaw Park against Marist, Richmond, Mount Albert, and Manukau.


1939 Auckland Rugby League season, Auckland Rugby League news, Sydney combined side tour
The touring side was particularly strong and included good players from several clubs: Jim Sharman, J. Robinson (W. Suburbs), Frank Hyde, Jim Quealey, Jack Redman, Frank Griffiths, George Watt (Balmain), Roy Thompson (N. Sydney), Don Manson (S. Sydney), Aub Mitchell (Canterbury-Bankstown), Fred Tottey, Rod O'Loan, Laurie Pickup, Jack McCarthy, Jack Arnold, Harry Pierce, and Ray Stehr (E. Suburbs). The tour raised £300 for the injured players fund.


1939 Auckland Rugby League season, Auckland Rugby League news, Sydney combined side tour
Before the kickoff of the first match between Marist and Sydney XIII both teams stood in silence and wore arm bands as a mark of respect for the late Prime Minister of Australia, Mr. Joseph Lyons who had died in office 13 days earlier on April 7. Robert Grotte was sent off for Marist and was later suspended for 2 games. John Anderson, normally one of the most reliable place kickers in New Zealand missed 5 first half shots at goal and another in the second half, while Murdoch also missed one.


1939 Auckland Rugby League season, Auckland Rugby League news, Sydney combined side tour
Broadhead had to leave the field injured early in the second half for Richmond. A relay race was run during the afternoon between 4 senior club teams including the Sydney side. The Ponsonby team won by 2 yards ahead of Sydney with Brian Riley, Arthur Kay, Jack Campbell, and P Young running for the winners.


1939 Auckland Rugby League season, Auckland Rugby League news, Harold Milliken, Dave Solomon and Bruce Donaldson switch codes
It was reported on March 21 that Harold Milliken, an All Black in 1937-38 was moving from Christchurch to Auckland and would play for the Papakura club. At the same time the Auckland rugby representative five eighth, Bruce Donaldson also switched codes and joined the Mount Albert side. He ultimately topped the point scoring for the season with 117 points. On May 20 Dave Solomon who had played for the All Blacks in 1935-36 switched to rugby league and joined Richmond. He debuted for them in their May 20 match with Papakura.


1939 Auckland Rugby League season, Auckland Rugby League news, Return of Bob Banham, George Nepia, and Hawea Mataira
Bob Banham the Australian who had been recruited by Auckland Rugby League in 1938 as a player-coach was returning to Auckland for the 1939 season. The previous year he had played and coached at North Shore Albions (5 games), and City Rovers (12 games), with 2 other appearances for Newton Rangers as a guest. Mount Albert United had secured his services as a player coach. Hawea Mataira, who had played for City Rovers in 1937 before returning to the East Coast for 1938 was once again back in Auckland and playing for his former side. George Nepia had also returned to Auckland to play for Manukau Rovers. He had played for them briefly in 1938 before leaving for Gisborne after he pulled out of the New Zealand team to tour Australia for personal reasons. He was joining Manukau as a player -coach.


1939 Auckland Rugby League season, Auckland Rugby League news, Newmarket Rugby League Football Club revival
On February 6 a special meeting was held at the Municipal Hall for the Newmarket Rugby League Football Club and they were “revived” as a result. The mayor of Newmarket was presiding over the meeting. The Auckland Rugby League granted them affiliation as a junior club. The club had last fielded junior teams in 1931 when they won the 6th grade A competition, after starting out with a solitary schoolboys side in 1926.


1939 Auckland Rugby League season, Auckland Rugby League news, Carlaw Park
Improvements were made to the Carlaw Park entrance gates with the work completed by May 6 at a cost of £200. Work was also intended to be carried out on the “eastern end of the grandstand, to prevent rain beating in”.


1939 Auckland Rugby League season, Auckland Rugby League news, Obituaries, William James Barningham Liversidge
On December 26, 1938, William Liversidge had a heart attack and died in the pavilion of the Auckland Bowling Club whilst competing in a bowls tournament. He was aged just 50 at the time of his death. Liversidge was a member of the Men's fours national champions in 1935 from the Grey Lynn club along with Auckland referee and father of Ted Mincham, William Mincham. He had been involved in Auckland rugby league "since its inception" and was a life member of the Auckland Rugby League.


1939 Auckland Rugby League season, Auckland Rugby League news, Obituaries, William James Barningham Liversidge
He had also been on the committee of the Maritime Football Club from 1919 onwards. At the Auckland control board meeting on February 2 chairman Campbell said that "Mr Liversidge was a progressive administrator of ability and for many years had served the game well, giving keen support to the Auckland League as well as to the national management". Liversidge was an employee of the waterworks department of the City Council. He was buried at Waikumete Cemetery on the 28th.


1939 Auckland Rugby League season, Auckland Rugby League news, Representative season
At the control board meeting on March 15 there were four nominations for the three positions of Auckland selectors. As the result of a ballot Messrs. Hec Brisbane, Bert Avery, and Bill Cloke were elected. Auckland played two matches, the first against South Auckland (Waikato) on August 5 resulting in a 26–17 win while they defeated Wellington 23–9 on September 2. An Auckland Pākehā side played the Tamaki (Auckland Māori) side on two occasions with the Māori side winning the first 19-15 (June 5), and the Pākehā side the second 15-12 (September 30).


