BOXING AT PETONE

Hutt News, Volume 13, Issue 24, 22 November 1939, Page 4

BOXING AT PETONE

$ The Hutt Valley Boxing Associa- ; tion is not a large organisation, but jit lias shown foresight lacking in ' some of the larger associations. It is to conduct an open-air tournament next Saturday evening at the Petone Recreation Ground. The open-air will be a noveltjf, and it is hoped that the weather will be kind. But the thing that really stands out is the fact that the Hutt Valley is taking advantage of the Centenary to turn on an attractive bout, while other associations have apparently cried "Finish" for the season. Mayne Morton and Jack Davis are the professionals scheduled to meet (there will be amateur bouts, too), and though they lack the crowd-drawing capacity of a Donovan or a Sarron (Wellington's last open-air contestants) they have shown in their careers in the cash ranks that they are really competent, crowd-pleasing boys. Davis holds a technical knock-out decision over the Hutt Valley boy. Paradoxically, Davis, despite his being a Hastings product, is better known to Wellingtonians than Morton. That is, from the professional angle. Morton certainly has been seen in the Town Hall ring, for instance, as an amateur, but as a professional he has not been closer to the capital than the Hutt ring. Those who saw him as an amateur would note a vast change now. His performances this season—his first season as a professional—have been excellent and have marked him as one of the brightest welterweight prospects in the country. He stepped off on the right foot by drawing with Billy Parri in his cash debut. Later lie beat Parris soundly—and in a ring (Dunedin) where Parris usually boxes above himself. He disposed of John L. Griffen without much ceremony and also won with comparative ease against the Australian, Benny Leonard. Davis's record is pretty well known. He has met most of the the Dominion, and his record generally regarded top-line boys in against them makes good reading. Suffice to say that he is a rugged battler, built something on the lines of Vic Caltaux, of Auckland, whose plan of campaign has as one of his fundamentals a keenness to keep on the move. Morton lacks Davis's ruggedness, but possesses superior science and footwork. Both pack punches and are fast.