SPORTING GOSSIP.

Auckland Star, Volume LI, Issue 104, 1 May 1920, Page 18

SPORTING GOSSIP.

NOTES FROM ENGLAND. (Prom Our Own Correspondent.) LONDON. February 20. BOXING AND BOXERS BWofo Frank Goddard was beaten by Joe Beckett, at a time when lie led most people to believe that he would prove to be the best of our heavyweights, Newcastle, a rar e sporting town, sent (writes , Mr. Eugene Corri) Frank Ray, a fine, tijistiinaing fellow, to the National Sportiflg fciijb to do battle with the massive gUardsman. But though a man of immense courage, h e did not have it in him to take the strength away from Goddard, and he lost. Ever since, his reappearance in London has been keenly awaited, and last week, after a previous disappointment, we all waited for him to take the ring at the Holborn Stadium against Paul Journee, the much talked about Frenchman, said by Carpentier to be a youth of considerable promise, and who had two London victories to his credit. It was felt that Ray would provide a better and most reliable idea as to the worth of Journee, but at the last moment the Newcastle man could not enter into the match and co the Stadium management had to provide a substitute. They hit upon otic, Bandsman Dick Rice—no great performer, but a man fairly formidable in a rough and tumble. It was not a nice contest at all, and one out of which I. as the referee, got more kicks than halfpence. There was a considerable eection of the onlookers for Rice; the rest were pro-Journee, and when I declared the result to be a draw, there was a show of disapproval. Of course, I Stick to my guns. I hold that my decision, based upon an experience of forty years, was a good one. It had long occurred to mc that betting has bred impossible partisanship, and the time has come when, unless the gambling element is cut out of boxing, the sport will be seriously hurt. I grant that (he best of referees make mistakes, but such is now the attitude shown towards them by people who only see in the game the opportunity to speculate, that their position is becoming almost intolerable. Of Journee I have frequently written. With the notion that v he is more than a promising young man, who, by his ways .suggests that, hn is keen on his profession, I disagree.* He is no cultured boxer at all, but he is one who, providing he is taken along by easy stages, will Come to be regarded as a second Carpentier—that is, if our heavyweighty do not improve. The dearth of good big men is very great and I cannot see any of them getting out of [ a rut. Beckett ie still suffering from his ecKpae by Carpentier, and I am beginning to wonder when he will reappear. Wells remains the-=jrreatest pugilistic uncertainty w e have, perhaps, ever had, and, a- for Goddard, we saw at the National Sporting Club, when he fought Leslie Coghill, the Australian, who was "out" to avenge his brother, Gordon, that he is no different from what he was when he first burst in upon us. BOOMING SPORT. • Those who said that eport would enjoy a big boom after the war have been proved to be right, even beyond expectations. When the football season started the clubs in face of substantially increased expenses were very nervous as to whether they would be able to make both ends meet. Assurance, however, was quickly forthcoming anJ to-day lliore is prosperity everywhere. In view of the amazing interest which' is being taken in the game the authoritieSKhave n real problem in the C up Final. The big contest of the season lias often attracted 100,000 people and at least once, 120,001). This was at the Crystal Palace, which was converted into trftining quarters for Naval men during the war. This year the Palace grounds are not available and the next biggest ground in the country, namely that of the Chelsea Club, hae been chosen. Here there is not accommodation for more than 80,000 epectatore, and it is certain that this will not suffice by many thossands. The match will not take place for ten weeks, and already all the reserved seats, numbering over 10,000 have been sold. So much for football. There is nothing to suggest what measure of popularity cricket is to enjoy, hut it is certain that golf is to have a record season. In addition to the championships at Dale and Muirsfield, there are to be held three professional tournaments in Scotland with prize money of £650, £500 and £300 respectively * and two in England of £590 and £500". PROPOSED NEW HOME FOR TENNIS CHAMPIONSHIPS. Then there is lawn tennis. When applications for reserved seats at the championships at Wimbledom, which are to be held in June,*were invited, 4,000 tickets were applied for jrhon only 2,000 were available. These tickets, which are for the whole tournament, cost £'2 8/, including the entertainment tax. This does not mean that intending visitors to Wimbledon will be unable to obtain Beats. Aβ in the past. 1,000 seats will be held open for allottment each day. But it does signify that the I accommodation will be sufficient. The famous centre court, where all the chief I matches are decided, is shut in on all I sides by stands and in addition there are two rows of seats on the ground on two sidea. Behind these there is a little standing room. When Maurice McLoughlin challenged the late A. F. Wilding for the championship in 1913, about 10,000 people were admitted to the ground, but three thousand of these did ■ not see a stroke played. The difficulty i is that there is not room for expansion. ! The stands can neither be enlarged nor ' moved hack to give more seats on the I ground level. To break the association j with Wimbledon would be unfortunate, ! but it may be necessary. At the present time it is clear that the championships have already outgrown the provisions made for them. ! ARRANGEMENTS FOR AMERICA j CUP RACES. There arc strangely conflicting reports as tor the negotiations taking place on ■behalf of Sir Thonuw Liptun and the New York Yacht Club in regard to the ; conditions under which the races for the 1 America Cup will be sailed. Sir Thomas, ; as 1 have previously told, wishes the race* to be lixel for the end of June instead of September, and the New York Yacht Club have proposed that the venue should be changed from the waters off Sandy Hook to Newport, Rhode Island. June, the American authorities declared in reply, was too early. It did not Wave sufficient time to train the crews, and it would not be practicable to hold trial races between i the two defending boats. Resolute and

