OZ boxers of the past - Discussion

[Brute]

Reading about Dave Sands in theain ro gote thinking. Who was the best Aussie fighter NOT to win a world title?
Hector Thompson for me I think. Interested in other opinions though.

Dave Sands did beat Bobo Olsen twice. Olsen went on to be World Middleweight Champion after Sugar Ray Robinson's first retirement and said Sands should have won the title. Unfortunately Sands had been killed in a traffic accident.

Many old timers reckoned the only reason Jack Carroll never became World Welterweight Champion was that none of the champions of his time were silly enough to fight him.

[bobmac]

Hi, this is my first entry.
Great to see so much written about great Oz boxers of the past. The mention of Ron Richards brings back memories. In 1946-47 my Dad was Overseer on Foleyvale Aboriginal Settlement, he having established it out of virgin bush. He stayed on after floods (Mum and kids moved to Yeppoon) and Ron Richards was living at Woorabinda. Dad was asked if he would mind if Ron came to live with him for awhile until Ron was rehabilitated. Ron was down on his luck at the time. Dad welcomed the opportunity as he was a great boxing fan. Ron was around 34 at the time and Dad found him to be great company. Many a conversation they had about the boxing game. Dad asked Ron who was his hardest opponent and Ron said Fred Henneberry without a doubt. He said when Fred came out of his corner he seemed ready to kill you. Their many wild fights certainly attest to that. Ron said that Ambrose Palmer was a great fighter and very clever. Ron was never able to beat Palmer in their 4 bouts.
Ron went from there to Palm Island where he lived out his remaining years. Dad could not speak highly enough of him.
We moved to Brisbane in 1948 and there I had a wonderful time watching fights at the old Brisbane Stadium but I'll talk about that another time.

[Beltane]

Welcome to the site, Bobmac.

Another legend of the sport: Tommy Burns passed away a few days ago. Tommy Burns, was one of the greatest drawcards in the fight game's Golden Age fighting allcomers in the1940s.

The Courier Mail has this fine tribute to Tommy:

http://www.couriermail.com.au/sport/loc ... 6007123234

[Brute]

Old timers used to rave about Burns' fights with Vic Patrick and O'Neill Bell. Burns was a very handsome man for a boxer and appeared in the 1950 Charles Chauvel film "Sons of Matthew" with up and comers Michael Pate and John Ewart.

[Beltane]

The North Shore Times has a fine article about Trevor King, who is still going strong at age 80:

http://north-shore-times.whereilive.com ... r-a-cause/

Trevor had an enviable record in boxing and if not for an accident, could have held a world title.

[Brute]

Great bloke Trevor. Good luck to him.

[patron]

Great bloke Trevor. Good luck to him.

trevor was probably our best fighter never to get a shot at the australian title, when they were held in esteem, i hope he is well,all the best

[Brute]

What was the story on the six and a half years between the Bennett fight and the Corliss fight? Was it health reasons?

King was only 23 when he beat the World rated Bennett, I am surprised he chose to stop fighting for such a long time.

[patron]

What was the story on the six and a half years between the Bennett fight and the Corliss fight? Was it health reasons?

King was only 23 when he beat the World rated Bennett, I am surprised he chose to stop fighting for such a long time.

king suffered bad injuries in a car accident in 1954, all the best

[Brute]

Scottish boxer John O'Brien, who lost his Empire Featherweight title to Johnny Famechon and later migrated to Australia, ending his career losing two ten round wars to Manny Santos in 1971, died at age 42 in 1979. Does anybody remember why he died so young?

[maccamax]

Give you some idea of how hard it was to win any title years ago.

Trevor King was one of the best featherweights this country produced, but he had over 40 fights, losing only one, when he won the NSW featherweight title. The loss was to Sigi Tannenbaum, the man he took the title from.

.
. Trevor King had his career cut short due to a motor cycle accident ....Yes, he was up there with the best.....He is still going OK and last time I saw him he was resident in the Windsor area NSW

[hofguy]

Scottish boxer John O'Brien, who lost his Empire Featherweight title to Johnny Famechon and later migrated to Australia, ending his career losing two ten round wars to Manny Santos in 1971, died at age 42 in 1979. Does anybody remember why he died so young?

Johnny O'Brien was killed in a car accident in Melbourne.

[Brute]

Scottish boxer John O'Brien, who lost his Empire Featherweight title to Johnny Famechon and later migrated to Australia, ending his career losing two ten round wars to Manny Santos in 1971, died at age 42 in 1979. Does anybody remember why he died so young?

Johnny O'Brien was killed in a car accident in Melbourne.

I thought that was the story. His "Boxrec" biography seems to have been shortened.

Sad coincidence. John O'Brien killed in a motor accident, his greatest opponent, Johnny Famechon, barely survived one.

[myrontheinvincable]

Johnny OBrien emigrated to Australia, and entered the Ambrose Palmer boxing gym, just as Famechon had retired.....Johnny OBrien was an incredible gym personality, always telling jokes and making his spars exciting and tough for everyone.....he was a very tough man, who had had a tough life. Rest in Peace Johnny...

[Brute]

John O'Brien often worked the corner of other British boxers in Melbourne. His advice was not always sound. I can remember watching Scots lightweight Hugh Baxter fighting a ten rounder with Paul Bink on TV ringside in 1970.

