Boxing.

Southland Times, Issue 18853, 19 June 1920, Page 9

Boxing.

NOTES BY SIR JIODRED. Tliere is ft proposal afoot to hold a tournament at Bluff in the near future, the leading attraction to be a match between two local amateurs. The S.B.A. has controlled similar tourneys at> the port on previous

occasions. It is reported that negotiations are to be entered into to induce Jimmy Wilde, world's champion flyweight to visit Australia. The American public took a great f inc.y to tile little Britisher, with the result that Wilde is reported to have returned to England with £i2,UUO for his visit to the United States. Secretary .1. TL Guoertson has reaped some success in his (lay, but the t outldainl 13.A.'s recent championship tournament must hold the record in his experience. Mr Gilbert ton is in a position to announce the largest entry and the best profit lor very many years past. The assistant-secretary (Mr F. Cooke! has t-lso to be congratulated on the outcome of his elicits in support of Mr Gilbertson. Alf Felton, champion sculler of the world, and Ernest Barry, challenger, were in the respective corners of Jack Green (Australia) and J. Symonds (England I when the pair met at Sydney Stadium recently. Burry is rather a gooii boxer, and has sparred many times in England at charity carnival.*. At a largely-attended meeting ot the Ashburton Atnietic Club last week the question of the appointment of a boxing and physical culture instructor whs fully gone into, and the executive committee was given powers to engage the serv ices of Mr A . t aoman for one year, the club guaranteeing him a si.i. iy of £S per week for the twelve month". It was slated that the membership wa., -10. Los Angeles (Cal.l, April 21.--Norman Selby, better known as Kid McCoy, for year's one of the be. t boxers in the country, was mauled Monday last to Miss Carmen Browder, 1.1 years old, a dancer, whose professional name is Dagmar Dalgren, McCoy gave his ape as 41. This is the seventh time McCoy has entered the matrimonial ring. He remarked, when obtaining the license, that he had the record of Nat Goodwin beaten by two full lengths. The sudden death of Mr J. J. Ward, president of the Southland Boxing Asaoenu on, on Sunday night last, came as a severe shock to members of the local fistic institution, boxers in general, and a very wide circle of outside friends. From his boyhood Mr Ward was a keen follower of athletics, hut the mittened sport was always in hr.-1 favour with one of the -most morie-t and retiring sportsmen with whom the wrinr has ever came in contact, He was heart and soul with the S.B.A. from its inian y and the honour conferred on him by members at the outset of the current sea--on whs richly deserved and very keenly appreciated. Mr Ward was always anxious to encourage sport and it is therefore all the more icgrettable that he did not live to hand over his trophy for the teacher most successful with pupils at the recent tournament to the local instructor, Mr F. G. Jarvis. During a recent visit to Australia the deceased sportsman went t<> a great deal of trouble in Sydney and Melbourne to gain knowledge of the management of the game likc-iy to be of value in Invercargill. At the same time, he became more than ever convinced by what he saw that competitions are carried out in a very efficient manner in this part of the world. Mr Ward came of a fighting family, as his father, the late Mr Feter Ward, was a noted exponent of the noble art in the early days of Victoria, and all his sons lodowed in his footsteps in love of the game, viz., the late president of the 5.8.A., M. J. Ward (ringmaster S.B.A. >, .las Ward (judge S.B.A.i, Peter (the well-known Rugby footballer and successful professional at the age of 16 yeans), and Edward Ward, of Winlon (proved amateur featherweight'. The funeral of the deceased sportsman look place at the Eastern Cemetery' on Wednesday afternoon and was attended by a huge gathering of friends and followers of boxing. Writes the editor of the New York Boxing Record: —"Jim Corbett told me he learned more about fighting in his long combat of 61 rounds with Feter Jackson than in all his previous mills put together. 'Jackson was undoubtedly the greatest and cleverest big man in the world when I fought him in ’Frisco so many years ago,’ said gentlemanly James. I knew I was in extreme danger every' moment of the fight, and I had to use all ray skill and wits to evade his masterly attacks and co inters. I remember I was just a bit oT my guard in one of the rounds, when he hit me a terrific right-

handed smash over the heart which almost paralysed me for some moments, but I weathered the round through and was mighty careful after that. Yes, I learned a whole book about fighting in that battle with Jackson, which I never forgot. He was certainly the master of them all, in my opinion, in ring generalship and science.’ ” When Big Bill Tate, Dempsey’s sparring partner, was in San Francisco Tim McGrath asked him why so big a fellow as he is, and with the natural ability for boxing he has, cannot concentrate on his work and become a greet pugilist. “Because,” explained Bill, “I became discouraged. One time I was fighting Sam Langford. There was a big crowd about, 6000 do! in the box office I should judge. Sam was good then and nobody could get in the ring with him and not take a good punching. Well, I fought him the best I could, got ‘my punching, and when the fight was over I went to get my cut of the receipts. I pot 10 dollars. Then in another fight I had where there was a big crowd I got 15 dollars. I decided then that I could do bettor letting others do the fighting ; I’m perfectly satisfied with the money I get from Jack Dempsey. When I finish taking a punching from Dempses', I know exactly how much money I’m going to get.” At a meeting of the N.Z. Boxing Council last week the Christchurch Sports Club reported in connection with the recent match between P. Cook and G. Venn, for the lightweight championship, that the former, who was the holder of the title, had failed to make the weight and asking if the title were forfeited to Venn. It was decided that Venn was now the holder of the title. Arising from this match the Christchurch Sports Club stated that, owing to Cook being 71b over-weight, Venn had refused to enter the ring unless paid £lO, the amount of forfeit mentioned in clause 8 of the articles of agreement. The club had been compelled to pay the amount mentioned in order to keep faith with the public, but considered that it should be refunded by Cook. The latter had attended a meeting of the committee but declined to recognise any financial liabilities in the matter. The decision of the council was asked on the point. It was decided that the council, while considering that a competitor who fails to keep his agreement should forfeit his deposit, is of opinion that in the present instance the fact of the deposit not having been obtained from the competitor, might be construed as a waiver of any claim thereto. Clause 8 specifically stales that the forfeit shall be of a deposit. It does not state that the association shall have any claim against a competitor outside other than forfeit of a deposit. —Messrs Aschrnan and Kirk were appointed a sub committee to redraft the council’s articles of agreement to arrange the new centre boundaries, and to draw up a rule setting forth the penalties for disqualified boxers.