FIELD, FLOOD and RING

Timaru Herald, Volume CXXV, Issue 18653, 23 August 1930, Page 16

FIELD, FLOOD and RING

Ame Borb and Johnny Weissmuller, who recently decided to become professionals, have definitely been invited to visit Australia by the League of Swimmers.

In the third test C-rimmett bowled Chapman behind his legs with a legbreak that turned more than the width of the stumps. To Chapman, a lefthander, it was an off-break, of course, which went fast off the ground.

Big money is made and lost in English Soccer. Just to hand from England comes the news that Everton F.C. report a loss on the season's working of £12,560 Is 6d, as compared with a profit the previous years of £10,406 11s 4d.

Ted Pickrang won a good fight recently against Ted Dargin. The New Zealander knocked Dargin as stiff as a board in the eighth of a fifteen-round battle. Last time the pair met Dargin was out for half an hour.

Stan. McCabe, the baby of the Australian team, celebrated his twentieth birthday on July 16, and made a name for himself this week as a bowler in the fourth test.

When L. Facelli, Italian title-holder, was beaten by Lord Burghley in the 440 yards hurdles championship of England the other day, he lay on his face sobbing. This was a "rubber race, the third meeting of the pair in the English championship. Burghley won in 1928, but Facelli beat him last year. This time Facelli was the first man over the last hurdle, but Burghley beat him to the worsted in 53 4-ssec.

George Hyde, Melbourne's brilliant distance runner and three-mile Australian track champion (who toured New Zealand in 1925), got on the job when he put up fastest time in the Melbourne Harriers’ Four-Mile Club Race for the Justice Starke trophies recently (says an Australian writer in the “Sporting Globe”). He covered the journey in 19min 17sec —a new course record. This is most pleasing, and should give some indication as to Hyde’s form for the Victorian five-mile cross-country championship at Ballarat next month. The course was measured and I am assured the watches were correct.

One of the new amateur athletic champions of England—all the track titles but one changed hands recently —is S. E. Englehart, who iron the 220 yards final in 22sec fiat. Englehart is a young sprinter of the York Harriers Club. He has been running very well throughout the present English season. He was one of “surprise packets” of last season, winning North of England championships at 100 yards and 220 yards, and ■ then finishing second to J. A. T. Hanlon in the English furlong championship, and again second to him in the 200 metres for England against France. In this year’s English championship C. Berger (Holland) won the 100 yards, was second to Englehart, and Hanlon was third.

Writing in the Sydney “Referee” of Tilden’s inclusion in the United States Davis Cup team, “Austral" says that, he gave a dignified answer to the offer of the American Association. While expressing his appreciation of the compliment, he pointed out that it would not be fair for him to suddenly terminate his contracts with various news-, papers that had supported him. To play would render him unable to write, unless the rule debarring players from writing was lifted. He did not suggest that it should be lifted. He cleverly left that point to the United States Association to solve. Of course the members of the Council of the Lawn Tennis Association of the United States could not belittle themselves by going back on their contentions of two years back, when they suddenly disqualified Tilden in the most ignominious way.

Whatever the New York State Ath letic Commission may have thought would happen, lew expected that boxing authorities in other countries would fall into line and agree that a boxer could be knocked out by a foul blow. That was what the New York body decided after the heavy-weight title had been lost to America when Sharkey fouled Schmelling (says an Australian writer). The International Boxing Union, formed last year, whose headquarters are in London, has taken action in the matter. It has adressed to the contributing bodies a questionnaire, asking their opinion on the New York ruling, and declaring that “the decision transforms the noble art of boxing into street fighting, and is opposed to the spirit of sport and fair play.” It will be surprising if the majority of replies do not uphold that view. What American opinion on the matter is we do not yet know. There are several boxing commissions in the States, but It is not likely that many of them will agree with the New York decision. Anyway, there is no chance of It being recognised in Australia.

