THE BOXING RING

Sun (Auckland), Volume I, Issue 214, 29 November 1927, Page 9

THE BOXING RING

Notes From Far and Near

By

"LEFT COUNTER"

Duke Maddox, who lost the featherweight title to Johnny Leckie, has announced his retirement from the ring. * * * » An American negro bantam-weight named A 1 Brown, has been in Paris for some time, but he is now finding it difficult to obtain matches owing, it is stated, to other bantams being afraid of him. Eddie Parker does not appear to be obtaining matches in Australia. Mention of him is often seen in Australian training notes, but it seems that he is training without getting fights. Either he is not showing form in his training bouts or there are better men available. Rumours are current that Frank Paul, the Dunedin welterweight who has been doing well in Australia, is returning to the Dominion. If these are confirmed Paul should be a welcome addition to the boxing ranks in New Zealand, although one man cannot make up for the absence of Purdy, Trowcrn, McDonald and Parker. The famous “Kid” Lewis has * won his four fights since his return to the ring by the knockout- route. His opponents were not front-rankers, but in putting them to sleep Lewis displayed much of his old-time ability as well as a devastating punch. He is a tough proopsition for any of the English boxers in the same class. Though it is hardly likely that he will again figure as a world's champion he still has a. few fights left in him. * * * E. Morgan (Wellington), lightweight, A. J. Cleverley (Wellington), lightheavyweight, and J. O'Sullivan (Auckland), bantamweight, have been recommended to the New Zealand Boxing Association by Air. Earl Stewart, as being suitable to represent New Zealand at the Olympic Games at Amsterdam in 1928. Morgan and Cleverley were regarded as foregone conclusions for Olympic honours. The inclusion of O’Sullivan is very welcome . The popular little Aucklander was successful in winning the Jamieson Belt for the most scientific boxer at the last N*ew Zealand

championships and this further honour will find general approval among fight followers. O'Sullivan did not show his true form in the Auckland championships. He had not fought for about two years and this no doubt was the reason. However, he made up for this in the New Zealand championships and won out against stiff opposition. Congratulation, O’Sullivan. It is to be hoped that the a«socitaion will adopt Mr. Stewart’s recommendations.

Tommy Milligan, European middleweight champion, narrowly outpointed Nitram, middleweight champion of France in fifteen rounds at the Queen’s Hall, London, recently. The “Daily Mail’* says the last round was the most exciting ever seen in the Queen’s Hall. Milligan made a great comeback. lie entered the round battered and groggy, while Nitram was practically unmarked. Yet, so furious was the onslaught that in less than a minute the Frenchman was bent backwards on the ropes, on the verge of collapse. He saved himself from a knockout l»v glueing his head Oil Milligan’s eliest.

According to a cable in an Australian paper Mike McTigue. the veteran heavyweight, was knocked out in a round by Micky Walker, the middleweight champion, at Chicago.

“Sunny Jim” Williams, “Frisco ' Me* Gale and Charlie Long, who recently left Australia for America, are all at work in San Francisco. McGale recently defeated Jimmy Laventhal. a leading middleweight in San Francisco.

An imposing team of boxers has arrived in Australia and includes Johnny Curley. Ernie Izzard. Johnny Sullivan and Jack Elliott. All the fighters are celebrities. Curley is ox-feather champion of Europe: Izzard is a former Europeon lightweight champion; Sullivan was once recognised as the world's amateur heavyweight champion, and Elliott was an amateur champion. Sullivan was once taken in hand by Georges Carpen tier and his handler. Deschamps, and was in Dempsey’s camp for his first bout with Tunney. Charlie Lucas, an Australian, who has been prominently associated with oversea boxing for the past five years, is managing the team.

Tyree, the Wellington amateur heavyweight, is now in Sydney and has placed himself under the care of Les O’Donnell. He will fight under the name of Bill Ernest. He intends to turn professional and if the “Referee” is to b** believed has done as others have done—claimed to be a New Zealand champion. According to the “Referee” Tyree claims to have been twice successful in the heavy and middleweight classes at Wellington and twice in the light-heavy and heavyweight finals at Manawatu. Tyree has only once competed in Wellington and he was outpointed by Cleverley in the light-heavy final and beat Ragsdale in the only contest in th* heavyweight division. J. G. Leckie defeated him in the first round at the New' Zealand championships.

The famous pugilist, “Spider” Kelly, died at San Francisco recently. He wa a about 60 years of age and a personality in boxing circles on the Pacific Coast for about 40 years. He was regarded as one of the best advisers a boxer could have in his corner. Earning his first money as a newsboy, he later developed into a clever lightweight at the Olympic Club. On one occasion, he fought Joe Gans. but was outpointed at the end of 25 rounds. A shrewd, crafty ringman, he later became the principal second to many of the clever old-timers, including Jim Corbett, Jim Jeffries and Jimmy Britt. After the earthquake and fire in San Francisco, in 1906, he kept a saloon and made a lot of money, but later indulged io speculating on Stock Exchange and lost nearly all of it.

They said Gene Tunney couldn't tak< it (remarks a New York writer). He can. Dempsey said he wouldn’t fight He did. Some have declared that he i not a real heavy-weight champion of the world. He is. Quite real and quit* earnest. If James Joseph Tunney, a calm fighting man, born in BankStreet, New York City, wei e not all these things, he would not be heavyweight champion to-day. Tunney is the first man in the whole sensational ring career of Jack Dempsey that the man mauler ever sent to the floor and couldn’t keep there. Two records were broken when Gene went down in a seventh round that will live long in the memory of the record ring crowd which saw it. It was the first time that any man Jack ever sent crashing dow n gbt up to stay, and it was the first time that Gene Tunney was ever off hi. j feet.

James J. Jeffries, the ex-charnpion of the world, thinks that neither Tunne; nor Dempsey holds a candle to the great men of the past. Jim Jeffries stopped in New’ York for a few days before returning to his home at Bur bank, California. He said that he enjoyed the fight at Chicago. "The count was a long one,” he ad- ; mitted. “And Tunney did look pretty I glassy-eyed while waiting to get up : But Jack wasn’t in such good condij tion, either. “It was Jack’s own fault that he lost. I The rules were there, and should have i been obeyed.” Jeffries, while he considers Dempi sey and Tunney as good fighters. ! doesn't believe that they compare with J the giants of his own day. “Bob Fitzsimmons could have beaten Dempsey in two rounds, and Tunney in five,” he said. “Bob was the most scientific and accurate hard hitter I ever knew. “James J. Corbett was the greatest boxer I ever saw. They talk about Tunney being such a clever boxer—why, Jim Corbett would have pecked at him so often he wouldn’t have known where he was. “Tom Sharkey would have clouted either of these boys so badly that in four rounds they w'c uld have been willing to sit down.” Jeffries smiled when asked what Jim Jeffries would have done to them. “I’m not going to say about that,” he answered. "But I certainly would have liked to fight them both when I was good. Dempsey can hit hard. He hits them, and they go down three oi* tour times. But they w’ould get up three or four times, too. When 1 1 them I usually crippled them."