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Posted: 24 Jan 2006, 02:48
by barry
McGovern was one of my top three favorites and he was a monster at both bantamweight and featherweight and I think he would just overwhelm Attell...unless Attell made him lose his mind before the bout, which very easily could happen and that would be something that Attell should have been good at doing, but I still think that McGovern at his best would overwhelm just about any fighter of his size. Below are reports of several of McGoverns fights that I have paraphrased from newspaper accounts. I still have a lot to add, but what below can give you a pretty good idea as to how vicious McGovern was!
Fight Notes
1897
Apr 3 vs. Jack Snee: The bout took place in Brooklyn, NY at the Greenwood AC. Snee is listed by some sources as “Jack Shea.” The agreed weight was to be 110 lbs for both fighters. The result was not a “KO 1” for Terry as was sometimes listed in various sources. McGovern had the better of the match up until the fourth round when his temper got the best of him, as it would on a couple of other occasions later on in his career. Fouling was frequent in the fourth round with McGovern being the chief offender, which resulted in the referee stopping the bout and awarding Snee the win on disqualification. McGovern was well ahead when the ref stopped the bout. Brooklyn Daily Eagle
Apr 17 vs. Frank Barnes: The bout took place in Brooklyn, NY at the Greenwood AC. The weight was set for 112 pounds, but Barnes came in over weight and lost his forfeit as a result, but the fight went on. The bout was pretty much even for the first seven rounds, but during the remaining three McGovern pulled ahead on points and in the tenth and final round Terry repeatedly jabbed the stuffing’s out of Barnes without anything in return. Police News
May 3 vs. Eddie Avery: The bout took place in New York, NY at the Polo AC. The New York World states that this was an amateur bout. This bout was part of a big amateur boxing tournament held at the Polo AC. Both McGovern and Eddie Avery were boxers in the 112 lb class and two of six fighters competing at that weight. No description of the result was given the next day, but these were all amateur fights. W PTS 4 NYW
May 22 vs. Kid Dougherty: The bout took place in Brooklyn, NY at the Greenwood AC. W PTS 10 BDE
--Weight: 112 lbs. They furnished one of the best exhibitions seen at the club for some time.
Jun 7 vs. Tom McDermott: The bout took place in Brooklyn, NY at the Greenpoint AC. The fight was scheduled for ten rounds at 112 pounds. McGovern controlled the fight from start to finish controlling McDermott’s rushing tactics by sticking out his left jab over and over and in the end Terry received the decision. Brooklyn Daily Eagle
Jun 19 vs. “Brooklyn” Tommy Sullivan: The bout took place in Brooklyn, NY at the Greenwood AC. Sullivan had a record of 7-0-1 (6 KO) going into the bout. Scheduled for ten rounds at 112 pounds McGovern and Sullivan went at one another at a fast and exciting pace and did everything except bite each other for ten rounds without a let-up. In the end the referee declared the fight a draw. Brooklyn Daily Eagle
Aug 16 vs. Eddie Goodbody: The bout took place in Brooklyn, NY at the Greenwood AC. This was the first of two bouts versus Goodbody and it was scheduled for ten rounds at 112 pounds. Terry was the aggressor for the first few rounds using his left jab in a very clever style. The middle rounds were fairly even. During the last two rounds McGovern worked his jab hard, but Goodbody fought gamely to last out the ten rounds after which the referee named McGovern the victor. Brooklyn Daily Eagle
Sep 18 vs. Jack Leon: The bout took place in Brooklyn, NY at the Greenwood AC. Another bout scheduled for ten rounds at 112 pounds. Terry opened up more in this bout as he started using his right hand with telling effect. The first couple of rounds were even as both men landed effectively and often on one another. A right hook to the jaw staggered Leon in the third round and throughout the next two rounds Terry kept up a good pace landing his right to the body and head. Leon landed well in the sixth round, but it was rather short-lived and McGovern came out in the seventh round with intentions of adding the first knockout to his record. Terry drove Leon all over the ring with hard right hands to the body and head landing so effectively that the referee halted the action to save Leon from being completely knocked out. With the win came McGovern’s first stoppage victory and also pretty much the beginning of the style of fighting that not only won him scores of fans, but also a style of fighting that struck fear and terror in the hearts of his opponents! Brooklyn Daily Eagle
