BRIGHT BOXING

Evening Post, Volume CXVIII, Issue 92, 16 October 1934, Page 13

BRIGHT BOXING

AMATEURS IN ACTION

AUSTRALIANS SUCCESSFUL

The touring Australian amateur boxers met the local representatives in a series of contests at the Town Hall last night. Though there was accommodation to spare, the attendance was very satisfactory and the public were rewarded with a splendid night's entertainment. The boxing was bright and skilful, and most of the bouts were sufficiently even to arouse considerable enthusiasm. Owing to the inability of A. Taylor, who suffered a throat injury at Invercargill, to i>ass the doctor, only seven matches were staged, and of these- the Australians won five. There were also three bouts between local amateurs. Both the visitors' losses were very narrow, and in one an extra round was necessary in' order to reach a decision. The best performances were put up in the lighter divisions, and probably the pick of the evening's bouts was that between A. Warbrick (Australia) and J. Plank. Warbrick, who is an exceptionally clever and attractive boxer, gained the decision, but Plank kept him busy tha Tv-hole time. Another good bout was that in which W. Aitken, the Newtown featherweight, defeated J. Moore. Both boys maintained a sound defence and hit hard and accurately. Considerable excitement was caused in the middleweight division, in which M. Spring, of the Masterton Club, defeated J. Miles. Matters were kept very willing and there was very little between the pair. L. Larson was somewhat disappointiug in his bout with H. Cooper, whom he treated with too much respect until right at the iinish, when he made a belated spurt. There was little deserving of comment in the two heavyweight classes. The bout in the top division was a poor display in which the decision could have gone either way. In the light-heavy class W. Burns (Australia) was much too fast and scientific for G. Holeroft who, however, earned applause for the manner in which ho stood up to- the battering he received. Warm applause greeted the appearance in the ring of Mr. Earl ("Mick") Stewart, who returned, after an absence of some years, to act as referee. The crowd found little cause for disagreement in the decisions of the judges, Messrs. W. P. Soinmerville and P. W. Woods. ■ The announcer was Mr. G. A. Broad. Mr. W. Lake, the Australians' trainer, had Mr. Jim Donoghue assisting him in the visitors' corner, and the Wellington boys were seconded by Messrs. A. Allison '(Masterton) and Tim Tracy. TROPHIES PRESENTED. Silver cups were presented to, the Australian and Wellington boys by the IU. Hon. J. G. Coates, who said he was sure all would join with him in extending hearty congratulations to the winners. "To the manager of the Australian team, may I say on your behalf that we, as New Zealanders, extend to them a hearty welcome- and ever so many thanks for. the help that they have-given boxing in New Zealand," he continued. "I am sure we .can say from AVellington that we thank them for the visit they have made to us and the excellent contests that^ we have had the pleasure of witnessing. Mr. Coates mentioned that Dr. A. S. Lamb and the Canadian schoolboy athletes were present, and he extended a welcome to them also. After the cups had been presented Mr. Coates handed silver fern leaves to each of the visiting party as souvenirs from the Wellington Boxing Association. The mannger of the Australian team, -Mr. W. McCluskey, who was received with warm applause, said that his team felt very pleased at having done better 'that night than at Invercargill, and ■ lie hoped - that hy- the time they reached Auckland they would be able to win all their contests. 'He took the opportunity of thanking the New Zealand people for their -wonderful hospitality, and said he and the team would carry back with them the happiest recollections o£ the tour. Dr. Lamb said the Canadians appreciated the greetings that had been extended to them.' They were also grateful for having had the opportunity of seeing a wonderful night's entertainment. He also congratulated the winners. The Canadian boys then went into a "huddle" and gave their war-cry. The- results of the bouts were as follows: — HEAVYWEIGHT. S. 0. Inskip (Australia), 12st o%lb, defeated G. Lang (Wellington), on points. They spent some time in sizing up each other, and except for a couple of occasions when Lang bore in on the Australian, the first round produced little action. During a brisk rally early in tha second round Lang connected with a solid right to the side of the jaw, but once again there was more footwork than ■ iise of the gloves, and the crowd began to urge Inskip to go in and fight. Inskip " was inclined to throw his punches wildly • and often missed his opponent completely. In the last round he punched straight and connected with some heavy blows to the face. LIGHT-HEAVYWEIGHT. W. Burns (Australia), list Sib, defeated G. Holcroft (Wellington), 12st 71b, on points. Burns was much more scientific than the Wellington boy, who however, proved capable of absorbing a terrific amount of punishment. Burns collected points almost at will, but Holcroft was still coming in at the finish. WELTERWEIGHT. A. Warbrick (Australia), 9st 10}lb, defeated J. Plank (Wellington), lOst 61b, on points. The bout opened briskly and some good blows were sent in on either side to both the head and body. Warbrick used his left busily when he came out for the second round, but Plank got inside his guard and delivered a heavy blow to the body. It was another clever round. Interesting and scientific boxing was again the order in the third round, with the Australian making most of the bout. It was a splendid contest from start to finish, nnd Warbrick lived up to his reputation as a classy boxer. MIDDLEWEIGHT. M. Spring (Wellington), list 31b, defeated J. Miles (Australia), list 21b, on points. The bout was the best among the bigger men. Miles quickly opened up with a two-handed barrage and Spring fought back ably. Spring stood off to wait for opportunities in the second round and twice he pulled up his opponent with solid blows to the head. The third round had the crowd yelling excitedly, Spring doing some good work with his'left. Miles fought back coolly all the way, but Spring's longer reach was very largely the deciding factor. FLYWEIGHT. H. Cooper (Australia), Tst 61b, defeated h. Larsen (Wellington), 7st 131b, on points. In the first round Cooper, who is a speedy little boxer, scored at least three punches to the other boy's one, though his blows did not carry a great deal of sting. Larsen concentrated in tbe second round on keeping his guard intact, but even so, he was unable to stop everything with his arms. Larsen did not really let loose with all he had until the final round, when it was too late. FEATHERWEIGHT. W. Aitken (Wellington), Bst 101b, defeated J. Moore (Australia), Bst 101b. Aitken went in confidently at the start and his vigorous attack made the Australian regard him with respect. Moore took the second round, in which he punched much more accurately than the local boy. It was even pegging in the third round, with most of the boxing done in the open. In the fourth round Moore hit straighter and generally beat Aitken to the punch. When the judge's slips had been handed in the referee asked for another round. This