1939 Auckland Rugby League season, Auckland Rugby League news, Representative season
The Māori side also played a Bay of Plenty Māori team on August 24 with the match drawn 3-3. Other matches were played by Māori teams against South Auckland sides but the results were not well reported. They were also scheduled to play against the Taranaki Māori side but the match was postponed due to the weather and then cancelled due to government imposed petrol restrictions with war looming.


1939 Auckland Rugby League season, Auckland Rugby League news, Representative season
the annual inter-island match between the North Island and South Island was also played at Carlaw Park and was won 35-13 by the North Island which was dominated by Auckland players as was the norm. There were also 2 New Zealand trial matches played at Carlaw Park again featuring a large number of Auckland players.


1939 Auckland Rugby League season, Auckland Rugby League news, Auckland players chosen for New Zealand tour of England and France
In July the New Zealand team to tour England and France was named in 3 stages. The following players from Auckland were selected:- Bob Banham (Mount Albert), Tom Chase (Manukau), Jack Hemi (Manukau), Ross Jones (North Shore), Arthur Kay, Bert Leatherbarrow, Hawea Mataira (City), Arthur McInnarney (Mount Albert), George Mitchell (Richmond), Harold Milliken (Papakura), Laurie Mills (Richmond), Pita Ririnui (Manukau), Verdun Scott (North Shore), Jack Smith, Dave Solomon (Richmond), Ivor Stirling (North Shore), Wally Tittleton (Richmond). The Auckland Rugby League chairman, Mr. G. Grey Campbell was appointed co-manager for the tour, along with Mr. J.A. Redwood.


1939 Auckland Rugby League season, Auckland Rugby League news, Auckland players chosen for New Zealand tour of England and France
On July 15 a complimentary dinner was held at Hotel Auckland in the evening to farewell the managers and Auckland players selected. The team was toasted by Mr. J.A. Lee, M.P., and replied to by Bob Banham and Hawea Mataira. Each of “the Auckland players was presented with a travelling case on behalf” of Auckland Rugby League. Campbell withdrew as co-manager on July 23 following several medical checks on his health.


1939 Auckland Rugby League season, Auckland Rugby League news, Auckland players chosen for New Zealand tour of England and France
He “had recently had a severe attack of influenza, and the doctors were unanimously of the opinion that it would not be in the best interests of his health to undertake such a strenuous tour at the present time” He was replaced as co-manager by Mr. R. Doble who was the Auckland delegate to the New Zealand Rugby League Council.


1939 Auckland Rugby League season, Auckland Rugby League news, Auckland players chosen for New Zealand tour of England and France
On July 22 at Carlaw Park during the afternoon of regular club matches the Auckland players were farewelled by all the junior teams. The schoolboys marched in their playing gear and “formed huge letters N.Z. in the background”. Members of the New Zealand team “assembled in front of the grandstand and a loud speaker system was used to carry the farewell messages of a dozen speakers”.


1939 Auckland Rugby League season, Auckland Rugby League news, Auckland players chosen for New Zealand tour of England and France
The New Zealand Herald reported that “a feature of the occasion was the dedication in Māori of the New Zealand ensign and the ceremony was carried out by Mr. T.P. Kewene, on behalf of the Māori Control Board. The address was interpreted by Mr. P.K. Paikea, M.P. for the Northern Māori district, as an incantation of guidance and blessing to the team when abroad.


1939 Auckland Rugby League season, Auckland Rugby League news, Auckland players chosen for New Zealand tour of England and France
Presentations were made to Verdun Scott, Arthur McInnarney and Laurie Mills by Mr. R. Newport on behalf of the Schoolboys’ Association for being the first ever products of the Auckland Rugby League school grades to “earn national honours with a team going overseas”. The ceremony concluded with Mr. J.A. Lee, M.P., president of the ARL leading singing of “For They Are Jolly Good Fellows”, and George Nepia and other Māori players singing “Till We Meet Again”.


1939 Auckland Rugby League season, Senior first grade competitions, Fox Memorial results, Round 2
Manukau played against the touring Eastern Suburbs side at 3pm on the number 1 field with just 3 senior club matches played. In the Ponsonby v North Shore match the New Zealand Herald reported that Jack Campbell scored 2 tries however the Auckland Star said that he scored one and Simpson scored the other. The New Zealand Herald had a slightly more detailed description of the match and so Campbell has been attributed with both tries.


1939 Auckland Rugby League season, Senior first grade competitions, Fox Memorial results, Round 4
Papakura had their first win of the season beating a Marist side that was missing six of its regular players due to influenza.


1939 Auckland Rugby League season, Senior first grade competitions, Fox Memorial results, Round 5
In the match between Newton and Papakura, Harold Milliken was sent off. The match was said to be marred by rough play and “the referee appeared to treat the incidents too lightly”. It was said that deliberate “spotting” of prominent players “should not be tolerated. In this respect H. Milliken, who was ordered off, must be considered unlucky, as he was badly obstructed on several occasions”.


1939 Auckland Rugby League season, Senior first grade competitions, Fox Memorial results, Round 6
In the match between North Shore and Newton at the Devonport Domain, Newton player Cyril Blacklaws was carried from the field with broken ribs. He missed several months and only returned to play late in the season. City had their bye and travelled to Huntly to play a match.


