BRIGHT WRESTLING

Evening Post, Volume CXII, Issue 90, 13 October 1931, Page 14

BRIGHT WRESTLING

MEESKE UNLUCKY

LOSES BY SINGLE FALL

After a very bright display of last, spectacular wrestling, the match in the Town Hall last uiglit between Tom Alley, of America, and Billy Meeske, of Australia, ended in rather au unsatisfactory manner. In the eighth round the referee, Mr. J Lack, awarded Alley a submission fall, and, as this was the only fall, A Hey ivou the match. Meeske seemed rather surprised when the referee lifted Alley off him. and he stated afterwards tlmt lie had not submitted, nor had he any intention ot doing so. On the other hand, Mr. Lack was n"ite definite that Meeske had given in "Ft is quite easy for a wrestler to say afterwards that he didn't submit. He gave in all right," lie said. MEESKE MAKES GOOD. Prior to last night Meeske had bad three bouts in New Zealand for three, wins. It was his first appearance in Wellington, and he quickly established himself with the crowd. A fast, aggressive wrestler, with a fair variety of holds, he easily outpointed Alley over the first five rounds, and although be appeared to be tiring towards the end, he must have won on points had the final round been concluded. Indeed, the referee admitted as much after the bout. Whether it was that he was not up to his usual form, or that he could not cope with Meeske's aggressive style, the fact remains that Alley was well out ot the picture in the early rounds. He was coining strongly at the end, and was giving the Australian a torrid time. Although there was an absence of variety in the wrestling, the match contained plenty of incident, and some of the more spectacular episodes, as well as the hard, gruelliug nature of the work, had the large crowd in a high ktate of excitement. Meeske weighed 13st Sib, and Alley 13st 101b. AUSTRALIAN MAKES THE PLAY. They did not waste any time in getting into action, and Meeske led the way first, taking Alley to the mat with a swivelling * wristlock and then a headloek. There was loud applause as the Australian kept this last hold on for a time, Alley eventually cleverly breaking free by means of a toehold. Meeske again went tor a headlock, Alley retaliating with a head scissors. Encouraged by loud cries of "Make him take it, Tom," Alley put on the pressure, and Meeske had to be stopped from using a one-finger hold in his attempts to escape. A solid short-arm scissors went to Meeske's account at the start of the second round, and, after a few minutes, Alley again resorted to a toehold to escape. Meeske continued to wrestle well, and. he had his opponent in trouble with a body scissors, assisted with some punishment to Alley's ears and head. After some more punishing work on the mat in which both men took every advantage of any holds they secured, Meeske again got a body scissors which he followed with a Deadlock, and at the gong had a head scissors and reverse toehold. Amidst excited shouting from the crowd, Alley had Meeske writhing in a short-arm scissors for. some time in the third round. At last Meeske stood up in the hold, and Alley then kicked him off. Meeske landed on his face, and Alley rushed in to clap on three punishing headlocks, followed by slams. It looked auy odds that Meeske would lose a fall, but the Australian came back very gamely, and set up a hot coun-ter-attack, which had Alley working all he knew. In turn, Meeske halched Alley, and then imprisoned him in a short-arm scissors, which he kept on until the gong. Alley provided something new in the ne"xt round, for instead of going over ■when Meeske headlocked him, he secured a reverse headloek himself, and put the Australian over on to the mat. Following this he dumped Meeske, but a kick on the head temporarily dampened his enthusiasm to go on with it. Strenuous and gruelling work on the part of Both men marked the rest of the round. PLENTY OF INCIDENT. The pace had been on all.the way, aud Meeske continued to make all th play iv the fifth round. He chased Alley around the ring, eventually catching him in a headloek and halcliing him. There, was excitement as Alley went for a crucifix, but 'iio could not complete the hold, <and the cheering was redoubled as ttie Australian broke clear. Doing something all the time, he worked on a variety of ,ami; and leg holds, and there was a bright moment as he was forced to relinquish a splits by a little'spine massage. .'.' The sixth round also contained plenty of incident, with Alley now starting to show Up. The American's extra weight . and strength seemed to be having their effect on Meeske, who looked to be tiring. A NEW LEASE OF LIFE. •After some punching and jolting with elbows and shoulders, Alley sent Meeske down with a rabbit punch in the seventh round. The American tried hard to get a fall with an arm hold and body press, but Meeske resisted all his efforts. Alley, however,- was all over Meeske until the Australian took a .turn with a wriutlock (a favourite hold of his), and the match, which in the sixth round had been in danger of going dead, took a new lease of life. Both men did not hesitate to rough it when the opportunity offered. Alley was obviously getting the. upper hand, but the Australian is nothing' if not a fighter, and he battled gallantly. The eighth round had just commenced when Alley again went for a crucifix. With the exception of having his toes locked, he had the hold completed, but by rolling over Meeske managed to partially slip away. He was still tied up in a combination of scissors and arm holds when the refereo awarded Alley a fall, and with it the bout. Although the decision 'met with a mixed reception the crowd was not really demonstrative. AMATEUR BOUTS. The amateur preliminaries consisted of two final bouts in the Wellington amateur championship, and the two semi-finals in the heavyweight class. Two particularly clever and strong wrestlers in L. Boe (9st 61b) and A. Macfi (9st 101b) contested, the lightweight final. Mace attacked from the start, and he was going close to getting a fall with a body press when Boe hit him smartly on the back. The trick succeded, for Mace, thinking the referee had awarded him the fall, got up and! allowed Boe to escape. Mace had his revenge a couple of minutes later when he won the first fall with a combination scissors and arm hold. Boe's arm appeared to have been injured, and he could do little in the nest round, Mace winning the match and the championship "with a body press and wristlock. ' S Drury (9st 101b) provided solid opposition to S. Lack (10st'3lb-) in the first, roimd of the welterweight fin:.] and both boys did some hard wrestling. The more experienced Lack gradually gained the ascendancy in the second, and near the end he took the first fall with Jft headloek. Drury resisted all Lack's attempts to win a further fall in the last, but Lack was a good winner. , Heavyweight,.—Semi-finals:. I>. Anderson (12st 101b) and A. Glaatynbury (135t,41b) struggled hard over three rounds for the latter to win on points. Anderson took a fajl in the first with a headloek and body press, Glastynbury evening up in the next with a body press. X A Brown (Wst 41b) and W. Ihovuton 03st 01b) thundered ponderously around the ring, Brown taking a tall in the first round with a cradle hold. They speeded up a bit in the second round, and the referee earned a portion of the crowd s displeasure when he stopped the men using holds which are1 barred in strict amateur wrestling. Brown won the match • with ■ straight falls, sccurins the second with another cradle hold. Mr. J. H. Txompson r-stereed the ama- ; teur bouts.