PEOPLE IN THE PLAY

Press, Volume XCVI, Issue 28471, 28 December 1957, Page 5

PEOPLE IN THE PLAY

After spending two years in Britain and Europe, Marie McMahon, a well-known Auckland swimmer, has returned to New Zealand. Miss McMahon spent several months in the Wembley Aquacade organised by the film star, Esther Williams. In this work, she was required to learn to dance and water ski, besides taking part in swimming performances. ☆ The Olympic backstroke'gold medal winner, David Thiele, will not seek selection for the Australian team to the 1958 British Empire Games team to Cardiff, Wales. Thiele intends to concentrate on medical studies next year> although he has said that he is keen to defend his Olympic 100 metres title in Rome in 1960. ☆ The New South Wales righthand batsman, Norman O’Neill, who toured New Zealand at. the beginning

of this year with the Australian team, has shown promise as an all - rounder this . season. O’Neill, who was regarded as unlucky not to have been included in the Australian

team which is in ‘South Africa, made 50 for his State side against Western Australia last week, and followed this with three wickets for 37 runs against South Australia.

One of the few! visitors to Christchurch competing at the Christchurch Golf Club’s open

chaippion ship t o u r n a me to t which ’concludes today is last year’s winner of ; both the strode and match • - play titled R. D. Kearns. A two handicap player wjhQ is a former < member of the 1 Christ

church Golf Club now living in i Dunedin, Kearns pas been a j member of both the Canter- j bury and Otago Frqyberg Rose- ] bowl teams. He is slso a form- i er South Island, chnmpion. ☆ ■ The Poverty Bay (wing three- i quarter, R. R. Cossey, will play his representative j Rugby for the Counties’ team hext season. Cossey, who was regarded as unlucky not to be (selected for the 1957 All Blacks’and the 1958 New Zealand Colts’ teams, is also a prominent Athlete, having represented the Hawke’s Bay-Poverty Bay centre at the last national championships as a shot and discus lexponent. ft ! One of the star 'Vings in the last English League team to tour New; Zealand, in 1954, the coloured player, Billy Boston, is now playing for his club, Wigan, as a. five-eighth, dipping the scaleslat just over 14 stone, Boston is proving to be a very hard man to pull down. Many Zealand

players will testify to his speed on the last tour. Some English critics' are studying the prospects of him playing for England on the tour of New Zealand and Australia next season in this position. ☆ The United States lawn tennis player, H. Flam, who was omitted on medical grounds from the team to play Australia in the Davis Cup challenge round, was also nearly left out of the team which beat Belgium in the inter-zone final. The American captain, Bill Talbert, was advised during the inter-zone final t)f Flam’s nervous condition, but he could not withdraw Flam without forfeiting the match.