JANUARY 27, 1947
CANNONS DRAFTEE BRITTEN LIVING OUT FATHER'S DREAMS
The first round of the 1947 FABL draft concluded with a higher than usual number of collegiate players being selected but less pitcher than normal. The draft saw six college players go in the first round when only four were taken in the first 16 picks a year ago. A year ago, there were 5 pitchers drafted including 3 in the first four selections. This time around only three hurlers were tabbed in the opening round. Excluding 1938, which had a special players lottery format, the last time as few as three pitchers went in the opening round was 1923.
One player who qualified on both counts for the above notes was Tony Britten, a 20-year-old righthanded college pitcher from Kit Carson University. The New York City native realized a dream is father had hoped to achieve - being drafted by a FABL club. Oscar Britten spent 3 seasons at Washington DC High School and a fourth with Boston High during the old feeder league era. Exclusively a reliever over his 4 seasons of school ball, the elder Britten was not drafted out of high school and moved on to Brooklyn State to continue his education and pursue his dreams of a baseball career. Unfortunately, the ball career came to a premature end when he suffered an arm injury in camp before his first college season but twenty-three years later his son Tony, following a dominant sophomore season for the Mountaineers that saw him post a 12-3 record and earn second team All-American status, realized his father's dream when he was selected 11th overall by the Cincinnati Cannons.
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ROUND 1 DRAFT SELECTIONS
PK TM PLAYER POS AGE SCHOOL HOMETOWN
1 TOR Les Ledbetter LHP 18 Fowlerville (MI)HS Fowlerville, MI
2 PIT Irv Clifford SS 20 Charleston Tech Covington, KY
3 BKN Ken Newman 3B 18 Christian Bros HS St Louis, MO
4 DET John Morrison 1B 17 Clinton HS, Bronx Lansdale, PA
5 CHC Jerry Smith CF 18 Jackson HS, Queens Hartford, CT
6 BOS Marshall Thomas 2B 18 Griffin (GA) HS Experiment, GA
7 CLE Frenchy Sonntag RF 18 Moorestown(NJ) HS Moorestown, NJ
8 NYG Cecil LaBonte SS 21 Constitution State Manchester, CT
9 PHS Al Farmer 2B 21 Amarillo Methodist Philadelphia, PA
10 BKN Charlie Rogers CF 17 Lockport (IL) HS Zion, IL
11 CIN Tony Britten RHP 20 Kit Carson Univ. New York, NY
12 PHK Herm Kocher CF 17 Bremen (GA) HS Bremen, GA
13 MON Bill Duckworth 1B 17 Santa Barbara(CA)HS Los Angeles, CA
14 STL Bill Kiley RHP 17 Queens Catherdral Brooklyn, NY
15 NYS Paul Watson SS 20 Opelika State Memphis, TN
16 BKN Dan Smith C 21 Garden State Manchester, NH
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ROUND 2 DRAFT SELECTIONS
PK TM PLAYER POS AGE SCHOOL HOMETOWN
17 CLE John Low SS 17 Leipsic (OH) HS Detroit, MI
18 DET William Benns LHP 18 West Valley(MS) HS West Valley, MS
19 PHS Billy Cady 2B 17 Wilmington (NC) HS Wilmington, NC
20 PIT Hank Aldrich LHP 18 Burlington(NJ) HS East Lansdowne, PA
CHANGES COMING FOR CANADIAN CLUBS?
It has not been a year to be proud of for fans of the two Canadian NAHC teams. The Toronto Dukes have gone from first to worst after posting the league's best mark a year ago, and the Montreal Valiants -picked to be a Challege Cup contender this season- have struggled of late.
The Dukes troubles actually began in the playoffs a year ago when they made a hasty exit in the semi-finals courtesy of the fourth place Valiants. Since then, things have gone from bad to worse for head coach Norb Hickey and his Toronto club. There is still time to turn it around and make the playoffs this season, but a 10-2 blowout loss at home to Detroit yesterday brought the problems to the forefront.
There are questions all over the organization with the biggest one perhaps be regarding Hickey himself. It is hard to believe that Toronto would can a coach who won them a pair of Challenge Cups in the past three years but Dukes management has made no secret that big changes may be coming. Another prime scapegoat for the lost season has to be goaltender Gordie Broadway as just a few months removed from a Juneau Trophy the 32 year old is having the worst season of his career and the Dukes have allowed more goals than any other club this season after allowing the fewest -and by a wide margin- a year ago when they went 31-9-8.