The American women’s swimming championships, feature of American water sports, took place in a 25-yard pool at Miama (Florida), and resulted in a veritable orgy of record breaking. Ten world's standards were bettered, one tied, at the five-day carnival. Truly extraordinary was the free styles speed displayed by Miss Helene Madison, newly developed sixteen-year-old marvel of the Crystal S.C., Seattle. Washington. Though Miss Josephine M'Kim. Los Angeles A.C., nipped international time in the 220yds and 500yds events she was outclassed by the Seattle prodigy, who, without apparent effort, slashed the listed records from

2min 40 3-ssee to 2min 35sec and 6min 32sec to 6min 16 2-ssec. Miss Madison also won at 100yds in 61 3-ssec, while in special races she clipped the mark for this distance from 60 9-10 sec to 60 4-ssec.

Winifred Brown, the Lancashire girl who won the King’s Cup air race recently, was a member of the British women’s hockey team which visited Australia in 1927.

England has not yet won a cricket Test with Australia at Leeds. Six of these Tests have now been played there. Australia has won two and four have been drawn. Perhaps that was why the rain was so kind to England the other day!

The New Zealand cricketer C. C. Dacre, who qualified for Gloucester this year, has been in great form in English county cricket this season. Recently he scored a double centuiy for Gloucester.

Midget Wolgast is the world’s flyweight champion without doubt. He met his foremost challenger, Willie La Morte, in New York last month, and settled the points without doubt. La Morte had no chance. Wolgast battered him from pillar to post, and scored a knock-out in the fifth round.

Jack Roberts, the Newcastle knockout king, made a triumphant return to Sydney Stadium recently. It took him just lmin 40sec to dispose of Freddy Welsh, and leave the ring with a technical knock-out and five knockdowns to his credit.

Palmerston North people will see some good boxing within the next few weeks. On August 5, Johnny Leckie and Pete Sarron will oppose each other over fifteen rounds, and on August 21, 22, and 23 the New Zealand amateur, championship tourney will be held at the city of the plains.

The success of J. Langridge, of Sussex, ex-professional coach to the Auckland Cricket Association, who is proving himself a fine all-rounder in England at the present time, will delight local enthusiasts. Langridge has experienced most success with his bowling and on figures is among the first flight of English trundlers. Latest advice states he has taken 77 wickets for 1355 runs, giving him an average of 17.59.

The Wellington Town Hall will be crowded to the doors when Johnnie Leckie and Ted Nelson step into the ring on the evening of August 13, says the “Dominion.” Nelson is quite good enough to extend the New Zealand champion to the full, and as both are' hard hitters with both hands a thrill may come at any moment. A 1 New, Nelson’s trainer, is confident that his charge will be able to avenge the defeat which Leckie inflicted upon him at Napier.

The grand old man of boxing, Lord Lonsdale, in a reminiscent speech, at a civic reception given in his honour at Cardiff, Wales, recently recalled many things of interest to the admirers of the donor of the world-famed Lonsdale belts. He remarked that he had lived a roaming life. Had driven sheep and cattle in Canada in 1874, fought and beaten the great John L. Sullivan, under an assumed name, and also defeated T. P. Weston, the American champion walker, by doing 100 miles in 17h 43min.

It is quite possible that, despite the failure of wthe Australian Amateur Swimming Union to entice John Weissmuller, 100 metres Olympic champion, the greatest sprint and middle distance swimmer the world has known, to visit Australia, that this marvellous American waterman, whom his compatriots describe as “The Fish That Walks Like a Man,” may be seen in action in Australia in the near future. Weissmuller has entered into partnership engagements with Arne Borg, of | Sweden, Olympic 1,500 metres champion, who has turned professional, and, I according to a letter from America by last mail, the famous pair intend touring the world, appearing in exhibition and match races.

It does not seem to matter much whether Phil Scott, the English champion heavyweight, is hit foul or fair, he goes down just the same. He was

battered down with blows to the lower part of the body by Jack Sharkey at Miami, and claimed that he had been fouled. At Wimbledon, London, recently, he faced Young Stribling, the American, who was game to enter the ring with Primo Camera, the Italian giant. Stribling knocked England’s hope out in the second round. It is an extraordinary thing that the Old Country does not appear to have been able to produce a heavyweight capable of assimilating punishment since the war. Bombardier Wells, Joe Beckett, and now Phil Scott, have all gone down like wheat before the sickle when they have met resolute men like Georges Carpentier, Tommy Gibbons, Jack Sharkey and Stribling. Shades of Tom Sayers and Jem Mace!