BOXING

Press, Volume LXXXIV, Issue 25550, 19 July 1948, Page 9

BOXING

PETERSEN BEATS CRUICKSHANKS OPEN AIR BOUT AT WILDING PARK Laurie Petersen, Queensland welterweight champion, showed himself altogether too good for lan Cruickshanks, New Zealand champion, in a 12 rounds professional contest decided at Wilding Park on Saturday morning. This was the first open-air bout held in Christchurch. Although there was a very fair attendance this would probably have been trebled had not rain and- cold sou’-west conditions ruled early in the morning. Cruickshanks showed plenty of pluck and stamina in what to him must have been a gruelling 12 rounds of fast open w’ork, by Petersen, one of the best of his weight ever to appear in a New Zealand ring. From soon after the start of the first round Petersen showed himself master of the situation, and in his fighting there was a suggestion that he was “carrying” his opponent for several rounds. The perfectly balanced fighter. Petersen continually carried the fight to his opponent, flicking with a light right to the face, which was meant as a lead for a vicious left cross to the jaw and a rip to the solar-plexus, which had Cruickshanks thinking hard. It was a fight, not without interest, between a very clever boxer and a man not in the same class. As Petersen moved into his opponent his clever footwork, ducking and “riding” of punches evaded any of the wild swings that Cruickshanks sent over. The crowd was well entertained with the masterly boxing of Petersen, and it applauded the gameness of Cruickshanks, who was mainly at the receiving end for the full 12 rounds. Mr Henry Robertson was referee and Messrs J. D. Hutchinson and C. Winder judges in the professional contest. The two boxers both weighed in at lOst 311 b, although Petersen was taller and appeared to be bigger than Cruickshanks. Petersen Takes Control Petersen showed some of his best form of the fight in the opening round, when after several light leads to Cruickshanks’s face he attacked with rights to the head and lefts to the body. Petersen set about his work like a tradesman and after some in-fighting In which he took punishment Cruickshanks half-slipped and stayed down for a count of nine. With a vicious left-hand Petersen opened a cut on Cruickshanks’s forehead, qnd with light rights to the face connected almost at will. Petersen was already in control and Cruickshanks missed badly when Petersen evaded a heavy right swing. Heavy rips to the body further inconvenienced Cruickshanks and spectators began to wonder how long the fight would last.

The second round showed variety when Petersen, still playing his tapping right on Cruickshanks’s face, by clever footwork evaded the attack when for a brief period it was carried to him. Cruickshanks shot out light lefts that were taken on the gloves or evaded altogether and apparently made an appeal against what he considered a low rip to the body. Cruickshanks looked like making a fight of it early in the third round when he concentrated on the body with some little success. He ran into a hard left upper-cut and when he slipped after some in-fighting he took a count of six. Cruickshanks failed to stop a straight right that carried power and he looked somewhat the worse for wear at the end of the third round, a feature of which was Petersen’s clever footwork. There was not much real action In the fourth round, which to many looked like being the last for Cruickshanks, who resorted to clinching when hard pressed. Little or no damage was done on either side. There was still further variety in the fifth when Petersen shot in several short left jolts to the jaw and was missing when Cruickshanks sent over heavy right swings, vainly looking for a knock-out. Cruickshanks, who was standing up to punishment, was rattled when he received a left upper-cut, which was followed by a stern right jab to the face, and a heavy left rip to the body. Cruickshanks scored with a straight left to Petersen’s face, and, in the early stages of the seventh round, he carried the fight to his opponent jn a manner that gave his supporters hope, but In in-fighting he was no match for the Australian, who sent him to the canvas for a count of seven with a right to the body and a left to the jaw. Cruickshanks still carried the fight to his opponent, but lost points when he was steadied with a stinging left to the face. Cruickshanks essayed a right upper-cut which narrowly missed its mark, and Petersen came back with light taps to the face and shaved his opponent’s chin with a vicious left hook, one of the most venomous punches of the whole match. Fast Pace Tells From the ninth round, Cruickshanks was showing unmistakable signs of the fast pace set by Petersen, who was master at in-fighting or long range, and during this and the next round refrained from inflicting undue punishment. In the eleventh round Petersen vainly looked for a knock-out punch that would end the fight, but Cruickshanks showed a sound defence until he became groggy and a powerful left to the ribs sent him down for a count of nine. Left, right, left to the jaw had Cruickshanks, now strictly on the defensive, and he was down for nine when the gong sounded. The last round had Petersen doing his best to put the New Zealand champion down and out. and with left hocks and hard rips to the body he had Cruickshanks thinking hard. After a battering of punches, Cruickshanks was down for nine but managed to weather the remainder of the storm. The verdict in favour of Petersen was unanimous. Promising Amateurs Young and promising boxers who fought in the preliminaries showed the wealth of talent that is available in Christchurch boxing schools, and all who took part should benefit from the experience of boxing in public. Nearly every one displayed in boxing the fruits of careful coaching, and as an early trial for Canterbury championships, the bouts 1 were instructive.

A grand display was given by the feather-weights, J. O’Connor and W. Underhay, and although the latter had a big advantage in weight and a considerably longer reach than O'Connor, the latter took many blows on his gloves and evaded others altogether in the manner of a class fighter. O’Connor boxed superbly in the first two rounds, but as weight began to tell he faded in the final session when Underhay piled, up points with a straight left and continued aggression. W. Ellery and N. Britt and B. Shaw and R. Stewart (Buller) put plenty of action into their bouts in the welterweight class. After Ellery and Britt had been advised by spectators in the first round to “get on with the game,” both were roundly applauded for their work in the next three. Ellery, one of the most improved young boxers in the last 12 months, showed cleaner fitting than in previous bouts, and he only needs to polish up his straight left to make him into a very useful boxer. He has a variety of punches which include a right hook and a right rip to the body. The pace was willing, and both men swung wildly at times. Young in experience, both can be forgiven. Britt, shorter and lighter, mixed it as freely as did Ellery, and at the end spectators were in doubt as to the result. A referees’ decision went to Ellery. Shaw, with youth on his side, scored a clear-cut win over Stewart, for although his footwork was particularly good, his most damaging punch was a left rip to the body. At times, it appeared, he was very close to hitting below the forbidden line, a fault that his trainer, N. Fisher, can be depended upon to correct. In the light-weights, J. Grant, the pocket battleship, carried too many guns for the Buller crack, J. Porter, in a previous . bout had beaten the New Zealand feather-weight, K. Murfitt. There was much clever boxing by both men, and the in-fighting that took place was riot of the uninteresting, aimless style that is too often seen. Both Grant and Pofter are above the average. Following are the results of the amateur bouts:— B Hall (9st 121 b) beat M. Lockhead Ost 21b). W. Underhay Ost) beat J. O’Connor (Bsc lib). » R. Saville Ost) beat C. Herriot (Bst 81b). W. Ellery (lOst) beat N. Britt (9st 9Jlb). B Shaw (lOst 41b) beat R. Stewart Buller (lOst 41b). J Grant beat J. Porter (Buller). Mr P. C. Hawes was referee, and Messrs L. Annand and E. Fail judges. GORDON BEATS SLAVIN KNOCK-OUT IN SECOND ROUND (P.A.) NAPIER, July 18. In a professional welter-weight bout on Saturday, Clarrie Gordon (Auckland) scored a knock-out win over Paddy Slavin (Napier) in two rounds. Slavin went down under a barrage of blows. He was on one knee at the count of nine, but slipped back to the canvas when he attempted to rise.