OUT DOOR SPORTS

Observer, Volume 5, Issue 116, 2 December 1882, Page 180

OUT DOOR SPORTS

NOTICES.

Secretaries of all hinds of Chios for the promotion of out-door sports will confer a favour by communicating any items of interest connected with their sport, game, or pastime ; more especially with respect to coming events. Short s7c etches of sporting or pleasure excursions will be welcome, and questions on all matters connected with sports will be gladly answered. All communications must be addressed to The JEditor.

— The West End Second Eleven were beaten by the Whau Union by 19 runs on Saturday last. — Nothing further has been heard from either Hulston or Hudson re the match with Pickering. Are the events going to fall through ? — Ponsonby Second Eleven play "Whau Union return match on Saturday, while the First Eleven tackles Otahuhu First Eleven. — The winners and their trainers at the late sports at Elleralie have had their photos, taken in a group (the runners in costume) by Messrs Hemus and Hanna. — Monnock has been twice challenged to run a i mile since his win on the 9th, by Harper and by Huxtep ; but in both instances the money was not there when he expressed his willingness. — The Grertie and Observer were matched for £5 a-side on Saturday, when the former won by lmin. 4Osec. I should dearly like to see the latter boat in the hands of a good sailing master just once before she leaves the track. Sam Dove sailed the Gertie in his usual clever style. — South End defeated Otahuhu at the latter's ground on Saturday, though it is but fair to state that Otahuhu only batted nine men. ■ Leahy, for South End, made 27 by careful batting, and Eowden 15 for Otahuhu. Sutherland and Leahy both bowled well for South End, the former taking six and the latter two wickets. — A very strong team of the United CO. played Our Boys C.C. on the Domain ground on Saturday, but were all out for the small total of 30 runs, Walker taking seven wickets for the small cost of two runs a wicket. Our Boys stuck to it till they had knocked up 115 runs, that dashing young batsman, Bob Whiteside, cax-rying out his bat for 76, Walker being next highest, with a carefully-got 13. The match is to be continued next Satui-day. — The Ponsonby Second Eleven journeyed to Henderson's Mill to play the local club on Saturday last, and got slops in cricket, but anything but slops at the grand feed which their generous rivals provided for the visitors. A really luxurious dinner was laid, and liquid refreshments in abundance — in fact the Ponsonby boys say they would not mind being beaten every Saturday if they got as good a solatium after it. The First Eleven of Ponsonby got a good doing at the hands of the Alpha Club in the Domain same day. — The match on Saturday between the Second Eleven of the United and the Second Eleven of North Shore was a very hollow affair, though the winners did not score anything very remarkable, if I except Sims with 10 in each innings, Wynyard 20 in the first and J. M. Sibbin 11 in the second innings. The whole Eleven of the United, however, only succeeded in making 10 runs off the bat and 2 extras in the first attempt, and had two wickets down for 3 runs in the second innings. Sims' bowling was the feature of the match, he taking seven United wickets in the first innings, and one of the two in the second. — My prophecy as to the success of the Eleven of Auckland on their Southern tour seems as if it would be likely to be cai'ried out. The crushing defeat of Dunedin is a proof of what splendid bowlers we possess in Gill and Lankham, the Dunedin players being apparently utterly stock up by it ; while Robinson in the second innings proved what a dangerous change he is, especially following a fast bowler like Gill, when he gets at it with his left-arm twisters. His performance towards the close of the innings in getting three presumably good wickets for the absurdly small cost of 4 runs, is a triumph of the trundler's art. The whole match was a living proof of the necessity there is for a team to be strong in bowlers, our trundlers winning the game from end to end. The absurdity of the attack made by an anonymous scribbler in the Herald upon Willie Lankham's bowling must now be apparent to the would-be critic himself, as well as to the very few whom his remarks might have misled. The boy has bowled with wonderful consistency and success, and his average so far would be a creditable one to the best professional talent. Gill may also be justly proud of his work at Otago, and, as .1 said, last week, he will be found the bowler of the team, taken all through. Our batting cannot but be admired also, as the Ofcago bowling is generally admitted to be strong. Barton has done himself and the district he represents infinite credit, and his score of 76 on a bumpy wicket, and carrying his bat from end to end, is superb ; while young Jack Arneil has early given a proof of the wisdom of selecting him by the clipping score of 34 against Otago, knocked up in a,space of time which proves how rapid a scorer he is, as I have always upheld. I have very little fear but that our men will fully hold their own against Christchurch (which match commenced yesterday), for, as I said before, we possess such batting talent as it will be hard to get rid of without considerable scoring ; and our bowlers want a heap of playing, as the Plainsmen will find to their cost, or I am much mistaken. The match at Oamaru fully confirms the above remarks on our bowling strength. Eobinson being able to rest his best men and still produce a man (in Buckland) who was able to get eight Oamaru wickets in the first innings for 37 runs, a splendid performance truly for a man whom Aucklanders look upon as only second class. Barton again proved himself the big gun of the team by his magnificent score of 65, while O'Brien seems to. have come out of his shell in this match and knocked up the second best score (35), Blair following close with 33, Gill with 31, Arneil, the consistent, with 20, Gardner 11, and.

