PALMER'S COMEBACK

Hawke's Bay Herald-Tribune, Volume 81, Issue 65, 9 December 1937, Page 14

PALMER'S COMEBACK

"Omni.")

Improving Siandard of N.Z. Rugby YEAR'S CYCLE RlDE

(By

Ambrose walmer, retirea cruiserweight and heavyweight champion boxer of Australia, will definitely return to the ring in Sydrtey early in January. About two years ago Ambrose, consequent on b&ing • the receiver of a good hiding from the American negro Deacon Kelly, promptly and definitely retired froan the ring. Next year is Sydney's 150th anniversary celebrations and there is to be big money offering in the fight game, hence Palmer 's desire to , stage a come-back. Fistic history bristles with the names of fighters who have endeavoured once again to punch their way to the top oi the ladder, but somehow the majority find some of the rungs missing. Perhaps Ambrose will prove to be an exception, but he will have history against him. Australian Rugby Tour. The New Zealand Rugby Council will meet iu Wellington to-morrow. Possibly one of their first acts will be the m'. scinding of the decision not to send a New -Zealand team to Australia next winter. They will receive reports from the various provincial Rugby unions cohcerning tlie questionaire they re cently broadcast concerning ways of improving the standard of Rugby in New Zealand. In this connection it is interesting to note that Mr Karl Ifwersen, of the North Auckland Rugby Union, f avours more • practical interest in the primarv sehools. His views are 'almost similar to those advocated by Mr N. A. McKenzie, at a recent meeting of the Hawke's Bay Rugby Unioa. Poor League Showing, The Australian Rugby League Council is perturbed over tlie poor matchwinning record of its representatives at present touring in the North of L'ngland.' For this they blame the "poaching" of their best players by the Engiish clubs. League Rugby is a professional game, and while it continues so, players will be attraeted by the' heavi•est purses. The solution of the problem appears *to' be in Australia, -where the authorities should outbid the Engiish clubs and also buy some of the leadiug Engiish players. Cycling Marathon, Ossie Nicholson, Australian cyclist, once held the • world 's twelve months cycling record/ Once in a life-time should be sufficient, but somebody in Europe collected the honour in 1936, so Ossie had to start all over again on January 1, 1937. Two weeks back ha ■had covered 64,800 miles, but a Frenehman named Rene Menzies is also after the same reeord and at latest was only 60 miles short of the Australian 's totai. Menzies had the misfortune to break a wrist, but he carried on with it . encased iu plaster. Hubert Opperman, the iron man, who has just brokeu the Perth to Sydney record, hearing of Nicholson 's hard ride to distance the Frenchman, immediately clambered aboard his bike and for the rest of this month will accompany Nicholson on his daily Tide and ineidentally endeavour to speed him up a bit. It would be a terrible thing if Nicholson and Menzies tied. for the honour. They would have to fight it out again for the next twelve months. Empire Games. It is expected that nineteen Dominions and colonies will ,be represented at the third British Empire Games in Sydney in February. When these Games were inaugurated in Canada in 1930 eleven member States of the Empire patricipated. Whn the second celebration took place in London in 1934 sixteen were represented. At Sydney u is expected that the number will be 13. Traek and field athleties have drawn an entry from each of 13 countries, swimming nine, cycling five, boxing nine, wrestling five, rowing five. New Zealand is to be representefe in every braneh of the games.