BOXING.

Auckland Star, Volume XLV, Issue 152, 27 June 1914, Page 16

BOXING.

"Moran, who weighs I.lst 41b, is standing off boxing for the next few days. He is positive in his assertion that the contest with Jack Johnson will be 'on toe level,' and says he honestly thinks he has a chance of defeating the champion" This is a portion of a cablegram from Paris to the "Star," dated Friday last. Frank Moran. though a young man, is old enough to know better. Evidently he unquestionably ie- , lieves that he can whale the champion, though in all other respects he would, judged by his career, appear to be fairly normal and well-balanced. In an interview with an American scribe last month, just before he sailed for France, Moran said that Johnson's fast life for the post four years would beat the negro. Johnson has degenerated physically to a remarkable degree—even his legs had lost their old, clean, athletic trim. Speed outside of the ring doesn't make for speed inside, but the wallop sticks around a great hitter for a long time after he has has lost his Parthenon curves. Moran seems to be making due allowance for everything but that one detail—that Johnson will probably have to hit only once to devastate his entire family. But you can't blame Moran for trying, nnd he is given some earned credit for courage—assuming that it is all on the level. No matter how much money there is in it. no man without physical courage would allow Johnson to hit him as hard as he can. It took two years and a quarter of a million dollars to bring Jeffries up to the point. Six or seven years liefore the Reno fiasco he had refused to fight Johnson for any amount. John L. Sullivan drew the colour-line on account of Peter Jackson, and the Boxing Commission of NewYork pulled the same rule because it didn't want I,angford and Johnson to chase the white hopes into toe bushes and kill gate receipts. According to all the sitrns. Moran will fight at least a pluckier battle than Jeffries, even if Johnson is not yet enough of a wreck to go under. The following anent the showing of an ex-Aueklander in the Olvmnia £1.000 totirnev at Sydney should interest local enthusiasts:— Albert Pooley (city! kept his left poked straight out. and put a safe barrier against Jack Hall's right swings. Hall, who comes from Globe, seemed to tire early in the fray. His aggressive tactic 3 rarely gave him any advantage over Pooley's close guard, while the city boxer, whose style is most crude, occasionally made headway with bis straight left, or by Tipping 'his right to the bod v. The third round favoured Pooley. lie sent a right swing for the jaw. but Hail, though staggered, recovered. Pooley continued to eive Hall the worse of matters during their roughing period. The city boxer opened the fifth round by reaching his opponent's fate several times, and driving his right at long range to the body. Pooley got Ilall into the clinches, and the former's method of fighting earned some hootini. In the sixth round Hall dropped to the boards from sheer exhaustion.

Mr C. B. Cochrane, who is London's leading showman, and who runs Olympia, has put up a purse of 2.000 sovereigns for a match between Colin Bell and Bombardier Wells towards the end ol" June. The announcement came somewhat as a surprise (says a London writcrl. because Wells bud stated his intention of remaining out of the ring for at least three months in order to devote special attention to the hardening of his abdnminal muscles. After bis defeat of Rice at Liverpool he took the local journalists into his confidence, ami told them a long tale of woe about the tempera-mental handicap which had been forced upon him by the open discussion of bis nervousness in the press. Wells has evidently convinced himself that he is the victim of a conspiracy of criticism, and for the most ]>art his remarks were couched in an almost hysterical vein. To protect his weak spot he had determined upon a steadfast course of rowing on the Thames, because somebody assured him that thus would cure his weakness. If somebody else bad told him that ice-creams eaten at 3 a.m. would have the same effect he would possibly have added an ice-cream maker to bis domestic establishment. It is Well's misfortune, perhaps, to have one of those impressionist brains which make fortunes for the vendors of patent medicines. Amongst sporting men the general opinion is that if Colin Bell strips fit he will knock Bombardier out in three rounds.

Charles Mitchell, the old-time English boxing champion, who fought that wonderful draw'with J. L. Sullivan for the. world's championship, has sailed for South Africa for an eight-weeks' lecturing tour upon boxing, and he will subsequently go on to Australia for the same purpose.