1939 Auckland Rugby League season, Senior first grade competitions, Fox Memorial results, Round 7
Ex-New Zealand rugby union player Dave Solomon made his debut for Richmond and scored a try. Jack Campbell of the Ponsonby side was reported in the newspaper following this round to have been transferred to Christchurch for work reasons. He was selected for the New Zealand team later in the year. The Ponsonby v Marist match was reported as being 13–7 in both the New Zealand Herald and the Auckland Star however both newspapers only provided details for 10 of Ponsonby's points with a Ponsonby try scorer seemingly omitted.


1939 Auckland Rugby League season, Senior first grade competitions, Fox Memorial results, Catchup match
On June 5 a match was played between Richmond and Marist. The match was from round 2 but was not played as Manukau were playing the Eastern Suburbs side at Carlaw Park that day and so only 3 club matches could be played. Hadley (Richmond), and Quirke (Newton) were ordered off and both suspended for one match.


1939 Auckland Rugby League season, Senior first grade competitions, Fox Memorial results, Round 10
For Manukau's match against Ponsonby they were missing George Nepia, Jack Hemi, Peter Mahima, and Jack Brodrick, while Ponsonby was missing McManus (who had been injured the previous week in the first minute of the game), whilst Brian Riley went off injured early in the match. William Greer who had begun the season with City transferred to Papakura and played his first match with them against Mount Albert.


1939 Auckland Rugby League season, Senior first grade competitions, Fox Memorial results, Round 12
Taranaki played against Northland in a representative match at Carlaw Park as the curtain-raiser to the North Shore v Richmond match. While Manukau hosted Papakura at Waikaraka Park in Onehunga where Manukau were largely based at this time of their existence.


1939 Auckland Rugby League season, Senior first grade competitions, Fox Memorial results, Round 14
Bob Banham who had already been selected for the New Zealand tour had to leave the field in his Mount Albert match with Manukau. He returned heavily bandaged and needed stitches afterwards. Hapeta was sent off in the North Shore game with Marist and was later suspended for one match.


1939 Auckland Rugby League season, Senior first grade competitions, Fox Memorial results, Round 15
Alf Broadhead of Richmond was sent off for “reckless tackling” and suspended for one week.


1939 Auckland Rugby League season, Senior first grade competitions, Fox Memorial results, Round 16
With their 8–0 win over North Shore, Mount Albert sealed the championship. It gave them an unassailable 5 pt lead over the same side with only two rounds remaining.


1939 Auckland Rugby League season, Senior first grade competitions, Fox Memorial results, Round 18
Despite the fact that Mount Albert had secured the championship the league decided to play the final two rounds to find the runner up. In many seasons the competition would have concluded when the champion was found but a proper runner up was needed to play in the Stormont Shield final against Mount Albert in the event that they also won the Roope Rooster. North Shore beat Manukau to take second place with 21 points ahead of Newton on 19. The Richmond v Ponsonby match did not take place as the result could not have any bearing on second place.


1939 Auckland Rugby League season, Senior first grade competitions, Phelan Shield
The Phelan Shield was played for by teams who were defeated in the first round of the Roope Rooster knockout competition.


1939 Auckland Rugby League season, Senior first grade competitions, Seven-a-side tournament
On April 8 a seven-a-side tournament was held at Carlaw Park between the senior teams prior to the Eastern Suburbs XIII match against Marist.


1939 Auckland Rugby League season, Senior reserve competitions, Norton Cup results
In round 1 Papakura defaulted to Manukau with it being reported during the week that the team had “suffered seriously from influenza”. Following round 16 Richmond were congratulated on securing the championship. Ponsonby appealed the result suffered in that same round claiming that Richmond had played an ineligible player owing to the fact that the match was a ‘final’. They said that he had played 5 matches for the senior side already so should not have been allowed to play. The league said that the game was not a final and so the player was in order.


1939 Auckland Rugby League season, Senior B grade competitions
In the Sharman Cup Otahuhu won with Ellerslie runner up. The first round featured a bye for Green Lane as Northcote was not able to field a team until round 2. Several results were not reported in any of the Auckland newspapers though Otahuhu winning the competition was reported.


1939 Auckland Rugby League season, Senior B grade competitions, Sharman Cup standings
The standings are incomplete as all teams had match scores unreported (Ellerslie x 2), Green Lane (x1), R.V. (x2), Otahuhu (x2), Point Chevalier (x2), and Northcote (x3).


1939 Auckland Rugby League season, Senior B grade competitions, Sharman Cup results
In their round 3 match the entire Green Lane side walked off the field in protest at the referee's decision. The referee was J. Gedye with the “incident occurring shortly before full time”. Point Chevalier were leading 10–6 at the time. Green Lane players stated later “that the play had been clean and that their action had been taken solely in protest to a decision by the referee”. in round 7 referee K. McIvor called off the match before it started because one of the teams only had 8 players after being “handicapped by influenza and injuries to players”. When dealing with the matter later the control board stated that a match should go ahead provided a team had 7 players and “desired to play”. Otahuhu were congratulated on winning the competition following round 10.


