[Tiger Fan]

JANUARY 10, 1949

FABL DRAFT IS UNDERWAY

For the second time in three years the Toronto Wolves led off the FABL amateur player draft thanks to a positive outcome in the league's draft lottery. In what is considered a very deep talent group at the top of the draft but perhaps lacking that one player who towers above the rest, the Wolves went with TWIFB's choice as the top prospect by selecting 18-year old shortstop John Wells out of Philadelphia's Northeast Catholic High School. Wells, a two-time High School All-American selection entering his senior season this spring, is the second consecutive shortstop to be selected first overall after the Washington Eagles started things off a year ago by drafting Coastal State's two-time Christian Trophy winner Tom Miller with the first pick.

Next up was the Boston Minutemen, who had their eye on Rick Masters right from the start. The Brooklyn high schooler is, like Wells, a two-time high school All-American and has the power potential that prompted OSA head Dan Barrell to draw comparisons to the scouting guru's famous slugger of a brother Bobby Barrell. Masters is the grandson of former minor league outfielder Gene Masters, who spent some time with Los Angeles in the coast league when it was still considered a AAA loop.

*** Third Pick Connected to Famous Barrell Family ***

The third pick also has a family connection. It would be Jim Bob Daniels, who is the half-brother of Cannons pitching ace Deuce Barrell and the great-nephew of Possum Daniels, the long-time OSA scout and former minor league catcher. It is convoluted path for the relationship to Deuce as Jim Bob's grandfather is Cooter Daniels, who was a corner man/trainer for Joe Barrell, when he was a boxer. Cooter's son married Joe's ex-wife Edna after they separated. What is less convoluted is Daniels' skill at the hot corner. OSA sees him having a chance to play in multiple all-star games. Daniels, the first college player selected this draft, is a two-sport star as he is presently also competing for Alabama Gulf Coast's cage team, where the junior is a reserve guard averaging 1.2 points per game for the 3-10 Privateers.

With the fourth selection in the draft the Philadelphia Keystones went with the elder of the two Berry brothers, selecting Don Berry out of Grange College. The 20-year-old was originally a 6th round pick of Cleveland in 1946 but could not come to terms on a deal with the Foresters and went to Grange College where he was a two-time All-American as well as MVP of the 1947 Collegiate World Series, which his club won. Berry was also a high school All-American once making him what is believed to be the only player to be named both a high school and college baseball All-American.

Fifth overall selection Eddie Dickey, out of Lutheran High School in Baltimore, was also an All-American. He was tabbed by the New York Stars and one pick later the New York Gothams selected the first pitcher to be chosen this draft. That would be 17-year-old Vern Osborne, out of Montgomery City High School in Missouri. Some observers felt selecting a pitcher that high might have been a bit of a reach, but the Gothams clearly drafted for need and OSA feels Osborne has the potential to be a middle of the rotation arm.

At number seven the Cincinnati Cannons drafted Dallas Berry, younger brother of Don Berry and a former high school All-American at Wellsville High in Missouri. The two Berry brothers become the first siblings selected in the opening round of the draft since the Schneider triplets, Skipper, Buddy and Bart were chosen with three successive selections in 1939.

The Chicago Chiefs followed at the eighth spot with the choice of third baseman Ed Bloom. Bloom is another college player -the third one drafted in the top eight choices- and plays for American Atlantic. Next up was Brooklyn with another infielder as the Kings, who had reported interest in Bloom, were quite happy to end up with the hometown boy as they selected second sacker Buddy Byrd out of Brooklyn's Lane High School.

The Washington Eagles drafted a college shortstop with their first pick for the second year in a row, selecting Lane State's Tom Perkins with the 10th choice. It was quite a drop for Perkins, the second team All-American a year ago, as TWIFB had him second in its August mock draft. Perkins missed out on the first team All-American squad a year ago because that spot went to Tom Miller, who was the shortstop the Eagles nabbed first overall a year ago.

The Cleveland Foresters selected 11th and their pick was just the second pitcher to go off the board. The opinions from scouting directors around the league was somewhat polarizing on the youngster known as "The South Bend Sling" but he has been a fixture in the TWIFB first round rankings for this class since our first assessment two years ago and OSA, while stopping short of labeling Patterson an ace, feels he will likely be a #2 starter for most teams.

Each of the first eleven selections were all part of TWIFB's August mock first round. The first one that did not was the 12th choice, athletic center fielder Joe Fulgham. Motor City fans might not be happy to hear the All-American halfback from St Blane was the Dynamos choice, but those feelings are likely far less hostile this year after Detroit City College nosed out the two-time reigning grid champion Fighting Saints for top spot. Detroit Scouting Director Fred Barrell calls Fulgham a Pablo Reyes-type with perhaps a little more power potential than the longtime Saints and Miners star who is finishing out his career with the Chicago Chiefs. Fulgham still has a year of eligibility remaining at St Blane after this baseball season is over so the Dynamos may have so work to do to convince him to forego it.

The Chicago Cougars love to draft middle infielders and centerfielders and they went with the former with the choice of Biff Tiner with the 13th selection of the opening round. The 17-year-old second baseman has put up pretty solid numbers as a three year starter at Elkin High School in North Carolina and OSA sees him as a .310 hitter with above average power for a second baseman.

