BETTON AMOK

Evening Star, Issue 23349, 19 August 1939, Page 8 (Supplement)

BETTON AMOK

WILD WRESTLING IN SYDNEY REFEREE IN MELEE George Zaharias defeated Dean Detton, who was disqualified in the sixth round of last week’s wrestle at the Svdnev Stadium, after the wildest match" of the year. Each gained one fall.' Dctton, who has built up a reputation for scientific wrestling, became a

caveman, says the ‘ Daily Telegraph.’ The incident which led up to all the excitement occurred in the fifth round, when Zaharias used a punishing strangle-hold on Detton. He continued to apply the strangle in spite of the crowd’s protest, and ho eventually gained a fall after having savaged his opponent into a state of apparent lifelessnoss. At the end of the round Detton, walked across to the referee and hotly protested. The referee told him to go back to his corner. Detton seized the referee around the throat and gave a forcible demonstration of what Zaharias was doing to him. Detton wrestled for a minute with the referee, and then round six began. Detton felled Zaharias, tied him up in the ropes, and then punched and kicked him. The referee went to Zaharias’s assistance. Detton attacked the referee. He strangled, kicked, and punched him, and finally tore his shirt to ribbons. The referee disqualified Detton, and got quickly from the ring to avoid further punishment. The crowd of 12,000. the largest for the season, was in a I'ionzy almost throughout the contest.