SHORT PASSES.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 18466, 18 May 1928, Page 12

SHORT PASSES.

New stars for old.—We nominate Chesley and Cottrell to sparkle in rep. Rugby games this season. All along the “Star’*’ has advocated that the right place for persistently rough Rugby players is not only off the field but out of the ground. 3C X K Playing in the Banks Peninsula subunion Rugby competition is the Te Kotahitanga Club, Little River. Translated, the name is “As One Man.’’ The Victorian professional sprinter. Lynch Cooper, who won the Stawell (Victoria) Gift Handicap, has insured his legs for £IOOO. Mortlock’s fine potted goal saved Old Boys from defeat last Saturday. The Christchurch forwards showed rare dash. Next Tuesday Morrie Brownlie and his friends should arrive at Durban, but the team does not disembark until the boat reaches Cape Town five days later. Play became willing in Wellington on Saturday during the senior match between Athletic and Berhampore, causing a writer in the “Dominion” to say: “Those players who cannot play football without losing their tempers should go to Spain and take to bullfighting.” Canterbury's first selection for the team to play in the opening Ranfurly Shield clash should be a man to tackle A. E. Cooke. If the touring New South Wales Rugby team is not ninety per cent “Waratahs,” gates at matches in the. Dominion will be only moderate. Freitas played a great game in a recent club match on the Coast. The burly Hokitika forward appears to have improved immensely with the experience he gained last year in the All Black trials^. Varsity A are still unbeaten in Otago. Their latest performance was 54 to nil against Dunedin. Stevenson kicked eight goals. ’’'here were some one-sided Rugby battles in the north last Saturday. In Wellington. Ilutt beat Karon in a fourth grade fixture by 60 points to nil; Poneke ran over Porirua in a junior match by 49 to nil; and Onslow outpointed Tai’ta in a third grade fixture by 43 to nil. Archie Compston, the British golfer who beat Hagen, is out to make big money while the sun shines. He has accepted the offer of the American, MacDonald Smith, for a 72-hole match for £IOOO a side in June. The first 36 holes will be over Smith’s Lakeville course. The other will be over a New York course, which Compston may choose. 58 *' f Big Bill Tilden is the man of American tennis in more ways than one. It was he who, as the captain, after the trials, announced the American Davis Cup team to meet Mexico. The team was Tilden, John Hennessey, Arnold Jones, and Wilmer Allison. As an instance of the manner in which America encourages her young players to make good, it may be mentioned that Tilden also announced that W. F. Coen, sixteen-year-old Kansas City high school boy, would be taken with the team in order that he might gain experience that would help to fit him for international contests. The thoughts of lawn tennis enthusiasts all over the world will soon be occupied by events at the French hard court championships which begin on Monday next. All the cracks are competing. including the leading Americans and Australians. Last year, Lacoste beat Tilden in the final, after a five-set struggle. The mention of Captain Malcolm Campbell in to-day’s cables reminds me of this one: A man was married to a very superstitious wife. After continual urging, he went to a fortuneteller much favoured by his spouse, to have his cards read. It is to be feared that he did not treat the matter with due solemnity. Said the mystic in a strange voice, “Very soon you are going to cross the path of a dark man.” “By Jove,” said the subject in a voice of alarm, “I hope it isn’t Captain Malcolm Campbell.” Spectators who saw the Merivale-Var-sity match last Saturday are invited to read this paragraph: A Rugby fixture was about to be played between two clubs who were old rivals. In fact, this particular match was always inclined to be a dog-fight. The referee, however, did not turn up, and the rival captains set about the task of finding a substitute. They saw in the crowd one whom they imagined would fill the bill. “I say,” said the home skipper, “you know enough football to referee this match, don’t yo.u?” “More than that,” replied the spectator gently, “I know enough not to referee it.”

A dangerous scoring three-quarter. Walker, who hails from Manawatu. is playing for Oriental, Wellington, tins season. He possesses a rare turn of speed, and if he gets a yard’s start one might as well throw one’s cap after him. He scored two tries on Saturday week, and nearly repeated this performance last week-end. He outpaced the Old Boys’ backs in scoring his try. and would have done it again had it not been for a splendid tackie ! y Malcolm.

