London, Mar. 6.
HIS year the Boat Race was inevitably a pretty poor affair.
No paper put the result on its posters and most dismiss it in a few lines.
Yet it was interesting and people did go to see it—even at Henley. An hour before the race started there was only a handful of spectators.
But then there was an extraordinary transformation of the scene.
Henley was invaded by thousands of soldiers, sailors, airmen, Red Cross nurses, W.A.T.S. and Wrens, besides the usual Boat Race crowds of parsons, undergraduates, pretty girls and errand-boys.
Hundreds of them came on bicycles; many had walked miles.
The trains from London were packed, and the roads were jammed with cars and coaches.
For the first time for 111 years the race was at Henley, and the course was only a mile and a half, compared with the 4% miles of the Putney-
Mortlake course.
As a race it was a foregone conclusion, Cambridge won with ease, beating Oxford by five lengths in 9 min, 28 sec. The course was shortened because, owing to the late decision to hold the race, training and instruction had to be cut down to less than five weeks instead of the customary five months: For the interest of sporting historians the course was the scene of the first of al! these races, in 1829; on that occasion Oxford won. Three-to-one on favourites, Cambridge showed themselves by far the superior crew, both in strength and in rhythm.
The Light Blues, rowing confidently and well throughout, finished the course strongly, but Oxford, who had become ragged and uncertain from half-way, seemed "licked to the wide" at the end. Two of the crew almost collapsed with their final strokes, With their faster and more powerful pull, Cambridge swept into the lead within a matter of 100 yards or so from the start and Oxford were soon struggling against the wash of the leading boat, a state of affairs which continued until Cambridge were so far ahead that it did not matter.
Averaging 32, Cambridge continued o draw away. They were a good two lengths ahead ai half-way, and, wing a long hard stroke, they in-
On February 24 the soccer crowds improved with the advent of spring weather. On March 2 more than 130,000 turned out to watch big football in England and Wales. Capacity crowds were reached at several Scottish grounds—lure of that scratch cup competition, of course—and thousands were turned away.
Coventry had the top gate of the country, fhough—15,000 paying to see them beat Walsall "(4-1). At Bradford, for the Red Cross match between an All-British team and a League side, there were 14,575—paying £880. Taylor, Bolton wing half, had a sad afternoon playing for the League. He broke an ankle in the second half, There was also another broken bone to record—a broken cellar-bone, And the unfortunate man was March, of Queen's Park Rangers. So the Rangers lost again at Reading (4-1). But luck is running against them. Ill-luck and some ill-play is the reason for the fall of the most successful team of the last season, Portsmouth. Down they went again to Charlton (1-3)
Footballers have been in the marriage news of late. One of the Port Vale team got his wedding over in desperate but scratchy efforts to teke up the leeway. Down the final stretch Cambridge shot up to 36 in the last minute, to win most comfortably, Oxford finishing at 33.
The crews were as follows Cambridge: E. P. Hawthorne (Westminster and Third Trinity) (bow), 10 st. 1 Ib; K. L. Lea Wilson (Monkton Combe and Clare) 11 st. 12 Ib.; J. E. G Wardrop (Shrewsbury and Jesus) 12 st 1l Db: A. W. Laurie (Monkton Combe and Selwyn), 12 st. 1 Ib; G. E. W. Holley (South Africa and Lady Mar-garer), 13 st.: W. M. Turnbull (Geelong and Clare), 13 st. 3 1b.: W. G. Biling-ton (Loretta and Trinity Hall) 12 st 1 Ib; C. B. Sanford (Eton and Trinity Hall) (stroke), 12 st; A. Champion (Northampton and Selwyn) (cox) st Oxford: J. E. Tickler (Radley and New ge) (bow, 11 st, 3 Th: J. C. B.
in (Beaumont and Hertford) 10 st C. E. L. Thompson (Shrewsbury and Pembroke) 12 st. 2 1b.: E. de V.
(Radley and Trinity), i1 st. 8 3. Huse (Latymer Upper and Oriel), t. 10 Ib: A. Tyser (Eton and nity). lib; P. L. Fanning {Radley an Queen's) (stroke), 10 st Ib; H.
Hicks (Mount Allison University, ida, amd Exeter) (cox)
t. 4 Ib.
Ther was only one old Blue in each crew C..B. Sanford stroked Cambridge id G. Huse was in the Oxford boat. the morning and went out and played a fine game in goal against Chester in the afternoon (3-0). Jepson is the name.
The keenest game of all, probably, was in the Midlands between West Bromwich Albion and the Wolves, They drew 1-1, but Albion only scraped an equalizer with four minutes to go. This leaves the Wolves on the top.
The London games attracted about 50,000 spectators. Tom Cheetham, home on leave from six months im France, played for Brentford—and captained them against Chelsea 1-1 Fulham and the Arsen drew (1-1). Crystal Palace maintained their unbeaten Southern D, record by a 2-0 victory over Norwich City., Clapton Orient gained a decisive win over Brighton because they took their first-half chances (5-1) Brighton came back too late in the game. Aldershot staged a fine second-half recovery at Southend and wiped off a two-goal deficit to draw. Watford and Bournemouth drew (1-1). The Sputs beat Southampton (4-1) by team work. Manchester City played James Mather, one of the personnel of M.S. Exeter, in their side against Burnley. And what did he do? He scored a nice-looking goal The Navy's name lives on.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.