WIMBLEDON

Evening Post, Volume CXXII, Issue 16, 18 July 1936, Page 23

WIMBLEDON

RECENT TOURNAMENT

NEW ZEALAND^ PART

_ First day at Wimbledon always has its own special excitements, and the usual perfect weather made ; .this ■year's opening very enjoyable. New Zealand's three representatives were all engaged in singles matches. The London correspondent of "The Post" reports by air mail that C.E. Malfroy was the first to start—in the second o£ the main courts, Court No. 1. His opponent was KukuUevlc,' a member of the Yugoslav Davis Cup team which defeated France, and a very hard match was anticipated. ' Kußuljevic, a young. lefthander, has a rather casual style of walking about the court -between rallies,, but there' is nothing casual in his best strokes A service which kicked severely ard hard cross court drives were only countered by Malfroys remarkably accurate, .volleying. MALFROY'S BRILLIANT SHOTS In the first set Kukuljevic went'to a 3 1 lead but then lost a love game on his service thanks to'some bnl liant passing shots by Malfroy Malfioy won ins service and lost only one point in the next game to lead 4*,> He.lost his service in the eighth game and the score went to 6-aIL betoie Malfioy bioke through his opponents iervice and lost only one pom* on his own, finishing the set with a perfectly placed lob 0 6 The second =et again \\ent to 3 all but Kukuljevic led 5-3, and ,had no fewer than five set points in the next game, in. wmch deuce was called five times, and'Malfroy saved the situation repeatedly by great- passing shots. The moral effect of winning his game was considerable, arid 'he, took his service to love to make the1 score 5-all. Malfroy took the riext^vtwo games, finishing the set with'an.'ac^d service, 7-5. The third set saw'fewer long games, and Malfroy, after'2-all had been called, led all. the way, to finish the set and match with a ■ love game on his service,. 6-4.'. It was a hard, match: and ony which enhanced Malfroy's reputation as a singles player. ' . : ' ' ■ . '• E. ,D. Andrews, who only recently returned to England by the Queen Mary, was fortunate to have an easy match to begin with: Aeschliman, the Swiss Davis Cup player, could score only four games in the three sets. played' as well as he needed to and apparently stiir has it in him to extend the best players of the tournament. •'■ ' ' ; STEDMAN'S CONFIDENCE. A. C. Stedman had a hard fight with the. young English player* F. H. D. Wilde, who hits very hard but was not able to cope ■ successfully with Stedman's beautifully-judged drives to the corners and confident net attack. When Wilde went in! to the net Stedman was usually able to pass him, and when Wilde tried drop shots Stedman in every instance except one was able to-cope with him successfully. Stedman led at 4-3, but lost the next three games and the set, 6-4. He played .without confidence and rhythm.in the second set arid went to a 5-0 lead, eventually taking the set 6-2. Wilde's setvice was very severe, but occasional double faults (arid in the second game twice in succession) gave Stedman considerable help. The third set was closely fought. Wilde led' at 3-1, but dropped a service game after deuce had been called four times. The game went to 6-all and Stedinari lost only one point in each of the last two games, finishing the set with a good volley, 8-6. The fourth set went with the service to 7-6 in Stedman's favour.^ He won' the .first poirfb of the next game with a great passing shot, and Wilde' served a double before Stedman finished the set with a great cross-court drive, 8-6.

Stedman had had one match point in the twelfth game, but was not disturbed by his,; failure to clinch, the matter at that-stage. He played better as' he went on, but not quite as well as he did when he played his. Marathon match with J. H. Crawford in the Davis Cup- contest at Eastbourne. But his •beautifully-controlled driving and well-judged net incursions may cause trouble to some 0/ the leading lights of the tournament.

R. J. Thomas, who played for North Island in the inter-Island University match last week, has had his football career impaired to a.certain.extent by lack of weight. As a hooker he has represented King Country, Waikato, and- Auckland, and he toured Japan with the Universities' team. More weight, allied to his present pace and determination, would take him a long way. ..-;•,. .

Maxie Eoseribloom, the American boxer now ; in Sydney, has received advice of his matching with Joe Louis at Los Angeles on September 29.

