ATHLETIC SPORTS GAMES AND PLAYERS

Press, Volume XCI, Issue 27564, 22 January 1955, Page 9

ATHLETIC SPORTS GAMES AND PLAYERS

(By

MILES]

Well-run Meeting * The Canterbury swimming championships held at the Centennial baths during the week may not, on performance, have shown a likely Olympic Games winner but records were so

consistently beaten or equalled as to give Canterbury administrators full confidence in the future of the sport in Canterbury. Full marks must be

•given persons in charge of the meeting for the punctuality in the running of.the programme and to competitors for their helpful co-operation. The swimming association at its twonight meeting set an example that might well be followed by some other sports organisations. The association, however, was caught unawares and made to realise that sport properly run will command full public support. The long queue which formed soon after the doors were opened and the disappointment felt by several hundreds who failed to gain before the “house-full” sign . hoisted was the best tribute that be given. Marathon Champion

The marathon record set by A. W. Richards last week must have thrilled A. Pay, a former athlete, who, in 1948, persuaded Richards, then 23, to run

with the Technical club. A short time later, Richards took part in the Kennett Cup Steeplechase, run at the Riccarton racecourse, because he was interested in horses and wanted to ger a jockey’s, or horse’s, view of the course. He was fourth from last at the finish, but his enthusiasm for running grew and for backing racehorses diminished. Richards considers that his best performance was at the annual Waikari meeting last year, when he covered a 20-mile undulating course in. Ihr 56min. The New Zealand track record for the distance is Ihr 54min. His hardest race

was over the fifth lap of the TakaheAkaroa relay race in 1949 —his second year at the sport—when he started 10 yards behind P. Barnett, the present University 880 yd and mile champion, and A. Brownie, who were then top-class juniors. He finished about 100 yards behind them. He considers that the really hard races are the three and six-mile track events. In 1952 Richards ran 2040 miles, and in 1953, 2800. Last , year, with a spell of nine weeks because of an ankle injury, his total was 3516, and this year he hopes to reach 4000 miles. Richards is keen to represent New Zealand at the Olympic Games in Melbourne, and intends to go as a spectator if he is not chosen. Wellington’s Pace Attack

The biggest single factor in Wellington’s decisive success in the Plunket Shield this season was the pace bowling of R. W. Blair, J. R. Reid and B. D. Morrison. Blair, with 27 wickets for 393, giving him an average of 14.6, was the most successful bowler in the series. Reid, too, had one of his best

seasons with the ball, taking 20 wickets for 383 to finish with an average a few decimal pointe better than Blair’s. B. D. Morrison’s 12 wickets cost 28.6 each, but on occasion he bowled really well and was able to give Blair or Reid a needed rest. This Wellington ’ trio shared among them 59 wickets of the 80 opponents’ wickets which fell in Wellington’s four games. By comparison, the other N.Z. fast bowlers playing in the series— Canterbury’s J. A. Hayes and A. R. Mac Gibbon—were much less impressive. Hayes, who did not play in Canterbury’s last game, took 14 wickets at 17.5 each, and Mac Gibbon 23 at 20.7. D. B.'Clarke, the Auckland fast bowler, had taken 15 at 22.7 before Auckland’s last match (against Central Districts) began. Twenty-sixth to First

The trophy most prized by A. W. Richards (TechnicaD, winner of the Canterbury marathon title last week in New Zealand record time, is a* certificate gained in 1948, his first season of rimning. It records that in the Presbyterian Club’s Kaiapoi to Christchurch road race he finished twenty-sixth, covering the 12 miles in 86min Isec. There were 29 starters, and he was “flat to the boardS” all the way. Richards took fastest time in this race in 1952 and 1953 with 66min ssec on both occasions, and the first 12« miles of his 26 mile 385 yd marathon last week was covered in 68min 21sec.

Tops both averages The young Australian bowling find, Pat Crawford, has concluded his first season in Sheffield Shield cricket with a remarkable record. Crawford heads both the N.S.W. batting and bowling averages. In only three games he obtained 25 wickets for the low cost of 12.96 runs each. Crawford in six innings was only out once, for an aggregate of 64 runs.

