ENGLISH SPORTING NOTES

Taranaki Daily News, 8 May 1930, Page 16

ENGLISH SPORTING NOTES

THE CUP FINAL. HUDDERSFIELD'S ENTRY. (From Our Own Correspondent.) London, March 27. The high ambition of Sheffield Wednesday to win the Cup as well as the League championship, a dual feat which has not been accomplished for over thirty years, was broken in the semi-final round of the national tournament by Huddersfield, who on the Old Trafford ground, Manchester, were successful by two goals to one. The result was surprising. The Wednesday were believed to be the best team in the country, the best in fact we have seen since the war, but in this game they not only played 'below form but all the luck of the game went against them. They scored first, and had the better of the play, and when Huddersfield equalised two minutes before the interval there was good ground for thinking that the goal should not have been granted owing to a player handling. For half-au-hourdn the second half the Wednesday attacked persistently. Suddenly their opponents broke away and scored again. It all seemed wrong. The crowning blow came at the finish when the referee blew for time as the ball was sailing into the Huddersfield net. There was ’no doubt that the whistle sounded 'before -the ball passed through goal, but if the game had. been prolonged another second the Wednesday would have been saved. This is the fourth time in the past ten years that Huddersfield have been in the final. They were beaten by Aston Villa in 1920, they defeated Preston North End two years later, and two years ago they failed against Blackburn Rovers. The Arsenal and Hull City Tie ended in a draw of two goals each, and has to be replayed. The London club were the strongest of favourites, and it was startling when they lost two goals in the first half-hour. They rallied finely, however, in the second half, and after Jack, their £lo,o*oo forward, had scored, the boy Bastin, who is only just eighteen, saved the match with a brilliant effort. Hull City are a big and powerful team, who are not given to exploiting any of the finer arts of the game, and they succeeded, ,as was their obvious intention, in throwing their more famous rivals off their balance for a long time. The match is to be replayed on the Aston Villa ground. WALKER CUP GOLF. NO ORGANISED TRAINING. It was assumed, when St. Andrews picked the team. to. meet the American amateurs in the Walker Cup match at Sandwich threw months before the date, that the object was to enable the players to prepare for it, Apparently, however, there is to be no organised training. The players are to be left to their own resources, and it is apparently thought that nothing of this sort is necessary. ‘When Roger Wethered, the captain, was asked if any programme .had been arranged or was contemplated, he replied that all the members of the team would take part in the Royal St. George’s Cup competition a few days before the event, and he did not think anything further was needed. This, however, is not the view of golfers generally, nor of the professionals, who, if their assistance were sought, would 'be delighted to give it. But they have offered their help in the past, and it has not been accepted. In fact, four years ago, when the match was last played in this country, Braid and J. H. Taylor were appointed, as coaches to the team. But, though they were available at any time to play wherever they were wanted, not a single call was made on them.

The only conclusion, that; can be come to is that the first-class amateur believes there is nothing the professional can teach him. How different is the attitude of the American amateur. Four years ago George Duncan was actually engaged to play with them, and they frankly admitted that he helped them considerably. He spent a week at Muirfield before the championship, and played with them every day. There is, however, a close friendship ’between the English amateur and the professional, as was seen the other day when J. H. Taylor led the Royal Mid-Surrey team in a match against the West Hill club. It is most unusual for a professional to take part in games of this kind, but Taylor is an-honorary member of the Mid-Surrey club as well as its professional, and so was qualified to play, and of course the West Hill golfers did not raise any objection. Taylor, by the way, has announced that he doos not intend to play in the championship any more. He has just entered on his sixtieth year, and he. has takeir part in the event for thirtyseven years. Whilst he is able to play two or three rounds well enough, he now finds that six impose a strain that is beyond him. Braid is a year Taylor s senior, and Vardon is ten months younger, but they do not like to brenlc their” association with the championship, and they are to continue to compete in it a' little longer, though, of course, neither has any hope of winning it again. LINDRUM’S BILLIARDS TOUR. FINAL AMAZING VICTORY. Walter Lindrum, Australia's wizard billiards player, brought his tour to an end with amazing victory over Willie Smith. As though he were determined to prove his overwhelming superiority to his rivals, he went all out from the first shot, and completely smothered his opponent. Smith is very frank in acknowledging Lindrum as the greatest player the game has known, but there were times when his experience must have 'been humiliating. He spent .many hours during the fortnight patiently waiting for a chance to go to the table, and then, when it came, he was so cold that he could rarely do himself justice. In the end he was beaten by over twenty-one thousand points, the scores being Lindrum 36,256; Smith 14, 971. These figures set up two more records. Never before has a first-class professional been so utterly outclassed, and. Lindrumh total was the highest ever returned in a match.

It is most unusual for one professional to smother a rival in this wey, and all sorts of stories were circulated to explain Lindrum’s game. One was that he was actuated by a spirit of revenge. It is true that a year ago Smith beat his brother Fred by nineteen thousand, when the latter was ill, but the Australian denied that he had any thought of this match when beating Smith. Towards the end the latter was responsible for an extraordinary outburst Without offering any explanation, he declared that he would rather go back to work as a linotype operator than continue under conditions. Naturally, this has caused great 'curiosity and speculation as to what is at tha back of the protest. There is the possibility that next year Smith will be out in the cold. Whilst he is under one contract, his four rivals, Lindrum, McConachy, Davis and Newman have signed another. Their intention is to compete for the championship, and already they have suggested to the authorities; that the event should be held early in the season. The object of this is 'that they wish to promote a tournament on handicap terms, the playesrs to’ be rated according to their performances in. the championship. Is Smith to be admitted to this tournament, dr would his contract, which binds him to 'play on one make of table, keep him outside it? There is a good deal of mystery about, the whole business. It. would at least seem as though. Smith’s puo-s--pects for next season are very, obscure. ■ :' - •

BOXING AND BOXERS..

