Punts and Passes.

Star (Christchurch), Volume XLIV, Issue 458, 20 May 1932, Page 11

Punts and Passes.

The neck-and-neck race between Sydenham and Merivale for the Rugby championship has -worked enthusiasm up to a high pitch. k :: The Sydenham forwards show wonderful combination and dash, but Merivale have a slightly cleverer back line. It is- in fitness and vim, however, that both sides set a shining example. Every man bears the stamp of the welltrained athlete. ts 52 Canterbury should have a great team to defend the Ranfurly Shield, and it is a season of golden opportunity for young stars of promise and ambition. « « Who will be full-back? A few more Saturdays’ play should throw light on the problem, but Bullivant and Roberts are in the forefront. M Si ♦'» The Christchurch team needs a few rivets in its defence, and the inside backs know too little about the strategy of the passing game. 55 55 52 When Varsity get their right fifteen together and all the cogs running smoothly some of the “ higher-ups can look out for a fall. Albion show their old grit and determination and let up for nothing. A general in the rearguard would make a world of difference to the side. Mr E. M’Kenzie, secretary of the WaiRugby Union, has a New Zealand record to his credit, having been appointed an All Black selector for nine consecutive years. Billy Miske, a former opponent of Jack Dempsey, died game to the end. Doctors told him if he fought again it was certain death; but Miske took on another fight to earn money for his familv —and the doctors were right. « ** 25 Mrs M. Price, who is a mother of four children, established a new women’s cycling record in Tasmania recently. She rode from Hobart to Launceston and return, a total distance of 240 miles, in 20hr 25min 35sec. This betters Miss M. Stewart’s record of a few months previously by 24min 46sec. Jackson Scholz. who won the 200 metres race at the Olympic Games in Paris in 1924. and who subsequently toured New Zealand, is making a big effort to recover his old form, in the hope of being chosen as one of the United States representatives at this > ear’s Olympic Games. Now that peace has been restored and ill-feeling has vanished, 'this paragraph may find daylight. After the rumpus at Lancaster Park ths other day, an ex-Canterbury forward, of Lyttelton, remarked that he had been ordered off. carried off, kicked off and hooted off. but he had never gone home in the Black Maria yet. 5:

Judged on last Saturday's game it is questionable whether Lilburne is retaining his form (says a writer in the Wellington “Dominion”). When an international player’s form slumps one is inclined to take more notice of it than a poor game by any of the rank and file. But by the same token a thorough knowledge of tactics, how to apply them, and when to vary them, is expected of a player of Lilburne’s experience. Mr E. C. Holmes, who died at Hove (England) on April 9, was a founder of the English Rugby Union and one of the three who drafted the first code of Rugby football rules. He was 90 years of age. Welterweight Dave Palmer, who has crossed over to New Zealand three times, was recently injured in a motor smash in Melbourne.

Japan’s challenge for Olympic j honours is to be made by a team of 202 athletes and officials. The athletic team will have at least 142 competitors, including 16 women. Nominations of players for the interisland Rugby football match to be held in Christchurch on June 4 must be at headquarters not later than noon on May 28, on which date the teams will be chosen. The M.C.C. tour of Australia and New Zealand opens with a match at Perth on October 20, and 22. Judging from the successful way the Jack Dempsey tour of America has been conducted, there may be a Max Schmelling-Jack Dempsey bout in New York City about September. A new £IOO,OOO stadium is being constructed at Long Island, New York, in time to stage the world’s heavy-weight championship bout between Jack Sharkey and Max Schmeling (holder) cn June 16, 55 52 52 . . The Wellington Rugby Union strongly opposes the rule that players must leave the field at half-time. It has been decided to draw the New Zealand Union’s attention to the statement made at the annual meeting of delegates in 1931, by the chairman of the Management Committee, to the effect that the laws with regard to leaving the field at half-time and the replacement of injured players would not matter. Don Bradman no longer holds the record for the highest innings on the Bowral ground. That was taken from him recently by a 19-year-old High School boy. W. Horney. Playing for Bowral against Exeter he made 235 not out, as against Bradman's 234 not out. It is officially announced by the M.C.C. that, if the destination of the “Ashes ” depends upon the result of the match, the final test between England and Australia in England in 1934 will be played to a finish. The proposal was made bv the Australian Board of Control. 2*2 2*2 52 Mrs Preston, who is 74 years of age, won her first round match in the Veteran Ladies’ Golf Championship in England last month, but could not stand the strain and -withdrew. One of the South African team of five for the Olympic Games is D. J. Joubert, the sprinter who equalled the world’s record last April. In the Union, it is considered that Joubert will be an Empire successor to H. M. Abrahams. The return of Alan Campbell, New Zealand . heavy-weight ,charppion, to New Zealand has revived possibilities of a meeting between Ray Nicol, the Dominion light-heavy-weight champion, and Campbell. Prior to Campbell’s departure for Sydney, the men were to have met at Dunedin, but an injury to Nicol’s hand brought about a postponement. 25 52 52 After his return from South Africa with the New Zealand Rugby team, Dave Lindsay, the All Black full-back and centre three-quarter, did not engage in a great deal of football, but he played a fine game at full-back for Otago against the British team. Last season, he played only occasionally, but he has now left University and is playing for the Invercargill Club in Southland Rugby. 52 55 52 A newcomer to Dunedin Rugby is Roberts, a 14st 71b forward, who turned out for the Pirates Club last week. He is a son of Sir Alexander Roberts, who toured South Africa with a British team on one occasion, and on his showing in his initial appearance he promises to be a big asset to his club team. He is a solid, hard-working forward, with plenty of dash in the loose.