Sport and Sportsmen.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 18639, 17 December 1928, Page 9

Sport and Sportsmen.

A Los Angeles paper received by the last mail tells how “Snowy” Baker, the well-known Australian athlete and film actor, won a steeplechase:— Flashing up from fifth place 400 yards from the end in a whirlwind, heil-for-leather finish that brought the spectators to their feet with a roar of applause, “Snowy” Baker, hard-riding Australian sportsman, captured the first annual Santa Monica steeplechase over the mile and a quarter course at the Uplifters rancho. The all-round sportsman from the Antipodes spurred his horse and flashed past rider after rider like a sheet of flame. He drew even with the leaders at the last jump, 150 yards from the finish, and together th&y thundered toward the tape. Baker won in as thrilling a finish as could possibly have been staged, nosing out Miss Audrey Scott, the lone

feminine entry, by a bare ten inches, after a madcap neck-and-neck spurt up the home-stretch in front of the gaily bedecked grandstand. 2& M X Hubert Opperman, Australia’s crack professional cyclist, turned up again in his native Melbourne the other day after some months of riding in competitions *in France and elsewhere on the Continent. The Victorian pedaller will not be long in Australia, for he has received offers of contracts to appear in four different departments of cycling in Germany, France, Belgium and Switzerland, and will accept them. In addition ,he has been asked to join the Alcyon and Louvet teams to compete in the next Tour de France. These are two of the leading bicycle-manu-facturers’ teams, and to be invited to join them is a signal hpnour for a foreign cyclist. X X It Although Blunt has not shown his best form this season there is no reason to suppose that he will not do well against Wellington (says a Dunedin cricket writer, commenting on Plunket Shield prospects). Knight, too, has not been scoring freely, but he is not out of form. It is to be hoped that Eastman will show the ability which he demonstrated before he was injured last season, and A. W. Alloo is in good allround form. Elmes is a bowler who is expected to do well. His form this season has been most encouraging, and critics who know the game have expressed high praise of his trundling. The absence of Shepherd, M’Mullan, and Dickinson from the side is a very great misfortune because all three are in good form. Had they been available Otago's team would have been as strong as any other side in the Domin- « x Passed over in Melbourne, Frank Brown, sporting writer for the “Saturday Globe,” and most picturesque, versatile and lovable of pressmen. Brown was that rare bird, an expert on sport who was also a genuine athlete. A born rover, he travelled the world on his wits, and on one occasion found himself absolutely broke in Berlin. Learning that an athletic meeting was to be held of such eminence that two of the Hohenzollern family would be present, he entered for the star running event, in the hope that some prize money might help to pay for his breakfast. He found himself pitted against a celebrated runner. When the pistol exploded Brown dashed off, but, hearing no following footsteps, looked back, and saw that the Teuton champion had stumbled. Being a good sport, he promptly returned to the starting line, and his behaviour so delighted the Hohenzollern princeling that a special cup was handed to him. The Australian had a desperate struggle to get out of Germany without taking the mark of royal favour to the pawnshop. « The outstanding feature of the present English cricket tour is the number of amateur journalists who have sprung to light in the columns of the daily Press like white ants after a .summer shower( says the Sydney “Bulletin”). As far as can be seen, most of the leading cricketers of these and other days are writing their opinions of each other and the visitors for Australian and British journals and their opinions'- are mostly fatuous. As far as the has-been division goes, it does not matter very much, except from the point of view of the suffering public. Of the player division, it must be said that unless it can play better than it writes our outlook in the Tests is as gloomy as the inside of a tar barrel on a moonless midnight. Some time ago the English Cricket Board of Control and the Marylebone C.C. went into consultation on the question of extending future Test matches in England from three to four days. After discussion, the matter was referred to the English County Advisory Committee, which regulates the county championships, and this has ad : vised against the alteration. The objection to the extension is that it would utterly disorganise the county programmes for the season. After all, the county championship is the principal thing in English cricket, and no one can blame the counties for declining to have their competitions turned upside down for the convenience of overseas teams visiting England. With South Africa, the West Indies and perhaps New Zealand all in the running, in addition to Australia, test cricket of one sort or another promises to become an annual affair in England, with the result that any extension of the period of play seems quite out of the question. Furthermore, any scheme to extend the already sufficient agony of long-drawn-out cricekt calls for ruthless squelching. XXX D. P. Lindsay, Olympic swimmer, is in Christchurch for the week-end, but will return to Wellington this evening. The New Zealand champion is fit, and is beginning serious training for the championships, to be held in February. It is unlikely that he will return to Canterbury before February. Lind-

say will probably represent Wellington at the New Zealand championships. W. J. V. Hamilton, one of the best defensive batsmen in Canterbury, i* having a great run of big acort* season. By patient and steady play he amassed 63 out of a total of 188 for Old Collegians against St Albans on Saturday. The left-hander is slow, but is Very reliable, and has been one of the mainstays of the Collegians this season. XXX The recent rains affected all the wickets on Saturday, and Nos. 1 and 2 pitches at Hagley Park suffered most. On a dead wicket, the slow spin bowlers were able to keep the batsmen subdued. An outstanding feature was the success of left-handers, C. T. Rix and J. L. Findlay. Both secured excellent analyses. X X X Innings victories were scored in each of the four senior games in the Suburban Cricket Association’s competitions on Saturday. Beckenham defeated Working Men’s Club by an innings ancj 280 runs, Sunnyside beat Greens by an innings and 69, Council won from Marists by an innings and 67, and Technical Old Boys lost to Shirley by an innings and 203 runs.