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Friday, October 11, 2013

1912-10-11 Packey McFarland W-TKO7 Tommy Kilbane [Auditorium rink, Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada]

1912-10-12 Manitoba Free Press (Winnipeg, MB, Canada) (page 25)
M'FARLAND FORCES KILBANE TO QUIT
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Packey Outclasses Cleveland Lad in Every Round--Referee Stops Bout in Seventh.
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At the end of seven rounds of boxing that served only to give Winnipeg fight fans an idea of the cleverness of Packey McFarland, Referee Bun Foley stopped the scheduled ten-round bout between the Chicago scrapper and Tommy Kilbane, of Cleveland, and awarded the decision to McFarland, at the Auditorium rink last night. Kilbane was plucky and willing, but was so clearly outclassed that there was never even an element of fight interest. McFarland seemed to be looking for a knockout toward the end of the seventh and punished the Cleveland lad so severely that it would not have taken much of a real punch to make him take the count.

Only a fair-sized crowd saw the bout, and it demonstrated that the peddling of even the best boxers in the world to Winnipeg fans is a thankless business. McFarland is without doubt the best man of his weight in the business, but Winnipeg enthusiasts failed to show the interest that usually attaches to the appearance of a champion.

KILBANE OUTCLASSED.

Kilbane looked small and weak compared with the brawny Chicago boy, and although he boxed cleverly and took all that was coming, he was completely smothered every time he tried to open up. Packey landed at will, and when he got tired landing light punches and gentle swings, he turned Kilbane around and cuffed him about the ears with an ease that showed there was no comparison between the two. Occasionally Packey opened out with a heavy rip to the body or a straight left that nearly always found its mark, but he did not follow up with any effort at a knockout until the seventh, when he apparently objected to the criticisms of the crowd at the slowness of the affair. When he began to put some steam into his punches Kilbane weakened rapidly and Referee Foley was undoubtedly well justified in stopping it.

PACKEY THE GOODS.

The whole interest in the bout centred in the appearance of McFarland, his first in Canada. He looked big and heavy and must have weighed well over 140, but he appeared hard and rugged and although never extended, showed fast as a cat when he took the notion. He is a methodical boxer, beautifully clean and effective in every move he makes and in this respect is to be compared only with Abe Attell among the scrappers who have visited Winnipeg in recent years. Every move the Chicago boy makes is for a purpose and there is not a waste motion. For this reason he does not look as fast as Freddie Welsh, but when necessary he showed speed, both with feet and hands, that showed that he is as fast as the best of them. He had no difficulty in stopping most of Kilbane's leads and swings with his arms and gloves and there was therefore little chance to see just what his defensive work is. He hits with lightning speed with either hand, and from any position, and against a heavier opponent would undoubtedly have given Winnipeg fans something to talk about, as he was apparently willing to work if there was any work to do.

THE PRELIMINARIES.

The preliminaries were fairly interesting. Young Abe Attell and Jack Allen, two youngsters, mixed things for 4 rounds without either doing much damage. Young Wolgast and Young Mack put the crowd in good humor. Mack, who was much bigger and heavier than his opponent, opened like a cyclone, but once Wolgast got his bearings he made the big fellow slow up and in the last four rounds had much the best of the bout. Fargo Kid and Johnny Logan two likely looking boys, hammered away at each other for 6 rounds with both doing about an equal amount of damage.


1912-10-12 The Winnipeg Tribune (Winnipeg, MB, Canada) (page 6)
REFEREE BUN FOLEY STOPS BOXING BOUT AFTER SEVEN ROUNDS
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Crowd Goads Packey McFarland Into Trying for a Knockout and With Tommy Kilbane Hanging Limply on Ropes Third Man in Ring Terminates Contest
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Boxers are human beings after all--human beings whose emotions are but playthings in the hands of the hempen arena guild. It is said with a certain degree of truth that men of the gloves see only their opponent, not a sea of eager faces fringing the ringside, and that the roars and shouts of the crowd are but a meaningless rumble. Perhaps. Some boxers may fulfill an engagement and see only the men in front of them, and occasionally the referee, and hear nothing, but this does not apply to Packey McFarland.