Opener Ron Briggs scored the highest batting aggregate with 243 runs in six innings/ Four batsmen, Benaud, Briggs, Burke and Simpson, each scored a century. N.S.W. scored an aggregate of 1728 runs for the loss of 59 wickets, at an average of 29.28 per wicket, while 1912 runs, for 74 wickets, at an average of 25.83, were scored against the State. Answers to Correspondents

Straight-Left, Christchurch: Freddie Dawson lost on a points decision in 1949 to the then world’s champion, Ike Williams, at Philadelphia. Previously in Australia he had beaten Vic Patrick. He has not lost a bout in Australia. There is an unconfirmed reEort that Dawson has entered a private ospital in Melbourne for a serious eye operation. Night Tennis for N.Z. Team

The New Zealand tennis team selected last week to make a brief tour of Australia. next month will undergo a new experience before they participate in the New South Wales hard court championships in that they will be playing night tennis under floodlit conditions, said Mr A. H. Richards, the chairman of the New Zealand association’s management committee, recently. Coaching from a leading professional is to be arranged for the younger members of the team on their arrival in Australia.

Bedser and Tyson “Looking backward, it is amusing to recall that in Brisbane Tyson took one wicket at the terrific cost of 160 runs,” writes Jack Fingleton in a Sydney newspaper. “He has now run his tally of test wickets to 30 at a cost of under 20 runs apiece. Test cricket, possibly, has never before given us such an amazing change in fortune and it is somewhat ironical that with two tests to go Tyson now threatens the all-time record of 39 wickets taken in this series. That fell to Bedser in England in 1953 and it could be claimed that it was Tyson who pushed Bedser out of this English side.” The Richest Prize

The world’s richest footrace, worth £lOOO to the winner, will be run at Perth this summer. The race will be worth £lOOO to the winner, in contrast to the classics at Stawell and Bendigo, which carry stakes of £lOOO to be distributed among the placegetters. The stakes for placegetters in the Perth race have yet to be decided. A Perth sportsman has guaranteed the £lOOO first prize. The race will be held as a culmination of the current professional athletics season either in late March or early April, at a time that would allow Eastern States to compete at Bendigo and Stawell and then go to Perth. Still in Form

Shirley Strickland, 28-year-old Olympic champion and world record holder, equalled the Australian 80-metre hurdles record of 11.2 sec at Leederville Oval, Perth, last Saturday. This was the second time in two weeks that she recorded HJsec. She was pressed all the way by the Fremantle hurdler, Pam Robertson, who took 11.4 sec. Vai Lawrence, 19-year-old Australian ™ om ej? s sh °t Put champion, smashed the Western Australian discus record with a throw of 120 ft IJin. This was only Ift 6in short of the Australian record set in Perth last year by the Victorian, Lorraine Murphy.

Jottings George Headley, West Indies test batsman, has accepted an offer to become official cricket coach for the Jamaican Government. Headley, aged 45, is at present a professional in English league cricket

Parry O’Brien, the only man in the world to toss the shot beyond 60ft has been named Southern California athlete of the year for 1954 by the Helms Athletic Foundation. O’Brien broke the world record for the shot put of 60ft lOin on June 11—one of three times he sent the iron ball beyond the 60ft mark. The 14-year-old Gosford (New South Wales) schoolgirl, Janice Cooper, who jumped sft 3Jin at an inter-school contest several months ago, recently broke two inter-club high jump records and equalled the New South Wales junior record in her first public appearance. The Plunket Shield

Wellington’s feat in winning the Plunket Shield with outright victories over all four with opponents was an extremely fine one. Wellington had batting which was rather less unreliable than that of the other teams, and went further down the order than most, it had good pace bowling, and its fielding was, on the whole, of a high order. This is the first time since Central Districts was admitted as the fifth team in the contest that a province has gained the maximum points, and the feat was, in fact, rare enough in the days of four teams. Since the shield competition took its present form in the 1921-22 season, teams which have gained the maximum points are Auckland (1921-22), Canterbury (1922-23), Wellington (1923-24), Auckland (1926-27), Wellington (192728), Canterbury (1930-31) and Wellington this season. Prolific try-scorer

Australian Rugby League winger Brian Bevan, who plays for Warrington, has statisticians scratching their heads. Since Bevan went to England in 1949 he has scored so many tries that the code’s experts have lost count. Some say Bevan has scored more than 500 tries, while others think he still has a little way to go. Bevan himself does not know. The number is important, because Warrington is going TO make a presentation to Bevan to mark his performance. To make sure " e has actually scored 500 tries Warrington will wait a little longer before making the presentation. Starting Young