Third baseman George Scott becomes the sixth college player selected in the first round as the Pittsburgh Miners went with the Mississippi Tech infielder at pick 14. Scott was originally a third round pick of Cleveland in the 1946 draft but opted to play college ball instead. As a freshman with the Cougars in 1947 he was a second team All-American.

The 15th choice went to the two-time defending Continental Association champion Philadelphia Sailors and they made Ray Hughes the sixth outfielder to be chosen. A Milwaukee native, the 17 year old projects to be an elite big-league center fielder according to Dan Barrell and the staff at OSA.

The St Louis Pioneers, fresh off their second consecutive World Championship Series victory, completed the first round with the selection of Texas-born high school outfielder King Brucker to make 10 of the 16 first rounders come out of the high school ranks and is the seventh outfielder chosen in the opening round.

The FABL draft will continue in the days ahead but none of the players will be permitted to negotiate contracts with the organizations until the complete of the high school season and Collegiate World Championship Series in June.

DYNAMOS DRAFT FIGHTING SAINT HALFBACK WITH TOP PICK

The draft lottery did not do the Detroit Dynamos any favours as the club ended up with 12th selection in both the first and second rounds, far worse than had been expected, or at least hoped for. In all remaining rounds the Detroit ballclub will select 6th on the basis of their 6th place showing in the Federal Association last season.

Detroit City College fans may not like the news but the Dynamos were very excited to end up with St Blane Fighting Saints centerfielder Joe Fulgham, who pulls double duty in Latrobe as he is also an All-American halfback for the Saints grid outfit and played a key role the past two seasons on a team that nosed out DCC for the national title two years ago and finished just behind the Knights in second place this time around.

The Watertown, CT. native has said he hopes to return to St Blane for his senior football season but also is eager to start his pro ball career so the Dynamos may try to work out a deal allowing Fulgham to leave the organization early and be on campus for the start of the grid season in late September. That is if he is not in Detroit first. Fulgham cannot join the organization until the completion of the Collegiate World Championship Series, an event his St Blane club is hoping to participate in. That would be late June and while the Dynamos hold some hope he may be fast-tracked and called-up to the big league club before the season concludes in October, the more likely scenario is he splits time between AA and AAA and challenges for a big league job in 1950.

It was no secret around town that the player the Dynamos coveted was another two-sport college star in third baseman Jim Bob Daniels, who also suits up for the Alabama Gulf Coast basketball team, but Daniels was chosen third by the Montreal Saints.

"We knew Daniels was off the table when we received word that we ended up with the number 12 pick," explained Dynamos Scouting Director Rollie Barrell. "We were mildly surprised he went 3rd as we thought anywhere from five to ten might have given us a shot at him but obviously the Saints saw the same thing we did in Daniels. But we are elated to get Fulgham, who was always on our radar and became our number one objective after the first 4 or 5 selections came off the board."

*** Dynamos Future Looks Very Bright ***

Dynamos manager Dick York is giddy at the prospects of his outfield in the near future, noting that Fulgham and Edwin Hackberry will "cover a lot of ground out there." Going forward the Detroit lineup looks potentially very strong. Here is out projection for the 1951 edition of the team.

CATCHER- Rick York and rising young prospect Lew Mercer will split the role in a platoon although the Dynamos would love to find an all-star level catcher.
FIRST BASE- Dino Sharp: first rounder last year is a top ten OSA prospect with loads of power
SECOND BASE- Del Johnson- for at least the next decade
SHORTSTOP - Stan Kleminski- like Johnson will be a fixture in infield but may eventually shift to third base
THIRD BASE- Tommy Griffin likely will retain the job but top 100 prospect Jim Gaiter may challenge.
CENTER FIELD- Edwin Hackberry- will be just 24 two-years from now and another player who will be locked into the lineup for at least another decade.
RIGHT FIELD- A number of choices here but the nope is converted first baseman John Morrison, a top 50 prospect and 1947
first round pick who has power comparable to Dino Sharp, will be able to provide at least acceptable defense. If not, there is current first baseman Dick Estes, who was drafted as an outfielder, and 1946 3rd overall selection Tommy Allenby, whose stock has dropped but may still pan out, as other options.
LEFT FIELD- Joe Fulgham will be counted on to shift from center and between he and Hackberry give the Dynamos to of the better defensive outfielders in the league. If all goes according to plan Fulgham will be the leadoff man followed by Kleminski and Hackberry to set the table for the big lumber of Sharp and Morrison.

The 1951 batting order would look like this (with their ages in 1951)
1- Joe Fulgham LF age 22
2- Stan Kleminski SS 24
3- Edwin Hackberry CF 24
4- Dino Sharp 1B 21
5- John Morrison RF 21 or Dick Estes 26
6- Del Johnson 2B 27
7- Tommy Griffin 3B 25
8- Rick York 31 vs RHP and Lew Mercer 23 vs LHP

The Dynamos project to be just as young and as talented on the mound in two years time with a rotation headed by Carl Potter, who had 22 years of age already owns 57 career FABL victories.