Packey has ears of wondrous sharpness, and the sounds outside the gladiatorial square reach him with crystal clearness. Packey last night seemed willing enough to make his bout with Tommy Kilbane at the Auditorium rink last, but the crowd willed otherwise. Spectators gave evidence early in the fray that they wanted a slugging match, not an exhibition of boxing.

Forgetting the masterly display of glove work, spectators clamored for the sterner side of the game--the knockout. They were not content to see the cleverest of all present day boxers exhibit his art.

WANTED A KNOCKOUT.

They wanted a knockout. And they almost goaded McFarland into satiating their venomous desire. Not that they entertained a spirit of animosity toward Tommy Kilbane. The game little Cleveland boy was the friend of all, yet they were disdainful toward McFarland--and voiced the feeling that they wouldn't be satisfied unless Packey scored a knockout. Human nature is peculiar--an enigma that cannot be solved.

McFarland outboxed Kilbane in every round. It was obvious to all after the first three minutes of milling that Kilbane was in a different class to McFarland. Packey knew this, too, and while he meted out considerable punishment about the face and body his purpose evidently was not to win too quickly.

But the crowd was not content. About the fifth round spectators commenced shouting at McFarland. They didn't go to see a burlesque, they said. And all the time McFarland was controlling that little something which in some fighters is called the brutal instinct.

PACKEY TRIED TO PLEASE.

McFarland heard the comment of the crowd as well as the men in the press box. And he was incited into an onslaught on Kilbane in the seventh round, which would have probably never materialized had not the crowd shouted for slugging. Packey then threw all restraint aside and instead of continuing in the role of the boxer who had pity on an opponent immeasurably beneath his own standard he tore into Kilbane. To please the crowd McFarland beat Kilbane about the ring. He ripped in rights and lefts so fast that it was difficult to keep count of them and when the bell rang Kilbane was resting limply on the ropes.

Kilbane would have come up all right in the eighth round. He appears to have that gameness which is above anything associated with repugnance in a boxer. It wasn't necessary for Kilbane to take more grueling, however, for with the sound of the bell Referee Bun Foley stepped between the men and waved them to their corners. Seeing that Kilbane was so palpably outclassed, Referee Foley, with the same judicious judgment that has characterized him in the past, stopped the bout. It will probably be recorded as a knockout for McFarland, for such is the ritual of the game.

McFARLAND A MASTER.

McFarland must be seen to be appreciated. It is common for the scholar after graduating from the highest seats of learning to be called a master. That's McFarland. He cannot be taught anything in boxing, so that it would only be a waste of time to try and explain why he excels all other glove men in skill. Some may think Freddie Welsh is faster, but their only reason for that would hinge around a difference in style of footwork. Welsh dances in, out and around an opponent. Packey is more firmly set in deportment, but his hands and feet move with lightning like rapidity. Not as showily as Welsh, perhaps, but the different style gives Packey more driving power. The fact that he can hit so hard and still retain a marvelous defence is the real secret why Packey McFarland is peerless in the 135-pound class of boxers.

WHAT WOLGAST SAID.

"I know I'm in for a lickin', but I'll get a big slice of money out of it."

That's what Ad Wolgast is reported to have said after signing articles with McFarland a few weeks ago. This admission coming from Wolgast helps smooth out the wrinkles for Kilbane. He need not feel ashamed of his efforts when the lightweight champion of the world made the candid statement that he would be beaten in a ten round go with Packey.

McFarland pressed Kilbane nearly every second. Tommy was crowded to the ropes and he couldn't escape from the rights and lefts that McFarland showered. Packey had a habit of forcing Tommy into the corners and there was no escape for the Clevelander. Three times Kilbane tried to scurry away from McFarland and each time his knees touched the canvas. Tommy was nervous, though game as a pebble. It was nervousness and the knowledge that he was inferior which made Kilbane slip to the floor.

COULDN'T HIT PACKEY.

Seldom did Kilbane lay his gloves on Packey. It was all McFarland from the first to the last gong which closed the dramatic incidents of the seventh round. Many wondered how it was that Tommy made such a good showing against Packey in their previous encounter. That can only be regarded as one of the inexplicable mysteries of the ring.

