M'QUARRIE-M‘CLEARY FIGHT

Otago Daily Times, Issue 18763, 17 January 1923, Page 2

M 'QUARRIE-M‘CLEARY FIGHT

OPINION BY MR J. H. DOUGLAS. REFEREE’S RULING UPHELD. The trouble regarding tho result of the M’Quanie-M'Clcary boxing contest for the heavy-weight championship of Now Zealand has not yet been cleared up, but the opinion obtained from Mr John 11. Douglas (father of the well-known cricketer), who is touring with the English cricketers, goes to prove that the referee’s ruling must Iks final and that the attitude taken up by the Otago Boxing Association is perfectly correct. Unfortunately, Mr Douglas is at presnt confined to the Mater Misericordia Hospital, Epsom, Auckland, owing to an accident he received on board ship (hiring the voyage to New Zealand. It may be mentioned that, besides being an ardent cricketer and supporter of the game all over the world, Mr Douglas has been intimately connected with British boxing since 1874. He has been president of the Amateur Boxing Association of England for 15 years, referee of the National Sporting Club of England for 22 and president of tho World’s Federation of Amateur Boxing Associations since its foundation. Mr Douglas is still a referee of the National Sporting Club. It will bo remembered that when the fight took place at His Majesty’s Theatre the master of ceremonies (Mr S. S. Myers) announced at tho end of the eleventh round that M’Quarrio had broken a bone in his hand. Some confusion ensued, and the timekeepers failed to strike the gong at the end of tho minute interval. M'Quarrie, however, insisted on going on with tho fight, and tho referee (Mr Kilmartin) told the men to “box on." In the thirteenth round MCleary was knocked out, and the referee awarded the fight to M’Quarrie. M'Cleary subsequently appealed to tho Otago Association against the fight being given to M'Quarrie, maintaining that he had won the contest at the end of the eleventh round. The Otago Association dismissed the appeal on the grounds that the referee’s decision was final. M'Cleary then appealed to the New Zealand Boxing Council, which declared the contest, "nofight,” and ordered that the stake money should be equally divided between the contestants. A lot of correspondence has since taken place between the local association and the council concerning the matter, and the association has consistently maintained that M'Quarrie won tho fight, and that the council had no right whatever to interfere,

The following questions from tho 0.8. A. were placed before Mr Douglas;— 1. Should any unforeseen circumstance arise during the duration of a round, or during the minute’s spell between the rounds, has the refreo to use his own discretion in dealing with it?

2. Does that round or spell stand suspended until the referee oruers “Box on’’? 3. la the referee’s decision final in every case when ho acts alone?

Mr Douglas replied as follows: “Dear Sir, —I am in receipt of your letter of the 3rd inst., and am pleased to give you all the information I can. Presuming that the competition in question was conducted under the rules of the Amateur Boxing Association—notwithstanding the N.Z.A.B.A. is not affiliated to such parent association —then the referee’s decision is the correct one, and he has, on his own initiative, full power to deal with any incident that may occur during the bout. The referee’s decision is final and subject to no appeal. Therefore the answers to your three questions are all in the affirmative. I can speak with some authority, as 1 am president of the Amateur Boxing Association and also president of the World’s Federation of Amateur Boxing Associations.’’