1951 Dynamos Projected Rotation and ages that year
1- Carl Potter LHP 24
2- Jack Miller RHP 24
3- Bill Sohl RHP 31
4- Fred Washington RHP 22
5- Roy Schaub RHP 24

With Wally Hunter, age 29, Harry Sharp (31) and Jack Halbur (21) also available. The Dynamos have some outstanding mound depth in their pipeline right now, and that is beyond young ace Potter who is, at age 22, already preparing for his fifth full FABL season. Jack Miller is also 22 and club's second round pick out of Red River State is expected to make his Detroit debut sometime this season. OSA has him presently as the fourth best pitching prospect in the game and Miller is one of four arms the scouting service places in the top 100 overall. The others are still a year or two away from their big league debuts but hope remains high for Washington, Schaub and Halbur.

*** Barrell Left His Mark, But Now Leaving Town ***

It is clear that Fred Barrell, as the head of the Detroit scouting team the past three years, has had a big impact on the direction the club has gone and built nicely on the solid base that had been in place prior to his arrival. However, Barrell is expected to announce immediately after the January portion of the draft is completed that he is leaving the organization and will take over the vacant managerial job in Toronto. Fred has made it no secret that while he enjoyed scouting, his passion was in the day-to-day running of a ballclub so the Dynamos gave him their blessing to move to Toronto where he will join his brother Jack - head of the NAHC's Toronto Dukes- as coaches in the Canadian city. He will also have an opportunity to match wits in the dugout with another brother as Tom Barrell is the manager of the Continental Association's Brooklyn Kings.

DESMARAIS SURVIVES SPLIT DECISION OVER MELANSON IN DECIDING BOUT OF TRILOGY

Bigsby Garden, New York, N.Y. – Frank Melanson (33-2-2, 7 KO) vs. Edouard Desmarais (42-2-0, 33 KO) – Referee: Jimmy Hooper
AUTHOR’S NOTE: I know the title of this column is “Title Talk”, but I wanted to cover this fight, my first in this space that did not have a title on the line. But, when two former champs get together with their hopes of getting another title shot up for grabs, it is worth my time and your time.

Frank Melanson, the two-time former Middleweight Champion, entered Bigsby Garden as just another fighter on this night. Melanson had defended his belt in the ring mecca twice, one in a memorable “majority draw” against Todd Gill and a unanimous decision against Nick Harris.

This was the third bout between Melanson and the Fighting Frenchman, Edouard Desmarais. In their first meeting back in 1946, Melanson made quick work of Desmarais for his third successful title defense, knocking him out in the third round in Boston. Desmarais took the belt away from Frank “The Tank” in Philadelphia last July in their rematch, but he promptly lost it in his next bout against the current titleholder, Adrian Petrie.

This completion of the Melanson-Desmarais trilogy was agreed upon for at least four months, as they planned another title fight, but Desmarais’s loss to Petrie – specifically, the way the fight ended – caused a problem. The decision to give the hometown Petrie the Middleweight belt was controversial, as well the mandate from the sanctioning body. The ABF declared a rematch must be consummated between Petrie and Desmarais, but Desmarais, a man of his word, decided to honor the commitment to Melanson rather than go back on his promise.

In the lead-up to this fight, both combatants had nothing but respect and friendly words for each other. These are two men who have won and lost the Middleweight title and while they are both trying for another shot, they are both on back side of their careers and yearn for the harkening back of those halcyon days when they both walked as champions.

Since this was not a title fight, the bout was only scheduled for ten rounds. The length of the fight had to favor Desmarais, as the Frenchman has had 33 wins by knockout and Melanson has been used to going the distance with only seven wins by knockout.

The first big shot landed early in the second round, as Desmarais drilled Melanson with two uppercuts and a hook that all connected and staggered Frank the Tank. Desmarais controlled the pace and the tempo for the first half of the fight. Melanson could not generate any momentum or pierce Desmarais’s defenses with any big punches until late in the fifth round, which is when the bout turned.

In the final seconds of the fifth round, Melanson unleashed a winning hook that almost felled the Frenchman. As the bell sounded, both fighters clearly ignored the signal and continued to box. For the first time all fight, both puglists were on even footing, firing away. It was a shame the round was only three minutes long or more to the point, that it took Melanson so long to wake up. Whatever the reason, Melanson carried this momentum into the sixth round and continued going to his hook, which was his best punch on this night. If Melanson was a knockout artist, the sixth round would have been his time to end the proceedings.

But Melanson could not put Desmarais away. Desmarais escaped and went back to work and added to his lead on points.

Desmarais went to the uppercut throughout the fight and connected on a few big ones. It was the ninth round that was arguably Desmarais’s best, as he connected on three Big Boppers in 28 seconds, each on uppercuts. After that third uppercut, Melanson’s right eye started to swell and while it did not affect him during the remainder of the fight, that dominant turn in the ninth was enough to give the Fighting Frenchman the eventual victory.

Referee Jimmy Hooper announced the scoring and raised Desmarais’s hand in triumph. The crowd appreciated the effort put forth by both former champions and it was an honest and fair result, something that has been questioned in the boxing world lately.