1939 Auckland Rugby League season, Senior B grade competitions, Walmsley Shield (knockout competition)
As in previous seasons due to the short nature of the championship competition the Walmsley Shield knockout competition was played over one full round. The matches were played at neutral venues. In round 4 R.V. defaulted their match and withdrew from the competition owing to illness and injuries. The final was due to be played in late August but Otahuhu were entering the reserve grade knockout competition and so Ellerslie agreed to postpone the Walmesley Shield final until a later date which was ultimately September 9. Otahuhu won the final 5-3 which was played at Manukau. Northcote won the Foster Shield, presumably for finishing the 5 match round in first place (prior to the final).


1939 Auckland Rugby League season, Other Club Matches and Lower Grades, Lower Grade Clubs
On October 4 the junior control board advised that Edmund Walter Garrod of the Marist club's third grade team had won the Dickson medal for the most improved player.


1939 Auckland Rugby League season, Other Club Matches and Lower Grades, Lower Grade Clubs
Grades were made of the following teams with the winning team in bold:


1939 Auckland Rugby League season, Other Club Matches and Lower Grades, Schoolboy gala
A schoolboy gala was held at Carlaw Park On October 14. It featured the final of the fourth grade between Mount Albert and City which resulted in an 11-all draw, along with the crowning of the schoolboys’ queen which was Miss Dick. Other events were held such as running races, goal kicking competitions and a tug-o-war.


1939 Auckland Rugby League season, Representative fixtures, Tāmaki (Auckland Māori) v Auckland Pakeha
Ernie Asher was the selector for the Auckland Māori side while R. Doble selected the Auckland Pakeha team. Richmond were playing Marist on the same afternoon and so no players from either team were chosen for the match. Jack Hemi kicked a penalty goal from a yard inside his own half.


1939 Auckland Rugby League season, Representative fixtures, Inter Island Match
Wally Tittleton was chosen as the North Island captain while Rex King captained the South Island.


1939 Auckland Rugby League season, Representative fixtures, New Zealand Probables v New Zealand Possibles
Jack Smith (Possibles) and Bob Banham (Probables) captained the sides.


1939 Auckland Rugby League season, Representative fixtures, Auckland v South Auckland (Waikato)
Stan Prentice was named to coach the Auckland side. George Nepia was originally selected for Auckland but withdrew.


1939 Auckland Rugby League season, Representative fixtures, Tāmaki (Auckland Māori) v Bay Of Plenti Māori (Waitangi Shield)
This match was originally scheduled to be played on August 17 but was postponed due to the state of Carlaw Park which had been badly affected by the wet weather.


1939 Auckland Rugby League season, Representative fixtures, Auckland Pakeha v Tāmaki (Auckland Māori)
There were no players included in either side from Marist, City, or Richmond, with the later two teams playing in the Phelan Shield final which was the curtain-raiser.


1939 Auckland Rugby League season, Annual General Meetings and Club News, Auckland Rugby League Schools Committee
They held their annual meeting in mid May. President Mr. R.E. Newport congratulated the management on the progress they had made since the competitions inauguration with last year being a “record season”. Officers were elected as follows:- Patron, Dr. M.G. Pezaro; president, Mr. R.E. Newport; chairman of committee, Mr. A. Stanley; secretary, Mr. L Rout; selectors, senior, Mr. S. Dickey; intermediate, Mr. V. Rose. They deiced that where possible grades would be zoned with the season start date “tentatively fixed” for April 27.


1939 Auckland Rugby League season, Annual General Meetings and Club News, Auckland Rugby League Junior Management Committee
The league decided to place on record their appreciation of the services of Mr. W.F. Clarke, the secretary. For the nine seats on the management committee, 13 nominations were received and the club ballot resulted:- D. Wilkie, I. Stonex, C. Howe, E. Chapmen, T. Carey, A. Hopkinson, M.E. McNamara, T. McIntosh and W. Berger, Messrs. Carey and McIntosh are new members. Mr. Wilkie was subsequently reappointed chairman. It was also decided to begin the junior championships on May 29. Mr. A Stanley resigned as chairman of the schools’ management committee in late May. Mr. V. Rose was appointed as deputy-chairman for the remainder of the season.


1939 Auckland Rugby League season, Annual General Meetings and Club News, Auckland Rugby League Junior Management Committee
On July 4 the junior control board decided that all junior players should parade at Carlaw Park on July 22 to farewell the New Zealand team which was touring England and France. At their October 10 meeting it was decided “to confer with the clubs with a view to urging the amalgamation of the senior B and senior reserve grades.


1939 Auckland Rugby League season, Annual General Meetings and Club News, Auckland Rugby League Referees Association]
The annual meeting was held on March 7. Their report stated that she season had been very successful there being many new members. J. Donovan won the Carey Cup for being the most improved referee. Mr. Artie Rae was made a life member.


1939 Auckland Rugby League season, Annual General Meetings and Club News, Auckland Rugby League Referees Association]
The following officers were elected:-President, Mr Les Edgar Bull; vice-president, Mr G. McGowatt; executive, Messrs. R. Otto, Maurice Wetherill, J. Hawkes; delegates Messrs. William Mincham (Control Board), J. Short (junior management), G. Kelly (schools’ committee), and L.E. Bull (N.Z.R.L. Referees’ Association); official critic, Mr. A. Saunders; honorary secretary, Mr T.E. Skinner; treasurer, Mr A.E. Chapman; appointment board, Messrs. Artie Rae, and M. Renton; social committee, Messrs. A. Saunders, Maurice Wetherill and William Mincham; auditor, Mr Percy Rogers.


