DONOVAN WINS AGAIN

Taranaki Daily News, 20 December 1929, Page 4

DONOVAN WINS AGAIN

TOMMY CROWLE OUTPOINTED STIRRING 15-ROUND CONTEST. X . . AUSTRALIAN'S GAME SHOWING. T. Donovan (Waitara), defeated T. Crowle, featherweight chanipion of Australia, on points in a 15-rdund bout in the Opera House, New Plymouth, last night. The building was crowded. The tight was fast and willing but Crowle, cool and clever as he was, could not beat down the swift, continuous attacks of the Taranaki man. Donovan was anxious. His' gloves were fastened swiftly, but Crowle’s took a long time and it was clear' that . the Taranaki man was impatient. They sparred watchfully toe to toe in thefirst, round and-fell into clinches quick--ly.. Then in ; the last few seconds before-, the gong Donovan forced his man, against'' - the ropes and stung him into., action. For a few moments there was a furious burst, the gloves ripped j’n hard and low, each man hitting with every ounce of strength. And while tlie. arms flew like windmills, the crowd jumped up and yelled. , Half a head taller - than Donovan and slighter in build, Crowle stood up straight, head cocked slightly , down, watching the crouched ball of 'muscle apposite him like a cat. There was the slither of feet across the canvas, Donovan’s left pushing in to Crowlp’s jaw, > the. jamb of body against body in close and the swift; vicious jabs., Donovan turned his round head and . took., the blow on the skull. Crowle lunged up with a full swing to Donovan’s body. but the blow landed on the chest or the side ribs. The plexus was always closely guarded. Crowle was clever and, quick as Donovan hit, he smothered. . All the time Donovan made the fight, forcing his way in and learning Crowle’s strength. Crowle could hit with remarkable power. ’ . the rounds slipped away Donovan • grew more confident. His left was • 'swifter, harder and shot in more fre- • quently to Crowle’s face. Crowle was ' superbly cool and 'nothing shook him. • AU . the same Donovan was making . points and gaining the invaluable khowledge that he was the better man. jNever once, however,- did he fling . .away his caution and throw himself wildly in. Once it seemed that he.: must have Crowle, that- nothin" could: stop the few .final blows. .Then Crowle shook . his head and boxed like a machine, beat- . ing Donovan oft'. There was a. little red circle over Donovan’s left eye. In the corner Crowle’s father was declaiming against Donovan for holding. Ho spoke to the timekeepers, then, when ■ the round ended, walked a step or two across to the referee, who was standing in his corner. He expostulated and. waved his hands, but the crowd cried "Play, fair!” and the referee merely • bent his-head over his notebook,-add- - ing up the points. •• At the same time there were grounds -for.the,.interjection.- Donovan was .Using, his head to protect his eye' but jerking , it dangerously near Crowle’s ■ chin. On ( ..the .‘•.blind”tsjde,-.he,.was pinning.Crowle’s gloves harmlessly under his arm; .