1960-05-05 — Page 9

Page

SPORTSMEN IN THE

NEWS

From the green fields of cricket to the

.

grey of Canning Town

By RICHARD BERRY

as

THE CHINÄ MAIL, THURSDAY, MAY 5, 1960.

SPORTING SAM

againat Leicestershire, starting unhappily with a duck and then two runs in the second lanings. He played two more matches for the county that year (1947) and

two years.

THUBUA

to read for the Bar. Instead, he became more and more interested lu spiritual matters and he was ordained after studying at idley College.

For while he considered

God's word In his preaching In 1049 Sheppard scored 204 spare time and on tours. He for Sussex agafist Glamorgan -- | realised, however, thut his first three-Agure innings in would always be on the move Brst-class cricket and be hit and that his influence would the next two only be temporary, "A parish centuries In matches. He finished second in priest is very different," he ar Sussex's batting averages for the sued. "He is in constant touch with his people. The work is steady, progressive and never ending.....

On a great day at Kennington Oval in 1938, a nine-year-then went into the Anny for

watched

Len old schoolboy

entranced

Hutton majestically cut, drove and hooked his way towards his world record score of 364 against the Australians. Fourteen years later he returned to the Oval to score 119, his first Test century, against India. His schoolboy dreams had come true and he went on to become captain of England, with the promise of being one of the greatest opening batsmen of all time.

moic

itt

The young man never fullllled that promise. Today, as the ey David Short Sheppard, he is London's al home smutty East End, surrounded by - eranes, warelines and railway nes, than on the lush green playing Helds of England,

اور

Here he works as worden und chaplain

the Mayflower Fainly Centre, Canning Towak-- a centre, once known as Dock- land No. 1 Settlement, which provides social and educational activities for young and old.

When Mr Sheppard bevamé wartiet in 1988 e sant people round here are not hostile To Christianity they Just aren't 'interested."

New challenge

It

WILA

now

kind of challenge that attracted blm-

A

spiritual wilderness that

must be conquered because it was there. "Being a

country

vicar lan' my cup of tea," he explained, "This sort of work in Dockland Is.**

Sheppard is quite aware that his fame as a cricketer did much to swell has

Congregations at first, but he feels gradelul lor anything that helps to bring people towards the Church.

Sanilarly, it is as a member of the MCC Committee until May 4) and a former coptam of Cam- bridge, Sussex and England that he has now set the whole count

Four D. Jones

BY MADDOCKS

(THIRTY SHILLINGS EACH

COMB, THEN. I'LL WRITE A CHEQUE

FERDINAND

try

REV D. S. SHEPPARD

bating the question of boy- cutting the matches of the South African tourists as a demonstra- ! Tion against apartheid.

#1

n

Fruson,

Brilliant quartot

On Lo

It was not an easy decktion him. At 25 he had cap- Lained England Pakistan

for Cambridge, where he formed a famous cricketing quartet with Dewes, Doggurt and May in a brilliant batting side.

He was chosen to play for England against the West Indies

the family's cottage near Horsham.

As a boy he made his Arst Pentury in a game organised by his father, And at their Chelsea

at the Oval in 1950 -- and, home they would spend hours playing table cricket using a batting number three, he made he large home-made dise like anly 1 and 29. But when roulette wheel divided into see- played for Cambridge aganist tions, vach marked with numbers the tourists he hit 227. Dewes 183 and together they of runs or the words "caught"| made "bowled," "run out" ete.

stand of 343, the highest opening partnership in Cambridge history and the world's best against West Indies team.

His idol

shared

The Oval was always young Sheppard's favourite cholec for a Then Sheppard and Saturday cuting and there he broke their Cambridge watched many great players, with an opening stand' including Wally Hammond, Hul-against Sussex. tor and the late Hedier Verity.

copy

To

Blow

Yerky was his greatest idol for David was then keen become

first-class left-hand towler. He tried to

Yorkshireman's the action and style: he

becoming thought about batsman. In Fuel, he went in No. 11 during his first year at preparatory school.

never

4

and his

agatart cricketing

future was assured. became curate of 8t Church, Islington, and

Yet he Mary's made would clear that cricket now take second place in his life.

R

In this decision, he was fully supported by his wife, Grace, a schoollencher and * parsen's daughter whom he had first met

at Cambridge.