The fight was about as split as it could be. If you look at the judges’ cards, five rounds were scored the same, with the third, eighth and ninth rounds going for Desmarais and the sixth and tenth rounds in the bag for Melanson. If you look at the statistics, Melanson landed more punches per round (27 to 21) and he was very precise (43.1% punches landed), but Desmarais outpointed Melanson on Big Boppers, 14 to 2. Ringside, it was clear to see that Desmarais did more damage with the punches he landed.

Desmarais (43-2-0) is 33 and may be past his prime, but The Fighting Frenchman has the luxury of waiting out the next Middleweight title fight between Adrian Petrie and Danny Morse before he makes his next move. As a challenger, he is at the mercy of the champion’s management to get another shot, but a 33-year-old with the cachet of a championship pedigree would be a target for either Petrie or Morse, especially more than a fast-riser like Tommy Campbell. A rematch against Petrie would certainly interest the public and if Morse pulls an upset, Desmarais would be licking his chops.

Sadly, this might be the last we see of Frank “The Tank” Melanson (33-3-2). The former “People’s Champion” was as popular a champ as I can remember. In the last three-and-a-half years, Melanson was a nobody, won his unlikely title shot, lost his belt after a couple of successful defenses, won it back, and lost it just as soon as he recaptured his glory. Now, his title-chasing days may be over. Where will Melanson go? Back to the factory? No way. There is a better chance Hollywood may come calling. He has an amazing story that needs to be told.

BOLOGNA’S BIG BOPPERS
Round 1: None
Round 2: Desmarais, 3-0 (0:21 uppercut, 0:37 uppercut/head, 0:51 hook)
Round 3: Desmarais, 1-0 (1:02 hook/jaw)
Round 4: None
Round 5: Tied, 1-1 (M: 2:44 hook; D: 0:25 combination)
Round 6: Melanson, 1-0 (0:52 left hook/body)
Round 7: Desmarais, 2-0 (0:48 hook, 1:09 combo)
Round 8: Desmarais, 2-0 (2:19 hook, 2:49 right/head)
Round 9: Desmarais, 4-0 (0:49 uppercut, 1:03 uppercut, 1:17 uppercut, 2:22 right/midsection)
Round 10: Desmarais, 1-0 (2:00 right/ribs)
TOTAL: Desmarais 14, Melanson 2

UPCOMING MAJOR FIGHTS

• Jan 16- Miami, Fl: HW Dan Miller (37-9-1) vs Lynn Bell (17-9-1)
• Jan 28- Dominion Gardens, Toronto: World MW champ Adrian Petrie (18-1-1) vs Danny Morse (35-8-1)
• Jan 28- Cleveland: MW Davis Owens (16-0) vs Dave Sizemore (21-11)
• Jan 29- Bigsby Garden, New York: HW Roy Crawford (25-3) vs Steve Manning (20-8-4)
• Feb 19- Paris, France: World HW champ Hector Sawyer (59-3-1) vs Alain Noel (44-11-2)
• Mar 18- Detroit: World WW champ Mac Erickson (18-0) vs Rudy Perry (27-4)

GRID PEACE TALKS STALL

Number of Clubs Sticking Point As New Orleans Will Not Fold

Pro Football's cold war was resumed today as the American Football Assocation and the Continental Conference failed to reach an agreement to unite and end three years of fiscal warfare that has blasted both sides.

Representatives from both leagues wrapped up two days of talks in a Philadelphia hotel on Tueday, and, regrettably, a consensus remains a distant dream. The hope, though, is that the door remains ajar for further negotiations, as one major sticking point continues to divide the sides.

In a seemingly pivotal breakthrough, the well-established AFA agreed to welcome two CFC franchises into its fold for the upcoming season, thereby expanding their ranks to 12 clubs. The target cities for this expansion are the highly sought-after markets of San Francisco and Los Angeles, each slated to receive brand new 50,000-seat stadiums for football and baseball.

The thinking, according to Washington Wasps President Homer Bentley, was that the CFC champion San Francisco Wings would join the AFA along with the Kansas City Cowboys, who would be shifted to Los Angeles because the midwestern city lacks a viable stadium. Even if Dee Rose, the outspoken owner of the Los Angeles Lobos objected to taking a chunck of the Cowboys ownership in exchange for folding his club, sources say the AFA was willing to consider asking the Cincinnati Tigers to fold or merge with the Cowboys who could then play out of Cincinnati while Rose's Lobos club would be the Los Angeles entry.

It all seemed like a done deal as most of the remaining Continental magnates were happy to close up shop after three years of bleeding cash. There was, however, one exception and it ultimately doomed the deal according to an unamed source. That would be William Beauregard and his New Orleans Crescents, East Division champions in the Continental Conference, and possessing a young exciting team. Beauregard has refused any and all offers to fold the team including a reported large cash settlement and the New Orleans native and self-made shipping magnate is determined to see professional football remain in his hometown. Beauregard is said to have brandished the threat of legal action against all the teams in both leagues if any attempt was made to dissolve the CFC without accommodating New Orleans in the new AFA configuration.

