The Bridgeport times and evening farmer., 1919-04-01
WILL SETTLE
 SOCCER TITLE
By JOE BOOTH.

By JOE BOOTH.
 The question Of which is the cham pion tram of the country in soccer will now soon be made known as the honor rests between the Bethlehem 'teeI sreoer team and the Paterson team. These two teams have played splendid ball all season and these two teams have to battle out the desired honor. The two teams will meet in the final tie of the National Challenge Cup competition. the greatest soccer tournament of the country which car Iies with it the championship of this country. In addition the two teams are also in the final tie of the A. F. A. cup competition which will be played at Harrison, \. J., in the course of a couple of weeks. The two teams do not finish their battle for supremacy here as both are still in the running for final honors in the National Football league and the race between the two is now at a critical and interesting stage and it looks like z. fight until the last few weeks of the season.
 The Bethlehem team gained the
  tionai Cup competition on Saturday when it eliminated the Briolllayerys and Masons team of Chicago in the senli-finaI round at the Lehigh Uni versity stadium by the score of five goals to none. The Bethlehems were the better team at all departments of the game and simply waltzedI around the Windy City" tear and Clarke netted the ball no less than three times while Fleming netted the ball on two occasions. The BethIehems have now reached the final tie of the competition for the past five seasons in succession and it clearly shows that it has been the best team in the country since that time.
 The Paterson team managed to reach the final tie while opposed to the Morse Dry Dock team of Brook lyn. The later team had no less than seven of the Fan River Rovers team in it's ranks. The Rovers have been flnalists for four seasons out of the last five seasons but owing to the war, has disbanded at the end of last season until next season. The PateY- son team contained 8. couple of local players in Healy ana Funziker. and the team won easily by the score of four goals to one. The game was played at Harrison, N. T., and at tracted a crowd Of over five tnousand spectators.
 Jimmy Kilroy, who played with the True Blues last season and who has been playing with the Newburgh shipyard team all this season, was in the city during the past weekend. He tied that he WAS only here for few days and would return to New York state and assist his team in the Emergency Fleet Corporation soccer league.
 Charlie F'airist, the ex- Rovers' half back who enlisted in the Canadian forces at the beginning of last season and was seriously [.ounded in action, arrived in the city fully recovered from his wound and may be seen in the uniform of the Thistle team this week end.
 Barney Colway, the plucky half back of the Bridgeport ThistIes, is the youngest player in the state this season as he is only 5 years of age and assisted the Lincoln schoolboys' team last season to win both the league and the knockout competition Barney is certainly a coming player and should develop into a star before another season is here.
 Bobby Rae of this city will be the referee at Ahe game to be played in Hartford on Sunday next between the Swedess of that city and the Nfanches- ter team in the first round of the State cup competition. It will be Bobby's first visit to the Capital City, George Mason, the burly defender of the Bridgeport Rovers before he entered the forces, is now a full pledged Swedish soccer player as his registration form for that team has now been acknowledged by the State association who have charge of such registrations.
 The soccer moguls of the state will meet on Saturday evening next at 7:30 o'clock at the Swedish club rooms to make the draw for the first round of the Spring Cup competition. The committee in charge of the competition are J. Miller, New Haven; J. c. Ross, Bridgeport; A. Stead, Bridgeport; G. Denholm, AuEonia; Joe Booth, Bridgeport and R. Rae, Bridgeport.
 The International Committee of the State association will meet the same evening to make the arrangements for the International games that are al- ways played in the spring. Last ses son the English team won the contest after an hard struggle with the Scotchmen in the final round. The Thistles of this city will play the Bridgeport City team at the Meadows on Sunday afternoon next with J. Robertson as referee The Thistles claim to have a team now that is capable of beating the Citys and the outcome of the game should settle once for all thst argument.