BOXING

Greymouth Evening Star, 2 November 1923, Page 6

BOXING

.VOLAIRE DEFEATS BLACKBURN.

The Wellington Town Hall was packed to witness the 15-round contest en Tuesday night between Eugene Volaire and Clarrie Blackburn. Volaire’s superiority was apparent throughout the contest, more particularly in the latter rounds, during which the Aucklander was obliged to smother time and time again to save himself from punishment. The one thrill, occurred in the tenth round when the Frenchman, with a heavy blow to the body, snapped Blackburn’s wind and almost sent him to the canvas. He doubled up in evident pain, and Volaire stood off for a second or two while members of the audience loudly announced a “foul,” but the referee rightly ordered the boxers to fight on. When interviewed after the fight, Blackburn expressed the opinion that he had been hit low in this particular round, though otherwise, he had no fault to find with the decision.

—The Contest —

Hostilities were opened by Blackburn, who led with a light left to the face, Volaire replying with a left hook to the chin. The pair fell into a clinch, and the Frenchman smashed both hands to the body, Blackburn lifting his right glove to the jaw and then breaking away. The Aucklander showed up well in the close work, manoeuvring cleverly for the inside position, and then shooting left and right to the stomach. Volaire missed by inches with a heavy right swing. Round two saw Volaire step in with a left hook to the body, but Blackburn danced away, and then came back punching with left and right, and forcing the Frenchman to the ropes. Volaire repeated the left hook to the midriff, and, coming in, the Auckland boy staggered him momentarily with a left to the jaw. The Aucklander punched hard with both hands in the clinch which opened the third round, but the Frenchman claimed him, and then forced the fight, landing a left hook flush to his opponent’s jaw. Blackburn supported himself on the ropes and met his man as he came in. Volaire utterly failing to penetrate his defence. The New Zealander used a clever double right-hand punch in the clinch at the beginning of the next round and as the pair came together again he missed with a vicious right hook. Volaire failed to connect with a left swing to the head, but landed a nice right to the body as he pivoted back. Much in-fighting characterised round five, Blackburn making the pace, but Volaire blocked and countered well. He hedged the Aucklander in a neutral corner, and, shooting with both hands, forced him to smother. Blackburn was content to wait for a moment or two, and then he forced his way from the angle fighting hard as he moved. A cut over his right eye seemed to trouble Volaire in round six, and Blackburn did not hesitate to play on the wound with jarring left hooks. The Frenchman favoured the close work, showing up well in this department, though Blackburn was always ready to free his opponent’s arms and exchange

punches. A series of left jabs to the jaw added points to Volaire’s tally in the seventh round, but Blackburn hid behind his forearm,, and then swung hard to the body. The Frenchman once again rushed his opponent to the ropes, and swung determinedly at him, though he failed to do any damage because of the Aucklander’s clever smother. Volaire’s left eye also was opened in the early stages of the eighth round, but he was not visibly worried, and, boring in, continually had Blackburn

smothering to save himself from trouble. He used a variety of punches in the close work, and invariably found a suitable target for his reliable left hook as he moved forward, though Blackburn’s defnece was fairly strong. A heavy right swing narrowly missed Blackburn’s jaw in the ninth round, and a left hook caught him on the side of the head. Blackburn used an uppercut well in the clinch, but stopped another left hook on the jaw as he attempted to move away. He ducked nicely beneath left and right, and took a left swing on his forearm, retaliating with a left uppercut to the body. Volaire missed by a foot with a left swing in round ten, and the right which he brought over was taken by Blackburn on his glove. The boys faced each other in the centre of the ring, and Volaire, feinting with his right, smashed his left to the solar plexus as Blackburn attempted to swing away. The Aucklander doubled up, and seemed about to collapse, while many members of the audience cried “Foul,” but “box on” was the referee’s order. Blackburn’s wind obviously had been snapped, but by dint of much clinching and holding on he was able to weather the storm until the gong sounded a welcome relief. A left hook to the chin hurt Blackburn in round eleven, and a right cross and then another left hook did not improve him at all. He moved in close and “stalled’’ for a spell, but did not endeavour to make the light, remaining on the defensive. The Frenchman missed badly as he came in in the twelfth, but followed up and forced Blackburn to the corner. The Aucklander hid behind his gloves, and then slipped away, though he did not endeavour to come in and light. The round ended with Volaire on the aggressive. Blackburn took a left hook to the midriff at the commencement of the “devil’s number,” and, moving away, saved himself from the full force of the right smash which followed. He loosed an occasional uppercut in the clinches, but seemer more concerned with keeping himself out of trouble, and was obviously still suffering from the effects of the body punch in round ten.

Volaire shot an uppercut to the chin at the beginning of round fourteen, and then pushing Blackburn away ripped his left hand to the body. Blackburn landed several light lefts to the face, but usually missed with his right on the rare occasions upon which lie used this weapon. The last round was moderately exciting. but was characterised, like many of its predecessors, by much clinching. The gong sounded with both men fighting hard in the Frenchman’s corner.

The unanimous verdict of the judges went to Volaire, who won quite comfortably. There were plenty of thrills in the special six-round bout between C.

Mcßae, 14.7, and H. DlcCormick, 12.7. Dlcßae towered over his shorter and much lighter opponent, and when the pair were introduced it seemed that Dlcßae. with so much in his favour,

must win. DlcCormick, however, showed that whatever he lacked in height he made up for with aggressiveness, and, though badly punished in the opening rounds, he soon settled down to his task, and, boxing in under the long arms of his opponent, frequently connected with a heavy right swing to the jaw, Dlcßae danced about confidently, but he could not stem off the determined assaults of the smaller man, who was awarded the decision, amidst uproarious applause. Dlr. Earl Stewart acted as referee, and the judges of the professional contest were Messrs J. E. Staples and P. W. Woods. The amateur preliminaries were judged by some of the visiting delegates to the conference, Messrs A. Beban, G. Aldridge, G. H. Blanchard, G. Bush, A. G. McKay, J. Russell, and 11, L. Young.