The AFA owners stand resolute in their rejection of a 14-team league, and thus, a deadlock ensues. At most, the AFA will accomodate three CFC clubs and San Francisco and the Cowboys team must be two of them, regardless where the Cowboys might play next year. The third spot, opening only if an AFA team folds or merges with a CFC club, would have to involve the Los Angeles market which makes Dee Rose's Lobos the likely choice.

"We're only this far apart," said the seasoned Detroit Maroons coach, Frank Yurick, gesturing with his fingers to indicate a tiny gap. "But it sometimes feels like an unbridgeable chasm."

In this writer's humble opinion, the optimal solution would be to admit the San Francisco Wings, shift the Cowboys from Kansas City to Los Angeles while granting Dee Rose, Lobos owner, partial ownership. To mollify New Orleans, consider a merger between the Crescents and the Cincinnati Tigers, with games initially played at Cincinnati's Tice Memorial Stadium until a suitable venue is constructed in New Orleans.

It's a logical fix, but perhaps it's precisely its sensibility that makes it elusive. As things stand, the future holds the prospect of two professional football leagues, both struggling financially, when the autumn leaves return next season.

MAJOR SNOW STORM CANCELS ALL-STAR GAME

The NAHC all-star game was set to be played in Toronto this evening but a freak snow storm derailed a large passenger train near Oshawa, just east of Toronto and most trains in and out of the city were postponed. The Dukes, who were set to host the game against a team of all-stars, and the Detroit Motors, who had lost in Toronto Sunday evening, were both in town but players from other teams could not arrive.

The storm continued east and dumped close to a foot of snow in Montreal also well, trapping the visiting New York Shamrocks, who lost 1-0 to the Valiants Sunday, in town for at least one more day.

(Editor's Note: FHM would not let our online league play the all-star game so it had to be deleted. It was to be the defending Cup Champs (Toronto) against the rest of the league and was set up that way but when the rosters were announced it put Toronto players on the all-star squad and left the Dukes with an empty roster for the game with the only fix being delete the contest entirely unfortunately. For some reason it also elected to stage the game in New York)

  NAHC STANDINGS
          GP  W  L  T  GF  GA  PTS
Toronto   33 18  9  6 114  85  42
Boston    33 17 12  4 100  88  38
Montreal  31 14 13  4  86  92  32
Chicago   34 13 19  2  92 117  28
Detroit   34 12 18  4 108 108  28
New York  31 12 15  4  79  89  28


SCORING LEADERS GP  G  A  PTS
Pollack, Tor    33 18 24  42
Galbraith, Tor  33 18 18  36
Sauer, Tor      33 15 19  34
Vanderbilt, Det 32 18 15  33
Tardif, Det     34 15 18  33
Carlson, Tor    30  6 26  32
Cabbell, NY     31 18 11  29
Hart, Bos       32 13 15  28
Rocheleau, Det  30  5 23  28
T Burns, Chi    23 19  8  27
Chandler, Bos   28  9 18  27
Parker, Tor     33 13 13  26
Skinner, Mon    31 11 15  26

GOALIE LEADERS   GP  W  L  T ShO GAA
Broadway, Tor    29 15  8  6  3  2.52
Brockers, Mon    20  9  8  2  2  2.57
Chasse, Det      14  6  6  0  1  2.64
James, Bos       28 13 11  2  4  2.65
Tremblay, NY     28 10 14  4  2  2.77
Hanson, Chi      23  8 14  1  2  3.19
Cleghorn, Chi    10  5  4  1  0  3.33
Touhey, Det      19  5 12  2  1  3.58

LAST WEEK'S RESULTS

WEDNESDAY JANUARY 5

New York 3 at 4 Chicago: Tommy Burns returns from a month-long injury and the suddenly hot Packers win for the sixth game in a row. Tommy did not score but did pick up an assist on his brother Wes Burns 5th goal of the season. Moose Vezina led the Packers with a pair of goals as the Shamrocks fell for the fourth time in their last five outings.

Toronto 4 at 4 Boston: The top two teams in the league staged a wild second period at Denny Arena before settling for a 4-4 tie following scoreless third frame. Boston scored 3 times in the second with Wilbur Chandler leading the way in earning points on all three of the markers, giving the Bees a 4-1 lead. Toronto score twice in the final 3 minutes of the period including a pair by Lou Galbraith to even the ledger.

THURSDAY JANUARY 6

Detroit 1 at 4 Boston: Detroit is now 0-5 since Christmas after Jim Morey scored twice to lead Boston to a 4-1 victory over the visiting Motors.

Montreal 4 at 1 Chicago: Montreal is unbeaten in four and snapped Chicago's 6-game winning streak with a 4-1 road win. Tom Brockers made 33 saves in another strong showing in the Valiants net, and 4 different Montreal skaters provided the goals for the winners.

SATURDAY JANUARY 8

Montreal 2 at 1 Detroit: The Vals have not lost since Christmas with four wins and a tie in their last five games including a 2-1 victory on the road over Detroit. Brett Lanceleve and John McDonald staked the Vals to a 2-0 lead and only Vincent Arsenault, with a little over 5 minutes remaining in the contest, could beat Tom Brockers in the the Montreal net.