Lankham 10. One feature of the so'atcli was fhway the bowlers came off with the willow. j ■ cept Bueklahd, who made the iFadifcionujy Captain Robinson, Yates, and Te.-a-o are notj able as small scorers in both matches, butt expect to see all three do well tit OhristchuY* being men who come when they are wanted- 'a^ l--pinch. I ana always positive in my own a) f] that oiir men will win at Christchurc ii, andt^ hope my prognostication may be fulfilled, "&' the-bye the Southerners must think all our t ea C are bowlers. They have now had Gill, Lankl^ Arneil, Robinson, Buckland, Barton, O'Brien'jJ Blair at them, andcou]d do nothir.g with auy*i the eight. I shall expect to hwir of G-arclin^ Testro, and Yates coming out as trundlers nexl ' — There is at present staying in Auckland* man whose name and fame are making more stf over the great American Continent than the.i&k of Russia, the President of the Republic^ atjf Barnum, all rolled into one ; and yet here peopk scarcely seem aware of his existence. I allude to the great science man, Jim Mace, who, as I stated in last issue, is to have a glove fight with tha redoubtable Sullivan of Boston, early in the new year. That typical Yankee journalist, Eox, o j the Police Gazette, who first trotted out Eganiu the first fight with Sullivan, finding the whole o| the $5000 for his man, who was dreadfully whippy in four rounds. Then Fox accepted Sulliyau's challenge to the whole world to produce a man who would stand before him in a glove fight for four rounds and imported "Tug" Wilson from England, who stood the time out and won a sackful of dollars by so doing. Now, Fox has capped the climax by sending all the way to New Zealand for that wonder of modern fistic science " England's Jim," whom he has backed to stand still longer before the terrible slogging of the " Boston Blower." If my readers could all have the opportunity of seeing Fox's accounts of ths numberless oners he received from all parts o£ America from men willing to undertake to whip Sullivan (but all wanting the dollais found) they would be inclined to change the qiiotation and say " there are giants in these days." For, from their own descriptions and measurement, many of these are very little else. However, Fox was' too old a reynard to take up any such green wood, preferring the seasoned article, well knowing that he thereby could only hope to obtain the perfection of science, which is a sine qua non in a man who hopes to do Sullivan. If the world holds a man who could ever hope not only to avert defeat but to beat the Irish-American, that man is undoubtedly Jem Mace. I admit that Mace is past his prime in years, but his physique is as grand as ever, and his eye as piercing as at twenty years old, while anyone who knows him well is aware that he can dodge and " get away" as spry as ever he could, and only wants training to enable him to keep it up for an indefinite time, That training has now commenced, for already Mace is putting in the groundwork of what he intends to be a careful and perfect preparation for the great attempt he is to make. His work as yet is light, of course — consisting of long smart walks over the breezy heights round Auckland; and he steps it like any young" pedestrian of twenty, and already shows a certain reduction of adipose tissue, and is improving in his pipes. From letters received by the retired champion, Mr Fox seems confident of success, and I hope his confidence will not prove to hay& been misplaced.