SEARCHLIGHT ON SPORT

Gisborne Herald, Volume LXVI, Issue 20040, 12 September 1939, Page 11

SEARCHLIGHT ON SPORT

Tribute to Golf Course

A tribute to the Rotorua Goll Club’s course al Arikikapakapa was paid by Mr. A. Douglass, when addressing the Rotorua Rotary Club. The speaker said that he had played on many English and Scottish courses and on many of the best American courses, including Pine Valley, but he had found none that he enjoyed more than Rotorua. The architecture of the course was particularly fine, said Mr, Douglass. *. * * * Injury to Springbok Mauritz van den Berg, tall, snowyheaded forward of the 1937 Springbok Rugby team which toured New Zealand, broke a small bone in his left foot during the recent tour of the Western Province team, which he captained, and. he will be out of the game for the rest of the season. Van den Berg has been playing in first-class form all the season, and his injury was a severe blow to Western Province. When it occurred, the team was in the middle of a long ton r, and another Springbok, George van Reenen, had to make -a hurried aeroplane journey from Capetown to East London to play against Border. * * » * Great Running Taisto Maeki, great Finnish athlete, has been doing some remarkable running this season. In addition to his amazing three miles in 13min. 42.45ec., lie has also broken the world's twomile figures with an effort of Bmin. 53.25ec., and in the making of this latter performance he \rias so closely followed by two of his countrymen, Tuomincn and Pekuri, that they also improved upon the previous world best,-- while a fourth Finn, Jaervinen, was only just outside—further testimony of tlie extraordinary capacity of Finnish distance men. Maeki, too, when in England recently, tvyice broke the British three-mile record within the space of three‘days—first with 14 min. 3.45ec,, and then with 13min. 59.4 sec. * * * * Long Swim Sixteen-year-old swimmer, Jackie Hale, Hull, competing in the ■ event for the first time, won the longdistance championship in the Thames, Kew to Putney, recently. He swam the five-mile course in G3min 59 2-ssec, and beat Cecil Deane (Penguins), holder for the past five years, by 35 3-ssec. After having competed al the 1920 Olympic Games held in Antwerp, Miss Violet Walrofid, the ln-year-old New Zealand started in the first women’s championship over this course on September 20 and finished in third place, her time being 1 hour 10 minutes 22 seconds. The winner, Miss Constance M. Jeans (Nottingham), look 1 hour 12 minutes 59 2-5 seconds.

All-Round Athlete Rill Watson, versatile Michigan (U.S.A.) negro athlete, was one of the stars at the track and field meeting staged at White City (London), not long agb. This versatile athlete maintained negro supremacy in t'nc broad jump by winning with 24ft Gin., but lie has already cleared 25ft siin in America. He also won the shot putt with 52ft Bin, setting a British record. As lie lias a performance of 54ft (Min in America, Watson will not be particularly proud of (his record. Incidentally, Watson lias thrown the discus to 161 ft 9ijin—a handy man to have in any team! He seems destined to be as famous as the “Michigan Express,” Eddie Tolan, dual Olympic sprint champion.

(By “Four-Forty”) 1

Banned. The chairman of the Manchester United Soccer Club recently stated that if the “gland treatment” was wrong for horses and dogs it was doubly wrong for humans, and that for that reason it was banned from his club. * * * * Hi oil School Sports The annual athletic sports of the Gisborne High School and the crosscountry championship probably will be held early in October, and of recent weeks “Four-Forty” has noticed one or two of the keener of the pupils training over the cross - country championship course.

Southland’s First Win. When the R'anfurly Shield holders, Southland, defeated the - Wellington representatives on Athletic Park recently, it was the first time that the southern team had scored a victory against Wellington on the latter’s home .ground. The closest they had previously been, to victory was in 1900. 1902 and 1935 seasons, when the games resulted in a draw each time, the scores being three-all, six-all, and 14-all respectively. This season Southland are very strong, and 'bydefeating the Wellington team by 16 to three have maintained their undefeated record for this season., * * * * Risks at Bport. Jack Hcbbs. of Surrey and England. spoke as a cricket expert: “Nothing much can happen to you in cricket. A blow from a ball can be unpleasant, but the man who suffers most is the wicketkeeper. Frequently he will finish his career with fingers like corkscrews, due to the constant impact of the ball on the fingerbones.” Tom Whittaker, the Arsenal trainer, talked about the risks run by soccer players: “Chief danger is local rheumatism from old injuries. Its intensity depends on the constitution of the man. I have heard before of a player’s skull being seriously injured through heading a ball. The men who retired from the game within the last 10 years are splendid. You would not think that they had ever been engaged in a strenuous sport.” Swimming, according to Mr. Harry Levcrton, president of the Amateur Swimming Association, is the least dangerous of all sports. "It is extremely healthy,” he said. “Every muscle is used, and the lungs expanded.”