1939 Auckland Rugby League season, Annual General Meetings and Club News, Auckland Rugby League Referees Association]
On March 27 Percy Rogers was made a life member of the Referees Association. He was an international referee and had been an active member for 16 years as well as being on the executive. At the same meeting the association accepted the resignations of Mr. W.H. Skelton who had accepted a coaching position, and Mr. H.T. Mcintosh who was now a member of the junior management. At the April 4 meeting Mr. William Mincham was made a life member following 25 years of “fine service”.


1939 Auckland Rugby League season, Annual General Meetings and Club News, Auckland Rugby League Referees Association]
William's son was Ted Mincham the New Zealand representative, and his grand son Robert Mincham would later represent New Zealand also. At the same meeting Mr. Freeman Thompson's resignation was “received with regret”. at their meeting on May 8 Frank Delgrosso, the former New Zealand international and long time Ponsonby player was elected by ballot as a member of the Referees’ Association. On October 1 the referees held their annual picnic at Mr. L. Pauling's farm at Te Atatū. Mr. A Ansell was presented with the Carey Cup for the most improved referee of the season.


1939 Auckland Rugby League season, Annual General Meetings and Club News, Avondale League Football Club
In January the Avondale League Football Club wrote to the New Lynn Borough Council asking if they could use the New Lynn Domain ground for the 1939 season. The council decided that their request “would be given favourable consideration if the ground was suitable”. Avondale held their annual meeting on February 8 at the Labour Party's Rooms in Avondale. At the junior management committee meeting on May 9 they received a report from the Avondale club that they had acquired an area of ground on the Avondale racecourse. In mid June the Avondale club held a “successful fancy dress dance… in aid of funds for their candidate in the schoolboys’ queen competition”. Guests of honour included “members of the Auckland Rugby League ladies’ committee, Mesdames Culpan, Scott, Stonex, Howe, and Chernside, Mr. Ivan Culpan, and Mr. C. Howe”.


1939 Auckland Rugby League season, Annual General Meetings and Club News, City Rovers Football Club
They held their annual meeting on February 27 at Carlaw Park and it was said to be “the most successful in the history of the club”. Mr George Hunt presided with their report emphasising “the fine play of the senior team which contested the final of the Roope Rooster competition”. C. Raynes was made a life member and Mr. Ernie Asher was congratulated on “reaching his 30th year with the club and 32nd year” involved with the sport.


1939 Auckland Rugby League season, Annual General Meetings and Club News, City Rovers Football Club
The following officers were elected:- Patron, Mr C. Raynes; president, Mr George Hunt; vice-presidents same as last year with power to add; secretary Mr Ernie Asher; treasurer Mr S. Belshaw; auditor Mr E.J. Phelan; club captain, J. Ragg. Hawea Mataira who had last played for City in 1937 was returning to the club after spending 1938 back on the East Coast. In mid March W.K. Greer, the Canterbury rugby representative joined the City side. He was reported “to be a good fullback, with a year’s representative experience as a wing-three quarter”. On July 28 former City player Robert Clark passed away. He had played for City from 1916 to 1920 and represented Auckland in one match in 1919 which was against New Zealand on May 24. He scored a try in the match. Clark was survived by a wife.


1939 Auckland Rugby League season, Annual General Meetings and Club News, City Rovers Football Club
On August 28 City held a combined dance with the Ponsonby club at the Metropole Cabaret. The colours used to decorate the venue were blue, black, and red. City held their annual picnic at Tui Glen, Henderson on October 29.


1939 Auckland Rugby League season, Annual General Meetings and Club News, Ellerslie United League Football Club
They held their annual meeting on March 6 at the Parish Hall in Ellerslie with Mr. J. McInnarney presiding. Special mention was made of their senior B side which had won the knockout competition. Their fourth grade team had finished third while their seven-a-side team were runners up in the championship and knockout. Mr. McInnarney was elected a life member.


1939 Auckland Rugby League season, Annual General Meetings and Club News, Ellerslie United League Football Club
Other officers elected were:- Patron, Mr. A.G. Osborne, M.P. ; president, Mr. J. McInnarney; vice-presidents, Messrs. R.H. McIsaac, J. Court, C. Clarke, A. McKenzie, J. Carver, S. Whelan, B. Guy, Finerty, A. Crew, S. Woodhams, J. Pinches, M. Henderson, A. Chapmen; club captain, Mr. F. Chapman; auditors, Messrs. G. Skeen (chairman), R. Hunter, W. Miller, M. Campbell, H. Thomas, A. Strong, H. Johnson, R. Boss, S. Penberton, sen., S. Pemberton, jun., P. Simons, C. Murton, H. Arthur, J. Johnson, S. Harris, C. Spiro and A. Young.


