HAGLEY PARK CHAMPIONSHIP.

Press, Volume LXVIII, Issue 14306, 18 March 1912, Page 9

HAGLEY PARK CHAMPIONSHIP.

FINAL TIE. (ISY OVR SPECIAL COVTIUITOTOR.) R. D. Harman beat W. Goas by 3 aete to 2. Scores: 2-6, 6-2. 6-0, 4-6, 8-G. Tho handful of spectators that lined up on Saturday afternoon round Court No. 3 on tbo somewhat despised "Duckpond," were rewarded by seeing a3 grand a final as has ever been witnessed st Haglcy. Goss went on to the court evidently intending to hit Harman off it in thrco straight drives if he possibly could, but tho wind made thia impossible. The first set was played at a tremendous pnee,, but it told chiefly against Gobs. Hannan sacrificing everything to find the sido lines, and though he only won two games, ho lost chiefly by missing tho lines owing , to tho wind, and even in this set befjan to embaras.s his opponent by his drop "."liota," which undoubtedly won him tho match. Beth men played from the back line, and their widely diverse etylo made tho game spectacularly interesting during tho whole 2 hours and 20 minutes. 1 think Goes would have been wise to pelt llarman n littlo more with his left hand corner, but ho preferred to play him, as he did Brown in tho championship, with forehand ttrives across the court, but nt this gam , ) Uarrnan outplayed him, by driving him at a still deeper angle than his ov/n, and wort quite a considerable number of points with balls that Goss did not even touch, and yat whon Harman was 2 sets to 1, with six gamea in his favour, I knew that tho worst pnrt of his journey was beginning. Goss made tho same wonderful recovery that ha 3 over and over again won his mutches that •woro apparently lost. In the fourth set, xlnrman was evidently, na ho well might be, terribly fatigued, and began to abuao the use of iho drop shot. Tempting Goss up to the net, he would lob ehort, and paid tho penalty, nnd when Goss made tho score 4-H, lie had earned, and took easily, tho fourth set. The fifth was indeed memorable, though few expected Harman to win it. When tho scoro was -1-3, Ocss leads, liarman inndo it 4 all with tho best tennin of the day. From 30-15 against him, ho pot to deuce with a croea drive in to tho corner, followed by a. straight eido line drive. lint Gosh won tho ninth gamo, and roY to 40-30 in tho »ext, and only lost the deciding point nfter a desperate, rally. After vantage pomes had been started, it looked os if the hateful not ball (tho bano of the game) was destined to turn the scale, two occurring in quick Kuecfission, but nfter a struggle of a quarter of ai hour, Harman, who let out at everything, just cot homo, tho scoro reading H games to 6:" Harman 26 games, Goss 20 games. So ended this extraordinary match, in which a pluyer aped 53 by his versatility of stroks, and consummate command of the ball, ju«t warded off tho attack of an opponent whose forehand hitting never toJnsed, and who throughout tho five rets l"rd|y onco failed to adequately defend with 1.i3 backhand, and with it brought off some astonishingly fino saves.