Sport and Sportsmen.j

Star (Christchurch), Issue 18575, 25 September 1928, Page 9

Sport and Sportsmen.j

A prominent cricketer was prevailed upon to take a team into the country to play a charity game. On arrival, the home skipper conducted his celebrated opponent to the ground. The wicket was in a horrible state, all holes, and young bunkers, and worn patches '' Well,” said the city cricketer pleasantly, “this is a surprise. Fancy a smaii village like this having a dirt track.”

it 55 » A recent arrival in Wellington is G. Rydbeck. the decathlon, pentathlon and javelin throw champion of New South Wales in 1927.' Rydbeck is a tall and slightly built athlete, similar in appearance to J. M. Watson, the Queensland high jumper, who competed in Wellington at the last Australasian championships. He has linked up with the Wellington Amateur Athletic Club, and should be a valuable man to that body, especially if E. G.

“ Buz ” Sutherland carries out his stated intention of retiring. With both Sutherland and Rydbeck on deck, the Light Blue club would have two fine allrounders (says the “ New Zealand Sportsman”). At the last New South Wales championships, he competed for the East Sydney club, and won the decathlon easily, despite his non-starts in two events of the necessary ten. In the pentathlon he also led the field, and won a further title at javelin-throwing. He is capable of doing round about 6ft for the high jump, 170 ft with the javeline, 44ft or 45ft at hop, step and jump and about 120 ft with the discus.

Only one test match is to be played in New Zealand against the English tennis team. It is to be hoped that the younger players will get a chance to show their mettle, especially such promising juniors as Malfroy and /Angas.

Writing from South Africa to a friend in Wellington, Frank Kilby says that the crowd at Johannesburg for the second test was estimated at 38,000, and it brought the Rugby Union in £17,500, of which £4OOO was taken in cash at the gates. Everywhere the All Blacks had played, all previous records for “ gates ” had been smashed, and the visit bad, of course, been of great value to the different unions.

Reverting to the form of players, Kilby states that Lindsay was playing brilliant football, and was undoubtedly the find of the tour. His perfect linekicks and place-kicks were marvellous, and he made them with perfect ease. “ Without him in the first teet, I hate to think what the score would have been,” the half-back adds. Robilliard was not playing as well as in New Zealand, although he had not had a real chance, the play generally going to the opposite wing. “ Do the critics in New Zealand stiff think we should change our formation?” Kilby asks. “Now that our forwards push in the scrums, they have got the Springboks cold! “

Mrs May Sutton Bundy, the first American woman to win the championship tennis singles at Wimbledon (in 1905), has been showing splendid form this year. Although Mrs Bundy won again at Wimbledon in 1907, she onlv won the national singles of the United States once, and that was in 1904. Last month she put up a big performance in the invitation tournament of the Maidstone Club, against Miss Edith Cross. Pacific Coast champion. The champion of nearly twenty-five years ago, after taking the first set, 6-4, was leading, 4-2, in the second set. Here Mrs Bundy, who was playing her best tennis before Miss Cross was bom. speeded up her game, and, to the amazement of the spectators, won the set, 11-9, and the match. Miss Cross is one of the hardest hitters in the American ranks, and, although she pasted he ball to the corners with all her might, and kept Mrs Bundy running, yet the latter gave as good as she took. While Mrs Bundy was winning, her eleven-year-old daughter, Miss Dorothy Bundy, was going down to defeat on the adjoining court before Miss Ander son. Although defeated, she impressed with the excellence of her form in hitting off the ground, and the general opinion was that she has a bright future. *{ •{ Bill Irvine, who through an injury to a foot has not played for Wairarapa since the Ranfurly Shield match at will be out again tomorrow in Wairarapa’s last match of the season—against New South Wales—at Masterton, writes the “ Star’s ” Wairarapa correspon dent. It is freely rumoured in the Wairarapa that the All Black- hookers. Bill Irvine and Quentin Donald, will go. into retirement next year. Both have been playing over a long period of j-ears—ten years or more as in Wairarapa, and played for some seasons in the Wairarapa “ rep ” team before going to Hawke’s Bay. Quentin Donald has now a very big farm property of his own, and he will have little time for football in future. , si A team of fifteen players, representing the Hokitika Ladies’ Hockey Club, left the West Coast to-dav for Christchurch. They plav at Rangiora on Wednesday, at Ashburton on Thursday, and return to Christchurch on Friday to witness the departure of the Southern Cross. The team will take part in the tournament at Ashburton on Saturday.

a •*« Wellington’s Rugbv record for 1928 of nine wins out of eleven matches will take some beating. According to the Wellington “ Post,” the one big contributing factor towards success has been the keenness of the players, very few of whom missed any of the special training nights af the gymnasium. Another great help has been the capable leadership of the representative teams Porter always beinv an inspiration to the side. The following is the team's records:— v. Taranaki, lost 6-9. v. Auckland, won 17-13. v. Wairarapa, lost 3-9. v. Manawhenua, won 28-26. v. Taranaki, won 20-17. v. Hawke’s Bay. won 11-8. v. South Canterbury, won 28-17. v. Otago won 22-9. v. Nelson, won 19-14. v. Southland, won 19-15. v. Canterbury, won 14-7. This vear, Southland had a fairly experienced back division, including Bell, who represented New Zealand as fiveeighths in 1923, and has also played for the Maoris. Bell has a wonderful record in big football, having played in something like a hundred or more interprovinaal and international games. While perhaps hardly as good as he was five years ago, he is still one of the best backs in the province, which is rather remarkable in view of the fact that he first played reprefcenta tive football nine years ago. Another

fine back in Southland is Gcddes, a son of Arthur Geddes, the All Black Mlecrar. S 3 K M The thirty-eighth tournament to decide the chess championship of New Zealand (which is vacant at present, owing to the death of Mr A. W. O. Davies) is scheduled to commence in Wellington on Boxin*» Day. In order to promote the success of this congress a meeting of the Wellington Chess League was held in the chessroom of the Working Men’s Club on Friday, when the following attended:—W Mackay (president), F. J. Brooker (chairman), A. G. Grabham (honorary secretary), C. W. Tanner (honorary secretary. New Zealand Chess Association), H. Godtschalk, G. A. Hurley, H. Topp, W. Wring and F. K. Kelling. Various arrangements for the proper carrying out of this championship meeting were discussed in a preliminary way. These are to be further considered, and, if possible, finalised, at the meeting to be held on October 17.