SPORTS BUDGET

Southland Times, Issue 24598, 21 November 1941, Page 8

SPORTS BUDGET

PROMISING CRICKET COLTS Some promising colts are coming along in Eastern Southland cricket. Among these is Paul Brown, of the Celtic Club. This lad, who is about 17 years of age, is developing into a good batsman, as he proved by scoring 50 not out in the Celtic 11-Gore match at the Caledonian ground last Saturday. Brown is rather slow in starting, but after he gets settled down he plays some really good shots. He gave several chances on Saturday, but his innings was a good one against such bowlers as O. B. Dey, N. Nisbet and M. O’Shea. The Gore High School team also includes som: promising young players and this team’s win over Mataura on the hostel grounds last Saturday was well deserved. This match was a low scoring one, but some of the High School lads gave good performances. Telford was responsible for dismissing Mataura’s two opening batsmen very cheaply and his tally for the day was three wickets for 20 runs. Edwards, who scored 21 runs, was top scorer for the school team and his display was a sound one. Boating InactivityJudging by the attendance at a meeting of the Invercargill Boating Club this week the prospects for the coming season do not appear very bright. The membership of the club has been depleted this year by the demands of the war, but there is no reason why the sport of yachting should not flourish in Invercargill today as it did a few years ago when there were as many as 15 yachts sailing regularly in races on the estuary. At present there are about half a dozen that could be mustered should the club decide to hold races this year. The Invercargill Boating Club is composed of launch owners and sailing enthusiasts and it is the sailing side of the sport that has been hit the hardest by the war. Still there is a sufficient number of youths available to take part in club activities this year and the onus is on them to keep the flag flying until the war is over and the club is again put on an established footing. By the number of the younger men present at the meeting on Monday night it would appear that the task of keeping going is to be left to the older and and apparently more loyal members. Girl Athletes

Girl athletes in Australia have been putting more concentration into thenpreparation for the coming season since it has been decided to hold the national championship. Miss Decima Norman, Australia’s best hurdler, who had a rest last season, will be competing again for New South Wales, as will Miss Joyce Walker, who distinguished herself as a sprinter last season. They will be formidable rivals for Misses Doris Carter and Irene Talbot.

Salt Pills For Golfers In a recent open golf tournament in the United States, played during a severe heat wave, several competitors, among them Jim Ferrier, were given salt pills to help them carry on. Most leading American tennis players take salt pills if the heat is above normal and they find themselves in a long-drawn-out match. The salt pills are included among the many odds and ends deposited in the umpire’s box at the start of any important contest. The Australian team of 1938 tried some during a gruelling tournament at Kansas City. Diving Titles

With the object of encouraging junior and intermediate divers to enter for championship events the Southland diving selector (Mr E. J. Salisbury) has set a very fair selection of dives for the Southland provincial titles. None of the dives set is beyond the capabilities of our present divers, and only in the junior section has New Zealand championship dives been given, and these are not particularly difficult. Apart from the compulsory dives each diver is required to perform two different dives as voluntaries. Junior boys’ and girls’ sections are set down for Monday, November 29, and the intermediate boys’ and girls’ for Tuesday, December 9.

Cricket History Cricket history was made in Whangarei last week when the season’s club competitions were started. For the first time since the game has been played in the town matches were held on turf wickets. An Albion batsman, R. Jenyings, appreciated the change by making a chanceless century in 70 minutes, after which he retired.

Aceless Aces E. L. Apperly, who, probably, has won more golf titles than anyone in Australia, and has been playing the game for 40 years at least, has never holed in one. Neither has a much titled professional, Sam Richardson, and he is about the straightest hitter of a golf ball in the game. Richards Again

Ron Richards gave Billy Britt, Aus- ’ tralian heavyweight boxing champion, a terrible bashing about the head with vicious right-hand blows packed with all his old-time venom, when he knocked him out in the ninth round of a non-title bout at the Sydney Stadium recently. The fight was Richards’s first in Sydney since his “comeback” a few weeks ago, after announcing his retirement early this year. The manner in which he treated Britt showed that he is still in world class. Richards weighed list 121 b, Britt 13st lAlb. Wisden’s Under Fire

Publication of the 1942 Wisden’s Almanack has been delayed by the bombing of London. Copy and machinery have been wrecked three times. According to the latest advice from England, the publication should make its appearance next month.

Boxing In U.S.A. Joe Louis, the world’s heavyweight boxing champion, has been matched with Buddy Baer for the title on January 2. The proceeds are for the navy benefit fund. A match to clear up the middeweight title dispute has been arranged between Tony Zale and Georgie Abrams for 15 rounds at Madison Square Garden on November 28. Ray Robinson improved his chance for a world’s welterweight championship match by outboxing and outfighting the former title-holder, Fritzie Zivic, for a unanimous 10 rounds decision. Zivic, weighing lOst 51b, was 521 b the heavier.

Week-end Fishing The weather is seriously interfering with angling as with other sports and last week-end few trout were caught. On the Aparima some bags up to a dozen fish were got on the worm, weighing up to 1-Jlb each. A few fish were got by fly fishing enthusiasts in the Makarewa arid also in the Orawia but conditions were difficult and trout hard to catch.

An angler who visited the Waihopai below Woodlands found it in flood and running bank high. This stream, however, does not get discoloured and a couple of nice fish up to 41b were got on the minnow. The prospects for this week-end are not promising, writes “Matuku.” Even if the weather overhead improves, all the streams are flooded and will almost certainly be unfishable. Further, it is the general experience after a flood that

the trout have had a surfeit of food and are not interested in an angler’s lures for a few days.

D. Doake’s Success The most successful swimmer of the year as yet is D. Doake, who scored a double in the Haynco and Gerrard Cups. His success in the Haynco Cup, swum over three 220 yards races, was well earned, as he swam honest races in each and was successful in bettering his time each swim. Diving from scratch in the Gerrard Cup, Doake had to perform very consistently to gain the win over the improving, form being shown by the limit markers. Miss V. Fredric also showed ability in winning the girls’ section for the Gerrard Cup, but she will not go much further until she learns to hollow her back in the plain dives particularly. She is also in the swim-off for the Woolworth Cup. Good Swimming

Swimming and diving of a better standard than usual was evident at the Technical College boys sports last week. Although only one swimming record was broken—N. Clark reduced the 33 1-3 yards record by l-ssec—the general average seemed higher than previously. H. Alsweiler and H. Hawkes, senior and junior diving champions, gave fine exhibitions and are divers much above the average. Clark, apart from his swimming record, was successful in plunging over 47ft to set a new mark for seniors.

Because of the large numbers of boys leaving college earlier than usual this year, the fields were not as large as last season when record entries were received, but they were sufficient to fill in a good afternoon’s sport.

A Good Start The Rugby Park Tennis Club, which won both the B and C grade competitions last season, has started the season well. The B and C grade teams have each played two matches without a loss and provided their teams, are not weakened during the season they should be hard to beat for grade honours. However, Southern in the B grade and Central I in the C grade are also unbeaten and should provide the Rugby Park teams with keen matches. Invercargill and Winton are at present leading in the A grade. Invercargill, which won the A grade last season, appears to have a good chance of repeating this performance. Little Tennis Tennis players have had little opportunity for practice during the past fortnight. The wet weather has interfered with club activities and comparatively few nights have been suitable for play. Fine weather is important at the start of a new season, because players are inclined to lose their enthusiasm if they are prevented by the weather from using the courts. There has already been one postponement of inter-club fixtures and on the Saturdays on which competition games have been played the conditions have been by no means ideal.