UNEXPECTED END TO BIG FIGHT

Rotorua Morning Post, Issue 5312, 27 January 1947, Page 5

UNEXPECTED END TO BIG FIGHT

(Press Assn.-

WILLIE JONES WINS ACCIDENTAL FOUL LOSES B0UT FOR MURPHY

-By Telegraph— Copyright.)

WELLINGTON, Last Night. There was an unfortunate ending to the big fight at Petone on Saturday night, when Bos Murphy, New Zealand welterweight champion, and now the outstanding middleweight in the country-, was disqualified at the end of the fifth round for hitting the Amefican negro, Willie Jones, after the gong had sounded. Jones fell prone to -the ■ mat after taking a left cross, from Murphy, on the jaw. In the excitement which followed, only ringside spectators saw the referee, Mr. Len Stewart, raise the negro 's hand as victor, while his trainer, Marshall, was endeavouring to revive him. Murphy was ahead oq, points at the time, hitting moa*e cleanly, and seemed to have siz£d up Jones, whose non-stop tactics and continual boxing in with his head down, for which he was warned, had the New Zealander bustled in the early stages. Murphy weighed in at 1P.13J, and Jones, at 10. 5S. The fight had only reached the warming-up stage when the disqualification occurred. Jones, .despite his peculiar style, snowed himself,to be a clever boxer, weaving skilfully and causing Murphy to miss. He was very nervous, however, in the early stages, and though he heat a tattoo of blows on Murphy's arms and body, they carried no weight. Easily the negro's best hlow was a straight left to the face, which drew blood from Murphy's nose. Murphy might have won the fight had he gone all oxit from . the outset,.but he was content to measure up his opponent. His hitting was cleaner and his left uppers carried plenty of sting. "I was only dimly conscious of the bell baving gone," said Murphy after the fight. He was obviously distressed at the unfortunate ending. "I had sized up that the only way to deal with Jones was to come under his defence. It was useless wasting blows on the negro's head. I wanted to" force him to dip his guard and had hit him with a left uppercut to the body and another to the right of the head. Jones dropped his' arms actually in a southpaw stance and I let go with a left cross to the jaw. It was as the hlow was travelling that I became dimly conscious that the •bell had gone." Many ringside spectators were of opinion that the gong had not sounded clearly enough in view of the natural hubbub at the fight. "I hate to win a fight that way. No doubt it was an accident. Those thiugs happen," said Jones later, when congratulated. by the Prime Minister, Mr. Fraser, who expressed pleasure at the manner in which the bout had gone up to that point. Jones added that he hoped to meet Murphy again.