- Gradually the cut over:Donovan’s eye deepened and the smear of blood spread wider until, in the. last few rounds, it streamed down his cheeks and all that could be seen of his eye, was the glaring pupil fixed on Crowle. Sometimes ■ Donovan could have hardly seen his man,' yet his blows went smashing home. “He’s hitting him- ! from memory” said a man in the crowd. In the last round they -mixed it fiercely, Donovan making all the fight. . Still Crowle stood up straight, his feet firmly planted, add boxed the whirling , Donovan oft'. He held to it to the. end and even at the final gong Donovan was still hungrily seeking the knockout which the plucky Australian always managed to evade. But after the gong, without the slightest hesitation, the referee walked. across and held up Dono : van’s hand. The bout was considered on all sides to have been the best yet staged in New Plymouth by the association, and the Australian lad by his game showing made a host of friends, who will look forward to his re-appearance in the ring with interest. Donovan, too, showed marked improvement in ringcraft, boxing with more science than he . has shown in the past and evading clevRecognising that his recently . healed eye was. his weakness, he showed great cleverness in covering it. . , Tommy. Thompson, who has given Crowle much help since his arrival and was. one of his seconds, expressed himself as' very phased with the splendid ' -showing pi- his protegee, but freely admitted that he had been beaten by a man who was slightly his superior on the night! The amateur preliminaries put the. audience in good heart for the big bout. Some of them, notably that between Dorn broski and Brosnan, were very close, a section of the audience disagreeing with the verdict. The trophies. were presented by the president, Mr. W. N. Stephenson, from ,the stage just prior to the big bout, and the reception given to Dombroski left no doubt that the big majority of the audience agreed with the verdict. Mr. A. Maxwell, as third man in the ring, handled his difficult task well. As . usual the tournament was well con- . trolled, the various officials all carrying out their duties with precision, so that there was no deay. The officials responsible were.- —Official announcer, Mr. P. E. Stainton; timekeepers, Messrs J. Bennett and F. C. Ferry; call stewards, Messrs W. Roebuck and R. Harvey; .Ring stewards, Messrs T, Campbell, A. F. Aldie and G. A.. Clarke; weight ■ steward, Mr. A. F. Aldie; glove steward, Mr. C. E. Roebuck; official seconds, Messrs W. Searle, J. Payne, C. Tippins, J. Allen and G. Lawrence. They with the committee, Messrs J. Garcia - (chairman), W. N. Stephenson, J. Horlor, C. E. Roebuck, W. Roebuck, T. Campbell, IL Harvey, V. S. Pruden, Roebuck, W. Searle. A. F. Aldie and G. A. Clarke, particularly the secretary, Mr. E. J. Carr, are to be congratulated on the smooth running of the tourney. amateur bouts. L F Hutchen (Eltham), 9.8, defeated T. kcari- (New Plymouth), 9.2, the referee Stopping the bout in the second round. ■Jr, using botli hands, at once attacked, finding in some snappy punches. Hu K. n however, cheeked .him with a left and, cleverly evading his oprushes, sent in a solid right in that, steadied Can A lIML saw Hutchen -gain the BBiML his opponent through the ropes HHSHL the count for seven. He wa. BMKmsed when the gong brought re- ■> another two-handed hombardHutchen. Early in the sec Carr attacked solidly but