Oct 9 vs. Jack Doyle: The bout took place in Brooklyn, NY at the Greenwood AC. Police stopped the bout in the seventh round and McGovern was awarded the decision, so was it a “TKO 7,” or “W TD 7.” Brooklyn Daily Eagle
Oct 23 vs. Eddie Goodbody: The bout took place in Brooklyn, NY at the Greenwood AC. Bout was scheduled for ten rounds at 112 lbs. Police stopped the bout due to a prior bout where a boxer was seriously injured and looked as though he would die! Brooklyn Daily Eagle D PTS 4 BDE
Dec 31 vs. Jimmy Kelly: This bout took place in Brooklyn, NY at the National AC. A right uppercut put Kelly down and out. Some sources list “Jack Kelly.” Brooklyn Daily Eagle W KO 2 BDE
1898
May 5 vs. George Monroe: This bout took place in Yonkers, NY. The weight of both men scaled less than 112 pounds each. It was an excellent bout from the sound of the first gong until referee Edwards declared it a draw. Terry was the aggressor for most of the bout, but George was always ready to counter the attack. There were no knockdowns, but each man suffered eye cuts and they fought one another to a standstill and were punching out of clinches. Terry was just beginning to fall into the rushing style that would make him so popular and at times, just when the audience thought that McGovern was on the verge of knocking his man out, Monroe always came back with a viscous counter. Unknown Newspaper Clip
Jun 11 vs. George Munroe: The bout took place in Brooklyn, NY at the Greater New York Athletic Club. The men weighed in at 112 pounds. Both looked fit to go the entire twenty-five rounds that was scheduled. The first round was a “feeling out” round in which no damaging blows were landed by either fighter. Monroe did most of the leading in the second, but was dropped for a count in the third. McGovern started fast in the fourth and did all of the leading and the fifth round was more of the same. McGovern was cautioned twice for using his head in close. In the sixth round, McGovern cut loose knocking his opponent all over the ring and by the end of the seventh it looked as though it would only be a matter of time until Monroe was knocked out. Monroe managed to gain a little measure on McGovern in the ninth and tenth rounds. Up to the thirteenth neither man had landed any real damaging blows. McGovern again cut loose in the fourteenth hitting hard and drawing blood for the first time in the fight. Monroe was weak at the end of the fifteenth and betting was 3 to 1 that he would not last two more rounds, but Monroe regained his energy and probably had the better of the mill in the two rounds that were supposed to be his last. The fight was nearly even at the end of twenty rounds. Monroe was downed again in the twenty-second round, but still managed to land as much as he took. The twenty-third was even, but in the twenty-fourth McGovern began to land often and land hard. Terry landed a hard shot and followed it up with another hard punch which sent Monroe down for the count, the result “KO 24.” Brooklyn Daily Eagle
Jul 23 vs. Tim Callahan: This bout took place in Brooklyn, NY at the Pelican AC. George Monroe was the scheduled opponent for Terry, but when turned out to be a no-show , Callahan was substituted and he came into the bout with a record of 7-1-3 (0 KO). Scheduled for twenty-five rounds at 114 pounds, McGovern lost his head fouling Callahan on three times in which he was warned by referee Herald each time, mostly for hitting in the clinches. In the tenth round, Terry repeated the offense and although Callahan was very much the worse for the wear and taking a steady beating he was immediately named the winner by disqualification. Brooklyn Daily Eagle
Aug 4 vs. George Monroe: The bout took place in Brooklyn, NY at the Greenwood AC. The bout was scheduled for twenty rounds with Gus Pevereley acting as referee. Monroe objected to the fact that Pevereley, who was the official referee of the club, was named referee for the bout stating that Pevereley would naturally be inclined to be bias toward McGovern since Terry was a South Brooklyn boy. After a lengthy argument, Monroe agreed to go on with Pevereley acting as referee, but stipulating that the first man to hit on the break, or hit in a clinch after being ordered to do that person be immediately disqualified. As it turned out it was Monroe who broke the rule first, twice in the early rounds, but Terry did not want the win in that fashion and he generously allowed the infractions to pass unnoticed. Monroe was warned to keep his head but after receiving a blow to the wind that sorely distressed him and which he claimed to be a foul blow, Monroe rushed into a clinch and continued to hit after being ordered to break and as a result referee Pevereley had no other choice but to disqualify Monroe, so McGovern got the win by a seventh round disqualification. Brooklyn Daily Eagle
