New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1913-06-09
Late Selection of Polo Team
Likely To Be a Handicap.
A LAWN TENNIS SURPRISE
Sensational Match in Doubles
Shows Jones Was Missed
in the Singles.
By Herbert.

IN the singles.
BY Herbert.
England chances Of recapturing the
international polo cup may not be any
brighter than a week ago. before the org
four was cut to pieces, before FoNhaH =
Keene was injured and before another
switch was made. with stevenson ana
Stoddard deposcd. this time I'm favor oil
the original team which defended the cup
so CALAMITY i'm 1911 With all this how
ever. confess to being among those
whose confidence has been shaken. II Il
one thing 10 he ON the inside and kno"
all the points Of the delicate Sltud''o"
and another TO be on the OUTSIDE anu
know little or nothing Of the pronIehlS
which had to he confronted and solNeu'
No doubt the committee Of the POLO As
ISOLATION. which is responsible FOR nam
ing the men who will defend the cup
s,ted for the best by leaving Harry
PAYNE Whitney and the Waterbury oro'h-
crs off the team i'm favor Of LOUIS Stod-
dard. FoxhaU +. keeHe and Malcolh
Stevenson. and then with the injury 10
Mr. Keene going back to the old comb
nation Stoddard. Stevenson, Keene and
Nilburn would have been sadly hanal-
canned. without Mr.. Keene this untor'u-
nate condition would have been ehphd-
.ized. So. to all appearances the com
,nittee had no recourse, and pracuCd'S
vas forced to fall back on the dig 1our'
even though 1t had admitted only four
DAYS ago that greater strength would oe
added to the team by replacing them WIN
new men. The trouble is II waited TOO
long. Team work is as much part oil
,olo as it is i'm any sport where more
than one PLAYER is engaged. 1t Is an
established fact. too that individual brill
fancy does not make up for lack of team
effort and proper combination
Apart from the rumors Of discomfort
and yelled talk Of friction which nave
5rifted anon from the camp OF the de-
Tending forces. there is well denheu
feeling that somebody has blundered.
Personally. ! am quite willing to accept
the statement that harmony exists ana
that there is no ground for the stories OF
discord. l know Harry Payne Whitney 10
be one of the best sportsmen in the couh-
trv and the fact that he first consented
70 serve with the Waterbury brothers as
reserve players and then returned on ,"e
field when the need was great would IN
dictate that he had not retired IN nun
and resigned as captain OF the team Oh
the very eve Of the big match. An IN
looked-for break came at most uheA-
rected moment. or else those most inter
ested IN putting the strongest poSslOie
team IN the field lacked the initiative one
almost may say boldness, to take stahu
that apparently was forced upon them al
the last moment The players striving TOT
the team have been practising regularly
for close 10 two months, and why the
committee waited so long and brought
about such tangle is hard 10 understand
n the Englishmen carry off the cup anu
the odds offered appear TO be Jusuneu' !"
will not be the fault so much Of the play
ers themselves. who are sure TO give OF
their best. but rather Of the committee
which bv its dilatory tactics precluded the
development of a proper team effort
most potent and powerful asset.
While saving that my confidence in the
team has been shaken and the odds when
are quoted Of from 2 to to to appear
IN be justified, l do not mean TO Imply
that the cause is lost and the cup TO all
intents and purposes packed up and
readv for shipment abroad. England S
nolo team will have fight on its hands
tomorrow or ! am sadly mistaken IN the
stuff OF which the Americans are maze
ard OF their skill and ability as daring
dashing. hard riding players. The pleas
ure OF winning will be enhanced II victory
comes. and II not the lack OF trying can
not be charged. There will be q real
struggle on the Hampstead plains down
Meadow Brook way tomorrow, and be
n said that for blood tngling. spectacu-
lar strife commend me to game OF polo.
u was my misfortune. with hundreds or
others 10 have a thunderstorm drive me
svav from the international doubles
match between the teams representing
this country and Australia at the West
SD, ,r-ts on Saturday when only one
sci adj been completed. ! saw quite
enough, however. to feel convinced that
NcLoughlin and Hackett would beat
Jones and Doust I'm eight out OF ten
matches on speed alone. The American
PLAYERS got so much more pace on the
ball I'm that first set that 1t seemed sure
10 tell. and tell heavily. Apart from the
almost cyclonic speed OF Mclaughlin.
particularly for kills overhead, and Of the
power behind Hackett's drives once he
settles down, there was little to choose.
H. my opinion, between the two pairs,
but this speed. it struck me. would be
measure enough 10 leave no question as
to the ultimate outcome.
Ny surprise. then. was complete and my
disappointment keen on hearing that
had missed one Of the most brilliant and
sensational matches ever played on the
courts here and that the Americans had
been beaten after a gruelling fve-set
match Those who stayed with whom
talked do not agree as TO the effect the
heavy court and heavy ball had, but no
doubt the conditions deprived the home
PLAYERS Of part OF their strongest asset
speed-athough It may not have been
,ofE~ooh1a &c lafd