G'day WCE Norm and Tyler
Normally with a mower like this I would want to check the timing ,is the key broken on the flywheel or load test
the coil ,is the coil working to generate a spark with the plug in .
I did have one the same as this and a rocker post had come loose and one valve was not opening fully ,just
had to remove the rocker cover tighten the post ,set the clearance and then it ran fine.
Cheers
Max.