SPORT IN BRITAIN

Evening Star, Issue 21005, 20 January 1932, Page 11

SPORT IN BRITAIN

[From Oub English Correspondent.]

LONDON, December 9. RUGBY. By general agreement the international between Wales and the South 'African touring side at Swansea was decided under about the worst possible conditions. Rain and mud made accurate handling impossible, and it speaks ■well for the visitors _ that they so quickly grasped the situation. With Wales scoring first, and coniidering that the Springboks are used to dry ground, the 40,000 spectators thought a home win was assured. In. addition, the play was largely inside the Springboks’ half of the field. A minute before the visitors got their first try Wales had forced the, ball within syds of the South African line, 'so that the sudden change was startling, and the score was partly due to a fumble by a Welsh player. Towards the end the South Africans gave up trying to handle and kicking the ball, and the tactics were right. A couple of clever Association players on either side would have easily turned the scale. Apropos of this, the modern follower of football may not know that a team of Corinthian (Soccer) players once beat what was practically an international side in a match under Rugby rules. It is rather surprising that this appears to be forgotten, and that Rugger players continue to see promising movements spoilt through forward passes and knock-ons. That the South Africans realised that handling was impossible long before the Welshmen grasped this was largely responsible for the tourists winning the first of their international matches. Three South Africans, two New Zealanders, an Australian, two Scots, three Welshmen, and a player from the United States of America were included in the Oxford University team which defeated Cambridge in the Rugby match at Twickenham this week. There was only one overseas player in -■the Light Blue fifteen, and on this occasion the international side proved ' superior. W. E. Roberts, from Cardiff,’ is the first Welshman to captain the Oxford side, and he must feel delighted that his side prevailed. Considerable credit for the success was due to the excellent way F. L. Hovde, from the University of Minnesota, and S. G. Osier, from Cape Town, combined in the three-quarter line. The American is very fleet of foot, and his long passing also caught the eye. It would not be surprising if he plays a part in trying to make English Rugby football more popular in America when he returns to his own country. SOCCER. The victorious career of Everton received a 1 check wh?n the League leaders visited West Ham on Saturday. The leaders in other divisions also struck a bad patch, two being beaten and the other only drawing. The Everton cracks played in a listless manner against West Ham, and the strain of hard matches is evidently making itself felt. It may also be that the Everton men took things too much for granted, and then became unsettled when matters went against them. The loss brings Everton back to other clubs and makes the struggle for the championship more interesting. A few more slips by Everton may see Arsenal, last season’s winners, right to the fore. Meanwhile it is illuminating to have two clubs which were in the second division last season now showing the way in the first division.

CRICKET. Having had many matches during the summer spoilt through rain, the East Molesey Club played a match against a side from Cambridge University last week. Cricket in December is strange in England, but there are days in the winter when it would be just as suitable as football on a blazing day in September, as we sometimes see. Mr W. Findlay, secretary of the M.C.C., has expressed the opinion that awarding 15 points for a win has increased interest in the county championship. He is certainly right, and it will he a pity if the present system is altered. Some < of the cricket legislators say something must he done to stop freak declarations meaning mutual agreement to declare the first innings closed, so making the match one of an innings each instead of two innings each. Many sportsmen think it a useful step, as leading to one day for a match, which is quite long enough for a game. BOXING. It seems that Charley Smith, of Deptford, is not satisfied that Reggie Meen is his master in the boxing arena. Having twice defeated the northerner, it was perhaps natural that Smith failed to grasp the fact that Meen was a much-improved boxer when they met for a third encounter. Meanwhile it is natural to think Smith has gone down the scale, partly due to his having had a long spell of “ resting.” Boxers cannot afford to'be idle, and even when there are no big contests in view it is wise to keep fit by constant training and boxing. The history of the fistic ring shows that some of the most successful boxers have been men who were never idle. Georges Carpentier and Jack Dempsey are two notable examples of this. On the other hand, many promising performers have just petered out because they failed to train hard enough to keep down unwonted fat. Iron Hague, of Mexborough, whom Sam Langford defeated, being a notable illustration. Now that Meen has proved to himself that he really has made improvement and that he can beat Smith, lie is likely to go on to even better things. He has all the natural gifts that go to make up a successful boxer. The rest lies with himself and his “ will to win ” and determination to sacrifice personal comforts in the quest for fame. So many promising British heavyweights have failed to reach the very front rank that critics are shy about making predictions, and good as Meen certainly is he would not yet bo fancied against M‘Corkindale, of South Africa, or Larry Gains, the coloured boxer from Canada. The hunt for a heavy-weight champion of England goes on, and some day the right man may bo discovered. There is always support for promising big men, and the latest promotion for heavy-weight novices by dummy Hulls at the Crystal Palace attracted a splendid entry, and a few of the competitors certainly shaped well. A schoolmaster from Scotland made a good impression, and it would be no surprisec should he reach the final stage. Johnny Cuthbert, of Sheffield, the ex-feather-weight champion of England, has every reason to feel satisfied with his first bout in the light-weight class. He met T. John, of Wales, at Sheffield this week, and in less than a round had his rival beaten. _ It was a right-hand punch to the point of the jaw which brought this about, John going down like a log. Although the bell for the end of the round came after John ha,d been down three seconds, he was unable to continue. BILLIARDS. Joe Davis and Clark M'Conachy, of New Zealand, arc now “all square ” in their billiard duel, each having won a match in fho series of three they have agreed to play. M'Conachy maintained his high standard throughout the second game, and Davis has not been so

