ATHLETICS

Southland Times, Issue 22490, 26 January 1935, Page 13

ATHLETICS

AROUND THE PROVINCE.

(By

“Searchlight”).

Coming Fixtures.— Lumsden: January 30. Mokoreta-Redan: January 30. Waikaia: Easter. Riversdalc: Easter, Maheno: Easter.

Two strong fixtures remain on the Southland circuit: Lumsden and Moko-reta-Redan.

Both these meetings will be held next Wednesday. Athletes should continue to keep in training in order to share in the prize money offered during Easter week-end. The Browns Athletic Society was fortunate enough to attract a record crowd for Wednesday’s fixture—yet another indication of the strong revival of interest in cash athletics in the province.

That a meeting held three weeks after the holiday circuit should prove so successful is another argument in favour - of spreading the meetings out rather than holding two meetings on the one day. Mr T. Pettit, ex-world champion sawyer and axeman, visited Invercargill during the week and was an interested spectator at the Browns sports. It was pleasing to note his remarks to the effect that he was very pleased with the showing made by the novice sawyers. It is from the young men who are now taking up bushcraft that the standard of the future must rest, and as each meeting has come and gone this season it has become increasingly evident that a strong band of younger axemen and sawyers is gradually making itself felt and should provide exciting sport in future seasons. After being out of success during the circuit F. Thomson, of the Pioneer Athletic Club, Gore, had a “day out” at Browns and won three sprint events. He won the 75 yards handicap off 31yards against a strong field, his time being 7 3-5 seconds, while in the 135 yards Sheffield handicap he dead-heated with M. Sutherland in the first heat and won the final in good style. His mark in the Sheffield was a good one—--81 yards—but it was nevertheless a good performance. Agaginst a field of 11 he won the 220 yards handicap from a back mark by about 3 yards. E. Cowie, who gave Thomson three yards, was third.

H. Lawson, of Browns, shows promise as a distance man and won the half-mile race. He has a nice stride and an easy action but is apt to lose ground by looking round. G. Cochrane, an old campaigner, won the mile from scratch after a hard tussle with Lawson (40 yards). Cochrane is a good tactician, running a welljudged race. Eric Cowie, of the Rugby Park Athletic Club, practically walked in to win his heat in the 75 yards handicap, but could only collect third place in the final, which was run at a much faster pace than any of the heats. He also won his heat in the Sheffield but was unplaced in the final. T. Robins, of Gore, is a particularly strong runner and showed up well in the Sheffield.

Don Morrison, of the Rugby Park Athletic Club, entered into serious competition at Browns for practically the first time this season. He did not seem outstanding in his heat but was a hot favourite for the final of the Sheffield, leading part of the journey. Thomson caught up with him about 25 yards from the tape, however, and won by two yards. BUSHCRAFT NOTES. THE SOUTHLAND SEASON. (By “A.E.C.”) The Tokanui sports on December 28 provided easily the best bushcraft of the holiday circuit meetings. Except in one heat of the standing chop, the timber was very evenly selected and fairly fast, which made matters as they should be for the handicapper. The results of the different events were all that could be desired.

Twenty-five competitors faced the Starter in the three heats of the 13-inch underhand. The final was won by Jim Macolgan, the young Waikawa axeman. This competitor performed very consistently at Edendale in both styles of cut, and, being built on the right lines, should be one of the province’s backmarkers in a couple of seasons. The soft Kamahi wood flyer, M. Donnelly was second, and consistent Wattie Hodges thidd. Two seconds more than covered the field in the final. The 15-inch underhand saw 16 on their logs in the two heats, and some fine work was put up here. The final was won by Jack Thomas who went remarkably well to win by a clear sec A. Wybrow (13) and Bob Anglem (14) dead heated for the minor places. Thomas’s was a fine performance and as he possesses the right stroke for either fast or slow wood, all he needs is training and experience to bring him on the same plane as Arthur Hodge. Indeed, their two styles are almost identical. 16 again made their appearance in the 12-inch standing. This event was somewhat marred by flinty wood in one of the heats when three valuable axes were broken. However, the final was a fine race, in which the powerful Haldane axeman, George Weir, got home by a fraction from Bob Anglem with Ike Fraser third. The wood in the double-handed sawing was fairly hard but even, and the final saw a wonderful race between Fraser Bros lsec, Donnelly Bros Isec and Jack Swale and Tony Bates 2sec. The latter, who won at Edendale off 4sec so easily, and was penalized two seconds at Tokanui, sawed magnificently, cutting through the hard block in 16 3-ssec, the fastest time of the day, Fraser Bros, closely following beat their rivals Donnelly Bros by half a sec. The writer congratulates this society on the way they managed their fixture. From the president,, Mr H. Burgess, and secretary, Mr J. Shields, right down all worked well and showed a good knowledge of how to go about the work, with the result that everything went off harmoniously.