1939 Auckland Rugby League season, Annual General Meetings and Club News, Ellerslie United League Football Club
On March 28 at the Ellerslie Borough Council meeting “objections to the curtailment of the number of playing days for the coming season were voiced by a deputation from the Ellerslie League Football Club. Members stated that for the past 14 years the club had been allocated alternate Saturdays during the season. The proposed allocation of one Saturday in three was considered unfair. The club had seven teams and over 100 players who were all local residents. The allocation of the ground for dog-racing was not in keeping with the national physical fitness campaign.


1939 Auckland Rugby League season, Annual General Meetings and Club News, Ellerslie United League Football Club
The council decided to defer consideration pending replies from the other bodies concerned in the proposed allocation of the ground. In July former vice-president of Ellerslie, Mr. Albert Hutchison Mcintyre died. He was the current deputy Mayor of Ellerslie. On November 1 they held their 21st anniversary dance and prize-giving at St Mary's Hall in Ellerslie.


1939 Auckland Rugby League season, Annual General Meetings and Club News, Glenora Rugby League Football Club
Glenora wrote to the junior management board on June 20 complaining about injuries received due to boot sprigs. The board advised them “that nothing could be done beyond action being taken in conjunction with the Referees’ Association”. While a delegate said that “he had noticed referees inspecting players’ boots recently on various grounds”.


1939 Auckland Rugby League season, Annual General Meetings and Club News, Green Lane Rugby League Club
They reported to the junior management board at their May 9 meeting that Mr. F. Gadd had been appointed secretary for the club. Green Lane advised the league on July 5 that it had decided to invest a portion of its finances in the bonds issued to assist the tour of the New Zealand team. Chairman Campbell said “it was a fine gesture on behalf of the club”.


1939 Auckland Rugby League season, Annual General Meetings and Club News, Manukau Rugby League Football Club
In January the Manukau club entered into negotiations with Ross McKinnon who was “the star of the last Australian team to tour England”. They held their annual meeting at the RSA Hall, Princes Street in Onehunga with Mr S.W. House presiding. Their annual report said it was creditable that the club has contributed five players to the New Zealand tour of Australia. The “placed on record appreciation for the services of their secretary Mr Allen Porter” over the past three years”.


1939 Auckland Rugby League season, Annual General Meetings and Club News, Manukau Rugby League Football Club
The club also noted that they had an urgent need to secure an adequate headquarters and training grounds with the committee authorised to “take steps to obtain them”. The following officers were elected:- President Mr S.W. House; secretary Mr L.G. Healey (vice Mr Allen Porter); treasurer, Mr A Walton; committee, Messrs C. Randrup, H. de Wolfe, J. Brown, and ex office members. They held another gathering on March 9 at the Training Grounds on Galway Street for intending players and supporters, to commence training and to elect a club captain.


1939 Auckland Rugby League season, Annual General Meetings and Club News, Manukau Rugby League Football Club
It was reported on April 28 that Waka McLeod of Tauranga had signed to play for Manukau. He was a Wanganui rugby representative in 1935 and would have played for Taranaki in 1936 but was injured. He then moved back to Tauranga and represented Bay of Plenty in 1937 and 1938. He was 23 years old and weighed 14.5 stone.


1939 Auckland Rugby League season, Annual General Meetings and Club News, Manukau Rugby League Football Club
In mid July it was announced that “a gold medal, donated by Mr. J.F. W. Dickson, for the most sportsmanlike conduct in senior football, was won by J. Hemi” with the presentation to be made at Carlaw Park on July 22 when the New Zealand touring team would be farewelled prior to leaving for England and France.


1939 Auckland Rugby League season, Annual General Meetings and Club News, Marist Old Boys League Football Club
They held their annual meeting on March 2 in the ARL board room with Mr. Joe Sayegh presiding before a “large attendance”. The club was congratulated on it success and the various teams and coaches were referred to. Thanks were “extended to Mr. and Mrs. Glover, W. Cleary, E. McGinn, A. Baird, and S.M. Farrelly for generous practical support”. The following officers were elected:- Patron, his Lordship Bishop Liston; president, Mr. Joe Sayegh; vice-presidents, same as last year, with power to add; hon. secretary, Mr. Jack Kirwan; hon. treasurer, Mr. P Fletcher; club captain, R. Haslam; schoolboys’ delegate, Mr. E. Foster; auditors, Messrs. Hollyrake and B Cotterill; committee Messrs. J. Ball, P. Hughes, F. Webberley, George Copas and W. Maddigan.


1939 Auckland Rugby League season, Annual General Meetings and Club News, Mount Albert United Rugby League Football Club
They held their 11th annual meeting at King George Hall in Mount Albert on February 20. Mr. A.C. Gallagher presided with patron, Mr. H.A. Anderson (Mayor of Mount Albert). ARL chairman Mr. G. Grey Campbell and secretary Ivan Culpan were present. The mayor said that the club “filled a long felt want in the district and he was proud to be identified with it”. The fifth grade team of 1938 was mentioned as it was the first junior team in the club to win a championship.


1939 Auckland Rugby League season, Annual General Meetings and Club News, Mount Albert United Rugby League Football Club
J. Men, of the third grade team won the Mr. J.F.W. Dickson's medal for the most sportsmanlike player in the grade. I. Garrett was awarded the Patron's Cup for the best club schoolboy, C. Allen, of the reserve grade won the Vice-Patron's Cup as best club member, and the President's Trophy for best non-playing member went to A. Jenkinson, coach of the fourth grade and schoolboys.