badly beaten for a very long . time. That the English billiard champion ot 1930 was no fewer than 10,599 points “ down ” as the result of twelve days play shows very clearly that the winner produced, some great billiards. Davis made a fine spurt on the afternoon of the last day, when he did the outpointing, to the tune of 1,543 to 272. Davis also made his best break ot the match during this session, the effort finishing at 907, just when he appeared set for a four-figure, break. This good break should encourage Davis to big things in the third match, and he will indeed have to play his very best to stop the victorious career of the New Zealander, who has at last found his best form in England. M'Conachy finished the match in great style, totalling 1,416 during the session. He again made a four-figure break (1,077), his seventh of _ the match, clear evidence of his exceptional form. As Lindrum and Newman will soon be back in England, it is all to the good that M'Conachy is playing so brilliantly, and. there is no reason Davis should not “ find his touch ” before the season is much older. ATHLETICS. The officials of the Irish Free State Athletic Association are very hopeful of being able to place a select but strong team into the field for the Olygmpic Games at Los Angeles. Since Dr O’Callaghan won the hammerthrowing event at the Amsterdam Games in 1928, he has made considerable improvement at his speciality. His 168 ft 7|in was then good enough, but during the 1931 season he improved his “ best ” to 184 ft. As hammer-throwers of Finland, Sweden, and the United States have exceeded the 170 ft mark during 1931, it will be realised that O’Callaghan will need to do something exceptional at Los Angeles. It is as well to remember that he is a very active man, and can clear over 6ft at the high jump. This agility is very helpful in such events as shot-putting and hammer throwing, where speed must be coupled with strength to reach perfection of effort. If O’Callaghan fails to retain his Olympic title, it will he a big -.blow to Irish Free State sportsmen, and on all form lie looks as big a certainty as can be selected for any other event. If asked to name live prospective winners at the next Games the writer’s first choice would bo O’Callaghan for the hammer, and then Beard of the United States for the high hurdles, Rampling of England for the 400 metres, Ladoumegne of Franco for the 1,500 metres, and Nurmi of Finland for the Marathon _ race. Possibly students of form may like to make a note of these selections and see how they “ pan out.” Next to O’Callaghan, the athlete expected to do well for the Irish Free State at Los Angeles is R. M. S. Tisdall, who distinguished himself at the last Oxford and Cambridge sports by winning four events, a record of tho kind. Certainly he did not have very stout opposition, and none of his performances would have been good enough to win at tho American intercollegiate championship. Tisdall might make a champion at the quarter-mile hurdles if he devoted himself to that event, but ho fancies himself as an all-rounder, and has expressed his desire to compete in tho Decathlon, the ton event all-round competition at tho Olympiad. It is a big ordeal, and Yrjoela of Finland, and tho best of the United States cracks will take a lot of beating. Nor should Hart of South Africa be overlooked, in spite of his being a very big man for the 1,506 metres run, which is

one of the events of the Decathlon. When Tisdall joined the ranks of the married men recently it was thought this might mean his retirement from athletics. It has since been announced that he hopes to compete at Los Angeles. Another famous_ Cambridge athlete in Lord Burghley, is still keen on athletics, notwithstanding that he is now a proud parent and a member of Parliament. Perhaps the example of bis fellow-Cantab has had something to do with Tisdall’s decision to “ carry on ” until after the Los Angeles Games. Last Saturday was an important day in the cross-country season, many county championships being decided. How flourishing the winter pastime is was revealed by no fewer than 332 runners competing in the Midland Counties junior in'terteam race for the Everill Cup, decided over a five-mile course at Harborne. W. T. Thurman of Arley Collery A.C. headed the big field and he shaped like a real good runner, who should do well in future events. That wonderful club, the Birchfield Harriers, again won the team trophy, thanks to level running by the scoring “ six.” It seems that Brighton has some good youngsters over the country. J. Parker, of the Brighton and County Harriers, won the Sussex junior title at Preston Park, and as he is practically a newcomer, he may also be counted on to gain more big successes. His club also won the team championship, so that Brighton seems to be strong in athletic material. The Scottish Eastern District ten miles relay race from Bedford Barracks was an important event in Scotland last Saturday. Four men constituted a team, and the Edinburgh runners prevailed in 64min 15sec, which shows that the course fras well over the stated distance.