(To be continued.)

THE AMATEURS TOPICAL TATTLE. (By “Spike.”) Fixtures. January 26: Afternoon meeting at Ryal Bush. February 2: Drummond Evening Sports. February 9: St. Paul’s Championships. February 16: Southland Track Championships. March 2: Otago Track and Field Championships. March —: New Zealand championships.

The Ryal Bush club merits a good attendance at its meeting this after-

noon. A series of successful evening gatherings have fully justified this club in staging an afternoon meeting. It now remains for local enthusiasts to contribute their quota to the success of the fixture by travelling out in full force. Apart from doing Ryal Bush a good turn, competition at the meeting should give intending competitors at the Southland championships a chance for having something more than a training run. Good competition should be seen at Ryal Bush this afternoon. To-day the Otago runner, L. C. McLachlan, will be competing in the mile event at the Centenary Games. Athletics in Invercargill will receive a loss through S. Maclean leaving for Canterbury at the end of this month. Maclean is one of the best high jumpers in Southland to-day and is, besides, one of the best all-round. athletes seen out at local meetings. The St. Paul’s man is to become a student at. Lincoln College, Christchurch. He will .meet there another great all-rounder in V. P. Boot. J. R. Page, the vice-captain of the All Blacks in Australia last season and a strong candidate for a place in the New Zealand team for the British tour, visited Dunedin over the holidays, and when questioned by the writer regarding his intentions concerning amateur athletics he confessed that he still had a strong leaning towards a sport at which he accomplished so much as a schoolboy, but he had not yet made a re-entry into competition. Page stated that later in the season he might take up running more or less seriously, and those who remember him as a schoolboy athlete will agree that he should do well. He was the Otago secondary schools’ champion over 220 yards and in the long jump at the first secondary schools’ championship meeting, held here in November, 1926, and he was also the athletic champion of Southland Boys’ High School. His early grounding in athletics was received from his father, Mr J. Page, then president of the Invercargill Amateur Athletic Club and mentor of quite a few famous athletes of the past.—“ Pistol” Dunedin Star. PERSONALITIES. G. McCorkindale (I.A.A.C.):—An unlucky runner, but possessed of an abundance of sprinting ability. If he shakes off his hoodoo should be prominent in the 100 and 220 yards championship events. Very fast out of the holes.

W. Atley (St. Paul’s): —A sprinter whose effortless style is a pleasure to watch. Very fast, but gives the impression that he is too slightly built to give of his best on a rough track or against a wind. E. O’Coimcll (1.A.A.C.): —A possible contender for the Southland sprint championships. Has made tremendous improvement this season. Not a pretty runner but very powerful. Inclined, to worry over much about the man with the gun—a bad failing. C. Pierson (1.A.A.C.): —A veteran who has the reputation of having been one of the greatest sprinters ever seen on a New Zealand track. Seems undecided whether to make a reappearance or not this season, but if he does should not be lagging behind in any of the big races. C. Mayne (1.A.A.C.):--Undoubtedly the finest distance runner in Southland to-day. The possessor of a long even stride, he is not exceptionally fast but wins races through his shrewdness as a tactician. McLACHLAN’S SPLENDID HALF. L. C. McLachlan, the New Zealand mile champion and Otago representative in the team for the Centenary Games at Melbourne, took a. most impressive farewell of Dunedin at the open scratch meeting conducted by the Anglican Club at the Caledonian Ground last Saturday. He won the half-mile A grade event in the fastest time of his career, Imin. 57sec., and that on a slow track. He ran exceptionally well, and with George Austin making the pace solid from the start, the first lap was cut out in 57sec., McLachlan following the Caversham man closely, and Ivor Craig hanging to McLachlan’s heels. With a furlong to go McLachlan went away and opened up a gap, finishing full of running and well up on his toes. He sprinted well to win by a fair margin from Craig, states the Dunedin Evening Star. Not only was it McLachlan’s best time for the half-mile, but his 1.57 represented the fastest 880yds ever run on the Caledonian Ground. Before leaving for Melbourne McLachlan told the writer that, providing he was not affected by the short time allowed in Melbourne before the Games started, he felt confident of running well, as he was in his best form at present. Otago athletic followers are hopeful that McLachlan will be prominent not only in the mile, but in the three-mile as well.