Hutchen had no trouble in countering him and scored heavily with both hands, shaking Carr severely. Carr stood up gamely but Referee Maxwell, seeing that he was getting much-the worse of the. mix-up, stopped the bout and declared Hutchen the winner.

S. Cavanagh (New Plymouth), 9.2, defeated L. Brereton (New Plymouth), 9.9, on points over the full three two-minute rounds. Cavanagh, adopting the crouch style, went in with both hands but for a while Brereton kept him oil' with a straight left which, however, lacked sting. Cavanagh was inclined to swing his blows and left himself open to Brereton’s left, but the latter was not hitting cleanly and failed to make the most use of the opportunity. A good deal of close work ended with little damage. Cavanagh was the aggressor early in the second round and scored to the face. Brereton then warmed up and scored solidly with the left to the face, steadying Cavanagh, who bung on. Cavanagh tried to land to the face but was at a disadvantage regarding height and reach. A willing exchange'at the gong roused the crowd. The filial round opened with each intent • on a- knock-out, and as they acted on the principle'that attack was the best form of defence- they kept the audience on tip ! toes of excitement. Cavanagh forced the - -lighting and to this he apparently owed what must have been a narrow decision, as-Brereton appeared to hit the cleaner in the exchanges with his left. ■GOODWIN DEFEATS FURZE. B. Goodwin (Oakura), 11.2, beat A. Furze (Tikorangi), 10.12, on a technical knock-out in the third round. Goodwin set Up a hot attack which was nullified by Furze's ducking tactics, many movements being clever for an amateur. The TikOrangi boxer, however, forgot to retaliate and the first round ended without a clean blow being struck. A stinging'.straight left to. the point rattled Goodwill in the second and he commenced a fusilade of blows, most of which harmlessly flew past Furze’s head. A right swing caught Furze over the temple and he became dazed. Two or three further rights had him ripe for the picking, but Goodwin evidently did not see his opportunity. A hard right swing to the point sent- Furze to-'ihe canvas, but the gong sounded. Furze was palpably nervous as he came out for the last and made only a feeble attempt to avoid Goodwins blows. To save punishment the referee intervened and awarded the fight to Goodwin. J. Moliitt (Warea), 10.3, beat J. Patterson ..(Tikorangi), 10.2, on points in three two-minute rounds. The crowd was vastly amused at the antics of both boxers,, Moffitt bounding about the ring like a kangaroo. Little damage was done in the first round. Flying fists and whirling bodies made it hard to separate the paii' in the second, and, for no apparent reason, Patterson made two excursions to the canvas. He was trying hard, to locate his man, but Moffitt proved an elusive target and opened his opponent’s eye with a right swing which appeared to come from behind his back. With head down and arms flailing like a windmill the Warea representative shone in the last. Despite the strenuous attempts he made Patterson was unable to make up his-leeway. L.-Dombroski (Waitara), 10.13, beat W; Brosnan (Stratfordr, 10.11, dh points in three two-minute rounds. Dombroski received a hearty welcome after a long spell from the ring. He started well, adopting his usual rushing tactics. The bout had not progressed far when the pair commenced to wrestle. Brosnan took the offensive and connected with some clean punching. Brosnan was fiercely aggressive in the second and had the ex-Taranaki champion on the retreat. Dombroski resorted to holding and met with the displeasure of the crowd. The pair mixed matters merrily in the last session, but Brosnan had the better of it, although, much to the amazement of the house, the referee hoisted Dombroski’s arm in token of victory. DONOVAN—CROWLE FIGHT. A ferocious attack by Donovan commenced hostilities, Crowle being taken by surprise. Concentrating on tne Australian’s body, Donovan sent- many punches dangerously low, and the referee had occasion to tell him to keep his blows up. Crowle adopted the up-, right stance adopted by Fitzsimmons. Murphy and their confreres, it providing a strange contrast to the bounding, ducking and weaving Donovan. In close Crowle ripped a left uppercut to the solar plexus and Donovan held, again being spoken to by the referee. Donovan stung the Australian with a straight left to the . face and a toe to toe exchange ensued, the gong sounding with both boxers going all put. Donovan connected with a solid left to the face, Crowle retaliating with rights to the body and head. ' Donovan again set up a furious attack and Crowle was applauded for ducking and swaying away from a succession oi solid blows. After some even work in close Donovan connected with two straight lefts to the jaw and Crowle with a right to Donovan's head. Donovan almost connected ~- i th a terrific right to the Australian’s face, but at the critical moment, when it had almost reached its objective, Crowle tapped it aside. Donovan was crouching and jerking his head against Crowle’s face, but as the gong sounded he took his corner with the gash over his eye re-opened. Some solid rights in close scored points for Crowle in the third, and he cleverly evaded a hard left-right by Donovan. Donovan connected with two left hooks to the jaw, sending Crowle to his heels. A feint- by the Australian saw Donovan jump back to the ropes, bounce oft’ with extended left and miss Crowle by a fraction. It was a clover move on the Australian’s part. Donovan finessed for an opening which was given by Crowle, but the Waitara boxer 5 refused to take it and was as- ; founded when Crowle rammed a left and < ri"ht' to the body. Donovan was roused and staged a furious onslaught which the Australian countered with the ntmest nonchalance. CROWLE REPULSES ATTACKS. A wild rush by Donovan saw the pair clinch and Crowle had the better o’ the exchanges in close. Donovan was made to miss badly and again held his man. Attack after attack was repulsed by Crowle, who showed what he could do at long range. Donovan’s ribs were red with the pummelling he had received, while Crowle was marked about the kidneys. Donovan’s attempts to end the affair were nullified by the clever work of the Australian, whose arm work was a treat to watch. Even work in close marked the openin" of the fifth, in which Crowle scored heavily with clean blows to the nbs and head. Donovan missed with a right hook, b«t compensated when he pushed his left to the Australian’s face. Crowle had Donovan tied up in close work, the