A big crowd was present and spectators saw some lively milling in the prelims. In the first four round affair Young Abe Attell and Jack Allen gave a good account of themselves. Honors were about even, Attell having a shade. In the second go Young Mace started to rush Young Wolgast and slam him about the ring. This he succeeded in doing in the first round, but in the second Wolgast met all rushes with punches on the face and before the bell he had Mace slowed up. The last two rounds were also Wolgast, so that he finished with a good margin.

LIVELY SEMI-WINDUP.

In the six round semi-windup the Fargo Kid and Johnny Logan exhibited fast work and plenty of slugging. It was about a stand off, although a knockdown to the credit of Logan gave him just a trifle the better of the argument. Logan hurt his wrist in the fifth in delivering a wicked smash, and was handicapped a little in the closing round. But Foley refereed all bouts in his own efficient manner.

1899-10-11 Joe Gans W-PTS20 Martin Judge [Eureka Athletic Club, Germania Maennerchor Hall, Baltimore, MD, USA]

1899-10-12 Morning Herald (Baltimore, MD) (page 8)
A DECISION FOR GANS.
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The Baltimore Lightweight Bests Martin Judge in a Twenty-Round Bout--A Rattling Finish.

Lovers of the manly art of self-defense had a very enjoyable evening at the Germania Maennerchor Hall last night, when the Eureka Athletic Club pulled off two of the greatest bouts ever seen in Baltimore.

The star event of the evening was the meeting between Joe Gans and Martin Judge. For once, at least, the public got its money's worth, and when the bout closed there was a universal shout of satisfaction.

The fight was scheduled for 20 rounds, and it went the limit. Every round was covered with beautiful work and hard fighting and the bout closed with a whirlwind finish, which fairly took the crowd off its feet.

The men had been matched to meet at 135 pounds. Gans was down to weight, but Judge weighed 148 pounds in the afternoon and must have tipped the scales at something over 150 pounds when he went into the ring. It was a light-weight against a middle-weight.

Judge was as strong as an ox and put up a great fight, calling into play all of Gans' skill. The Baltimore lad showed himself a past master, however, and as far as cleverness went laid all over his burly antagonist. His wonderful blocking was the feature and he stood off all the rushes of the big Philadelphian in a wonderful way. Midway of the fight Gans injured his left hand, which had been hurt in his late bout with Spider Kelly, and thereafter was compelled to rely on his right.

Joe did most of the leading and landing. Early in the fight he had Judge bleeding at the nose, but the big fellow minded this very little. In the 15th round Judge began to show the first signs of weakening, and in the 16th only the gong saved him. In the next two rounds Judge rallied, and in the 19th had Gans guessing.

The finish came in the 20th, when Joe started in to do business. Like a flash he was all over Judge, and in a minute had the big fellow on Queer street. Gans fought like a demon and punished his man terribly. He rapped right after right into Judge's ribs, and all that Martin could do was to clinch and hang on to Joe's neck. Judge was beaten to a standstill, and, although when the gong sounded he was on his feet, he was gone beyond a peradventure. It was one of the most rattling finishes ever seen in Baltimore, and the crowd was wild with excitement. Referee Mantz, as a matter of course, gave the decision to Gans.

The preliminary to the main event was a 12-round meeting between George Kunnicker and "Kid" Lackey. This was a corking curtain-raiser, and was a fit prelude to the star bout. Both boys put up a great fight from start to finish and covered themselves all over with glory. "Kid" Lackey appeared to have a little the better of it in cleverness, while Kunnicker was a shade the stronger. In the sixth Lackey knocked his man down and had him going. He also put a mouse under Kunnicker's eye and started his nose bleeding.

It seemed to many that Lackey on points should have had the decision, or at least the verdict should have been a draw, and the crowd generally was disappointed when Referee Mantz decided Kunnicker the winner.


1899-10-12 The Sun (Baltimore, MD) (page 6)
GANS WON AGAIN
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Defeated Martin Judge, Who Was At Middle Weight.
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A HARD AND GAME FIGHT
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Rally By The Philadelphian Which Nearly Finished Him--Kunnicker Got A Decision Over Lackey.