Rarely Under 240 ft. Matti ’Jarvinen, 1932 Olympic javelin champion, reigning champion of Europe, avid former world record holder, has been all summer barely missing recapturing the record which he lost late last season to his compatriot and friend, Yrjo Nikkanen. He has often verbally assured track “fans” that the present record of 258.25 ft. is in jeopardy, and to prove that his words are not mere steam heat has been Hinging the spear over 250 ft. in meet after meet. Despite his antiquity, as javelin throwers go —he is over 30 already—Jarvinen is now in the surest form of his life.* Ho currently hardly ever makes a heave that carries less than 240ft.--Olympic Bulletin. * * * * Hole in One. In 1932 a newspaper in New York conducted a novel contest for those golfers who had been “fortunate” enough to achieve the feat of having holed out in one. A large field of 217 professionals and amateurs took part in this contest, which consisted of five shots each at a hole 129yds away. No one achieved his ambition, the nearest being 25in. from the pin, and of the 1085 shots played only 24 of them were within l fl ft. of the pin.

Lights Oht! /■' During a recent ban tain w'eight title fight at Detroit between Sixth Escobar and K O. Morgan the lights went out and left the arena in total darkness [0r.45 minutes. The erod’d of 12,000 took it good-naturedly uhtll improvised lights could be provided oger the ring. Evidently it was sabotagte, due to a jealous rival promoter, ivho wanted the title shot between Escobar and Morgan, but did not get it. ‘ * * * * i , £ Now Refereering-. Tommy Dcnovan,“the fighting fireman,” who will be remembered for his clashes with the American boxer, Pete Sarron—who later won the world’s featherweight champioiiship—in the late 1920’sr,' 'Was the referee in the, bout recently in Hastings between Stab Jenkin and George Allen when the former remitted h'js light-heavyweight championship Of New Zealand. * * * * Dalton Available. - According to a southern sports paper, Doug. Dallon. the Hawke’s Bay and All Black hooker, who was inj.uri'd, in the match between, Hawke’s Bay and Wanganui, was not as badly hurt as was thought at the time. He will be available tor the All, Black trials. His injury was a strained tendon.

& 4 . ,*“7' 1 tragic Slid Joe Patterson, American representative in the 400-metre hurdling event at the Olympic Games in 1936. was one of the victims of the Squalus submarine disaster. Ratjrerson won his, heat, and semi-final, but was placed fourth in the final, throe-fifths of a second behind the winner. Another American 1936 Olympic representative, Leonard O’Brien, a member of the field hockey team, was found drowned a few days before Patterson met his death. Lieutenant George Caiman, who took the Olympic oath on behalf of competitors assembled at the Olympic Games of 1932, also met with a tragic death, being lost at sea when the Akron, U.S.A. army dirigible, caught’ fire and exploded. * * w « Former Tost Players Had the tour of 'the Wes.: Indies cricket team' in 1 Englhnd not been abandoned, nine former test players would have aopeai'ed for W. .E. Butlin’s' eleven,. against the touring side' at a Skegness festival. The selected team was:—Jack Hobbs, captain, F. E. Woolley,’ E. Ilendren, M. W. Tate, H. Larwood, G- Diickworth, A. Sandham,. S. Worthington, T. B. Mitchell, •H. S. Squires, E. A. watts. t : - Impressive Record R. Branch, Auckland middleweight boxing champion for the past three years, , has a record which is claimed, as the best ,of any amateur in New Zealand. He has lost only two decisions in 18 contests, and one of these was in the final of the New Zealand championship lasl sea-son,-When 'over-eagerness cost hint the title. In the 16 bouts, lie has won 12 by knock-out, .nine .of them ending in the first found and three in the second, unlike .the many: hard puncher;), the voiihg Ahcltlander is a elevM’ boxer. Hci woft the Craig Cup for the most scientific boxer at the re’cbivtly-run Auckland championships. v v Offers to Roderick

Although he was beaten on points by Henry Armstrong in the recent world , welter-weight championship boxing contest, Ernie Roderick created . such a fine jmpression that several American boxing 1 promoters are anxious to get him to flghUfor them. Mike Jacobs has made,several tempting offers to Roderick, while a boxing promoter at Toronto lia; cabled him suggesting that he travel to Toronto lor an open-air contest with Sammy Luftsprtng, Canadian welter-weight champion.