BOS MURPHY LOSES ON POINTS

Bay of Plenty Times, Volume LXXVI, Issue 14639, 7 April 1948, Page 3

BOS MURPHY LOSES ON POINTS

EMPIRE TITLE NOT AT STAKE OPPONENT USES BUSTLING TACTICS London, April 6. The Southern Area middle-weight boxing champion, Mark Hart, fought the fight of his life to gain a narrow points decision over the New Zealander Bos Murphy, the British Empire middle-weight champion, in an eight-round bout at the Albert Hall. Hart won by sheer pggression. The title was not at stake.

Hart smothered Murphy, and the speed of his punching, particularly a left hook, often troubled Murphy, who was clearly the better boxer. Murphy gave as good as he received,

but Hart’s powerful punching took the sting from his blows.

Hart fought in a crouch and used bustling, crowding tactics to nullify the effect of the New’ Zealander’s straight left. Murphy fought in his usual upright stance, constantly sniping with his loft, but Hart held the initiative most of the way, landed the more telling blows and won by a clear points margin. Murphy was down for seven seconds in the fifth round from a left hook, and Hart was down for three in the same round.

Murphy’s best round was the fourth. In this round, however, he was warned for hitting low, apparently unintentionally. This set-b->''k seemed to affect him afterward, and he lacked confidence with his rips and nooks to Hart’s body. Both men appeared very tired in the last two rounds, but Hart added to the points lead he had established in the first half of the fight.