Aug 20 vs. Tim Callahan: This bout took place in Brooklyn, NY at the Pelican AC. Callahan’s record was 8-1-3 (0 KO). The bout was scheduled for twenty rounds at 115 pounds and twenty rounds it went with the end result being a draw. Brooklyn Daily Eagle
Sep 15 vs. Eugene Garcia: The bout took place in Brooklyn, NY at the Greenwood AC. The bout was scheduled for fifteen rounds at catch weights. At the beginning of the second round, Terry rushed his opponent, but Garcia easily side-stepped and Terry went through the ropes, but he was up and back in immediately and went to work landing lefts and rights to the body and head. Terry used his left jab very effectively in the third round, which started to make some openings for his power shots. Garcia landed a hard right uppercut to McGovern’s mouth, but with little, or no effect and Terry tore into Garcia battering him all around the ring during the fourth round again landing lefts and rights to both the body and head. After 1:30 of fighting in the fifth round, Terry let fly a right hook that found its mark and dropped Garcia in his tracks putting him down and out by knockout in the fifth round. Brooklyn Daily Eagle
1899
Jan 30 vs. Casper Leon: The bout took place in Brooklyn, NY at the Greenwood AC. The fight was scheduled for twenty-five rounds at 115 pounds. McGovern was a favorite at 100 to 80 in the betting. Charley White, Leon’s manager stated afterward that Terry broke two of Leon’s ribs in the second round. The rules governing the bout were straight Queensberry with no hitting in the clinches, or breakaway which should have played greatly in favor of Leon as McGovern was very much an inside fighter. In Casper Leon Terry was suppose to be meeting the toughest challenge of his short career as Leon was one of the top fighters of his size in the world, but McGovern handled him as if he were a novice just starting out and Terry scored a clean knockout in the twelfth round. The club was packed with probably its largest crowd ever up to that point in time. Leon was known for his cleverness, but as it turned out his cleverness was no match for the ring generalship and McGovern’s ability to severely punish and opponent. McGovern had a slight lead going after five rounds, but it was becoming evident that it would really only be a matter of time before Leon fell. Throughout the remaining rounds Terry put in some terrific work to the head and body and his right hand was doing particular damage whenever it landed as Terry put all of his force into each blow and the shots to the body had a very telling effect on Leon as he was visibly weakening by the constant attack put forth by McGovern. In the twelfth round both men came out and swapped some quick punches, but Terry’s was much more powerful and on a quick counter, McGovern shot over a short left that landed flush on the point of Leon’s chin and down he went as if he had been shot. Referee, Owen Ziegler counted Leon out with only a few seconds remaining in the round. It took several minutes for Casper to fully recover his senses. Former world champion and human dynamo Jimmy Barry was only able to knockout Casper Leon once in 28 rounds, and failed in other return bouts to do the trick. Brooklyn Daily Eagle & The National Police Gazette
Mar 14 vs. Patsy Haley: This bout took place in New York, NY at the Lenox AC. Scheduled for twenty-five rounds at 116 pounds the bout was to determine who would face European Bantamweight Champion Pedlar Palmer in order to have a World Bantamweight Champion. This was the first of two bouts that these two would go at it. Haley was one of the most formidable opponents Terry had faced and the cleverness at which Patsy fought surpassed any other boxer Terry had yet met in the ring, but McGovern rose to the occasion and took Haley out in eighteen rounds, a feat that Oscar Gardner could not do in twenty rounds and one that Dave Sullivan took twenty-three rounds of the hardest kind of fighting to do. Going into the bout Patsy stated that he was in the absolute best shape of his life and the same