The Celtic FC are holding supplementary sports on Tuesday evening next week. They are appealing thereby to those in the city who participate in the weekly half holiday, and the response is certain to be generous. Shopkeepers have few opportunities of seeing first class sport, and the fact that Celtic are catering specially for this section of the public is further proof of the business instinct of the Parkhead directorate. The semi-final and final ties of the five-a-side football competition are one of the attractions, and there will be others in the form of flat handicaps, which may possibly betaken part in by the American athletes now on a visit to our city.
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The Queens Park FC are holding a modest meeting at Hampden Park on Thursday evening. Besides a number of confined races, there are two open handicaps – 100 yards and 880 yards. Capital entries have been received, and though these lack the Olympic glamour the racing will be none the less interesting on that account. Hampden has been the scene of much bustle lately, and there is evidently a desire on the part of all to take a higher position in league football than has been the lot of the premier club for some years. They have the best wishes of a loyal public in their endeavour to make amends for past failures, and that is always an inspiring and refreshing asset for any team to have.
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No one can keep HJ Christie from winning the aggregate prize in conjunction with the evening meetings of the West of Scotland Harriers. He is far ahead of all in the matter of points, and it would seem to be almost impossible to handicap him out of the races in which he takes part, b they sprints or middle distances. On Wednesday of last week he won the 100 yards with an allowance of half a yard from RC Duncan. In open handicaps he and Duncan are on the same mark, so there would seem to be little difference between the two from whatever point of view one estimates their worth. WS Unkles, the Obstacle champion, won the 600 yards after a punishing finish with WS Stewart, junior, Eric R MacDougall being third. Four teams took part in the relay race, made up of four 220’s, and the winning quartet were JS Ritchie, AB Kerr, FM Stoddart and J Bird. In some respects last Wednesday’s meeting was one of the most interesting of the series, and the good these series is accomplishing is to be seen in the frequency with which the magic letters W.S.H appear in the list of prize-winners.
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Mr William Maley is well advanced with his arrangements for the great meeting on Saturday first. His programme contains several novelties that were not in the Rangers’… For the first here is the cycling which always appeals to ones imagination. It is a thrilling sport, and rivets the attention even to a greater extent than flat racing, not matter how interesting. This sport has been allowed to go into decline in Scotland for various causes, and what was at one time the ‘peoples sport’ is now almost a thing of the past. Thanks, however, to the Celtic we are to have several cycle races at Parkhead on Saturday. These will be taken part in by several of England’s foremost riders, among others Victor Johnson and Ernest Payne, both of whom have frequently appeared at Scottish meetings. Johnson is riding as vigorously as ever, and although Payne has gone back a little, which is only natural in view of growing years, he is still a first class rider. Ireland will be represented by WP Murray and R Kerr, both of whom are little short in power, speed and and track intelligence to Johnson and Payne. We expect refreshing sport in the cycle races. Then Harry Martin will give speed displays on his motor. These scarcely come under the category of sport, but are nevertheless an interesting departure from the orthodox sports entertainment. Another novelty is the steeplechase with water jumps. S Frost, the English champion, will figure in this event. He is R Noakes’s successor and a most accomplished one too. There is humour in the steeplechase, and it would be well if there was more of this element in modern athletics. There will be several invitation handicaps for our American visitors, and in the meantime, everything points to a meeting superior to anything yet held by Celtic FC, and to those who can recall past functions of this club a remark of this kind implies immense possibilities in the way of recreative enjoyment.
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If tradition goes for anything – and it means a lot in the athletic realm – the running at the Rangers continuation meeting this evening should be an advance in some respects on what was witnessed at Ibrox on Saturday. For evening sport in the western district has the reputation of being better than is usually witnessed on a Saturday afternoon. It comes natural to our men to run then, coinciding as it does with their practice hours, and there is an abandon and a sprightliness which are sometimes wanting at other times. The Rangers are putting up an interesting programme this evening. The distances are a departure from orthodox lines, being 120 yards, 300 yards, 1000 yards and a mile and a half, all handicaps, in addition to which there will be two special handicaps for those who lent such a charm to Saturday’s proceedings. The entries for the open handicaps are considerably in advance of last year, there being 72 for the 120 yards, 61 for the 300 yards, 52 for the 1000 yards and 39 for the mile and a half, for which E Owens and R Hales adorn scratch mark. McNicol has 15 yards, A Kerr 90, J McFarlane 60, D McPhee 85, SS Watt 80 and T McTurk is the limit with 200 yards. There are familiar names in the sprints, WA Stewart the SAAA champion being scratch in both. HJ Christie in the 300 yards has 6 yards, J Sandilands has 7, JB Sweet 10, RC McFarlane 13, JH Rodger 13, W Law 11 and TC Wright 11, while the limit is 28 yards. We look for good racing in this event. Douglas McNicol is scratch in the 1000 yards. A few days ago at Ayr he ran a fine race over this distance finishing second in 2 min 17 1-5th sec or a shade worse than the Scottish record. He will have to do as well tonight to win judging by the starts which are on a tolerably liberal scale. For example, JH Rodger has 18 yards, WF Taylor 30, D McPhee 40, John Giffen 38, ER MacDougall 29, A McPhee 38, and Frank Stoddart 35. The five-a-side competition will be completed tonight.