While much of the blame lies with Broadway, you have to also consider the fact that the Dukes erred in their decision to allow arguably their two best defensemen in Bryant Williams and Joe Todd, to leave for Detroit over the summer. Frank Featherstone -when healthy- and JC Martel have done a decent job as the top pairing, but Toronto has very little blueline depth beyond those two.
The situation is nowhere near as bad in Montreal with Valiants slumping, but still with a point of the New York Shamrocks and the final playoff spot. We all know what Montreal did a year ago when the finished fourth by just a single point and then went to the finals where they gave Boston a scare before falling in six games. The issue in Montreal is firmly placed on the goaltending of Millard Touhey. The 30-year-old was in Coach Danny McLachlan's doghouse right from the start of camp when he showed up out of shape. He has been terribly inconsistent at times, and downright awful for much of January and there have been rumours out of Montreal saying change is coming.
The trade deadline has come and gone so the Valiants will not be able to add another goaltender to their roster -although there is some speculation an off-season swap of tenders sending Gordie Broadway to the Valiants might be a wise move for both clubs if they each continue to struggle. For now, McLachlan's only choice for a change between the pipes is to give backup Andy Backlund more playing time. The 24-year-old has certainly outplayed Touhey in limited starts this season and has a winning record. Perhaps we will see more of Backlund going forward.
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NAHC STANINGS
TEAM GP W L T PTS
Boston Bees 29 17 9 3 37
Chicago Packers 29 15 9 5 35
Detroit Motors 31 14 12 5 33
New York Shamrocks 31 13 16 2 28
Montreal Valiants 30 12 15 3 27
Brooklyn Eagles 30 10 14 6 26
Toronto Dukes 30 10 16 4 24
SCORING LEADERS
NAME TEAM GP G A PTS
Tommy Burns CHI 29 20 22 42
Orval Cabbell NY 30 18 15 33
Bobbie Sauer TOR 30 15 17 32
Graham Comeau DET 31 12 19 31
Laurel Albers NY 32 7 24 31
Quiton Pollack BKN 30 21 9 30
Tommy Hart BOS 28 17 13 30
Wes Burns CHI 29 16 14 30
Marty Mahoney CHI 29 7 23 30
Claude Skinner MON 29 16 13 29
Joe Morey BOS 29 14 14 28
Ed Delarue CHI 26 12 16 28
Sam Coates BKN 30 9 19 28
GOALIE LEADERS
NAME TEAM W L T ShO GAA
Norm Hanson CHI 15-9-2 3 2.52
Tom Brockers BKN 10-13-6 1 2.66
Henri Chasse DET 14-12-5 4 2.68
Pierre Melancon BOS 12-7-3 2 2.71
Etienne Tremblay NY 11-14-2 2 3.08
Gordie Broadway TOR 8-14-2 0 3.49
Millard Touhey MON 8-12-3 0 3.66
LAST WEEK'S RESULTS
Tuesday January 21
The only game on the schedule saw the Boston Bees snap the New York Shamrocks 5-game unbeaten streak with a 4-2 road win at Bigsby Gardens. Tom Brescia lead the Bees attack with a goal and an assist. The Shamrocks also lost their leading scorer Orval Cabbell with an ankle injury. Fortunately the New Yorkers have a light schedule ahead and he will likely just miss one game.
Thursday January 23
The other team, besides the Shamrocks, that was on a hot streak saw it cooled off as well as the Chicago Packers saw their 5 game winning streak come to an end with a 5-3 road loss in Brooklyn. Quinton Pollack scored twice for the winners while NAHC scoring leader Tommy Burns had a pair for the Packers. In the other Thursday evening game the Montreal Valiants won a rare road game with Clarence Skinner's second goal of the game coming with just 3:21 left to provide the margin of victory in a 4-3 win over the Toronto Dukes. The Valiants are just 4-10-1 on the road, worst in the loop.
Friday January 24
A big road win for the Detroit Motors who may have turned things around after a terrible start to the month. Detroit went 8 games without a victory before beating Montreal last Saturday. The Motors have won two out of their last three after a 2-1 win in Brooklyn. Dave Bradley assisted on both Detroit goals while Henri Chasse outdueled Tom Brockers in the nets.