could be said of McGovern. Haley put forth a good effort in which his clever footwork saved him several times, but in the end the consistent whirlwind attack to the body and head that McGovern administered to his foe was just too much for Patsy to handle. Terry finished the bout looking as fresh as when he started without a scratch on his face and he fought a very fair fight throughout. Every time that he put Haley on the floor Terry stood back until he could regain his feet. The action was lively. But Haley’s punches lacked the steam that those of McGovern carried. In the fourth round a hard right uppercut dropped Haley on his back for a count of seven and as soon as he was upright a viscous right cross dropped him for and eight count and once more in the fourth another right put Haley down for the third time, the last of which Haley was down for a nine count. Amazingly, Haley was fresh for the next few rounds despite the beating he was taking and he would often land some hard shots of his own, but to no effect on Terry. In the fifteenth round McGovern sent his man to one knee after landing a hard combination and Haley was down for another nine count. Again in round seventeen Haley found himself on the floor after Terry had landed a hard straight right and in round eighteen after forcing Haley to the ropes a brutal right cross put Haley down and out at 0:48 of the eighteenth round. It was a clean knockout and Haley had to be carried back to his corner. Referee was Charlie White. Brooklyn Eagle & Police Gazette
Apr 28 vs. Joe Bernstein: This bout took place in New York, NY at the Broadway AC. Scheduled for twenty-five rounds at 125 pounds. Terry was a 2 to 1 favorite going into the bout. Bernstein weighed in at 124 pounds and McGovern was 119 pounds. This was McGovern’s debut at the featherweight limit and not only did he win, but he also showed skill that he was not known to possess. The crowd was one of the largest ever up to that point in time to be put on at the Broadway AC. The fight was the best scrap since the club had reopened. Up until this bout, Terry had been viewed primarily as a slugger with little science and cleverness, but against Bernstein he showed that he not only could brawl and slug, but that he was in deed a very clever fighter with considerable skill. Terry had a solid defense throughout, but it was his offense that brought out the crowd. Bernstein used a very good defense as well and by keeping his guard up Terry was forced to work the body, which he did very, very well. Joe seemed to better at infighting, but he was still outmatched by the “Brooklyn Wonder.” Terry was the aggressor throughout and was extremely effective working the body of his opponent, while Bernstein was relegated to cover and counter punch to keep from absorbing the solid whacks that McGovern was capable of landing to the head. Although the bout was a very hard fought battle between the two the only blood that was spilled was a slight trinkle of crimson from the nose of Bernstein. At the end of the bout the referee, Johnny White, awarded McGovern the decision on points which was applauded by the crowd. Bernstein was down twice from the hard shots of McGovern, but he managed to last out the match. McGovern winner by decision after twenty-five rounds. Brooklyn Eagle and Police Gazette
May 26 vs. Sammy Kelly: This bout took place in New York, NY at the Broadway AC. Kelly came out fresh in the fifth round, feinted, then led, but missed, and like a flash McGovern was in, first with a left hook to the stomach, then a right to the jaw, and Kelly staggered. McGovern planted another, then a hard right jolt on the jaw, and Kelly went down like a log. He made a feeble effort to rise, but was counted out. New York Times W KO 5 BDE
Jul 1 vs. Johnny Ritchie: This bout took place in Tuckahoe, NY at the Westchester AC. The fight was to be fought at 118 pounds for a purse of $2000; $1500 to the winner and $500 to the loser. Scheduled for twenty-five rounds with clean breaking and no hitting in the clinches were the stipulations of the bout. The fight was to decide the Bantamweight Champion of America and the winner would face Pedlar Palmer for World recognition as Bantamweight Champion. Jimmy Carroll was referee. A left hook to the point of the chin put Ritchie down and out in the third round. Brooklyn Daily Eagle
Sep 29 vs. Fred Snyder: This bout took place in Philadelphia, PA at the Industrial Hall AC. WTKO 3 PI
--Snyder was down twice in the first and six times in the second after which the police stopped the bout.
