place we hold among
Rugby-playing schools. To lose his services is disastrous. Still,
it would be shameful to grouse over his departure considering
that he goes to serve his country. Rather let us congratulate him
on his captaincy in the Worcestershires.

A reformer by temperament, my son was determined to improve the
forward play during his captaincy, as he believed that not enough
attention had been given to the forwards for several seasons at
Dulwich. It was inevitable that the War would derange the football
programme, but though there would be few club matches, the new captain
thought that the "school games" might benefit from this very lack.
Anyhow it was "a unique chance to build them up on a sound basis." He
believed in doing everything to encourage in-school football, meaning
by that the half-holiday games, the side-matches, cup matches, and
such games as Prefects v. School, Boarders v. School, the House
matches, etc. He realised that the first three XV's only include 45
boys, and that there were 600 others whose claims to consideration
were equally great. Moreover, good in-school football would produce a
succession of players for the first XV. Having all this in mind, in
his article in _The Alleynian_ he exhorted the game captains to instil
"a general keenness" and to do their duty unselfishly and
enthusiastically. His survey then proceeds:

Now as to the teams. In the first place, let it be said at once
that the outsides are going to be fine this year. Franklin and A.
H. H. Gilligan, the "star" wings of last year's team, and Minot,
undoubtedly the best of the centres, remain to us. Franklin is
faster than of yore, and still goes down the right touch-line
like a miniature thunderbolt, brushing aside the opposition like
so many flies. If he is the thunderbolt, Gilligan, on the other
wing, is undoubtedly the "greased lightning"; we have not seen so
fast a school wing for years, and his newly acquired swerve makes
him all the more dangerous. Minot has quite mastered the art of
passing; we have rarely seen "transfers" made so accurately and
so artistically. He can cut through when required, and altogether
should make Gilligan a splendid partner. All these three defend
stoutly. We are also fortunate in retaining the services of Paton
(2nd XV) for the other centre position; he only wants a little
more judgment to be