BoxRec

Glyn Leach wrote:I agree Ezzard, though I've been guilty of it myself. Seems to me that foreign fighters get it more than most, which has always struck me as ignorant — literally, because some of these fighters might well be the Johnny Greaveses of their countries, but those who slag them off wouldn't know that, they just look at their records.

It's a common theme - the fans will freely label foreign journeymen as "bums" and "nobodies" and, of course, slag off the prospects for fighting them, but we daren't say boo about our own "paid losers". For example, anyone having the gall to criticise Peter Buckley on here would be tantamount to having committed treason.

As for Greaves, putting him in with Gavin Rees was about as gross a mismatch as the mind could conceive in terms of win-loss records and levels in which the two had won and lost, and if it had been in any other country we'd have bashed the matchmaking until it was paper-flat. But not in the UK, and not when it involves a "decent bloke".

That's not to criticise Greaves, by the way. He may be limited, but I've never seen him not do his best and try to win, which is more than can be said for Buckley in the later stages of his career.

Promoters should exercise more control over what journeymen they use..... if a lad doesn't come to win and just runs away for four rounds - like Paul Royston used to do, why use him?

You don't learn anything about the lad you are trying to bring on.

Some of the Eurobums (see I'm guilty of this too) that Maloney has been using shouldn't have a licence to box on a professional card in this country, let alone against Olympic medallists like Price and Jeffries - the board should take some responsibility too I might add.

Referees should also score the fights honestly.... plenty of times I've seen a journeyman clearly beat a ''prospect'' and either be robbed altogether or just get a draw, and on other occasions I've seen a journeyman be on the verge of stopping a kid and slacken off - maybe for fear of not getting used the week after.

If I were a promoter I'd rather find out which boxer is a top prospect and which one isn't - putting them in with good journeymen will certainly help all parties.