Our Sports Summary

New Zealand Tablet, Volume LI, Issue 30, 16 July 1924, Page 35

Our Sports Summary

' , ’ * -‘ 4* ' ' .f'- t - - r Wellington- meeting is over; and gone and many visitors to Trentham are no doubt sadder and wiser, just now. But hope springs eternal in the punter’s breast, and the Grand National still remains— the Irish Brigade at Fontenoy. •> Income won the Parliamentary, -in spite of his weight and the sticky track. He is a horse pretty near the first class, and a, few, pounds cannot bring animals of the type of Boadicea and Winning Hit near enough to have a chance with him. 1 Nukumai’s win in the Winter Hurdles was according to his good track work. The heavy course and the heavy weight anchored Ldchson, which could do no better than third. But as he was giving , more than a stone to the good horse which won, the third was creditable. Nukumad won again the second day. The weather was bad and' the course worse than ever, and two moderates filling the places behind him discounted a lot from the value of his performance. ,The steeplechase was a great race as far as the finish and the jumping go. Omahu .ran his usual race, and after Pamplona had led over the last fence, Mr. Bull’s good black horse came at the Dunedin ’chaser in the straight and won by a neck. Carawock was three or four lengths away in third place. It may be worth remembering that Omahu and Pamplona run well in soft going, while those who know Carawock would not be at all tempted to have much on him unless the course were good. Under conditions more favorable for him he will turn the tables on them. Moreover, he is rather a novice at the game, Omahu’s race in the hurdles on Wednesday sharpened him up. He is a safe, big, slow jrfmper, and a hurdle race was just what he wanted. The same policy was tried with him in Wanganui before lie ran second in the, Auckland steeplechase. People sometimes say he .is a bad jumper. Well, he is the only horse racing in New Zealand that would stand a sporting chance of getting round the big Aintree course. He is not a showy jumper. He goes at his. fences like a hunter instead of running at them like a hurdler as most of the horses here do. If anybody tries to persuade you again that he cannot, jump well just look up his record since he began the game. Did the week’s racing throw any light on the National? Very likely it will make the three placed horses prominent from now on. And of the three, under usual Riccarton weather conditions, give me the third. The hurdling can hardly be said to have made the problem clearer. Nuknmai will how be well weighted. Lochson will have a chance. Alteration must be also respected. And General Advance is a dark horse so far this season. As for the Winter Cup, the maze is deeper. The heavy going, did not • give ns a hope of finding out whether Sol if or m is or is not still the horse that beat last, year’s Derby winner. , Apart from Income and . Arch Salute they were a moderate lot of flat racers in Wellington. Probably a horse that did not sport silk at all at Trentham will be the pea. - For instance, there are Ravenna, Avispado, Pompey, etc. And there is also a long way. to go before the acceptances are settled finally. Hence, wait and see and keep putting things on the horses made for the purposethe clothes-horses. v ' ST. PATRICK’S MINIATURE RIFLE CLUB, TIMARU. ; . (From our own • correspondent.) % * ' - ’; The shoot-off for Mr., H. Travis’s trophy rbsWlted in a win for C. Knight. Following are' the ties for Mr. M. J. Doyle’s 1 ifophy r —Knight, Stirling, Hall, - Lane, and Underwood. On Friday night, Mhe 27tK .hit.,;'tile* weekly shoot took place, when Mr. F. Bartos’s trophy was competed for. The following tied: —Knight, McGrath, Murphy, Stir-* ling, McKeefry, Hall, Underwood, and. Lane. The highest scores off the rifle were:C. Knight and W. McGrath 70 J. Murphy, J. McKeefry and W. Stirling 69; A. Hall, 65. The following are the teams selected to .compete for the Herald Shield —A: F. Bartos, J. Murphy, J. McKeefry, Oi Knight, W. McGrath; B: W. Stirling, H. Travis, D. J. Doyle,: J. Collins, 0. Clarke; C:. A. Hail, L. Fountains, J. Fitzgerald, E. Fitzgerald, Rev. j. More O’Ferrall.

: f 'FOOTBALL AT WAIMATE. S ‘ ' (From; a correspondent.) ‘ , The Marist . Football : Club has • not -had quite such a successful run this season so far as the , competition is Concerned. A difficulty was experienced ;in the earlier part of,the ; season' ini obtaining sufficient players, but in the final stages they turned out‘the best team in the competition. The club is to be congratulated on having seven of its members picked for the “Rep” team, which is quite a formidable pack and should make a name for itself this year. On Thursday the “Reps” met and defeated another team, „ when the Marist members (Messrs. Keyes (captain), Hansen, Tvvoomey, Meehan, and . Foley shone out conspicuously., As a curtain-raiser v to the big , match, St. Patrick’s School team met the Primary . School, and after a fast and exciting game won by 13 points to 9. The lads of both' teams gave a fine exhibition of football. HOCKEY. ; A Marist Ladies’ Hookey Club , was formed- here this year, and so far has had a very successful season. For a first year club the players, few of whom had played hockey before, have made wonderful progress, being one of the best teams in South Canterbury. At the six-a-side tournament held in Timaru recently the A team reached- the semi-final, being defeated by Orari. The other Thursday a combined Timaru team came down to try conclusions with the local team. After a very pleasant game Marist won by 3 goals to nil. The visiting players were entertained by the local club at their annual ball, which was held in the Olympia Ball. There was a large number of people present, the ball being one of the .most successful held here for some time. The club is to be congratulated on having four of its members— Kennedy, Hickey, Edwards, and O’Connor for the South Canterbury representative team which is to travel to Dunedin shortly to meet Otago. • , The other afternoon members of the Marist Football Club and the Marist Ladies’ Hockey Club met on the school grounds to take part in ; a six-a-side hockey tourney—three ladies and three men a side. Six teams competed, and after four rounds had been played, two teams, captained by Misses M. O’Shea and B. Patterson, with seven points each, played off for the final, Miss O’Shea’s team winning by one goal. During the afternoon a collection was taken up for a member of the Marist Football Club who was injured during the season. A sum of over £3 was collected. FOOTBALL AT ASHBURTON. The result of the ninth series of games on Saturday, the sth inst., has left the Ashburton Club with a commanding lead, and the local competitions have been declared closed. Competition points are as -under: Ashburton, 'a ; Hinds, 5 ; Celtic, 4?; Methven, 4£; Old Boys, 4; Rakaia, I*. It has been a year of surprises. The Celtic men have not been consistent. In the first match of the season they played a draw with the competition winners, 6 points all, followed by another draw with Methven, 3 points all. Rakaia were soundly beaten, 17 points 3, but still another draw was the best the club could do against Old Boys, 6 points to 6. Hinds, who started, the season particularly well, inflicted the only defeat of the first round, B—3. Meeting the Ashburton Club for the second time, the “Greens” were soundly beaten —3. They made amends the following week by defeating Methven, 10— 6, and the succeeding week, narrowly defeating Hinds by 11 —10, after the most exciting contest of the r season. On Saturday, sth inst., they lost to Rakaia by 12 points 3. The season has discovered three most promising promoted juniors. Mulhern is a fine vigorous forward, and Lilburne and Gallagher, , clever wing three-quarters. Gallagher, has already represented the County and is regarded as the most promising “winger” seen here for years. 1 Lilburne should also get his “cap” before the season closes. % - The junior fifteen have experienced difficulty in fielding a full team each week, owing to minor injuries to members, and occasional shortages in the senior ranks. In consequence they have defaulted no less than ..three matches* This is to be regretted, for with the team at full strength, they would undoubtedly have been in the 'running for the championship. ' ’ t