1939 Auckland Rugby League season, Annual General Meetings and Club News, Mount Albert United Rugby League Football Club
It was also noted that all of the forward pack gained representative honours, Joseph Gunning, Richard Shadbolt, and Bert Leatherbarrow for Auckland, M. Hansen and Jack Tristram for New Zealand Māori, and Des Herring and Clarry McNeil for New Zealand. C. Renton won H. Cotterall's trophy for most improved player. Trophies were given by Mr. Huxford for the best forward and for services rendered were presented to C. Callinan and Claude List, and Frederick List was awarded Mr. Roble's trophy for most consistent forward.


1939 Auckland Rugby League season, Annual General Meetings and Club News, Mount Albert United Rugby League Football Club
Claude List also won the C. Elwin Memorial Cup for the annual 100 yards championship and Eric Cranch won the goal-kicking honours. The club also thanked their supporters the Mount Albert Borough Council and the St. John Ambulance Association.


1939 Auckland Rugby League season, Annual General Meetings and Club News, Mount Albert United Rugby League Football Club
Nine new senior players were “signed at the end of the meeting where the following officers were elected:- Patron, Mr H.A. Anderson; vice-patron, Mr. Arthur Shapton Richards, M.P. ; president, Mr. J.R. Johnson (Mr. Gallagher having retired from office), chairman of committee, Mr. R.J. Wilson; club captain, Mr. L. Pearson; honorary secretary, Mr. H.G. Shaw; assistant secretary, Mr. F. Martin; honorary treasurer, Mr. W.E. Schultz; honorary auditor, Mr. S.C. Johnston”. Prior to the start of the season Mount Albert secured the services of Australian Bob Banham who had played and coached in Auckland the previous season.


1939 Auckland Rugby League season, Annual General Meetings and Club News, Mount Albert United Rugby League Football Club
In addition they also signed Bruce Donaldson, the Auckland rugby representative five eighth from the previous season, while R. Cameron was also accompanying Banham from Australia to play. Cameron reportedly weighed 13st 9lb and turned 23 on the day the Mariposa arrived in Auckland on April 3. He had previously played for South Sydney and the Queanbeyan country side.


1939 Auckland Rugby League season, Annual General Meetings and Club News, Mount Albert United Rugby League Football Club
At the referees meeting on June 12 a complaint was made about the state of Fowlds Park, and the senior delegate was “asked to draw the attention of the control board, with a request for representation of the matter to the Mount Albert Borough Council”


1939 Auckland Rugby League season, Annual General Meetings and Club News, Mount Albert United Rugby League Football Club
Arthur McInnarney who was selected for the New Zealand team to tour England and France in July received a presentation at his work (the Auckland Star on July 18. At a gathering in their social room at lunchtime Mr. E. Aldridge, “on behalf of employees of New Zealand Newspapers presented [him] with a complete outfit for evening wear, and in doing do said that his fellow workers felt proud of him, seeing that he was the first footballer of the staff ever to be chosen as an overseas representative”. Mr. W. Groves presented him with a dressing case “on behalf of the “Star” Social Club and endorsed the remarks of Mr. Aldridge”.


1939 Auckland Rugby League season, Annual General Meetings and Club News, Newmarket Rugby League Club
The Newmarket club was revived at the start of the season at a general meeting held on February 6 and was granted affiliation as a junior club with the following officers elected: Patron, the Mayor, Mr. S. Donaldson; vice-patron, Mr. E.P. Liddell; president, Mr. E. Buchanan; chairman, Mr. R.E. Newport; honorary secretary, Mr. B.R. Arnott. Delegates: To the junior management, Mr. Moore; to the primary school's management, Mr. O’Connor; honorary treasurer, Mr. Skam; auditor, Mr. H. Wilson.


1939 Auckland Rugby League season, Annual General Meetings and Club News, Newton Rangers Rugby League Football Club
They held their 29th annual meeting at the ARL boardroom on Courthouse Lane “before a large attendance” on February 27. The patron Mr M.J. Hooper “expressed his pleasure at the progress of the game and of the club which he founded just 30 years ago”. The seniors had finished third in the championship and they congratulated Bill McNeight and Wilfred Brimble on their selection to tour Australia. In addition H. Kendall, A. Duncan, J Proctor, A Nathan, and Steve Watene had also gained representative honours. The following officiers were elected:- Patron, Mr. M.J. Hooper, vice-Patron, Mr. W. Monteith; president, Hon. W.E. Parry; vice-presidents, same as last year, with power to add: trustees, Messrs. J. Rutledge and G. Steven; committee, Messrs J.A. Veitch, C. Preston, W. Dyer, D. McKenzie, J.A. Mason, and C Tunnycliffe; secretary treasurer, Mr J. Gibson, auditor Mr. C. Claudett.


1939 Auckland Rugby League season, Annual General Meetings and Club News, North Shore Albions
Their annual meeting was held in the Labour Rooms, Devonport on March 1. On March 15 they sent a delegation headed by Mr. H.J. Gerrard to the control board meeting to suggest “the playing of more competition matches at Devonport. Chairman Campbell said that “due consideration would be given”.