Must be admired

Only cricketers of true great- Dewes ness could have maintained their, record batting skill under such condi- of 349tlons. Sheppard proved to be

Sheppard was now clearly marked for cricket greatness. fie was chosen for the

ALCC tour of Australia and there he greatly Improved his style through studying and getting advice from Hutton. Back in England, he hit 2,104 for the 1931 season and then 2,262 in 1952, to top the English first- class averages with €4.62.

Decides to quit

one of them. Such is his natural flair for the game that he has been able to step into the grin atmosphere of Test cricket with only the barest practice.

in 1050

His Arst recull came when, while taking a Sunday School class, was told he had been chosen for the Old Trafford Test against the Australians. He

was a dramatic success, scoring 113, and was retained for the fifth Test.

Again in 1857 he came back

No other clergyman of Sheppard's runk could have given such impetus to the cons¦ A 13, he went to Sherborne, troversy such is his remark-i where he was coached by M. M. abie sporting fine.

Walferd, the Somerset batsman,

In 1953 he accepted the cap- | for two Tests against the West and W. L. Creese Hampshire. taincy of Sussex and was being Indies and the Selectors so con- Burn at Beigate. Surey, on With their guidance, he gave up tipped as a future leader of Eng-cerned with the problem of March 6, 1920, Sheppard is a bowling to become an opening land. But already he was con- finding opening batsman, Londonee by adoption and beatsman and a 18 he averaged | sidering giving up the game to must have dearly wished he was spent his Brst eight years living | 78,6 for the school first eleven, concentrate on the Church. always available for England. in Chelsea. His father, a solicitor,itting four centuries.

While still fought hun to jove cricket and

a schoolbay ho His original intention in going | Sheppard, a cheerful, humble. his richut for they frequently played together made

Sussex to Trinity Hall, Cambridge, was and extremely likeable man, is

VEEAAGH! SUFFERING SAINTSA

CAN IT BE THAT HE IS DISPLEASED WITH

OUR OFFER?,

LISTEN MATE, I'M GOING TO BRUISE YOUR „BRAIN-BOX.

HE MEANS

GAD!

PUNCH YOUR

HEAD, SIR

By Mik

AA

Sheaffer's

Newest

BALL POINT PEN

AVAILABLE AT

-SWISSARAS

ALL GOOD STORES.

Ah! That Food!

That Service! That Swissair!

SWISSAIR

P HUNT OF THRIVE

by Reg. Wootton

London Express Service.

still only 31 and would normally be in his prime as a Test bats- man. As he is only a part-time player it is possible that he may never add to his total of 12 Test appearances for his coun- try.

For ardent cricket-lovers this is no less than a major tragedy, But few can fall to admire the courage and convletlot's of a man who turned his back on sporting fame and who has always proc- lised what he pranches, believing deeply in the value of personal example.

CHESS

by LEONARD BARDEN

Ancient ganbits have all tha advantages of surprise and unfamiliärity if they are adop- ted occasionally against unsuspecting opponents. in this game played recently in Belgium, White's attack cul- minutes in a spectacular mate (Coosemans v. van Stappen). IP-K4, P-K4: 2 Kt-KB3, HQB3; 3 P-Q4, PXP 4 P-B3, PXP; 5 #typ, P.-Q3 (safer is 5. B-K(5): 6 D- Q84. B-K3, 7 BXB, PXB;8 Q—KU. Q—B1; 9 &-KRES, Ke-QS (100 adventurous better 9 ... KL-Q1): 10 Q—R4 ch PQR3: 12 x EPI, K-Q2 20 12. PxK; 13 QXRI, QxQ; 14 KtXBP ch, K-91; 15 KtXQ); 13 Rt (Xt5)×BP, &— Kt: 14 8-B4, K1B3; 15 Castles QR, P-QXTE; 16 Q-RI, KtxP 17 ER-1, -KI5; 13 Q-Q3, H&XP: 29 QxQP chi. BXQ: 20 RxB oл. K-K2: 21 K-Q8 dis. ch.. Kt-85; 22 RXH ch, KI-K4:23 Rx cht, EXB: 24 RRB5 dia. ch K-K2; 25 R––87 ch.. KURI: 20 8-irts mata

Solution No. 5813; 1 K-85 1 P-KI6; 2 K-KU, P-KO: 3 K-R3, P-Kt8 (Q or R); 4 P-R17 ch. KxKIP: 5 P-R8 TQ) ch. KXQ stalemate. If 3 P18 (B); 4 K=-K12, while if P—RIS (HI), Black cannot mate with two knights againJE a bare king,

London Raprues dérvion.