In the fourth round I heard O'Brien call out "Move to the left, Hughie!" Hughie moved to the left, just as Binkie let go of a right uppercut from the floor which lifted Baxter's feet off the canvas and dumped him like a sack of spuds. Hugh Baxter did not fight after that night.

[myrontheinvincable]

I sparred Hugh Baxter regularly; he had transformed from a Featherweight in UK to a Light Welter by the time he got to Australia ....
that right hand upper cut knockout you talked about Brute, was one of the best knockouts I ever saw...Binks had a good knack at knocking out his opposition.

[Brute]

Paul changed trainers and let himself be talked into going from junior welterweight to junior lightweight. He won an Australian title at that weight but was not
really the same again.

[guscotar]

My father was boxer 1956-1970, he figth in new zeland, australian and borneo
was born in mexico, home town la paz, bcs
Jose alfredo cota orantes, figth name, Alfredo "Molote" Cota

am lookin some video or photo

boxer fans
Gustavo Alfredo Cota Ruiz
tj, Mexico

[popeye]

As a kid I remember my father taking me to watch Tony Mundine training & being in awe of him. Ken Salisbury was one of my idols as a kid, when Ken Pedler was promoting his fights he would let me go into the dressing rooms after the fights & I was rapped that Ken Salisbury would always have time for me, have a chat & sign an autograph when he had just fought a tough 10 or 12 round fight.
I also loved to watch Wally Carr fight, he had so much natural ability, could've been anything if he trained seriously? I was also a big fan of Barry Michael & Paul Ferreri but only got to watch them on TV.
Once Fenech, Harding, Ellis, Waters, etc came along I, like most people at the time were fans?
I'm not that old (getting too close for comfort to 40) but have heard a lot of the stories about many of the great Aussie Boxers & was lucky to have become mates with Taffy Hancock (Australian Flyweight Champion in the 40's & 50's).
Birchy

Yeah Dave, I worked on the Port Kembla waterfront for 15 years with Taff. (He was a foreman there) He fought them all, Curruthers, Sinn, Mickey Hill.
He won the flyweight title off Mick & lost it to him. He said after the last fight with Mick, some nark in the crowd says "You 2 orta get married" Taff replied "Check the result, the engagement is off" He won the title back off Laffin. He truly was a great bloke.

Some other old fighters I sailed with (When I was at sea) Herb Bishop ("I love Frisco") Loved Herb, Thorough gentleman.
Newcastle fighters like Joe Armstrong, who fought Red Lobley about 5 times, were on the same ship. In those days. we used to "ring time" on watch. The bell was over the helm. 1 bell was rung at a quarter to the start of the watch hour (8-12-4 termed "calling the Watch")
When I joined the ship, Joe & Red were in the mess room. Joe was a fireman & Red was the crew attendant. I said "Shit, I hope you two are not in here when they call the watch" They were great mates.
Another funny about Joe. Snowy Webster, (later a Seamans Union official) was Joe's "manager",, tout, more like it.
Twice Snowy negotiated a "dive" for Joe, & they loaded up on the punt. Joe stopped both opponents. Snowy was livid. "You've sent us both broke. WTF was you doing"
Joe says "I wasn't gunna lose to him, he couldn't carry my kit" Both times. They went back to sea.
The Newcaslte Lobley's were well known. Red's brother "Anzac" was a Seamens Union official there for many years.

Stadiums LTD put on some great fights, but they also drove a fair few potentials away with their "Jewish contracts" I sailed with several that wouldn't sign & walked away. While Ronny Beekin never went to sea, he was probably the most noted that wouldn't sign & suffered because of it. Ronny had a ton of potential..

Cheers

[Brute]

Would I be right in saying American boxer "Gentleman" Don Johnson was the only man to fight Jimmy Carruthers, Lionel Rose and Johnny Famechon, beating Carruthers in Jimmy's comeback and losing to the other two?

[hofguy]

Would I be right in saying American boxer "Gentleman" Don Johnson was the only man to fight Jimmy Carruthers, Lionel Rose and Johnny Famechon, beating Carruthers in Jimmy's comeback and losing to the other two?

You are right. He also fought four other World champions, Ismael Laguna, Howard Winstone, Jose Legra & Ben Vilaflor, beating Winstone once in three fights, losing to the others, all fights in his opponent's country.
Does anyone know what became of Don?

[myrontheinvincable]

Don Johnson?
I asked the same question from a knockabout in Richmond a couple of years ago.....he said Don had been shot and killed in the USA when he had gone back (some bloke trying to extort money from him or something).... I think I might have mentioned this in a post in this thread last year actually...and asked anyone if they knew it to be true.

I hope the Richmond bloke I talked to is wrong.

I had my photo taken shaping up with Don at Leo Berry's, when I was about 12yrs old....it wound up in the Sun on the back page.

Don was a great person.

[hofguy]

There's another story about what happened to Don Johnson, one I hope is not right.
This version is that he "disappeared" in South Africa in the 1970's after he got involved in anti apartheid politics, a victim of the secret police.
His boxing record shows that his last fights were in South Africa in 1971-72 & his wife was South African.

[myrontheinvincable]

can someone tell me how to upload a few photos here, I have a few photos you might like to see.

[Beltane]

Saturday's sausage wrapper had an interesting article about the late Tony Barber and his father: Bill's careers. The feature focuses mainly on their amatuer days, but is it worth a read:

http://property.manlydaily.com.au/defau ... #folio=033