TWO MEN WIN

Evening Post, Volume CXIX, Issue 128, 1 June 1935, Page 13

TWO MEN WIN

GILBERTIAN WRESTLING

FIASCO AT AUCKLAND

, Though :the current wrestling season is still":, young it has introduced several "melodramatic developments and abrupt endings in one way or another seem to have become the order. It was, howeyer, left to the Auckland As-sociation-to, provide; an ending which was extremely Gilbertian and involved officials? of the controlling authority as wejil. as. tne three men in the ring.; ■'//"' .- ~";" .;..■■ '■•'..:--, ... The story is told in the following manner by -'The Auckland Star":— . "A series. of extraordinary events marked the , professional : wrestling match between Cy.. Williams and Al Pereira. According to the erratic course -which the events took, each contestant was the winner—at least, one, referee gave :. the victory., to Pereira; and another half an hour later awarded the decision to Williams. "The contest, which was scheduled for eight ten-minute rounds,. was commenced in .the orthodox way with Mr. C. Pollard as referee. If the opening round produced nothing that was out of the ordinary, it at least showed that Pereira <16st 41b) was the favourite with; the j crowd, there being several occasions when Williams (16st 51b) was loudly hooted. ''. .": r "With .the second: round came not only - exciting wrestling;; but also the first of a.series of extraordinary events that led to a classic mat tangle. After being spoken to by: the referee for, his.apparent deUght in seeking to remove his opponent'^ hair by? the handful, WilUams brought his knee into^ play: against Pereira's" abdomen. When Pereira replied withV a "similar knee attack the effect appeared more serious, and he was able to take temporr1 ary command with 1 a string of quick pulls to the body and; hefty shoulder butts. Just when it appeared that he was about to take a fall, Williams launched a counter-attack and quickly felled;,his opopnent with wild swings that landed heair the' back of the neck, if; not actually on it. Ruh'hg the blows as rabbit killers, Mr. Pollard intervened, and awarded a penalty fall: to, Pereira"... ?-:-h.c- ■;•> :;■•'.';>.- '^V:(: ■':■'". :'~'-''' >■■ ■ i■',' -JTHE;TROUBLE STAETS.; ;;■:' ■ % : : '"Up^to this stage eve^thihg was in order, but then■ the'trouble started. Incensedj at the iruling, WiUiama! 'endeavoured -to carry■ on the ;contest, despite the fact' that Mr. Pollard -sey--etal times endeavoured to get toetween the'Imen. ■ Although the round was

officially over, both men continued to rough each other, and when he had failed to send them to their corners Mr. Pollard decided to end the bout. Apparently because it had; been. Williams who had first ignored his orders, he disqualified^ him and declared Pereira the winner. He then left the ring, closely followed by Williams. "With the match only. <a quarter of an hour old, the crowd • w^is in no mood to go home and there was long hooting' and shouts of disapproval. Officially the contest was over, but there were cheers- when Pereira indicated that he was prepared to continue. After some minutes', confusion, Williams < returned to the ring. Mr. Pollard, however, 'stood firm by his decision, and it was hot until the services of Mr. C. McCarthy, a former official of the association, had been secured that the contest was , started again. '...'.' " . ■.•.•...''• ; ; .'■ ■■.■." '■..' ."When: the gong sounded the spectators were under the impression that Pereira still had the penalty fall on his side, but it ,was made clear later that William's had insisted that fall should be wiped out, and that they should begin from scratch again. Thus, in • r,eality a new contest was being started, and the third round became the first. Within a few minutes' Williams was again .'-swinging. his arms about, and.when he felled his opponent //with a blow to the top of , the spine he. easily secured a.fall with a body: press. In this round Williams thus won a fall with aii; attack which earlier in the evening had brought a penally fall against him.. ;v ; ; !; ;■'.'■'■":';"PEBEDtA GETS: A FALl*,.:^';:• : The fourth round (or was it really the second?) was chiefly notable for the amount of punishment that Pereira administered by means' of a ".barred toe hold. The fifth ;sessiori saw Pereira V get his second fall of the evening,' but, to the amazement; pf the spectators who were pot aware,that Mr. Pollard's fall had been forgotten, that did: not' 'make hini the The fall that he got on this occasion vwas; a submission one,* being :, wrung ; * from his opponent by means; pf another barred ..;toe hold,/'which followed: a' torrid;head,attack4and series^ of. shoulder butts, v The ; following itiund marked the end; of the ; contest; (the finish coming .unexpectedly.; Securing a full nelson Pereira appeared to haye his opponent in trouble, but'Williams made for a neutral corner, stepped up on to the ropes, arid heaved himself backwards. Crushed; between the floor and his opponent's/-16 stone, Pereira was temporarily "knocked out* i: -and Williams easily took a falV for which he was declared the} y/uiher: for; the night. It was a fltting.flnish to a rema^kable;..:ey^iirig..V''>:.V: ;.•:'.;,■';.?'■?; ~L- -h*- \;';"': •. DOUBTFUL . WKOCEOVK^;;-^-- i ; "Not the "least surpnsihg event of a muddled evening was the action of

I the executive in allowing the; match to continue after Mr. Pollard ,; had given a decision which officially.ended it. Surely such action could only be interpreted as a ybte of no confidence in the man the association ■•: had 7 en T , gaged to control, the; bbiit. ' That;:their action pleased the'crowd is not doubted, but was it fair to the referee, or. was it ip accordance with, the rules of the Dominion Wrestling' Union? The very first rule in the schedule for the control of professional contests states, inter alia, 'thaY the decision of the referee shall be final.' :. ' '■■ "It may be argued that. Mr. Pollard had no power to: disqualify Williams after the second round'hadbeen automatically ended'by.the awarding OfVa penalty; fall to Pereira, but with what logic? Surely .a referee is as much in control of a contest between;rounds as when the 'rounds are in.'. prbgress. If riot who as ,to prevents illegal practices during- the intervals?- The police might intervene iii: the; case of a clash Between the wrestlers, but; it: .is' riot likely that they would take, any action' if any unauthorised person constituted himself an extra second for either' principal. ;.- .*■:',.-•'• y A]\. ;'; "■]'.'.*/■;. '■' ;ij'.;;. :-.!■ .'•; DiyisioN '.of^.the :';?;?. ;;"If if is argued that the association did not go back, on theiri referee^; but rnerely;; with the consent-, of the- wrest lers,; staged a sScorid;contest between, the; men, otherj; difficulties will .arise.' Will the /money be fiqually divided, as each man got a; decision?' Did the association's permit make allowance for two contests? j ■;"■ ■;;.'s^:: -vi,i:.,;■ ■-j;-.'.'.^.-'.' .t ' "One^ could ask; nuuiy questions arising out Jof such a -prize(mix-up, -tut the position would not .be^. "changed. What did' stand;out;dear wa^ that the spectators' '^thoro^hly-; enjoyed''Hiheir evening, \ ( thougti '■; at times ■; the ? tricks with the rule bppk'left them bewildered)V and that; Pereira r won-a' lot;I,of friends, by ; his kctibn; in sacrificing a fairly-earned victory." :. = : ;'.- v-v-v:-'^Vr S\t