Toronto 4 at 2 Chicago: Mike Navarro had two goals and an assist to lead the Toronto Dikes past the Packers 4-2 at Chicago's Lakeside Auditorium. Tommy Burns did get his first goal since returning from injury, notching his 18th of the season but it wasn't enough as the Packers dropped their second game in a row.

SUNDAY JANUARY 9

Chicago 1 at 1 Boston: Tommy Burns, with his league-leading 19th goal of the season, scored in the third period to allow the Packers to salvage a point in Boston after Garrett Kauffeldt's second period marker staked the Bees to the lead. For the second time this week the Packers lost a key forward to a knee injury. This time it was Moose Vezina and David Rankin was hurt Wednesday. Each are expected to miss two or three weeks.

Detroit 0 at 4 Toronto: Gordie Broadway stopped all 27 shots he faced for his third shutout of the season in leading Toronto to a 4-0 win over slumping Detroit. It was the Motors 7th consecutive loss.

New York 0 at 1 Montreal: Despite being outshot 36-15 the Montreal Valiants claimed a 1-0 victory over the New York Shamrocks. Adam Sandford's unassisted powerplay goal midway through the second frame accounted for all of the offense as rookie Pat Beliveau, spelling Tom Brockers, was terrific with a 36 save performance for his second shutout of the season.

UPCOMING GAMES
TONIGHT
NAHC All-Stars at Toronto: cancelled due to snow storm

WEDNESDAY JANUARY 12
Boston at Montreal
New York at Detroit

SATURDAY JANUARY 15
Montreal at Chicago
Toronto at New York

SUNDAY JANUARY 16
Boston at Chicago
Detroit at Montreal
New York at Toronto

Dukes Run Unbeaten Streak to 4, All-Star Game Cancelled
Dukes have lost only once in '49 in 6 outings holding the league's only winning record on the road, at 7-6-4, to go with an 11-3-2 record at Dominion Gardens. The week began with 4-4 draw at Denny Arena in a game in which the Dukes almost doubled the Bs shot total out shooting the home team 38-21. Dukes tested James 14 times in first but only Dubois' shot found the back of the net allowing the score to be tie 1-1 after 20. Maurice Charette was knocked out on a blind side check bordering on a cheap shot early in the first. Reports are that Charette will be out at least another week to 10 days with a head injury believed to be a concussion. The second saw the lamp lit 6 times, 3 by each team in a wildly offensive period. Boston stormed out to 4-1 lead on markers by Bedard, Chandler, Hart in the first 17 minutes of the period. In a furious comeback the Dukes tied the game with 3 in last 3 minutes with Sauer, Galbraith scoring 16 seconds apart starting 30 seconds after going down 4-1. Galbraith tied the game with 18 seconds left in the frame. Both teams settled into a defensive shell during the third to allow each team to take a point.

The Packers hosted Saturday night at Lakeside Auditorium before a crowd of over 17,000. Packers opened the scoring when Burns beat Broadway from the slot less than 90 seconds into the game. This proved to be the Packers only lead of the games as Lavalliere tied the game before it was 5 minutes old the Featherstone with his second of the season put Toronto ahead to stay at 16;39. After a scoreless middle frame Navarro put the visitors up 3-1 with less than 4 minutes remaining only to have Ducharme pull Chicago back within one 32 seconds later. Navarro salted the win away with a goal, his second of the period 4th of the year, into a cage vacated by Hanson with 10 seconds to play.

After travelling home through heavy snowfall, the Dukes returned to home ice Sunday night against Detroit. Toronto came out flying even after the late arrival into Union Station directing 12 shot at Touhey although only one eluded him, Zimmerman from a tight angle with just over 2 minutes remaining in the opening stanza. In a game punctuated by a number of bone jarring hits the Dukes converted twice in the second with both Parker, on a pretty individual effort, Carlson had their name put in the goal scoring column of the game sheet. Toronto added one more in the third as Roy put one behind Touhey with a snapshot from the point when the Dukes peppered the Motors netminder with 20 shots while preserving Broadway's clean sheet. Broadway is now tied for the league lead in shutouts at 3 with James of Boston. The referees kept a tight rein on proceedings as the game threatened to erupt into a donnybrook at any time, the disdain the teams have for each other was close to boiling over at a number of points during the game. After the game it was announced by a telegram from the league offices that the All-Star game that was supposed to be played tonight in Toronto was cancelled because travel conditions had forced the closure of many rail lines leading into Toronto due to an epic snowstorm blanketing Southern Ontario, Northeastern US. It has been reported that some localities have seen over 3 feet of snow in past 30 hours making travel hazardous if not impossible in the region.