Oct 9 vs. Billy Rotchford: This bout took place in Chicago, IL at Tattersall’s AA. McGovern went after Rotchford much the same way as he attacked Palmer in September and the result was a quick ending of around a minute. W KO 1 BDE
Nov 30 vs. Eddie Sprague: This bout took place in Hartford, CT at the Nutmeg State AC. It took less than a minute of the second round for Terry to put an end to matters. Sprague was down three times in the first round. He was down once in the second in which he was counted out. W KO 2 PG/DD
1900
Jan 29 vs. Jack Ward: This bout took place in Baltimore, MD at the North Avenue Rink (Eureka AC). Ward was never given much thought of winning, but he was a decent and fairly clever opponent for Terry to show his wares against and he was expected to give Terry a few rounds of work, but that was not the case. Ward was outclassed and overwhelmed right from the get-go and was dropped for the ten count in rather quick fashion. One observer stated that the bout looked like a Topy Spaniel against a Bull Terrier. McGovern was just superior in every area and at the sound of the gong he went straight after Ward. Ward tried to fight back, but Terry was invincible to any counter shots as he bombed Ward into a corner and into submission. After landing some hard body shots Terry sent over a right that was very compact, but very powerful and Ward went down and out until referee Al Herford reached the count of ten. The time was two minutes and five seconds of the first round. Police Gazette
Feb 1 vs. Eddie Santry: The bout took place in Chicago, IL at Tattersall’s AA. For the Featherweight Championship of the World. Santry’s clever defensive work bothered Terry for a couple of rounds, but once he settled in it was only a matter of time. Santry had claimed his stake to the World Featherweight Title (122 lbs) by virtue of his knockout victory over Ben Jordan of England. Referee: George Siler. Santry was down once in the second and again in the fourth. Santry tried to keep his distance in the fifth, but when he realized that it was impossible Eddie bravely made a stand, which would turn out to be a mistake as Terry thrived on that type of fighting. Both were swinging wildly when a McGovern uppercut stopped Santry in his tracks and caused him to drop his guard and Terry instantly seized the opportunity and dropped a left to the jaw followed by a right to the ear as Santry was falling. Eddie fell face first and rolled over. At the count of nine Santry got to his knees and tried to straighten himself up, but was unable to do so and referee Siler gave the bout to McGovern by knockout in five. McGovern did not have a mark on him when he left the ring. Cripple Creek Morning Times. I have a great write-up from the Chicago Tribune by George Siler, who referee’d the fight.
Mar 9 vs. Oscar Gardner: This bout took place in New York, NY at the Broadway AC. WKO 3 BDE
--Featherweight Championship of the World; Weights: 123 - 123 ½. Referee: Johnny White. A left to the jaw put Terry down in the first round, but McGovern rose with a vengeance and his attack on Gardner was of cyclonic proportions. Gardner went down three times, each time almost taking the count. A left hook to the neck put Oscar down and out.
Apr 17 vs. Tommy White: This bout took place in Chicago, IL at Tattersall’s AA. WPTS 6 BDE
--Att: 12,000. White was mainly on the defensive while Terry was the aggressor throughout.
Apr 20 vs. Tommy Warren: This bout took place in New York, NY at the Broadway AC. When the match was made, Sam Harris, the champion's manager, did not know anything about Warren, or the bout never would have taken place. When Harris did learn about him he tried to have the match declared off, but the club insisted that he carry out his contract. At 8:30 o'clock last evening he again asked that it be canceled, but had to live up to the articles. Warren, who is about 45 years old, weighed fully 140 pounds, but did not look to be in any kind of shape. Terry was afraid to hit him hard and only tapped him lightly. Twice Warren went down from right hand swings and he was weak when the round closed. The crowd began hooting when they saw what Warren really was and the club officials decided to call it off. Brooklyn Daily Eagle W TKO 1
Jun 12 vs. Tommy White: This bout took place in Brooklyn, NY at the Seaside AC. WKO 3 BDE
--Featherweight Championship of the World. White was down seven times in the third and final round.