1939 Auckland Rugby League season, Annual General Meetings and Club News, Northcote and Birkenhead Ramblers League Football Club
Their annual meeting was held at the R.S.A. Rooms in Northcote on March 15. On March 28 at the Northcote Borough Council meeting they granted the use of Stafford Park for matches and practices for the season to the Northcote and Birkenhead club. Northcote and Birkenhead Ramblers held their annual ball on June 8 at the King's Theatre in Northcote. It had been organised by the ladies’ committee, comprising Mrs. T. Boyd, Mrs. C. Moore, Mrs. J. Dickson, Mrs. T. Schofield, Mrs. L. Reilly, Mrs. A. Borrows, Mrs. I. Bartulovich, and Miss N. Organ.


1939 Auckland Rugby League season, Annual General Meetings and Club News, Northcote and Birkenhead Ramblers League Football Club
Mr. Percy May was the master of ceremonies with the dance music played by an orchestra “under Mr. Geoffrey Crawford”. At the June 20 meeting of the junior control board a complaint was heard from the Northcote club regarding “petty thieving at the Outer Domain on June 10”. The board pointed out that it was a case for teams to supervise their possessions and that the league management could “not take responsibility”. On July 18 the club reported to the ARL that their treasurer, Mr. L. Riley, had resigned, and that Mr. C. Watson had been appointed in his place. On July 25 the Northcote club applied to hold a “charge day on Saturday at Stafford Park, Northcote”. The junior control board referred it to the control board “with favourable recommendation”.


1939 Auckland Rugby League season, Annual General Meetings and Club News, Otahuhu Rovers Rugby League Football Club
They held their annual meeting in early March with Mr. C. Hall presiding. He stated that 1938 had been the “most successful since the formation of the club. It won the points Junior Trophy, was runner-up to Richmond in the Senior Points Trophy, won the senior B championship, and the fourth grade knock-out cup. The officers elected were:- Patron, Mr. H.T. Clements; president, Mr. Con Hall; secretary, Mr. Owen McManus; treasurer, Mr. C. Clark; committee, Messrs. W. Clayton, W. Gordon, C. Duane, C. Kelly, A. Porteous, J. Rond, W. Hart, W. McConnell and B. McDonnell. Club captain was J. Rond.


1939 Auckland Rugby League season, Annual General Meetings and Club News, Otahuhu Rovers Rugby League Football Club
O. McManus, assisted by W. McConnell were going to begin training a senior schoolboy team which was scheduled to play curtain-raiser to a touring Australian team at Easter. In late March the Otahuhu club sent a letter to the Otahuhu Borough Council asking for permission to use “Sturges Park for training purposes on the evenings or Tuesday and Thursday each week.


1939 Auckland Rugby League season, Annual General Meetings and Club News, Otahuhu Rovers Rugby League Football Club
On April 17 the Otahuhu Borough Council altered an agreement that the rugby league club could use Sturges Park for trainings on Tuesday and Thursday and instead gave the use of the ground to the rugby union club on those nights. They awarded rugby league the use of the grounds on Wednesdays. The Mayor said that the “council was not biased one way or the other. There are approximately 180 rugby players, against 90 to 100 belonging to the league”. They also decided to charge 12/6 per night instead of 7/6 as previously. On July 24 at their fortnightly meeting the Otahuhu Borough Council decided to “prepare a portion of the pound reserve for the purpose” of a practice ground for the Otahuhu club. The work would be done with No. 13 scheme labour.


1939 Auckland Rugby League season, Annual General Meetings and Club News, Otahuhu Rovers Rugby League Football Club
In October the club held their annual prize giving. “A highly enthusiastic ladies’ committee in conjunction with club officials, had the pleasure of seeing the annual prize night of the Otahuhu League Football Club, the most successful for many years”. The master of ceremonies was Mr. Walter Arnold and the evening saw many trophies which had been won by teams presented. The senior B team had won their championship and the knockout round, while the third grade “also won similar honours”.


1939 Auckland Rugby League season, Annual General Meetings and Club News, Otahuhu Rovers Rugby League Football Club
“Special trophies were presented to G. Brady, captain of the senior B team; C. Kelly, captain of the third grade; E. Miles, captain of the fourth grade; J. Speedy, captain of the sixth grade; R. Philp, captain of the schoolboys’ team, and J. Peterson, for the most improved schoolboy”. The third grade team gifted presents to Mr and Mrs. C. Brady while C. Kelly accepted the Nicholson Shield on behalf of the same side for being the most “outstanding club side”. Mr. Roud received the Tracy Inglis trophy from the Auckland Rugby League for the leading junior club. The president of the club, Mr. C. Hall who had spent the evening congratulating the members and coaches was presented with a case of pipes for his service.


1939 Auckland Rugby League season, Annual General Meetings and Club News, Papakura Rugby League Club
In late January the Papakura club wrote to the Papakura Borough Council thanking them for the use of the council's “coppers” at their recent picnic. They held their seventh annual meeting on February 28 at the Windsor Theatre in Papakura with “about 60 players” in attendance with president Mr. L. McVeigh presiding. Their report “disclosed a membership of 168, a record for the club” which included 131 playing members and 14 honorary members.