Amateur Boxing Championship.

Gisborne Standard and Cook County Gazette, Volume II, Issue 242, 3 January 1889, Page 3

Amateur Boxing Championship.

A BRUTAL DISPLAY. This is the way one writer describes the recent boxing match in Sydney for the amateur championship of Australia : —When the men entered the ring amidst tremendous applause some unauthorised party put them together in the middle of the ring and made a speech which nobody could hear. Then Larry Foley made a speech, but nobody could hear what he said. Then the referee got the two men in front of him and stood waving his aims over them as if be were a priest per-

forming the marriage service, and, of course, he made a speech. Then there were symptoms that Dan. O’Conor was going to make a speech, and as the men evidently felt that it was better to be punched than jawed at by a professional jawster, they hurriedly walked to the centre of the ring, shook hands, and started. The stillness of the the crowd was deathlike while they sparred for a few seconds, and Sandail then hit out at Seale, but missed him. Before the spectators could realise it, Seale dashed in at his man and rained blows

on him left and right, biff, biff, bang, bang, everv hit timed and every hit placed. The New’ Zealander tried to counter him but could get no opening against the awful rain of blows: he was driven to his corner and a hideous upper-cut in his breathing apparatus spun him half round, and a Laid leit hand hit on the ear dropped him like a stone. He lay doubled up against the ropes, while Seale stood over him waiting for him to renew tbe fight. The crowd had been silent from sheer astonishment while this bit of fighting was going on. No such fighting has ever been seen in Sydney, especially during the first round of a match. As soon as Sandail fell the feelings of the people broke out and the yelling and cheering and whooping made one think that the folk were mad. In his corner lay Sandail with his seconds fanning him vigorously, while Foley was frantically urging Seale to go back to his corner and sit down so as not to distress him* self, but he might as well have sung a hymn for all the chance he had of making himself heard in the babel that was going on. The referee allowed Sandail his ten fcjonds and called “ time, ” but he needed the voice of an 81 ton gun to make anyone hear him, and instead of Sandail going on with the round as he should have done his seconds sprang into the ring, lifted their man into his chair, and started to rub ice on his head to bring him round a bit. Seale went to his corner and was attended to, but the round was not fought out as it should have been. 1 he crowd, which is only another way of saying the Seale party, now became larky and exuberant; it looked as if Sandail could not come up for the second round, and many said that the fight was practically over. “ I don’t grudge my ten bob if they don’t fight another second, ” said more than one man. “ That one round was worth a pound of any man’s money to see.” On the call of time for the second round things took a remarkable change. Sandail, who had arisen with an affable smile on his countenance, got an opening and gave Seale a terrific right-hander on the neck, knocking the latter right under the ropes. Seale hopped back like a shot, but was immediately floored again, and this time he lay on the floor, collecting his thoughts, while taking every bit of his ten seconds’ allowance. The amazement of the audience knew no bounds, and when Seale was knocked down for the third time in that round the feelings of Sandall’s partisans vented themselves in a series of yells that would have done credit to Bedlam, while tbe Seale supporters adjured their man to take his time, and get his wind. The feelings of the supporters of each man so 'completely carried them away that perfect strangers were wrangling, vociferating and challenging one another to fight all over the building. Meanwhile, Seale was up and at his man again, though very distressed and apparently stupefied. On going to their corners it looked as if they might as well take Seale away at once, as he did not appear to have a ghost of a show, but on coming out for the third round he exhibited, wonderful vitality by immediately driving his right into Sandall’s bread basket and flooring that gentleman like a bullock. What a yell there was ! Men shook hands and danced about on

the scats and the cries of “Good boy, Georgie I ” were deafening. Sandail was up as game as ever and the round ended rather in Seale’s favor. From this to the seventh round matters varied, the damage being about equal, though Seale’s nose was, if possible, a little ahead in point of size, and at any time a fair flush hit would have finished the fight.. Sometimes Sandail would work his man into a corner and deliver his pile driving blows on the other’s head and neck. Sometimes Seale would freshen up and plant his right and left hits into Sandall’s ribs and on to his nose. Seale got badly cut over the eye, and the blood streamed down his face, but with the gameness of a bulldog he went on fighting amidst the frantic cheers of his supporters. However, he was evidently wore distressed than his adversary, and in the last round Sandail tried all he knew to finish him up.

Seale was so tired that he could hit with no force at all, and was fairly staggering about the ring. Time and again he went down, hit clean off his feet, and always as his ten seconds elapsed he staggered up and pluckily faced his man. However, he kept falling all over the place, and several times he had to lunge in to avoid severe punishment and save his backers’ money. The moment that “ corners” was called the crowd surged into the ring. About a hundred men were carrying Sandail, along the hall, another hundred were similarly hoisting Seale. Another lot were offering to fight the referee, some yelled out “ a draw 1” others, “ Sandail wins I ” and amidst cheers, yells, and hooting, the doors were thrown open and the mob surged out into the street. Nobody knew who had won, but every man was as hoarse as a crow and as excited as a madman ;it was the most bloodthirsty sight ever witnessed in the hall which has seen so many determined battles. Sandail undoubtedly had the best of it at the finish ; whether he should have been awarded the fight is another question, as he failed to utterly knock Seale out and would probably have been knocked out himself only for the mess-up at the end of the 1 first round.