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Heard
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★ By BEN KERVILLE ★
Royal Children's Hospital public re-
lations officer Howard Barrett went out
to I. ("Vass") Vassallo's Club Hotel at
lower Ferntree Gully recently. He
wanted to thank the boys there, particu-
larly social club president Athol Thomp-
son, for their great effort for the Globe-
3DB hospital appeal last year and their
marvellous start this year. Recognising
Thompson from a photo he'd seen, How-
ard put out his hand to greet him. He
quickly corrected the gesture by warmly
slapping his new friend on the shoulder.
You see, Athol Thompson has no arms.
★ ★
THE "take" from a full house at the MCG
during the Olympics will be £83,500.
Over the eight-day period Olympic organ-
isers confidently expect £500,000.
★ ★
JOHN COLEMAN'S injury is a body-blow to football
generally. He's the Bradman of the business —
the only player who can command a personal,
rather than purely partisan, following. He has been
worth his weight in pound notes. Our great hope is
that he will be seen again soon.
★ ★
COLEMAN isn't merely a great athlete. He's the
most obliging "big-timer" in sport. First time
I sought a story from him he went out of his way
to come and see me. He hasn't changed a scrap in
fhe intervening five years of hot headlining. He is
in terrific demand for social and charity functions and
hates to turn people down. He has given talks at boys'
clubs, football clubs, appeared at dances and socials
and has been approached by people from all over Aus-
tralia. A dreadful singer, John once went to the
microphone in a cily night-club and the man who had
requested the item paid £100 to charity. He's a good
team player, a first-rate football "brain," and has more
than once put into the Essendon players' fund cash
earmarked for himself.
★ ★
ESSENOON officials are cursing their bad luck, but
their main concern is for Coleman's welfare—re-
gardless of whether he ever plays football again.
They've lost their dynamo. Meantime Don committee-
man and Coleman's employer, Ted Rippon, has a motor
missing from his hotel. "Motor" is what John's work-
mates call him. They reckon he never stops!
★ ★
THE report on the recent Lausanne meeting
of the IOC executive and members of world
controlling bodies of various Olympic sports
really slammed the blazer-picnickers of some
countries: "At Helsinki, there would appear to
have been so-called observers and inspectors,"
the report stated. "It is recommended that
such persons should have no rights of privilege
and should not be recognized by Organising
Committees."
★ ★
AS for officials, the same report recommended,
without superfluous comment, that the
number of officials must not exceed com-
petitors in any Olympic team. (Which happened
in Helsinki!
★ ★
There'd be some red fades if
someone smuggled a lie detec~
tor into a football tribunal
meeting.
★ ★
FLASHBACK relevant to the Olympic
Park project: "The Commonwealth
Government is prepared to pay half
the cost provided the ground is used for
amateur sport."—The Prime Minister, Mr
Menzies.
★ ★
TRAGEDY in the bike game. Last summer
Brunswick amateur backmarker Frank
Gorway, 24, temporarily quit cycling to
build his home. On March 31 Frank fell 60 ft.
with a workmate in a defective lift on a
building under construction in St. Francis
Street, City. He died Monday from the injuries.
★ ★
RON ("Smoky") Clegg lived up to his
nickname last week. He was handling a
bottle of lighter fluid near the family
fire and it went up, scorching his face and
singeing his hair and eyebrows. But for Mrs
Clegg quickly throwing a towel over his head
Ron might have been in trouble.
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