Jul 16 vs. Frank Erne: This bout took place in New York, NY at Madison Square Garden. Erne had a record of 28-2-12 (13 KO) prior to the contest. Attendance: 14,000 (est). Erne was certainly the more clever of the two, but McGovern’s onslaught was so fierce, as it always is, that Erne could not hold him off. Erne, the World Lightweight Champion, had agreed to to get down to 128, which is five pounds below the lightweight limit for the bout. McGovern was sent to his knees in the first round after Erne landed a straight left to the chin, but Terry was up and on the attack again. In the third round a fusillade of punches to the body and head put Erne down for a nine count and he was a mask of crimson as he gallantly reached his feet. McGovern met him with another volley of punches and for a short time Erne tried to mix it with Terry, but McGovern’s attack was too fierce and Erne sank to the canvas. Courageously Erne was up again before the ten-count was tolled, but he was visibly in very bad shape and as Terry stalked and measured his opponent Frank’s seconds threw in the sponge signaling that McGovern was Erne’s master by technical knockout in three rounds. It was probably McGovern’s greatest performance and with it came Terry’s third knockout of current world champions all within nine months time; bantamweight, featherweight and lightweight world champions all fell under the furious onslaught that was Terry McGovern in the ring!
1902
Feb 22 vs. Dave Sullivan: This bout took place in Louisville, KY at the Southern AC. Sullivan carried a record of 23-8-16 (17 KO) into the bout. Some sources report this bout as a Lightweight Championship of the World contest. After fifteen grueling rounds in one of the best fights that was ever witnessed in Louisville, “Terrible” Terry came out on top with a technical knockout. It was not one of the whirlwind victories that has made Terry such an instant success, but instead a battle of attrition and one of the most difficult struggles of McGovern’s career in the ring. For the first ten rounds the battle was about as even as it could get with both men fighting furiously. Terry took over in the tenth round and in the eleventh round he floored Sullivan and upon rising it was evident that it was know only a matter of time before McGovern slipped his special brand of sleeping potion over to Sullivan. Sullivan was exhausted as the twelfth round started and from then on he was mainly in a defensive survival mode, but McGovern would not be denied that which he loved most…a knockout! Making a final stand Sullivan put together a nice little rally in the fourteenth round, but by the end of the round McGovern’s attack had Sullivan clinching for dear life as Terry blasted lefts and rights to his opponents head and body. Sullivan, game to the core, started another rally in the fifteenth round, but he was down quickly. Sullivan was not out cold, but as he rose before the fatal ten count McGovern came at him like the beast he was and Dave just sank back down to the canvas at which time referee, Bob Fitzsimmons, wisely called a halt and awarded the win to McGovern. Brooklyn Daily Eagle
1903
Feb 6 vs. Joe Bernstein: This bout took place in Philadelphia, PA at the Industrial Hall AC. After a year out of the ring, McGovern returned to the ring wars to face an old rival in Joe Bernstein this being their third bout against one another; Terry won the previous two, the last by knockout. Industrial Hall was packed long before the main bout came on. At no point during the bout did Bernstein have an advantage and although he finished on his feet through six rounds McGovern gave Bernstein considerable punishment and beat him decisively. Joe did land some hard shots on occasion, but he always took a drubbing in return. Terry did most of his work to the body and it was evident that the “old power” still lingered in McGovern’s lethal fists and had any of the vicious body blows landed to Bernstein’s head he would have surely took a nap on the canvas. Joe was down for a nine-count in the fifth round, but Terry was unable to put him away as Bernstein still possessed the heart of a winner although he lost. Not being able to put Bernstein away also may have been because of McGovern’s lengthy hiatus out of the ring, but Terry was in splendid condition physically and he fought fast throughout all six rounds and looked as though he could have went several more rounds had the occasion called for it. Philadelphia Evening Bulletin