Saturday January 25
The last place Toronto Dukes have won two of their last three after holding off the Valiants 3-2 in Montreal. Bobbie Sauer's 15th goal of the season helped the Dukes to a 3-0 lead with Rosie McInnis assisting on all three Toronto goals. Gordie Broadway has struggled at times this season but the veteran Dukes netminder was solid on this night, turning aside 30 Montreal shots.
Sunday January 26
Six teams were in action on a busy Sunday night. The Chicago Packers dumped the New York Shamrocks 5-1 behind two goals from Wes Burns. The victory moves the Packers to within two points of first place Boston after the Bees were trimmed 3-2 by the visiting Brooklyn Eagles. Quinton Pollack notched his league high 21st goal of the season for the Eagles. The final game of the night was a rout as the Detroit Motors drove into Dominion Gardens and hammered the Toronto Dukes 10-2. Bill Woodley, who had just three goals all of last season, scored 3 times in this game and rookie Bobo Davis scored the first two NAHC goals of his career while also adding 2 assists. After the loss the Dukes General Manager was livid, stating emphatically "Out shot 49-17 in a 4-3 loss to Montreal then humiliated by the Motors, winds of change are blowing across Lake Ontario. Too late this season but no one is safe on the staff or roster of the Dukes."
NEXT WEEK'S SCHEDULE
TUESDAY JANUARY 28
Boston at Chicago
THURSDAY JANUARY 30
Brooklyn at Chicago
Toronto at Detroit
SATURDAY FEBRUARY 1
Toronto at Chicago
SUNDAY FEBRUARY 2
Boston at Brooklyn
Chicago at Toronto
New York at Montreal
LIBERTY COLLEGE RETURNS TO TOP OF CAGE CHART
Rainier College's 15 game winning streak came to an end with a 54-47 loss in Los Angeles against Coastal California yesterday. The loss not only ended the Majestics hopes for an unbeaten season but also knocked them out of the top spot in the collegiate cage rankings as Liberty College overtook Rainier for number one. Indiana A&M also fell in section play last week, leaving college basketball once again with no unbeaten teams. The Reapers stumbled badly in the Great Lakes Alliance opener, ending a 13-0 run to start the season with a 36-24 loss at home to the Knights. Things got even worse for the Reapers two days later when they lost again Saturday, falling 45-41 on the roa at Linclon College.
Liberty College improved to 20-3 on the year and moved back to the top of the polls with another independent in St Blane also cracking the top three. The Bells only game last week was a 57-19 romp over Tinker College keyed by Waylon Orick's 16 points with Ward Messer and Mort Knighten also scoring in double figures in the game. St Blane improved to 18-3 with wins over Middlesex and East Missouri Seminary last week.
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[b] AIAA COLLEGIATE BASKETBALL TOP TWENTY-FIVE
# Team FPV Record Points Prv Conference
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1. Liberty College (62) 20-3 1790 2 Indy
2. Rainier College (10) 15-1 1738 1 West Coast Athletic Association
3. St. Blane 18-3 1619 4 Indy
4. Carolina Poly 14-2 1618 3 South Atlantic Conference
5. CC Los Angeles 14-3 1499 9 West Coast Athletic Association
6. Central Ohio 12-3 1433 12 Great Lakes Alliance
7. Noble Jones College 14-3 1345 5 Deep South Conference
8. Lane State 13-3 1287 7 West Coast Athletic Association
9. Chesapeake State 13-3 1195 8 South Atlantic Conference
10. North Carolina Tech 13-4 1107 16 South Atlantic Conference
11. Coastal California 13-3 1105 13 West Coast Athletic Association
12. Bayou State 13-3 966 18 Deep South Conference
13. Miami State 15-4 892 10 Indy
14. Indiana A&M 13-2 817 6 Great Lakes Alliance
15. Mobile Maritime 12-3 797 21 South Atlantic Conference
16. Lexington State 13-2 715 17 South Atlantic Conference
17. Detroit City College 11-5 642 20 Great Lakes Alliance
18. Western Iowa 13-3 601 14 Great Lakes Alliance
19. Texas Gulf Coast 13-4 457 NR Southwestern Alliance
20. Great Plains State 16-5 443 19 Indy