Association football' first was played in Russia about 1906, according to the best information available to the Moscow correspondent of the -Manchester Guardian," and owed its introduction to the ' English owners of textile mills in Petrograd and Moscow, who induced their/workers to form teams and organise competitions. At the time of the outbreak of the war football .clubs were playing regularly in various cities and an All-Russian Football Union came into being in 1912. The sport encountered opposition in several quarters. The merchant classes sometimes Were hostile because they characterised it as a/ "foreign influence, corrupting the youth."- The fact that the game was played in shorts with bare knees and legs was regarded most unfavourably. Conservative classes regarded sports generally as akiri to forms of radicalism, and the revolutionists, on- the J other hand, denounced football as a soporific offered to the-workers to divert their attention from the abuses of the autocracy and the industrialists. Nevertheless, the, game was spreading rapidly when the war made it impossible 'to carry on organised football, and during' the Revolution and civil wars there was no thought for sports in Russia. ENCOURAGED BY SOVIET. ' Revival of football came iA earnest in 1923, for official encouragement was lent to sports by the Soviet Government when it formed councils Of physical culture in different towns, which now are co-ordinated in the AU-Union Central Council of Physical Culture. Today it can be safely, asserted that Association football is the country's favourite game, for iit is ; played in the largest cities and smallest villages from Minsk to Vladivostok and-from Murmansk to Tiflis. It is.played:at the factories and mines, pn.the State and collective farms, and at the schools. On July 1, 1935, there were registered7 as football players more jfhan one million persons; and there are;-many not registered •; as, well. ■„■■ More than '600 teams participated in'the Moscow-champion-ship tournament last year, and 57 cities. were represented in the matches for the U.S.S.R. championship. ' '■■:■. Climatic conditions-permit the*playing of football in most parts of the'

U.S.S.R. only from May to October, which has put the Soviet teams at a disadvantage, often in meeting foreign players, as such matches usually have taken place in the summer, when the visiting teams are fully trained and; the Soviet teams are only beginning to* get into form. . This has not excluded the Soviet players from victories, for in Paris in 1935 the Ukrainian team, comprising star players from a number of cities, easily defeated the Red Stars 6-1. A similar success was scored against a strong Swedish team by the Transcaucasian Club. ■ : TEAMWORK THE KEYNOTE. .The Soviet teams tend to excel in teamwork, which is the keynote of their training, but the principal drawback in international contests has been the lack of individual skill. Older players are now being retained as coaches and football schools opened in a number'of places in order to overcome this deficiency. When the Soviet sports officials' are satisfied that their players average up individually in playing technique with those of Western Europe they will send teams abroad more often and arrange more matches at home with foreign teams, especially those of recognised calibre. Football enthusiasts in the U.S.S.R. follow closely the British matches, and respect for British . training and playing methods is. extremely high, according to officials of the Physical Culture Council. Football contests are organised along the following lines:—Matches for . the championships" of the different cities and towns are held from May to about the end of June, and all the teams in the given city or town may participate. In July and August the teams representing the different cities, selected from the best players of all the teams, meet for the championships of the various Republics and of the U.S.S.R. During September and October matches are played in the main cities between the teams recognised as leaders. During the summer "Spartakiads" (tournaments) are held such as one. held last summer between teams from the largest works and factories of the country; Fifty-two teams "were engaged and the winners were the Kuibysheff Electric Works, in Moscow. '. THIS REAR'S EXPERIMENT. During 1936 the experiment was tried of not selecting the best players from different teams to form the team for the next stage of the . elmination but to allow winning teams to retain their identity throughout a season. This policy was adopted during the winter with the ice hockey teams.

Whilst workers tend to predominate in the football teams there are no bars set up against participation of engineers and other technicians or persons in professional or intellectual,pursuits. The Moscow team included a numbei'

of students, an ehgiriesr/'a .chauffeur- ■ chief bookkeeper, and twb physical culture instructors. These last' two,come as near to being professionals':is:the Soviet; code will allow.■';Pjira. professionalism .by players Soviet'ppinionr is not ready to tolerate, .^Those players selected for championship'niatphei. are given leaves of absence from-their jobs, during which they/receive ; the' same basic wage from the .Physical. Culture Council, or trade union sports club, but when the special occasion is over they are expected to return "to theis-: posts. \ A "HIDEOUS • piSCqVSBTfc ■ '. Recently: there 'has been: sbnie^ sharp criticism of practices *6f r ;sp6rts%clubs in;luring players away from rival clubs by promises of better (jobs. i;Thf-news-paper: "Pravda"V J ; shuddered over :the "hideous", discovery: that" football play-, ers had been appointed' "instructors"" at attractive, salaries iri v o'rder> td assure their services to certain team'sivi' .It'alleged that' one 'tradefunidri"-■sports ■: club was paying: so-called.f!stipendsi';to for t y athletes who appeared on its-"various teams. •/■Vi i: ?''- ■ ■ The ''World Spartakiati"--the"' proletarian rival of the- Olympic* Games— originally plannedfor -this 'year has been postponed until. 1938 or .1939, it. is'proposed to,hbld, this summer in Moscow a world's championship toiirnament for'footbalTteSms■ from #orkers v organisations. ■'.■.••:-••'.-'■ i.y \:'-;^>-;-'r