Waitara. man thinking more of holding ( than trying' to box his man. Another all-out rally by Donovan roused the crowd, in the sixth and he connected with two hard lefts to the solar plexus. Crowle was superbly coo), but appeared in trouble when Donovan landed a left and right to the jaw and head. The Australian weathered a stormy period by setting himself full speed ahead and carrying the light to Donovan. " ’ ’Crowle was again in trouble shortly: after the commencement of the seventh. He was going well in close when Donovan jerked upwards anti cjauglrt the Australian’s jaw with his head. Crowle was pained and back-moved to be caught on the point with a hard left hook. Donovan forced him to the - ropes and dealt out punishment, but Crowle rallied by counter-attacking, and .forcing Donovan before him. The half-way mark was passed with both boxers in superb condition and the points about even. C'roWle's work in close in the eighth gave him a small margin, which Donovan reduced by using a straight left which connected hard and often to the Australian’s jaw.. Donovan was out like a Hash in the ninth and. connected with two straight lefts to the point. The Australian, stung into action, shot right and left at Donovan’s head and connected. Donovan bounded back and rocked Crowle with a left hook, the Australian evading its fellow by duckiiig to the floor. In close Crowle swung both hands to the body with effect. Donovan was sending hard lefts and rights across, but the Australian was not worried and was as cool as at the commencement. DONOVAN GIVES PUNISHMENT. Donovan connected with a hard left to the ear early in the tenth and then closed,- where Crowle received, but did not- earn, the crowd’s displeasure when he" swung a right uppercut to Dono-. van’s plexus. It was a fair and pretty blow. With his head down Donovan at last made play to the Australian’s body, and his work was good there. Donovan’s head was down and butting against the Australian's jaw in th© eleventh. Several times Crowle made a wry face when an extra ‘hard knock, hurt him. A straight left brought blood from Crowle’s nose and he retaliated by crashing a left to Donovan’s body and right to the head. The Waitara boxer was stung and he bounded in and again a toe to toe rally excited the crowd. Donovan continued at high pressure and had the Australian groggy at the close. Crowle objected to a vicious left uppercut to the plexus and bixke clear with face screwed up in pain. He soon recovered and bounced in, being sent back again with lefts and rights to the face. Again he came back and forced Donovan to the ropes, the Waitara boxer lighting his way free by using his straight left. This weapon* proved Crowle’s downfall, and it seemed strange that he could not find an effective counter. Donovan’s heavy artillery was concentrated on Crowle’s body in the devil’s round, and his work was good, Crowle not relishing it. The Australia was handicapped by having his left arm closed as if in a vice by Donovan’s right. Donovan’s right swings were connecting and Crowle aimed a few wild rights which failed to connect. Crowle was the first to take the offensive in the last but- one and further opened the old cut in Donovan’s eye, from which blood streamed down. Donovan back-moved to tile ropes and made a violent swing which caught Crowle’s neck. The Australian was rocked but hung on gamely and was fighting back at the bell. Crowle came out in the final session with his head dripping water - and he was made to wipe it off. Toe to toe, blow foi - blow, the fighters fought, and the crowd was on its feet cheering. Donovan connected with a left hook to the jaw and swung his right to the body. Both were going hard for the body when the final bell rang, with Donovan a winner on points after the hardest fight of his career. VISITORS ENTERTAINED. After the tournament the visiting boxers and officials were the guests of the Taranaki Association at supper. Mr. VV. N. Stephenson (president) expressed the appreciation of the association of the splendid bout put up by the Australian lad against his redoubtable opponent, remarking that he had made many friends by his quiet and unassuming manner ever since his arrival in New Plymouth. Unquestionably his splendid showing in the ring'had added hosts of friends to that number. He wished Crowle and his father a pleasant time in New Zealand. Mr. J. Garcia, chairman of the association, endorsed these remarks. Tommy Crowle, who was enthusiastically received, briefly acknowledged, and on his behalf his father expressed thanks for the wonderful hospitality tl. had been extended to them ever since their arrival. He paid a tribute to the assistance that had been given to his son in his training by Tommy Thompson, who had spared no time or effort. He also spoke in high terms of the display given, by Tommy Donovan, whom they had found an opponent of greater worth than had been anticipated, though they had previously had great reports of him. He also expressed himself as being delighted with New i’ivmouth and its environs.

A welcome was also extended to the representatives of the Hawera Association, and to the referee, Mr. A. Maxwell. Mr. Veitch, secretary of the Hawera Association, and Mr. Maxwell brie-fly replied.