PROFESSIONAL BOXING

Evening Star, Issue 26041, 4 March 1947, Page 10

PROFESSIONAL BOXING

WELTER-WEIGHT TITLE

CRUICKSHANK WINS CLOSE CONTEST Although three rounds had been fought before he was able to measure off his opponent, lan Cruickshank, lOst 3ilb, of Dunedin, carried a points decision over Jack Duncan, lOst 6}lb, of. Auckland, in the professional boxing contest, of 15 three-minute rounds, at the Town Hall last night. The winner, who becomes the New Zealand welterweight champion and takes the ‘ Truth ’ belt, varied his punching more expertly and scored with left and right rips to the body. The bout was marred by too many clinches, and neither boxer landed many damaging punches. Cruickshank won eight of the 15 rounds, while two were shared. Despite the inclination to , clinching, neither 'boxer was loth to mix it, and consequently, the crowd of 2,000 people was given some exciting moments. In the early stages the Dunedin man found Duncan’s crouching stance awkward, and he was unable to score with either hand. Several times when Cruickshank ' seemed to have manoeuvred Duncan into a position to unleash his vicious right uppercut, Duncan, by smart footwork, evaded the punch that might have proved deadly. The Auckland boxer’s left was effectively delivered, but Cruickshank was able to smother it \yith his .gloves, although Duncan occasionally got through the defence with stinging left hooks to the head and body.

Duncan moved in from the start and scored with left hooks and rips to the body to take the first two rounds. None of his blows, however, carried much weight, and Cruickshank was not shaken. The third round saw Cruickshank open out and connect with a seines of jabbing lefts to Duncan’s head. He then landed a right cross, but Duncan retaliated with swinging lefts and rights to the body. Honours were shared. Cruickshank bored in and was now getting his left going to force Duncan into a corner, but he did not follow up his advantage- Duncan scored with a heavy right cross in this round. The points went in Cruickshank’s favour. A period of in-fighting, in which no advantage was gained, followed in the fifth, which was slightly in Duncan’s favour. The next round finished even with Duncan gaining points with straight lefts and right hooks, and Cruickshank connecting with short rights to the head: The Dunedin boxer displayed the full range of his punches to force Duncan on the defensive, and for the first time he connected with the right uppercut he had attempted so often, and brought blood to Duncan’s nose. It was Cruickshank’s round. In the following two rounds Cruickshank maintained his advantage, and was always looking . for an opening. Duncan recovered in the tenth to send his left flashing into Cruickshank’s body. There was some wild punching here, but Duncan emerged the better of the two. There was more clinching in the eleventh, which again favoured Duncan, and the next round saw Cruickshank open with a two-fisted barrage. Duncan was tiring, but he shot out straight lefts and right crosses, one of which opened a gash above Cruickshank’s eye. Duncan got the better of the close exchanges in this round, in which the points were divided. Cruickshank, now the fresher of the two, took the last two rounds, which resolved into a tactical exchange. for points advantage. WiLLIE JONES SPARS.

Willie Jones, the American negro, made an exhibition appearance, and he delighted the crowd with his tremendous reach and flashing left and right hand. He shadow-boxed for a few moments, and then sparred with Colin Kerr, Jim Ramsay, and Ken Anderson. The advantage of his rangy left was clearly demonstrated, and his ability to change from orthodox stance to southpaw was easily seen. He wa6 a picture of fitness, without an ounce of superfluous flesh on his lean, neatly-muscled body. THE PRELIMINARIES.

In a special preliminary contest J. Musson, *lost 41b, of Christchurch, beat R. J. Chooquee, lOst 111 b, of Dunedin, on points. The bout, which was fought over six two-minute rounds was a lively one, but Musson was able to smother the spirited attacks by Chooquee. . He scored with straight lefts and clearly gained the decision in the last two rounds, despite a shaking by Chooquee in the fourth round.

Heavy-weight.—W. Russell, list 71b, of Christchurch, beat K. Skinner, 13st 61b, of Dunedin, on points. Russell, the New Zealand light heavy-weight champion, displayed superior ringcraft and forced Skinner into errors.

Welter-weight.—K. McCoomb, lOst 21b, beat K. Hunter, lOst 51b, on points. McComb scored with welltimed blows with his left and right and carried the fight to his opponent, who, nevertheless, defended gamely. Light-weight.—S. Larkins, 9st 101 b, beat G. Hanson, 9st 91b, on points. Larkins frequently broke Hanson’s defence, to land telling left and right rips to the body. ' Feather-weight.—M. Whittfield, Bst 121 b, beat B. Shanks, Bst 121 b, on points. Shanks punched wildly, whereas Whittfield scored with straight lefts.

Fly-weight.—W. Dabinett, 6st 3Jib, drew with J. Hinds, 6st 9-Jlb, over three one-minute rounds. Both boys gave a clever display. Mr V. Parker controlled the professional contest, and Mr S. Paris was the referee of the preliminary bouts. Mr S. Glendinning was the M.C.