Evening star., 1938-12-04
District Team Must Win
Struggle in New York
To Retain LuureIs
BY BILL DISMER, Jr.,
Star Staff Correspondent,

game between CneSe TWO Teams
last scheduled game of the cam
paign-will settle the Eastern cham
pionship of the National League.
And whether Washington, in its
second year as home of big
league grid team, gets pro footballs
biggest annual game-the play-of
between the Eastern and Western
champions-depends on the Red
skins ability to make it three VIC
tories in row at the Polo Grounds.
Game Draws 10000 From d. C.
But while the Giants home field
Is the scene of the battle, just as 1t
was in 1886 and last year, one out
of every five spectators in the stands
will be cheering for the Redskins
when the kickoff comes at o'clock.
A vanguard of several hundred
Washingtonians, who arrived in New
York tonight, constitutes only a
minor fraction of the 10000 D. G.
fans expected to hit Broadway
about two hours before game time.
Except for the absence of the
Redkins' Cliff Battles, one of the
greatest runners in pro history, and
the imperfect condition of the Polo
Grounds turf, the setting of tomor-
rows game well could be carbon
copy of circumstances which sur
rounded last years battle. Then,
as tomorrow, the Redskins had to
beat the Giants to retain their
Eastern title, for exactly So weeks
ago the New Workers led the In
dians in percentage points, just as
they do tonight, and could have
backed" into the Eastern crown
with tie.
Skins Must Win for Crown.
AS the teams take the field to-
morrow the standings will be:
Won. Lost Tied. Pct.
Giants ---7 2 l TIT
Redskins &c 2 2 .750
Only victory can save the Red
skins crown, for a tie would leave
each team with its present percent
age incidentally the three ties
now appearing on the records of
the teams are the result of battling
with the Brooklyn Dodgers.
Because they have not been de-
feated since October 3, and have
come down to the final game with
the best defensive record in the
league, the Giants have been in
stalled as 8-5 favorites over their
conquerors of the past two seasons.
No small reason for this also is
due to the fact that they licked the
Redskins, 10-7, in the first meeting
Of the teams this year in Wash
ington-their first victory over the
Indians since the first game of the
1896 campaign.
Giants Out for Revenge.
1t also is taken for granted that
desire for reveng, for that 49-14
sinner the Redskins inflicted on the
Giants last year has raised the New
Workers to an emotional pitch TN
attainable by Washington's grid
forces This is the game, they say,
that Coach Steve Owen has been
pointing his Giants to all year, and
they're not satisfied with that mea-
ger. three-point victory in Griffith
Stadium in October.
But the defensive record of the
Giants, good as it is, is no different
from that they took into the final
game with the Redskins last year,
only to see it smeared by an ava
1anche of seven touchdowns.
Then, as they say the Giants will
do again tomorrow, the New York
ers shot their unique fve-man line
at the Redskins and the Redskins
shot it full Of holes with Battles
thrusts and Sammy Baugh's pass
ing. There is no Battles among the
Washington forces this year, but
the sensational running of Andy
Farkas and the sporadic brilliance
of other running backs like George
Karamatic, Frank Filchock, Bill
Hartman, Don Irwin and Max
Krause has given Washington fans
reason to hope that the loss of the
Clipper" may not be fatal, as once
feared.
Pass Record Threatened.
Against this ball-lugging crew the
Giants will pit an attack headed by
Ed Danowski, the leagues great
est paSSer over flve-year period,
and Washington's own Tuffy Lee
mans. If Tuffy continues his yard
gaining activities, which today find
him only 80 yards out of the league
lead in this respect, he may draw
groans from the same throats which
cheered him to the echo when he
was a star with George Washing
ton University few years ago.
incidentally there are the posi-
bilities of new league passing rec
ords being set by either Baugh or
DanoWski, or both. At present Dan
owskl has completed SO passes, Is
short of the number which Baugh
completed last year for a new all
time mark. Baugh has completed
So, to date. But DanoWSki has only
to. maintain his sensational aver
age OF 81 per cent to establish q
new season mark for efficiency, for
his 50.4 average in 1885 never has
been equaled.
Help Seen in Filchock.
Swallowed both by Baugh and
Danowski,. there is another figure
In Redskin uniform who may
prove one of Coach Ray Flaherty's
surprises for the Giants. To date
Filchock has passed only one-eighth
as many times as Baugh and one
nth as often as Hartman, who
usually has directed Washinpton's
aerial attack when Baugh has been
out. Yet Flaherty hasn't forgotten
that the former Indian star threw
two touchdown passes against the
Giants when he was a member of
the Pittsburgh Pirates and was
largely responsible for the Pirates
1910 victory over the Giants.
Both Coaches Flaherty and Owen
have refused to name any starting