Vanitie, before May. As to a new coureo, Sir Thomas replied that all his calculations bad been made for the races to be sailed of Sandy Hook. These matters have again been under consideration by the New "iork Club and Sir Thomas has received a cable stating that a letter lias been posted. The nature of the communication was not indicated and from this it is feared that there may be a deadlock in the negotiations. From another source I hear that arrangements have been suggested which will be acceptable to Sir Thomas. It i ■ proposed that the first raco should 1 :e place on July 15th, the second on July 17th, and the third on July 20th. It will, of course, be the best three races out of five and if other races are necessary they will be sailed the following week. As to the course, tho defenders have agreed to the old one from Ambrose Lightship off Safldy Hook. Shamrock IV. must be Sir Thomas Lipton's representative, as she was named in the challenge, but the New York Club have reserved the right to wait until a week before the first rice before naming eitheir Resolute or Vanitie as the defender. CRICKET. (By ACTAEON.) THE SEASON REVIEWED. Not since the secondary schools were in the competition has cricket in the second grade nourished to such an extent as was the case during the season just closed. Ten teams were in the struggle, making rather a big proposition, when it is taken into consideration the necessary interruptions on account of holidays, representative matches, and the weather. With so many delays it was not surprising that such an extensive round did not finish, but it had advanced to such a stage that the position and the performances of the teams left very little to question about the allocation of the championship. Without the least shadow of doubt Y.H.C.A. are entitled to premiership honours, and something very unusual would have required t6 happen to upset their claim. The majority of the teams appeared to be fairjy evenly matched when the season commenced, 'but after the first three matches V.M.C.A. and North Shore established a lead over University, and the only other teams to have points on the right side were St. John's and St. James. The latter had only taken part in two matches. When the struggle had reached half a dozen of the series of matches V.M.C.A., who had just defeated North Shore, assumed the position at the head of affairs, with sixteen points, while the trans-harbour team dropped from fifteen to twelve. In the meantime St. John's had been pegging along steadily, and were only one point behind North Shore and live in arrears of V.M.C.A. A big gap occurred between St. John's and Beresford, next on the list, with only four. Thereafter there were only three teams with a. possible chance of obtaining championship honours, and the positions wero never ljuring the season several big scores were'compiled, especially in the third the three hundred was attained, by four teams, including V.M.C.A., I fine, .'gpore of 329 for four wickets, I against ..Parnell; then followed 325 for 'sevea by North Shore over Eden B. I Chix^ r S)iy knocked up 313 when opposed jto 'Ponsonby. Eden A notched 307 against St. James, who replied with 236; With several other scores of over two I hundred, the batsmen had little reason to complain, and they included several centuries. Cooper (V.M.C.A.), and Glogoski (Parnell) were first in the I register with centuries in the opening j matches. Leikis (St. Jamesl reached I the coveted figures in the next match, while Horspool (Eden). Badelev (V.M.C.A.), _ Woods (Y.II.CA.)i and Johnson (North Shore) also achieved ! honours. There was also another tale to tell regarding the batting, and that was a paltry score, the outcome of North Shore's dismissal of St. James for eleven runs, the lowest recorded in the grade, and the bowler principally responsible for the unusual event was Metge. ,YJk3iC_A..'s success was attributed to an evenly balanced eleven. Nearly all the members of the team were capable of making runs, while besides a- couple of excellent bowlers, they had several reliable changes, and it was seldom that their bowling received drastic treatment. V.M.C.A. started the season by defeating Eden, after closing their innings at 235 for the loss of four wickets. With the exception oft two points agains Ponsonby in their second match, and University, three games later, they won all matches by three points, and finished up the season with twenty-two points out of a total of twenty-four. North Shore opened with a sequence of successes which produced three points apiece, and it was not until the sixth round that they had to strike their colours to V.M.C.A. It was North Shote's only loss during the season, for in the two games that followed they continued their collection* of threepointers. Had tho last match of the round eventuated North Shore still had a slender chance of obtaining championship honours, as V.M.C.A. -were drawn to meet St. John's, and a win to the latter would have put North Shore, who were fairly certain of success in their last engagement, at the head of affairs. St. John's , had an up-hill fight throughout the competition, as they went under to North Shore in the second game, and only managed two points against Beresford in the next Tnatch, yet they made excellent progress, and when the season closed were just a solitary point behind North Shore. They were eagerly looking forward to their match with YjM.C.A., but would have required more jtautn an ordinary amount of good forto have changed positions with the winners of the competition. Bercsford signalised their appearance into the second grade with a two-point victory over Eden A, thanks to a substantial score of 327 for six wickete. After going undeT to St. John's they collected three points from Eden B; thov lost to Ponsonby in I)he fifth round, and V.M.C.A. in the seventh, but added two three-pointers at the expense of Poirnell and University. Eden A had a chequered career. They began the season by losing "to North Shore and Beresford, and after a victory over St. James', -went under to St. John's. After three successive wins nt the expense of Eden B, Ponsonby, and Parnell. they were defeated by V.M.C.A., and finished up on the wrongside of the ledger. University lost their first match, but made better progress against Eden 15 and Ponsonby, which brought 0 their total to three points; however, an unexpected loss to Parnell, and two points to V.M.C.A. left them minus two points. Matters were improved against St. James', but a loss to North Shore and Beresford caused a reduction of six more points, and they were minus five points when the season closed. Parnell. Eden B, St. James', and Ponsonby met with very little success during the season, and were a long way down the list -when the competition ended.