LONDON SPORTING LETTER.

Star (Christchurch), Volume XLIV, Issue 143, 18 June 1931, Page 11

LONDON SPORTING LETTER.

Captain of Kent—Strong Cricket Side— A Benefactor—Arsenal in Form —Brilliant Golf.

(Special to the “ Star.”) LONDON, Apiil 23. A. P. F. Chapman is to captain Kent this summer, and this will be the first time he has been in charge of a countyside. He will fit the style which the club has always adopted. Kent will win the championship, or go down in making the attempt. Unfortunately, I am afraid the side will be short of bowlers, though Freeman is worth two ordinary men. But several other counties will be similarly handicapped. There is, for instance, no suggestion of any improvement in the bowling of Surrey, and on the easy Oval pitches they will have the usual difficulty in getting their opponents out. They are themselves strong enough in batting, but you cannot win matches without bowlers. Gloucestershire are regarded as perhaps the strongest candidates for the championship. They were a fine team last season, and the prospects are that they will do even better now. Lyon is a most enterprising captain, and I think it is quite likely that he will be iq charge of the next side to visit Australia. Notts, with their fine array of varied bowlers, will be keen rivals,’but I think there is a better balance about the Gloucester eleven. Olympic Games Benefactor. When it was decided to hold the Olympic Games next year in far-away Los Angeles, it was feared that Britain would have to be content with a very limited representation owing to the cost, but a generous benefactor in Sir Harold Bowden, the chairman of the Olympic Games Association, has promised to pay the entire expenses of the team. He hopes that at least 150 athletes will be able to go to California. It is calculated that with cut rates from the steamship and railway companies and hotels, the expense of sending each man will not be more than £l5O. In the circumstances, it is probable that Sir Harold Bowden must be prepared to foot a bill of £IB,OOO. There is a possibility, I understand, that the Government will give assistance, and donations are also expected from the public. Nothing has so far been done in preparation for the games, and I think it is very doubtful whether any attempt will be made to launch any coaching scheme. The British athlete does not readily lend himself to organised training. He prefers to be left to his own resources, and experience in the past has proved that coaching, to be really effective and produce the maximum results, must extend over a considerable period. Alex Nelson has undoubtedlybeen mos successful at Cambridge University, but he carries on his work under exceptionally favourable conditions. It was feared that Lord Burghley, the champion hurdler, might retire before next year but, happily, he has decided to remain in training, and go to Los Angeles. Arsenal Champions. The Arsenal made no mistake in their quest of the League championship. With still two matches to play, they placed themselves in an unassailable position. Up to the half-way stage of the season their fight seemed to be

with Sheffield Wednesday, who had gained the title twice running, but then the strain began to tell on the Yorkshire side, and Aston Villa jumped into the position of challengers, and they made a magnificent attempt to get up and beat their London rivals on the post. They got to within five points of them, but, though they continued to play as well as ever, the Arsenal hung on to their lead. The latter have set up three records. They are the first team to bring the championship to London, their total of sixty-two points is two more than has ever been obtained before, and their feat of obtaining thirty-one from away-games beats the previous best, to the credit of Huddersfield, by one.

The Arsenal have, of course, enjoyed a most successful season financially, and when the balance-sheet is issued I think they will show a record profit. It W’ill be between £30,000 and £40,000. Their receipts from all matches have not equalled last year’s total, but they have not had those from the cup semifinal and final, as a year ago. On the other hand, they have spent nothing on players. For some time it has been certain that Manchester United would lose their place in the senior competition, and it now appears as though Leeds United will go out with them. One vacancy will be filled by Everton, -and the other either by West Bromwich Albion or Tottenham Hotspur. This question has yet to be decided. Fine Play by Golfer.

It is very unfortunate that Henry Cotton is not to go to America as a member of the British Ryder Cup team. He is undoubtedly one of the first four professional golfers, and he would have had a good chance of winning his match. It may be remembered that he declined to accept one of the conditions laid down for the tour. He demanded that he should have the right to prolong his stay in America if he wished, whereas the Professional Golfers’ Association, who -are responsible for sending out the team, decided that all the players must come home together. Cotton has just given proof of his advance by a very remarkable victory over Abe Mitchell. It was a thirty-six holes match, and in one of this length Mitchell is thought to be almost invincible. The players were all square at the end of the first round, but in the second Cotton ran away from his opponent, and won by seven up and six to play. It was the heaviest defeat Mitchell had ever experienced. Cotton’s advance is x due to downright hard work, plus, of course, a notable natural aptitude for the game. For instance, when he played recently in the Roehampton tournament, his putting let him down. In thirty-six holes he took three putts on nine greens. Straightaway he proceeded to put this right. Ever since he has practised putting most diligently. Each day he has gone out with a couple of dozen balls, and spent two hours in holing out. In this way he cured his faults, and against Mitchell his putting was brilliant. Indeed, it was this which enabled him to win in such startling fashion. He holed two putts of three yards each, and two of six yards, during the second round.