21. Central Kentucky 13-3 415 22 Deep South Conference
22. Wisconsin State 12-3 401 NR Great Lakes Alliance
23. Northern California 13-3 233 11 West Coast Athletic Association
24. Columbia Military Academy 11-4 146 NR South Atlantic Conference
25. Bronx Tech 12-3 67 15 Liberty Conference
Baton Rouge State 50, at #13 Miami State 42
TUESDAY JANUARY 21
at #20 Great Plains State 61, Dudley 36
WEDNESDAY JANUARY 22
at #1 Liberty College 57, Tinker 19
THURSDAY JANUARY 23
#22 Wisconsin State 44, at #18 Western Iowa 40
#17 Detroit City College 36, at #14 Indiana A&M 24
at #6 Central Ohio 67, Whitney College 58
at #15 Mobile Maritime 40, #4 Carolina Poly 32
#10 North Carolina Tech 53, at #9 Chesapeake State 48
at #24 Columbia Military Academy 43, Central Carolina 35
#16 Lexington State 38, at Bulein 26
at #12 Bayou State 45, Bliss College 35
at #21 Central Kentucky 47, #20 Great Plains State 38
FRIDAY JANUARY 24
at Spokane State 48, #8 Lane State 47
Custer College 45, at #23 Northern California 35
at #2 Rainier College 39, Redwood 29
at #5 CC Los Angeles 40, #11 Coastal California 36
#19 Texas Gulf Coast 41, at Arkansas A&T 35
#3 St. Blane 49, at Middlesex 31
SATURDAY JANUARY 25
#6 Central Ohio 36, at St. Magnus 34
#22 Wisconsin State 45, at St. Ignatius 28
#18 Western Iowa 44, at #17 Detroit City College 41
at Lincoln 45, #14 Indiana A&M 41
#19 Texas Gulf Coast 57, at Red River State 37
Brooklyn Catholic 44, at #25 Bronx Tech 21
Maryland State 52, at #7 Noble Jones College 49
at #9 Chesapeake State 61, Bluegrass State 53
at #24 Columbia Military Academy 50, American Atlantic 40
SUNDAY JANUARY 26
at #11 Coastal California 54, #2 Rainier College 47
#8 Lane State 49, at Redwood 46
at #5 CC Los Angeles 41, #23 Northern California 29
at #12 Bayou State 52, Queen City 33
at #3 St. Blane 45, East Missouri Seminary 34
#20 Great Plains State 49, at Springfield State 40
MIDDLEWEIGHT CHAMP MELANSON SETS DEFENSE DATE
ABF world middleweight champion Frank Melanson has confirmed he will face Nick Harris on Saturday March 15 at New York's Bigsby Garden. The champ, at 31-0-2 last fought in October when he knocked out previously unbeaten European champion Edouard Desmarais in the 3rd round of a fight scheduled for 15 rounds. This fight will also be a 15-rounder for the Pittsburgh native and will mark his fourth title defenses since his surprise upset of Archie Rees to claim the middleweight crown in June, 1945.
Melanson's opponent this time will be Harris, a 32 year old Rhode Island native with a 19-2-1 mark, who has not lost since 1939. The latest of Harris 14 consecutive wins was an 8th round knockout of Don Phillips last October.
UPCOMING MAJOR FIGHTS- Jan 30- Union City, NJ: Rising welterweight Danny Rutledge (7-0) vs John Bolton (0-0)
- Feb 13 - New York City: Middleweight contender John Edmonds (21-2) vs Jack Rainey (22-3)
- Feb 22- St Louis, Mo: World Welterweight Champ Mark Westlake (20-2-1) vs Harold Stephens (18-3-2)
- Feb 24- Waterbury,Ct: Rising welterweight Ira Mitchell (15-1) vs Mitchell McFadden (23-6)
- Feb 25- Lakeside Arena, Chicago: Welterweight Carl Taylor (21-3-2) vs George Gibbs (16-2)
- March 15- Bigsby Garden, New York City - Middlweight champion Frank Melanson (31-0-2) vs Nick Harris (19-2-1)
The Week That Was
Current events from the week ending 1/26/1947
- Herman Talmadge and the Lt. Gov of Georgia M.E.Thompson have both agreed they will abide by whatever the courts decide in the controversy to fill the state's Governor role after Talmadge's father died between being elected Governor and taking over the position.
- General George C. Marshall arrived in Washington to assume the role of President Truman's Secretary of State.
- Communist-dominated government bloc parties appear to have won 80% of the seats in the Polish parliamentary elections. However, US election observers say they found many violations of Polish law in the vote.
- The death toll has reached 437 after a Greek steamer sank 20 miles east of Athens after striking a war mine.