Ivories at Last—Gray v. Newman
An extremely interesting and epoch-making billiard match is in progress at Holborn Hall as we go to press with this issue. George Gray, the young Australian player, his contract with bonzoline balls being completed, has now turned his attention' to ivory and has sufficient confidence in his power to score fluently under the new conditions to allow T. Newman a start of 4,000 in a fortnight's match of 18,000 up.
During the first half of the match Newman has managed to keep almost level with his opponent without taking the start into account, but there have been signs that Gray is finding himself, and it is quite possible that, after all, the contest may prove to be less one-sided than at the outset appeared to be likely.
Newman, who is still under twenty years of age, has an unbeaten record thus far this season, and his play even against the greatest exponents of the game has been on a plane of such excellence that John Roberts, in whose capable hands he has been placed, has no hesitation in challenging all and sundry on his behalf to level encounters, George Gray being alone for the present excepted.
It may be interesting at this point to recall that George Gray made an unfinished break of 2,196 with crystalates and a break of 1,199 with bonzolines. It now remains to be seen what he is capable of with ivories, all hough he has already given some idea of this, during the present contest, in the shape of two breaks of over 500 each. At the same time he has not confined himself by any means to red ball play and to the mind of some of the spectators, desiring to see the Gray and Newman methods sharply contrasted, this has been, perhaps, somewhat disappointing.