A Swedish girl, Karen Coomer, was the youngest swimmer to compete in a New South Wales championship meeting when she started in the under 10 years’ 25 yards scratch race. Karen, who is six years old, is trained by the Sydney University physiology lecturer, Forbes Carlile. She is the daughter of Inga Coomer, who was in line for in the Swedish women’s athletic team for the 1940 Olympic Games, which were postponed because of the war. Mrs Coomer was one of the outstanding 80 metre hurdlers in Europe in 1939. * Winter Olympic Games , The city of Reno hopes to gain the 1960 Winter Olympic Games. Mr William Brussard, manager of the Reno Chamber of Commerce, said that th® city’s bid would be presented as soon as possible to the United States Olympic Games Selection Committe®. The Selection Committee, meeting in Chicago received bids for tile 1960 Winter Games from Colorado Springa and Aspen, jointly, Sun Valley, California, and Lake Placid, New York, but postponed a decision. Boxing Under Adversity Australia’s most remarkable boxer, Russen Sandy, of New South Wales, is said to have a strong chance of becoming a national champion in spite of a physical infirmity. Sands has, a crippled, left leg, which would ppt boxing out of the question for boost. But Russell has been determined to make the grade and has as the chief inspiration his brother, the late Dave Sands. Paralysis in his childhood left him with his left leg shorter than his right and also stopped the growth of his left foot. The result is that Sands wears a size 7 shoe on his right foot, but only a 3 on the left. Because of his deformity, Sands has to be a southpaw, the only one of the six Sand® brothers to have boxed in this fashion. His physical handicap impedes hit footwork, but he has been taught how to roll his body to avoid punches and the result is that opponents find him hard to hit Sands, now 18, has been fighting professionally, since he was 14, and he did well in the national feather-weight elimination series recently. Family’s Good Record When 35-year-old: X H. Rabone, of the Northern club, Palmerston North, won the New Zealand bowling singles title, he added to the name achieved in sport by his family. His father was a prominent bowler and a past president of the Northern club. His brother, G. O. Rabone, captained the New Zealand cricket team in South Africa in 1953-54, and on the tour of England in 1949 won the reputation for being one of the best slip fieldsmen in the world. J. H. Rabone was bred to bowls. While his father was president of the Northern club he was a youngster and the bowling green was his playground. After; his return from War service, J. H. Rabone took up bowls seriously a® a member of the Auckland dub. He reached the last eight in the singles at Christchurch last year .being beaten 20-14 by H. PleydeU (Pukekohe). Both Rabones are alike—tall, loose-limbed and sun tanned. They also have the essential quality to success—stubborn fighting ability. A Record - Faith Leech, 13-year-old Bendigo girl, swam the fastest time ever recorded in Victoria for the women’s 110 yards freestyle when she did 67.45ec in a qualifying heat for the State championships at the Olympic Pool, Melbourne, last week. Her time is half a second faster than Marjorie McQuade’s Australian record time of Imin 7Jsec» and o.6sec faster than Miss McQuade’s best by a Victorian set in 1954. Records in 1954

The list of best track and field performances throughout the world during 1954 makes remarkable reading. Not only has a mile been run in less than four minutes for the first time, but also for the first time 1000 metres has been covered in under 2min 20sec, three miles in less than 13min 30sec. six miles in less than 28min, and 10.000 metres in less than 29min. In the Arid events there have been the first weight put of more than 60 feet and the first hammer throw of more than 210 feet. British athletes again excelled themselves, and although R. G. Bannister and C. J. Chataway stand out head and shoulders above the rest, it is significant that in 12 events the previous bestever British performance was beaten during the season. Particularly notable among these was D. J. N. Johnson’s 800 metres in Imin 47.45ec for fourth place in the European final at Berne, a remarkable time indeed for a athlete only 21 years of age and in his first season of serious half-mile running. His time is only four-fifths of a second outside the world’s record and ranks as equal fourth best ever. Age No Handicap Australia’s new bowls champion Charlie McNeil is 67 years of age—3o years older than his opponent in Um final, Albert Newton. He has ana of the outstanding records among Mew South Wales bowlers. He began to play bowls when 29, and has bo* In the top class for 38 years. He raeonfly won his Hamilton Club singles rh—pionship for the fifteenth time. Mb tas won more than 20 district eha*ptanships in singles, pairs, and fours. Mow South Wales titles he has won MMa singles, three times; pairs, foorttaWt; and fours, four times. IB JMBJb played in the four which won ***** tralian championship and in th* **e year he represented Australia In the Empire Games.