DISILLUSIONED.

Sun (Christchurch), Volume III, Issue 883, 8 December 1916, Page 2

DISILLUSIONED.

LANG FAILS TO COME BACK.: i "They ean't come back!" That is an old saying of the ring, and it has; been proved true time and again. Bill Lang, once heavy-weight champion of Australia, had tlie truth of i! brought, home to him a fortnight ago. The story 1 of his disillusionment is thus toll by the Melbourne "Age"' of November 27:

"The Stadium on Saturday evening was well filled by boxing patrons who desired to see 'Bill' Lang 'come back.' Many of the old faces that one time lit up by the doings of the erstwhile champion in the heyday of his career were present, and pleasant memories were recalled. Lang had his old trainer, 'doe'' Stokesbury, as his principal second, and the ringside was linked up with the sporting personalities who formed an admiring group when Lang had eyes on the world's title, lie was cheered ami cheered again, and, although late in appearing, spectators were prone to overlook a fault that would have ordinarily courted censure of some kind of other.

"To the casual eye Lang appeared! to be as fit as a fiddle. His eyes spark-1 led, there was the smile, and the well- I knit body as free from physical j defects as tested steel is from blemishes. But to the persons acquainted i with the essentials that make the phy- ■ sical fitness required for a tough, raw I battle, there was a good deal lacking.] Lang looked nervously across the angle I to the determined strong face of his opponent, 'Tom' McMahon —a dusky, j husky heavy-weight, who is working up ; to the meridian of success. The smile too, was not wholly natural. Lang's retirement had brought along what an j American has described as 'the bulging waist and heaving chest, the legs that have no spring.' Certainly he was! about his usual boxing weight, but the material on the bone was different, and anpi: j -v wr>s locking. "It was the old, old story of the triumph of youth, this time told in two short chapters. McMahon—who by the way must have been struck by the strong partisanship of the crowd—realised that his quarry had only to be run down, and he kept within arms' reach in the first round, poising to bring in his right. Lang was leading his left to him, and some very fine blows that evidently left a sting, brought cheers. It was only once or twice, however, that McMahon's head went back—an evidence that power was lacking. The punches were tantalising, they were bringing points, and were also drawing blood, .and something else —the ire of his opponent. McMahon could not keep his face clear, so in the second round he swung a mighty right, and it caught i Lang clean on the point. The fall of I the Victorian was facilitated through a trip. But it was a splendid, well-timed ! punch. The gong sounded when Lang had been down four seconds. McMahon perhaps was surprised at achieving such a distinct success so early. "Lang, in the second part, or third round of the contest, came in apparently fresh, save for sagging a little at the knees. He kept to his old left-hand tactics, and even rushed his man oc- ; casionally. McMahon did not seem to 1 care. His plan of campaign was clear, | and he kept to it. Lang was scoring ;tlie points well, although floundering

about in his efforts to evade returns. He had the points in the fourth round; but his success stopped there. Only a min ute of the tif'th round had gone when another full length right sent him tottering to a fall in the corner, lie rose, and a half-arm right to the head drove tiini down again. He struggled to his feet, but fell once more to a similar blow, and the count out was eomplet< McMnhon weighed List nib, and Lang 14st 411 i."