How strong has*: been-',Englisli influence upon/the development of football in Russia,is shown' by; the>fact.that still ;in';use! are such\.termss,as: "bek," "khay-bek," /'forvard,"; ."tsentii" :g: oal and- goalkeeper, match, inside and outside; and'corner.-,: True;•for;.a'Jnumber of these; Russian eijuivalentshayeilately been brdaiiied, :but'use of the older, familiar terras 'traiisliterated from English prevails. ■ ■■'■■;' ' ; • -: -■: .-.>-•■

Goals Cb. P. W. L. D. F. A. PtB. Institute .... 9 80 I 46 16 ■■: IT Waterside 9 6 2" 1 43 16 13 Seatoun 9 6 2 1 20 13 13 Diamonds ....... 9 P3. 3 -3-30 2-1 9 Korokoro .. 10 4 5 1 32 34 '. 9 Martst ......... 9. . 3 4 2 33 26 8 Hospital ...... 9 1 "T:. !•'18 41-' S Swifts ...10 1 9 0%12 66\ t Second B Division. Goals Ch. P. W. L. D. F. A. Pts. Radestown ...... 8 7 1 0' 22 15 -14 lech.. Old Boys . 8 5 1 -2 36 13 12 Stop Out 9 5 2 2 34 20 12 Scottish Wand. . 8' 5- 2 ■ 1 -25 • 18 11 Island Bay 8 3 4 1 18 16'.:' T Onslow 8 5 5 0 23 20 6 Lower Hurt ....• 8- -3 5 ' .0 11 19 : 6 X««ia 7 0 5 2 11 25 2 JJarlst 8 1 7 0 12 42 I Fourth Division. . - Goals. Ch. P. W. L. D. F. A. Pts. Marist ......... 9 S 1 0 53 20 1« Institute 9 7 2- 0 36 17 14 Waterside 9-4' 3' 2 32 20 10 Petone ... "! .'■.'4', 2 1.23 13- 9 Lower Hutt ...:. 8-3 3 2 23 18 S Diamonds '. 8' ' 2 ; 4 2 26 ' 26 « Tech. Old Boys ...8 3 5' 0 26 35 ' 6 Korokoro 8 1 6 1 24 41 3 Onslow >. 8 1 7 0 10 47 1 Fifth Division. Goals. ■ Ch. P. W. L. D. F.-'A. Pts. Toch. Coll. A ..9 9 0 * 0 62 * IS Seatoun -9, 7 1 1 '38 '13 15 Diamonds ....... 9:7 2 0 58 '17 14 Institute ., 9 6 3 0 4S ;28 12 -lyrist 8 I 3 1 24 iq 9 Tech. Coll. B .. 8 2 4 2 21 42 6 Swifts ...: 9,2 5 2 22 '37 6 Waterside 9 1 7 1 17 47 3 Miramar Rang. .9 1 7 1" 17 54 3 Scottish Wand. . 9 1 8 0 7 70 t Sixth Division. Goals «. P. W. L. D. F. A. Pts. Sratoun 8 7 0 1 48 11 15 Onslow S 6 0.2.45'u 14 Tech Coll. A .. 8 6 1 1 39 9 it M'-rlst 8 3 3 2 16 22 8 | t0P Out 8 3 3- 2 18 20 8 Swifts 8 1 4 3 11 2S 5 Diamonds 8 1 5 1 15 39 4 Tech. Coll B ... 8 1 6 1 7 47 3 2sada ........... 8- 1 ,7 0 9' 39 2 ''■ Seventh' Division. Goals Ch. ,, . , -P- W. L. D. T. A. Pts. -Msrist 7 7 O 0 U 4 u Swifts 8 4 4 0 14 22 S Miramar Rane. .. 8 4 4 0 16 SO 8 •InsUtute 8 3 5 0 17 14 « Waaestown 7 3 4 0 7 22 ■ 6 Onslow 7 0 7 0 1 46 O Eighth/Division. Goals Ch. *-t T I I' O^^V^ Seatoun A 5 4 1 0 IS 5 8 2 Umonds 6 3 2 1 19 16 7 Boys' Institute .6 2 4 0 13 14 4 Seatoun B 6 0 $ 0 4 29 0 Ninth Division..- • «t VTSVS-F^ 311 ramar Rang. ..7 S 2 -D IT 11 10 Diamonds 7 2 4 1 15 u ! ! Institute !* | 5 5" 1 " 1 'H {

BATTLE;FOR THE BALL.— An; Australian, player (leftfandi:m New Zealander, with the same objective, in the second Association, football Test match played on the Basin. .Reserve last Saturdayi