BOXING

Southland Times, Issue 22728, 2 November 1935, Page 15

BOXING

NEWS OF THE WEEK.

(By

“Veritas.”)

“Kid” Fisher, who recently secured the verdict over Alec Dasler, at Blenheim, proposes challenging Maurice O’Brien for his middle-weight title. The Rayner-Jarvis light-weight title contest is likely to take place at Eltham in a few weeks’ time.'

Australian Eleven cricketer, Bill Brown, is a great boxing enthusiast. Bill never misses a fight at the Bay. He intends to see what’s going in Africa during the forthcoming visit Deacon Leo Kelly’s manager, Bill Newman, has given up hopes of enticing Ron Richards to fight his scrapper in a return. A £6OO guarantee couldn’t sway Richards. Kelly is now free to fight anywhere. The N.B. Club of Sydney hope to secure opponents inside a few weeks.

Les Brander has been broadcasting such wonderful stories about New Zealand since his return to Sydney from the Shaky Isles that half the pugs right here in Sydney town are likely to be found stowing away on Enzed-bound boats.—Ted Turner, writing from Sydney to' N.Z. Sportsman.

ADD BOXING According to information received from Nightcaps, Ray Nicol, lightheavyweight champion of New Zealand, who has been off the scene since he dropped a decision to Les Brander at Invercargill in September, is in serious, training again, and is anxious to meet any boxer in Australia or New Zealand. It is understood that he issues a challenge to this effect, and this means that he bars no one or any weight. In view of the class of Jack Carroll and Fred Henneberry in their respective weights it would appear that Nicol is bidding

high. Still, that’s his idea and he is the man who will have to step into the ring with any acceptors. Nicol is prepared to fight under any association in New Zealand. He has been a good drawcard for the Southland Association; at the same time the Southland Boxing Association has been very good good to him. Perhaps he will be matched with Bill Pasco should Pasco carry out his intention to come over to Invercargill in the near future. The pair have sparred together many a time.

Nicol is still the light heavyweight champion of New Zealand, but at the present time the prospects of his getting fights in this class are not good. Reeves is more of a middle than a light heavy, and beyond Ern Jacobs, who already has been beaten by Nicol, there is not much offering. Should the association be successful in bringing over Ron Richards at anytime, Nicol would probably be his logical opponent, but with Palmer in England and Richards commanding much respect from promoters in Australia, it would probably require a big guarantee to get Richards’s services here.

Nicol paid a visit to Australia about a year ago and was engaged in one bout—with Spagnola at Melbourne. He won that fight, but received anything but an enthusiastic hearing from the critics for his showing. His style of milling is not popular with the fight fan who seeks entertainment in gore and “stoush,” and those who so religiously occupy the benches of the bleachers in Australian pugdom demand this sort of fare. Perhaps another visit to Australia would do Nicol no harm. It would give him a chance to improve on the name he has made for himself in New Zealand and give him a new angle on the type of boxing which pays both promoters and boxers. For an indefinite period Jack Doyle, young Irish heavyweight boxer, will not be permitted to fight in any of the 37 States under the jurisdiction of the National Boxing Association of America, though he will be able to fight in New York State. Doyle, who never has been very amenable to control by boxing authorities, slid out at practically the last minute of a match with a hard hitting negro, Leo Williams, in New Jersey. The reason given was an injury to an elbow, but it is alleged that Doyle refused to submit the elbow to an examination by the New Jersey Boxing Commission’s doctor. So the commission suspended him, and the suspension operates automatically in the other States affiliated with the N.B.A. As Doyle fought Buddy Baer a few days later, under the New York Boxing Commission, the story about his injured elbow did not look good. STRICKLAND’S TASK TO MEET EX-WORLD CHAMPION. TOMMY LOUGHRAN, SLAYER OF CHAMPIONS. Well, Mr Elvin, manager of Wembley Stadium, has hatched out a pretty tough chicken for Maurice Strickland to axe next November 12! No less a person than Tommy Loughran, ex-light-heavyweight champion of the world, is the . celebrity sorted out for the New Zealander to drub his powerladen fists on, and if the local boy succeeds in defeating the American, four-figure purses will be his regular remuneration, writes “Olympian” in the N.Z. Sportsman. Loughran, who will be 33 years of age on November 29, has been boxing for the past 16 years and has taken part in over 150 contests. When Jack Delaney renounced the cruiser championship on August 7. 1927, owing to an injury, the title reverted to Mike McTigue and the former conqueror of Battling Siki was matched with Loughran. The latter gave Mike a thrashing and thus became champion. Tommy successfully defended his crown against Jimmy Slattery, Mickey Walker (former welter and middle champion) and James J. Braddock (present world’s heavyweight champion). Casting about for higher honours, Loughran relinquished the title, and essayed his fortune as a heavy-weight, and was knocked out by Jack Sharkey (later world’s heavy-weight champion), in three rounds. A Great Cruiser-weight. Loughran was considered by American critics to be one of the greatest fight-heavyweights of all time. He certainly defeated some great men, these including, apart from those already mentioned, Georges Carpentier (former cruiser champion), Johnny Risko, Young Stribling, Leo Lowski, Peter Latzo, Ernie Shaaf, Max Baer (later heavy-weight champion), Tuffy Griffiths, Paolino Ucundun, Steven Hamas (recent title contender), King Levinsky and Jack Sharkey (1933), while he once drew with perhaps the greatest of post-war boxers, the late Harry Greb (the only man to defeat Gene Tunney). It will be seen, therefore, that Strickland is up against tough opposition, and if he should manage to put up anything like a decent showing a defeat at the gloves of so experienced an opponent would in no way impair his future prospects, while a victory would completely make him. He has a puncher’s chance, but as Loughran has only been knocked out two or three times during the whole of his career the prospects of Strickland repeating his recent performance is rather remote.