Coach Barrell "It is hard to complain about a week without a loss although the game in Boston was not a shining moment. Attacking we were fine although the players forgot the most important part of our game, tenacious backchecking, you should not win a game in this league giving up 4. I also would not want to rely on scoring 3 to tie it in about 2:30, players may have been worried about Maurice's injury but that is no excuse for defensive laziness. Saturday night in Chicago was just a little better, we should not be allowing the opposition to be the aggressor in the game, Chicago dominated the physical play which is not the way the Dukes should play. We want to be first to the puck or the ones removing the puck from the other team by taking the body. A 4-2 win flattered us. I knew the Sunday game would be hard fought with Detroit given the bad blood between the teams. The officials handled the game very well as there were many moments when I thought "Here we go", I kept reminding our players we were winning there was no sense in taking a penalty for stuff after the play. The best news I got was the cancellation of the All-Star game due to weather. I agree with the concept but I think it should be played in early October as a benefit for former players' that have fallen upon hard times not in January when the players are gearing up for a playoff battle. That would have been 3 games in 3 nights for the Dukes, my biggest fear was an injury during a meaningless game in the standings. I was going to tell our players to use a baseball term, to throw a no hitter. even lack of physical play, which sends the wrong signal, does not mean that someone does get hurt, it was a no-win situation for our team."

• The Panthers are 19-6 and leading the way in the Western Division, but it has not been a straight line to the top for the preseason favorites. Chicago was outright dominant to start the year, kicking things off with a 10-game winning streak. But, they are only 9-6 since and while the Panthers are still in first by two games over Cleveland, they have not bulldozed their way through the FBL. Chicago does have the stingiest defense in the league at 78.0 points allowed per game. Their stars are playing well, led by Richard Campbell, who is seventh in the FBL in scoring at 19.0 points per game, and Joe Hampton, who is third in assists per game with 10.6. But, the same team that started off so hot lost to the 9-16 Pilots at home last month and just survived in Toronto against the 9-17 Falcons, 101-100 this past week.
• the Cleveland Crushers who have won 11 of their last 12. The lone Cleveland loss in that span, which dates back to the start of December, was a 1-point loss to Brooklyn on Tuesday.
• Washington is back in first and has a new four-game winning streak to tout. The best win by far was in Rochester against a pesky Rockets squad where Washington left Western New York with a 100-97 win.
• Rochester plays so tough because of its frontcourt, which for my money is as good as it gets in the league. Terry Flowers went for 35 points and eight blocks, while Marlin Patterson, the man in the middle, scored 29 and added five blocked shots.
• Speaking of feared frontcourts, the only tandems that can hold a candle to the Washington pair of Ivan Sisco and Charles Hooper, who are both in the top 20 in scoring, and the Rochester duo of Patterson and Flowers are the Knights' Thomas Dwyer and Donnell Marlow, who are both in the top ten in blocks. What makes Rochester the best? Patterson and Flowers are in the top 20 in scoring (top 15, actually) and in the top ten in blocked shots. A word of warning to FBL teams when playing against Rochester: take your shots from the outside.
• Brooklyn has been hot as well, with the Red Caps back on track after a slow start to the season. Brooklyn has won 10 of its last 12 and is in what should be a great race the rest of the way in the East Division between the Red Caps, the Washington Statesmen, Rochester Rockets and Philadelphia Phantoms.
• The Boston Centurions latest losing skid has reached 8 games after losing twice to first place Washington and once in Pittsburgh last week. Boston has a lot of offensive firepower led by Morgan Melcher and Gerald Carter and only 4 teams are averaging more points per game. The issue is clearly defense where the Centurions are dead last and have surrendered more points than any other team. Nearly 4 more than the next worse club and nearly 5 more per game than the 3-23 Syracuse Titans.
• Top rookie Ward Messer saw his offensive production dip a bit in back-to-back losses for his Detroit Mustangs, but he returned to form with 24 points in a 108-72 win over Buffalo on Thursday. Messer has spent time this season as both the leading scorer and rebounder in the league but has slid to third overall in each category recently.

FBL STANDINGS
EAST           W  L  PCT  
Washington    18  7  .720
Brooklyn      19  8  .704
Rochester     16  9  .640
Philadelphia  17 10  .630
Baltimore     13 10  .542
Hartford       9 15  .375
New York       8 16  .333
Boston         8 20  .286
Syracuse       3 22  .115 

WEST         W  L   PCT  
Chicago     19  6  .760
Cleveland   15  7  .696
Detroit     13  9  .591
Cincinnati  14 12  .538
Buffalo      9 14  .391
Pittsburgh   9 16  .360
Toronto      9 17  .346

COAST SECTION PLAY UNDERWAY

Another Chance For Dolphins to End 40 Years of Coming Up Short

Yesterday brought the first section games of the 1948-49 collegiate cage section as the West Coast Athletic Association always gets an early start on things. A year ago the coast loop, considered along with the Great Lakes Alliance to be the two most competitive confernences, witnessed Redwood University win it's first section title in school history and then go on to win the AIAA National Championship tournament for the first time by knocking off WCAA rival and four-time national champion City College of Los Angeles in the title game at Bigsby Garden.

The Mammoths finished with a 12-2 section record a year ago, a game up on both Rainier College and Coastal California. Redwood's tournament title meant that three different WCAA teams have won the national championship joining CC Los Angeles, with its 4 wins including one two years ago and Rainier College, which has won three national titles including back-to-back wins in the spring of 1943 and 1944. In addition Northern Cal, Lane State and Coastal California have all played in the title game. The Dolphins have been to the national championship game three times, most recently in 1940-41, but have never won it all.

