ITEMS OF INTEREST

Southland Times, Issue 20002, 16 October 1926, Page 18 (Supplement)

ITEMS OF INTEREST

In Winnipeg (Canada) the Athletic track and ground are a municipal concern. T. E. Holliday, of the Aspatria Rugby Club. English international Rugby fullback, has signed forms to play for Oldham, a Rugby League professional club. He has been seven times “capped” for England. • • • • When Merv. Williams was in New Zea- ■ land he twice met Eddie Parker, first at Timaru and then at Christchurch. In each , case the decision went against Williams, I and each time Press and public voiced the opinion that the decision was wrong, ! Parker recently went over to Sydney, where | also is Williams. Needless to stpte the ; latter is hot after a match with Parker. | It is now stated definitely that Benny ; Leonard has abandoned plans to return I to the ring in quest of the world’s light- j weight boxing title, which he resigned, ; and that he will go into musical comedy. ' There are big hills and little hills, but the Hills of cricket fame are more than ' landmarks. They have made a name in the sporting world that will stand for many years. Clem Hill, the Australian cricket! selector, is prominently connected with racing in Adelaide, but he is also a bowler of note. The Hill rink, consisting of i John Hill "(father), dem, Arthur and 1 Frank, won the Adelaide Club’s rink tour- ; nament last Easter. Prior to the final, i the father was thrown from his sulky and j could not play. Another son, Roy, played in his place, with Clem as skipper. Clem Hill, who toured England with the 1926 Australian team as a newspaper correspondent, is to write a book of reminiscences, including an account of the Australian tour. • • • • Eugene Criqui, former world’s featherweight champion, who has been appearing in a number of exhibition bouts in the Argentine, has cancelled his South American tour and signed an agreement with Tex Rickard to return to the United States for a series of engagements. Criqui’s tenure of office as champion was one of the shortest on record. On June 2, 1923, he knocked out Johnny Kilbane, who had held the title for years in the sixth round. On July 26 of the same year he lost to Johnny Dundee in the 15th round, Both bouts were staged in New York City and in the second, Criqui, a war hero with “rebuilt” jaw, gave one of the greatest demonstrations of courage and endurance in ring annals. Twelve amateur walkers representative of Victoria, Queensland and New South Wales set out recently from the G.P.0., Sydney, to cover 50 miles on the roads between Sydney .and Bankstown for the title of champion of Australia. The winner, Jack Lewis, of New South Wales and Victoria, crossed the finishing line in 9hr. 20min. 24sec, which is a road record and also better than the previous amateur track record. Lewis, who is 33 years of age, is also well known as a marathon runner, having secured third position to Andrew Sime at Sydney in 1908, in the first marathon ever held in Australia. In 1911 he won the Victorian marathon, and 11 years later succeeded in winning the 25 miles walking championship of Victoria. • • • « Football rivalry at times leads hot-headed players to hasty action, but rarely is such a scene witnessed as occurred on the Barellan ground during the progress of the district competition, the contending teams being Binya and Kamarah, reports an Australian paper. The clubs are old rivals, and a drawn game the previous week had heightened the interest attaching to the meeting. The game, played under Australian rules, was hard throughout, but nothing of consequence happened until just before half-time, when a Kamarah player struck a Binya man. Instantly there was uproar. Other players joined in, and onlookers rushed across, a policeman among them. A fracas developed, in the course of which the policeman, on being struck, drew his revolver. Finally, quiet was restored. and the “play” continued. Following on an ugly incident in the final of the M.I.A. district competition, when Griffith and Whitton, Australian rules team met at Leeton, and a Griffith player struck the referee on the field of play, being promptly arrested, the Barellan happening is the more regrettable. • • • • While attempting to swim the English Channel recently, a German named Kemmerich, had a strange experience, writes a contributor to an overseas exchange. He entered the water about 7.45 pan.. Ten minutes before mid-night he was heard to cry out, and at the same time was seen to swim backwards and then put up his fists as though boxing. From the tug Alsace, which was accompanying him, he was seen to deliver several kicks and punches at a black object in the water. He then swam rapidly to the ladder of the tug and went on board. Kemmerich complained of having been struck a blow in the stomach which had given him great pain, and had left a mark on the greased girth band he was wearing. The blow, it appeared, had been struck by a porpoise with a big tail. It is believed that the fish was attracted by a light which was swinging from some netting. It made an attempt to jump at it, and the swimmer received a blow. PorI ■' were very numerous in the area concerned at the time when the event happened. * • • • Altogether the South Island has reason to regard the sum total of the Rugby season with distinct satisfaction, (says the Domin- ! ion.) All loyal New Zealanders desire to spe Rugby just as strong in the south as in the north. The annual battles between the islands should see the cream of New Zealand’s strength in action, and there should never be such a thing as a runaway victory- The material is present in abundance in both islands. What is wanted is selectors who can tell a Rugby player when they see him.

Wanganui Rugby circles are still agitated over the disqualification of P. London by the Wanganui Metropolitan Sub-Union, at the instance of the SubUnion Referees’ Association, because he refereed, the Te Aute-Technlcal College game in place of the official deputed by the Referees’ Association. The sub-union’s calculations have been upset (says The Sun’s Wanganui correspondent) by the action of the Wanganui Rugby Union Council —which was asked to confirm the suspension—making the request for information whether an inquiry was held, and on what evidence the disqualification was imposed. It is now reported that as this information has not come to hand, the council proposes to hold a full inquiry into the affair. Since it made its request, the situation has become further complicated by the action of the sub-union in disqualifying the college, on the ground that the principal had refused to answer correspondence. Obviously, tact and discretion, qualities which do not appear to have been pronounced before, will be needed Jo smooth out the situation.