THE MIDDLE-WEIGHTS. ... It cannot be expected of afty. boxer (writes Eugene Corri), who is in more than a fair) way of engaging-in a contest, for a world’s’ title designedly to court opponents of the highest degree what time he is waiting for his grand opportunity. But all those' who . went to the Ring, Blackfriars, at the beginning of the week, to witness the return of Len Harvey, would have been the better ' pleased had Francois Stevens, first middle-weight in Belgium, offered sterner resistance to the young man who, it is hoped, will, before the summer is out, be matched with Mickey Walker. Stevens was in no sort of way a worthy opponent for Harvey, who, had he gone all out from the -start, would surely have won in near to record time. Harvey did he pretty well pleased, and maybe he thought he had done enough when he knocked the Belgian out in the third round without having taken a punch to cause him the least mental or physical disturbance. I can hardly suppose that Stevens ever showed himself to be an exceptional performer. If he is the best “middle” in Belgium, then the rest of them must be very poor indeed. I am not blaming Harvey for having little more to do than knock his man over, but, since negotiations for a match between him and 'Walker are in progress, it behoves him to try himself out thoroughly in each and every contest he has between now and when ho gets into the ring with the American. There are victories that mean little or nothing. . That gained by Harvey last Monday, because of its very one-sidedness, does not take his stock any higher than it was after he had beaten Jack Hood. It is very necessary that Harvey should fight very hard. That is the only way to tune himself up. Now he has got into action again, I hope it will be possible to find someone of his poundage in Europe who will go near to bringinng the best out of him. I am not sharply criticising Harvey for the kind of match in which he took part d few days ago, but I have to say that very often, when we have a man who is really a potential world-beater, it is unfortunately the fashion so to nurse and coddle him that, when the moment comes for him ,>to embark upon the greatest of all his adventures, he is no more formidable than when he first came to the front. The tendency to be satisfied is too great. • ICK IT” BOXERS. No .boxer who aspires, to world’s championship rank should know leisure until ho has reached that pinnacle. If I were to set out the names of our boxets who have got so far and no further, I should have to compile a very bulky-'catalogue. Jack Hood, I take it, is still very sore that he was beaten by Harry Mason; but at the- time of writing there has been no definite move made to have them re-matched, I daresay they will be,, but whether a second fight between the- pair would warrant a promoter offering any more than a. “reasonable” purse I am doubtful. When Hood and Mason fought at the- Albert Hall on a recent occasion they failed entirely to Impress anyone who is able to discriminate between good and bad boxing. And the fear that if they were to take the ring again there would be something of a repetition of what we, to our sorrow, saw a little more than a week ago is very real. Mason, no doubt, is abundantly satisfied with his victory over the welter-weight champion. He is to be warmly commended for his successful come-back. But surely Hood will never let it be taken for granted that Mason is definitely his superior. For his own' sake and his future, as it has to do with the world’s welter title, now in the keeping of Jack Fields, he must endeavour to do something out of the common at the earliest possible moment. I do hope that Hood will not lose caste. If he ceases to be a world’s championship proposition I shall ‘be at a loss to know where we may look for a fighter to take a title from America. Harvey would perhaps have many supporters if he- got into the ring with Walker, but Walker, if he is anything like he was in his war with Milligan, would, I fear, be too much for the young man of the West Country. Still Harvey for the time-being must be considered to be the strongest card we can play. Baldock is suffering from something of an eclipse. His hand, was exposed When he failed to beat I'ladner except through the disqualification of the Frenchman. We cannot forget that Pladner was outfought and outboxed by Dick Corbett, who, after his victory over Kid Pattenden, is entitled to fight Baldock for the bantam 'belt. The all-important point in the matter of these two youngsters is whether Baldock can do the bantam limit without in any way sapping his strength. Why is it’that he seems to be so shy to fight in his native ring at Bs,t. Olbs, and so risk his title.

WHY NOT CORBETT! Ht> may answer that his immediate and ona concern ia a pending battle with Willia Smith, the -South African, but, without the least intention of leaving him apprehensive, I am bound to say that ha must account for the younger of the Corbetts if he is to claim first right to a contest for the world's 'title. A bout between ’Baldock and Pattenden did not materialise because tha highest purse offered was £l, 1 000, which in the opinion of the Boxing Board of Control was an inadequate inducement. I do not know', but I have more than a suspicion that Jeff Dickson would be prepared to pay twice that sum if not more, if Baldock would fight Corbett at Bsi* 61bs. Phil Scott has got back' home, and, as might be supposed, he is very bitter about the treatment he received at Miami. I would not blame him if he never ventured to* America again. The British Boxing Board of Control has seen the film of his fight with Sharkey, and has also heard Scott’s version of it. The board will perhaps tell the world what it thinks of it during the next week or so. But suppose it condemns the tactics of Sharkey and the manner in which this affair was conducted, it will still be small comfort to Scott, and, of course, there is no likelihood of the decision being upset. Neither will Scott, though the 8.8. C. were on his side, have got nearer to winning the heavy-weight championship of the world. When he is thoroughly fit, the obvious thing would be for him to fight Young ■ Stribling at the Albert Hall.