Before the Eureka Athletic Club, at Germania Maennerchor Hall, last night Joseph Gans got a well-deserved decision over Martin Judge, of Philadelphia, in a 20-round fight. Gans won in a positive way in the last round. He had a big shade the better of the contest all through, and the shrewd manager of Judge, H. Walter Schlichter, knew it. He sent Judge in at the beginning of the nineteenth round to do or die.

The fight had been bordering on a draw, and Schlichter was convinced that his man would have to make a pronounced winning to get a verdict. Judge worked according to orders, and in the nineteenth round he made a big showing and insured a verdict of "draw" had he been able to sustain it. He used himself up in this round, however, and Gans got his measure. In the last--the twentieth--round Gans was all over Judge, and the Philadelphian only lasted through the round by clinching and hugging his opponent.

It was a great fight. According to the original conditions Judge and Gans were to weigh in at 3 P. M. at 135 pounds, give or take 2 pounds. Gans only weighed 143½ pounds with his clothes on, and stripped he only weighed 134 pounds. Judge weighed 148½ pounds stripped. Schlichter, who was backing Judge, forfeited $150 to Al. Herford, who was backing Gans, because of Judge's overweight. Many persons thought Herford was foolish to let Gans fight Judge, who must have weighed 152 pounds by the time he entered the ring. He takes on flesh quickly, Mr. Schlichter being the authority for a statement that Judge gained a pound in Philadelphia during the time he was in a Turkish bath.

The match was a case of a small man with superior science up against a big man with much strength and some science, too. The cleverer of the two won. The work was clean, the men breaking at the command of Referee Mantz, except in the last round, when Judge was too far gone to trust himself to get away and face Gans.

This was the third time Judge and Gans had met in the fistic arena, and each time the decision was given to Gans. A provision was made in the articles governing last night's fight which stipulated that in case of police or other interference Judge was to get the entire fighters' end of the box receipts. He was also to get all if Gans failed to stop him, but this part was changed to the regular division of 75 and 25 per cent., owing to Judge's overweight being an infraction of the agreement. There was no interference. The big weight of Judge kept Gans from being as aggressive as he otherwise would have been. He was up against a middleweight and knew it.

Though Gans outfought his man from a scientific standpoint all through the twenty rounds, Judge was always dangerous until he started in to do or die in the nineteenth round and "died." Here he fought hard and viciously, but Gans was out of reach, and between Judge's work and the clever counters Gans gave him the Quaker City man was virtually at a standstill. He was not knocked out, but he had so little fight left in him that he could not have been patched up to stand another round. Doses of brandy were given to nerve him for the two final rounds.

Gans did not escape unhurt. He received a number of body and face blows during the 20 rounds. His nose was bleeding and his eyes bruised. Judge proved to be a second Smyrna for taking punishment. His nose bled and his face was "done up" pugilistically. He won the admiration of the spectators who crowded the house by his plucky work. He lost because he was simply outclassed in the science.

There were no slow rounds, but there was little choice up to nearly the end of the fight.

After the boxing Mr. Walter Schlichter, sporting editor of the Philadelphia Item, matched an unknown to wrestle William C. Hart, of Baltimore. The match is to be for $250 a side, and is for two falls in three--first Greco-Roman, second catch-as-catch-can, and the winner of a previous fall in the least time is to decide the style of a third fall, if one is necessary. The men are limited to 158 pounds weight at 3 P. M. the day of the match. The wrestling is to be done on a night named between now and Saturday week. It will probably be decided October 21. The Philadelphia unknown is said to be much smaller in weight than Hart, who has proved himself a good local man.

The first preliminary boxing bout last night was between George Kunnicker and "Kid" Lackey, both of Baltimore. Lackey had the advantage of about four pounds in weight. They fought in hurricane style. In the sixth round, when he seemed to be nearly gone, Lackey crossed his right and put Kunnicker down. Kunnicker got up and went to a clinch. They fought hard to the twelfth round, and referee Mantz gave Kunnicker the decision.