Coastal California is by far the most successful school in the WCAA, and possibly the entire AIAA except when it comes to tournament titles. The Dolphins have won a record 22 WCAA conference championship including 11 straight in the early days of the sport. Coastal California has also pariticipated in more year-end national tournaments than any other school in the AIAA. This year marks the 40th season of the AIAA basketball championships and Coastal California missed the tournament just once. That is three years ago when they came up short of twenty wins for the first time in school history in finishing with an 18-12 record. A year ago they won their first two tournament contests, but bowed up in the quarter-finals with a heart-breaking 52-50 loss to Texas Gulf Coast.

Despite those 38 trips to the tournament and 13 times reaching at least the semi-finals, the Dolphins have never won the big game. Their legendary former coach Art Barrette, who the national player of the year award is named after, retired in 1942 with a record 789 victories and 18 conference titles but despite 12 trips to the national semi-finals, including five straight starting in 1922, he could never win that last game of the season.

There is hope that this years pod of Dolphins can finally snap the curse that Bigsby Garden, which annual holds the semi-finals and finals of the national tournament, seems to hold over the school. The Dolphins entered section play with a 12-1 record and boast a veteran squad that returns three starters plus Chris Martines, last year's sixth man that seems poised for a dominant sophomore season. Martines, who was the top high school player in the state of California before joining the Dolphins, and is second in the conference behind only Portland Tech's Robert Ottinger in scoring this season with his 14.3 ppg average. Coastal California usually has a team capable of making noise in the national tounament and this year is no exception, but first they most navigate the challenge that is the WCAA section schedule. The conference regularly sends five and even six teams to the tournament but with increased competition and the ever increasing number of conferences, who each receive one automatic bid, the WCAA only managed to send four teams to the event last year. Two of them, champion Redwood University and runner-up CCLA each made the finals. But Coastal California fans have been waiting for 39 years for their chance. Perhaps the 40th season could be the magical one for the Dolphins?

LAST WEEK'S RESULTS INVOLVING TOP 10 TEAMS
MONDAY JANUARY 3
#2 Western Iowa 62 (Charlie Maynard 16 pts) Ellery 27
#3 St Blane 59 (Cy Worley 20) Cesar Rodney 46
#9 Rainier College 75 (Syl Kellogg 19) Campion 46

TUESDAY JANUARY 4
#4 Frankford State 62 (David Aponte 21) Maryland State 60
#7 Lane State 68 (Carl Casswell 16) College of Cairo 49

WEDNESDAY JANUARY 5
#1 Liberty College 59 (Scott Basile 20) College of Omaha 50
#3 St Blane 54 (Cy Worley 17) Bliss College 26
#5 North Carolina Tech 59 (Mike Carter 23) Kansas Agricultural 33

THURSDAY JANUARY 6
#4 Frankford State 49 (Rod Bookman 16) Henry Hudson 40
#6 Mississippi A&M 36 (Greg Randle 16) Capital(MS) University 28
#10 Coastal California 61 (Ton Linclon 13) George Fox 45

FRIDAY JANUARY 7
#1 Liberty College 72 (Luther Gordon 28) Ellery 38
#2 Western Iowa 71 (Charlie Maynard 28) Kansas Agricultural 22
#3 St Blane 57 (Cy Worley 15) St Pancras 31
#9 Rainier College 66 (Thomas Abbott 26) Topeka State 64 OT
Elyria 53 Detroit City College 44. Knocked DCC out of top ten

SATURDAY JANUARY 8
#5 North Carolina Tech 60 (Mike Carter 23) Brooklyn State 41

SUNDAY JANUARY 9
#2 Western Iowa 70 (Willy Ludwick 23) Great Plains State 51
#3 St Blane 57 (Threadgill, Samuels 12 each) Alexandria 49
#6 Mississippi A&M 56 (Billy Bob Leveau) 56 East Missouri Seminary 50
#7 Lane State 53 (Sherman Porter 16) #10 Coastal California 45 (Chris Martines 10)
#9 Rainier College 62 (Thomas Abbott 15) Idaho A&M 54



The Week That Was
Current events from the week ending 1/09/1949

• The 81st Congress got off to a fiery start when House Republicans decided to fight the Democratic plan to curb the power of the Rules Committee over the Truman legislative program.
• As the week ended, Truman called on Congress for an increase of $4 billion in taxes, primarily on corporations.
• General George C. Marshall has stepped down aftr two years as Secretary of State due to health issues. Dean Acheson will succeed him.
• Jerusalem was bombed by unidentified war planes, bringing a new threat of Jewish retaliation on Cairo. There was also fresh bloodshed on Israel's central front after a clash with Iraqi troops in a village 16 miles northeast of Tel Aviv.
• As the week concluded Britain said the Israli forces shot down five RAF planes in what it calls an unprovoked attack. The planes were on reconnaissance patrols over Egyptian territory near the Palestine Border.
  
  
• The Shanghai City Council went over the National government's heads and asked the Chinese Communists for a cease-fire order and the beginning of peace talks.
• Vice Admiral Oscar Badger denies that American forces are being withdrawn from China.