3

Page

MILESTONES OF SPORT

THE FIGHT THAT MADE FREDDIE MILLS A WORLD CHAMPION

By ARCHIE QUICK Little did I think when I stood speaking to two Aircraftsmen at Uxbridge RAF Station during the early days of the War that seven years hence they would be two of the three principals in the ring when a world boxing championship was fought for.

the White City

Yel one of those "erks" wasĮ.

who was la de- ! Freddly Mits

Lestvich of the prive Gus world cruiser-weight erown

In July 1948, and the other was Teddy Walt- ham, who refereeg the bout and who has since become Secretary of the British Board of Control. the The conversation

at Uxbridge, square

where! Mills wns a trobee and Walt- ham general sports "handyman,"

a long, long way of seemed when Mills squared up to the chunky Americm-Russian from New Jersey before

an exclied (44,000 crowd under the pronto-

tion of Jack Solonun9.

1713

So the world's light-heavy- Great weight flilo came Britain for the first time, arid MAUS followed in the ilua- (rious footsteps of Fitz. simmons,

Burns.

Lovinsky. Carpentier, McTigue, Barton- bach. Loughren. Delaney, Rosenbloom, Lewis and Conn. There were amazing scenes at the ringside when Mills goi and the verdict

the crowd him to his dressing carried FOOm while his wife, Broadribb's daughter Chelonie,

broke down and fainted,

Prosperous

Ted

Sportingly Lesnevich admitt~ Two years earlier Lenaevich | ed defeat and so did his mana- had stopped Mills at Harrin-nger Jittle Joe Vella. Handsome gay in the tenth round, And Gus did not show what 17419t bitter disappoint- between the two contesto the have been ex-Bournemouth milkman had ment for he had held the crown suffered an appailing set-back seven years, taking 1 from through defeat at the hands Cunu and defending it success- of the far from top class negro fully against Mairiello, FoR Lloyd Martball.

and a host of others.

Double vision

no!

After that-Mills suffered double visio and could focus his opponent-there

and trainer

Mills is now a citizen of sub- lance, with his radio and tele- vision work, Journalism, 10- staurant, stage playing, and, al- was though he started in humble the long climb back for genial | circumstances down In the Freddie,

Ted Hampshire resort and came up bis manager Brondribb

Nat the hard way through Sam Me- Seller.

Keowan's boxing boath and the eircus, he is one of those chur- For the second Lesnevich Aght acters of whom it can be said: Box Hill under the North Downs where." Mills trained conscientiously at "You could takte him any.

in Surrey mnd was at man

to o prepared

the distance He is now past forty years of when the first gong sounded. nge. and his first professional Dour Gus looked like a piece contest in a registered ring war of granite, but Mills carried the way back in March 1938 and It Oght to film almost throughout is a remarkable fact that his and won by a wide margin of first fifty fights were til on points. 1 remember how he the South Coast-Bournemouth, continuously scored with left Brighton, Weymouth, Paignton, and the Southampton, Plymouth and swings to the body American had no defence for Portsmouth-a four years'

prenticeship in a hard trade.

this particular blow.

RE-PRINT NOW READY!

The

ap-

HONG KONG COUNTRYSIDE

by

G. A. C. HERKLOTS

NANCY

I'M THE CENSUS TAKER

HOW MANY PEOPLE ARE IN

THIS HOUSE ?41 BE EXACT

EXACTLY ONE AND

A HALF

BRICK BRADFORD

BRICK MISSES THE RUNAWAY POWER PACK, SLIPS AND FALLE INTO THE TAR BOG..... “

OH, BRICK, BRICK! HOW CAN I EVER GET YOU OUT OF

THERE1

TRY TO FIND HELP IF POSSIBLE!

I'LL SINK FAST IN THIS!

By Ernie Bushmiller

THERES NO DNS WITHIN MILES, OF HERB, BRICK!

By Paul Norris

WHERE DID THAT SHADOW COME FROM?

ROWNTREE'S

DELICIOUS

SMARTIES

MILK CHOCOLATE BEANS

You can be SURE

if it's..

ILFORD

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Obtainable on demand at the 'offices of

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