WORLD’S HEAVY-WEIGHT TITLE

Evening Star, Issue 19793, 17 February 1928, Page 14

WORLD’S HEAVY-WEIGHT TITLE

HEW ZEALAND ASPIRANT [From Ook American Correspondent.] Not since the palmydays of “ Ruby” Bob Fitzsimmons was so much interest invested in boxing circles in America as that associated with the meeting in New Yo;k of Jack Sharkey, of Boston, and Tom Heeney, the rugged oak from Gisborne, New Zealand, who already had made an enviable record in fistiana in the United Slates, haying several notable victories to his credit. The forthcoming twelve-round bout at Madison Square Garden, in New York, had been much discussed owing to the fact that it was in the nature of an elimination encounter for the honor of meeting Gene Tunney for the world’s heavy-weight championship. The event was being staged by Tex Rickard to find an opponent for the title-holder. The bout was Sharkey’s first major engagement since Jack Dempsey defeated him last year, and it was recognised that Heeney was no “setup,” for he had been registering victories on American soil to tho dismay of his opponents. All the sporting gucssers in the boxing columns of the newspapers favored the chances of Sharkey, who is an exsailor of the United States navy, but when ho entered thq prize-fight realms wisely forsook his unpronounceable name and adopted tho Irish cognomen of Jack Sharkey. The last time Sharkey had been seen before the public in a prominent event of sporting circles was when the Boston heavy-weight was seen rolling in the dust and rdsin of the ring vainly attempting to claim a foul, while Jack Dempsey danced about triumphantly above the pandemonium m the big ball park. While Sharkey was fussing about with a lawsuit in Boston and -changing his mind a dozen times a day without making the trip to Now York Tom Heeney pursued his quiet way, undisturbed by impending events. Heeney thus displayed some of the qualities to jviich Gene Tunney attributed his own

success in the ring. “Many a fighter uses up his energy worrying about a fight before it takes place,’’ said the champion. The physical comparison of the two contenders for the heavy-weight crown was given in New York as follows: Sharkey—Age 26, weight 1931 b, height 6ft liin, reach 76, neck 16), chest 42 (normal), 45 (expanded), waist 32, biceps 14, forearm 14, thigh 22, calf 15, ankle BJin. Heeney—Age 28, weight 1981 b, height sft lUiin, reach 72, neck 17, chest 43 (normal), 47 (expanded), waist 34, biceps loj, forearm 13, thigh 25. calf 15J, ankle OJiil. From the foregoing it will be seen that the New Englander ex-sailor had the tremendous advantage over the New Zealander of 4in in reach, a factor that has a telling effect on a ring result. George Courtney, who materially assisted Heeney iu his final training, is the middle-weight contender, and is Tom’s great pal. CONTEST DESCRIBED.

In a ringside story Jack Farrell, one of tho leading sport writers of New York, typed tho following:—“lf we are to be governed by Mr Webster’s definition of tho word ‘ Eliminate,’ then there was not a solitary thing accomplished in Madison Square Garden by Jack Sharkey, the so-called heavy-weight eliminator from Boston, and Tom Heeney, who came all tho way from New Zealand to do his share of eliminating in Tex Rickard’s crazy-quilt heavy-weight tournament. Both lads fought a nice even twelve-round draw, and got no further to a bout with Gene Tunney than it they had gone tho distance on a treadmill. It was a stubbornly fought battle for five rounds. After that it was just a weird spectacle, which offered proof positive that neither man is anything approximating a formidable opponent for Tunney, and that Tex Rickard’s plans to light Gene twice this summer arc more or Jess shot to pieces. Sharkey showed nothing of his highly reputed championship calibre. He proved nothing but that ho had an unlimited capacity for absorbing a lot of hard knocks and still remaining in a vertical position. Neither fighter hit In.rd enough to knock your hat off. Heeney forced tho issue from the fifth round on; but, while it may have appeared from distance vantage points that ho was doing a lot of effective punching at close quarters, he was not doing anything but hitting Sharkey’s arras and gloves. But, still and all, 1 think Sharkey showed pist enough boxing ability to come down in front. My score sheet gave Sharkey six rounds, Heeney four, and two even. He hit Heeney too often to lose the fight, and he also clinched too frequently to win. That was the way Jack Denning, __ referee, and the two judges, George Kelly and George Patrick, figured tho thing out, and they wore right in their deductions.” . HEAVIES “ ALL WET.”