was marked by hard slogging at close quarters, and Aitken took tho decision by a shade. BANTAMWEIGHT. B. Gillam (Australia), Sst 231b, defeated N. Tanner (Wellington), Sst S-ilb, by a knock-out in the first round. Tanner, who was substituting for F. Piimegau, found the hard-hitting southpaw too much for him, and Gillam added another to his list of first-round victims. Tanner was knocked through the ropes when the bout had been in progress less than a minute and. in attempting to regain his feet, fell off the stage to tho floor. He was assisted to the ropes, but was unable to stand, and Gillam's hand was raised. WELTERWEIGHT. A. Perrett (lOst 01b) defeated F. Mclvor (lOst 31b) on points. These were two rugged lighters and they kept the- air full of leather. Perrett, an improving boxer, maintained a solid attack to the body, which carried the day. FEATHERWEIGHT. H Dunn (Sst 121b) defeated T. Corbin (Ost 21b) by a knock-out in the third round. Dunn once again revealed himself as a heady boxer with afastj and stinging punch. He sent Corbin to the canvas as the gong went at the end of the first round, and floored him twice in the second. The end came early in the third round. LIGHTWEIGHT. D. Glengarry (Ost 6b) defeated J. Hanson (9st 41b) on points, lor most of the time- they fought at long range, and Glengarry won because ho was more accurate.