Can any “ Star ” readers supply me with a copy of the English Rugby Union rules between the years 1875 to 1885? Wellington’s champion ’Rugby side. Old Boys, had a relapse last Saturday and Oriental took advantage of it to win by 10 to 6. By representing Ireland against Wales at Cardiff on March 10, G. V. Stevenson equalled Dicky Owen’s. record of thirty-five international matches. Paewai and Falwasser are otih playing under the Rugby Union banner, despite a new crop of rumours alleging transfers to League. It’s about time this form of gossip was scotched. How sharp a shock Australia must have got from the defeat of its Davis Cup team is made clear by hopes expressed in Melbourne papers prior to the match. One journal said: “Our men should win the doubles and at least two- of the singles matches giving them a victory in the round. If we lose it means the failure of the tour and heavy financial loss.” The biggest, surprise sprung in lawn tennis circles at Home this year was the omission of Mrs Godfree (Miss Kitty M’Kane) one of the most famous British players, from the trial games for the Wightman Cup team. Mrs Godfree underwent two operations comparatively recently, but it was understood that her health was completely restored. tt a a What was claimed as a world’s record snooker feat was performed by the famous English professional, Joe Davis, in a match recently at Leeds. In two visits to the table he potted all the 21 balls. His first visit resulted in a break of 95, and after his opponent had failed to score. Davis’s next effort saw the remaining balls all potted. Not so long ago another front ranker, Peall, playing .against Newman, cleared the. table in three breaks after one blank visit, Newman failing to score a point. The University Rugby teams appear to be engaged on a general offensive this season. Canterbury College scored a great victory on Saturday in defeating the powerful Merivale fifteen by IS points to 14; the 'Varsity A team in Dunedin ran over the Dunedin fifteen to the tune of 54 points to nil; the University team in Auckland defeated Marist by 29 to 13; and the Wellington Varsity team beat the Wellington Club team by 15 to 3. 55 . g The report that G. Nepia will be playing for Wairarapa soon is discredited in well-informed football circles. Nepia intended to shift to Masterton this year, but recently he was seriously ill andit is now stated that, if he plays football at all this season, it will not be till well on in the year. Those in a position to know of Nepia’s probable movements scout the idea that he will be joining Cooke and Irvine in Mastertbn this year. The latest fashion for the tennis girl is silk trousers. It would seem that the old skirts, however scanty, acted as parachutes, and she didn’t always reach the earth soon enough to deal with the next stroke. Dominion officials deny the statement that a move is being made to bring a French Rugby team to New Zealand in 1931. The only fixtures are the New South Wales visit this year and the reported acceptance by the English Rugby Union of the Dominion’s invitation to send a team in 1930. Two golfing rivals were contesting the final of the club championship. They were all square at the seventeenth. Driving to the home hole, one made a perfect shot down the fairway while the other sliced into jungle country. On going forward to investigate the latter player found to his consternation that k’s ball had gone down a rabbit hole. It was impossible to play the shot, and the game was as good as over. “Your niblick, sir?” inquired the caddie. “No, boy,” replied the golfer in a resigned voice, “hand me a ferret.” « x a J. B. Jackson, the Varsity captain, is in great form at present, and his outstanding work as leader of the forwards is a fine example to his team mates among whom A. Y. Montgomerv is also in splendid form. These two" players should be well in the running for representative honours. In the absence of J. Hawkes, C Chesley, the young Maori plaj-er whose usual position is full-back, turped“out on the left wing for Varsity last SaturChe sley played a useful game for the Maroons, but his right position appears to be full-back. Another member of the Heeney fam.ly has found it impossible to resist the call to New York to witness Tom's comme fight with Gene Tunnev for the worlds championship. His eldest brother, Jack, has now completed arrangements to accompany Arthur and Pat. The trio have booked passages and leave New Zealand on June 5 It is interesting to reveai that Jack, who was successively welter-weight and heavy-weight champion of New Zealand, had much to do with Tom's early trammg, frequently acting as -his sparring partner and second.