There is an expression in American slang that to be “ wet ” is that one is all wrong, and this term was applied to the ring gladiators on this occasion, when Farrell wrote; “As heavy-weight title contenders, the gentleman from Boston and the one from New Zealand are dripping, if not entirely wet. Sharkey showed everything but aggressiveness and ambition after be discovered early in the fight that it would be just a waste of time to try to knock out tlie sturdy Antipodean. “He outpointed Tom in the clinches, and tied the sturdy New Zealander into knots at every given _ opportunity. Heenoy did not stop trying to knock Sharkey out. Ho must have sensed his great opportunity in the fifth round, whan he dumped Jack into the_ ropes with a hard over-hand right swing to the jaw, but his efforts toward this end wore just as futile as _ the fight itself. Sharkey played continually on the crowd, but the crowd in turn did not seem to be pleased with his theatrical gestures. This was shown when they booed the Bostonian after ho had missed a right swing for the jaw and fell to the floor in the tenth round. Hecucy made what appeared to bo a winning spurt in the last round. Ho threw caution to the smoke-laden atmosphere, and closed in on Sharkey with both hands working for the body. Sharkey bounced several hard rights over Joins whiskers in the eleventh, but he novel stopped boring in. Hccnoy did all the lighting in the twelfth round. Me forced Sharkey to take nothing hut backward steps under a withering tiro of rights and lefts to the head and body. Sharker, in turn, endeavored to hold Tom off with straight lofts, but the New Zealander ducked under them to come up with right uppercuts, which looked good to even the blase nngsiders.” ANOTHER VERSION.

Davis J, Walsh. International News Service Sports Editor, who is inclined to write skittishly where Britishers arc concerned, hnd the following account or the encounter :— u They called it a dra w at the end of twelve rounds. But the ‘ they ’ referred to were officials who were paid to bo there, and so it remained for the mugs who bad fairly slavered at the mouth oier 22-dollai tickets to call the Sharkey-Heeney, fight what it really was. Their definitions ran the gamut of choice Billingsgate, the common idea being that it was no worse than terrible., .Heeney turned out to be an honestly indifferent fighter. Sharkey apparently has reached the point where clowning may,ho considered an asset. He is full of grimaces, knowing winks aimed at perfect strangers in the. ringside rows, meaningless mauling, and, frankly, a loot of hooey (bunk). Sharkey is through as a a (irst-rato heavy-weight contender, Tho writer may ho wrong, winch hi truth would he no groat novelty, nit he thought that, if anybody won, that man was Heeney. But as to that the matter is without consequence. There really is not any choice between a couple of'slightly-used toothpicks on , a free lunch counter. I live to-day ,in mortal dread that the draw, decision will bo looked upon as, a tacit invitation to rematch the pair. This sort oi thing is so easily misunderstood, paiticularly by a man like Rickard, whose turnstiles have made him an optimist beyond redemption. However, it is difficult to see how this one can be rebuilt after what happened, or, frankly, what did not, last night. I hey simply mauled their way through twelve tedious rounds. Sharkey held. Sharkey talked from time to time, nossibly from force of habit. Sharkey solicitously fingered an abrasion upon his right eyelid, perhaps because he could iiot possibly figure how it gqt there. What I mean is that he did a lot of things, but ho did not fight. Heeney tried to, but he is not certain how to go about it. The writer gave him the third, fourth, fifth, sixth, and twelfth rounds, called the seventh, eighth, and eleventh even, and staked Sharkey tho rest, four in all. dust as many unwilling witnesses thought Sharkey- had taken tho odd round., “It may bo important. , At that the boys thought they were,in for a large evening in the first minute of play. Heeney clipped Sharkey on the jaw with a right as they came together, and Jack’s knees played the accordion. He righted himself and left-handed his way to an edge at the end of the round. He also took the second, Heeney , being staggered with an overhead right to the jaw; but from that point Sharkey blew up. The Dempsey body punching that many figured had loreshortened Sharkey’s career apparently was without significance, for ho took plenty in tho rotunda without visible regret. What he could not do was to outguess a man whose every move was preordained, and his accuracy was something to deplore. Ho simply could not hit tho ground with his hat for the rest of the fight. Heeney came on to take tho third handily, as Sharkey slowed up. The latter was hurt by a right cross to the jaw, and just before the bell he was belabored with a succession of lefts and rights to the body and head. /The fourth went to Heeney without particular incident, hut in the fifth he scored with a left hook, and then nailed Sharkey with a right cross, possibly the best punch of the fight. It drove Sharkey into the ropes, and on the rebound he was met with

another right. He did not seem to be hurt at that.. Keeney took the play away from again in the sixth, and' then for‘ two rounds both were terrible—no less. They were so bad that they missed simultaneous right swings in the eighth, and Sharkey blew another so badly in the tenth that he fell flat on his face. Itovevcr, his left hand carried both the ninth and tenth, after which Heeney rallied to hold his own in the eleventh, and clearly took the twelfth. But, as I- have tried to intimate. if there was any taking to be done the air was just outside the main entrance.” fn the gate receipts Heeney received some 25,U00d01, and Sharkey took 40,000d01, the total receipts of the night being announced as 160,000d01.