Mar 31 vs. Young Corbett II: Featherweight Championship of the World. This bout took place in San Francisco, CA at Mechanic’s Pavilion. Corbett entered the ring with a record of 39-4-8 (30 KO). At 8:30 P.M. the betting was 10 to 9 in favor of McGovern. The fight was fast and neither man showed a bit of idleness. Corbett had a shade in nearly every round and when he stunned Terry in the eleventh round, Corbett seized the moment and went after Terry without letting up until McGovern sank to the floor a battered and beaten man! Terry was down for a seven-count in the first round and again in the second. George Harding was timekeeper and he stated that the blows that put Terry out were left and right swings to the head followed by a right uppercut to the chin. The big amphitheatre was packed with an estimated 11,000 screaming fans, which was the largest crowd to ever witness a bout in San Francisco at that point in time. Corbett was attended by Alex Greggains, Tim McGraw, Billy Otts and Harry Tuthill. McGovern was accompanied by Sam Harris, Charlie Mayhood, Eddie Cain and Joe Angelo. Ed Graney was referee. Corbett came in at 127 and McGovern was several pounds under the required weight. Both me were in excellent condition and gave it their all until Corbett was declared the victor in round eleven! Daily Kennebec Journal
Oct 3 vs. Billy Willis: This bout took place in Philadelphia, PA at the National AC. Willis was game and although he was greatly overmatched he gave McGovern six tough rounds. Terry fought like the “Terry of old,” as he lit into his opponent in whirlwind fashion, but he was met head on by the scrappy Willis. Only once did Billy try to stall. It was in the fourth round after McGovern had landed a brutal right hand to the body and Willis, who was visibly weakened by the blow, did not hesitate to save himself by holding on. With that one exception, Willis met and fought McGovern every inch of the way. Willis put up the fight of his life, but McGovern was master of the bout in all six rounds. Willis came into the bout with a record of 36-6-18 (10 KO) in 61 total bouts. Milwaukee Free Press
Oct 20 vs. Jimmy Briggs: This bout took place in Boston, MA. For the first ten rounds it seemed as though McGovern had lost the “it” that he use to possess and a favorable decision in his favor was greatly in doubt. However, through great ring generalship Terry had his opponent at his mercy by the time the bout ended as he dealt out some terrible punishment upon his foe, but Terry never could land the homerun punch. During the last two rounds, McGovern landed around twenty shots that he put every ounce of his strength into. Briggs took it well, but he was a well-beaten fighter by this time. Briggs was overly game, but over matched. The men were teeing off at one another when the bell rang ending the fight. ***
--Briggs came into the bout with a record of 47-11-20 (18 KO) in 78 total bouts.
1904
Jan 1 vs. Leo Henninger: The bout took place in Allentown, PA. A right to the body ended the fight. Henninger was several pounds heavier than Terry and from the very beginning of the first round Leo tried to use it to his advantage. Time and again Henninger went straight at McGovern, which was met with hard shots to the stomach and head and by rounds end Henninger was ducking, dodging and holding on for survival. McGovern came out with a vengeance and a snarl in the second and was on top of Henninger before he could get his hands up. A feint to the body gave Terry the opening he was looking for and viscous right cross to the chin dropped Henninger for a nine count. As he staggered to his feet Leo was met with a savage barrage of punches and was soon hung over the ropes by a quick one-two punch. As Henninger bounced off the ropes Terry had him measured and cut loose a long right which crashed home with telling effect and McGovern watched as his opponent was counted out in the second round. Police Gazette
1905
Oct 18 vs. "Harlem" Tommy Murphy: This bout took place in Philadelphia, PA at the National AC. The large club house was packed with 3,500 fans (tickets sold-out) that showed up to witness the bout and were given a treat as McGovern come out like the McGovern of old and annihilated Murphy at 2:08 (some list 2:02) of the first round. Terry beat Murphy into such a helpless state that referee Jack McGuigan had no other alternative other than to stop the bout. Murphy was knocked down four times during the brief encounter and Terry left the ring without a scratch. The articles of agreement called for 127 pounds at 6:00 P.M., and both were under that weight. Betting was pretty lively at even money. Both men appeared to be in good condition when they entered the ring. When the gong sounded the men went right after one another. Murphy was little impressed with McGovern’s reputation as a brawler and stood there toe-to-toe with the terror of Brooklyn on even terms until Terry landed one of his famous straight rights and down Murphy went. It was a devastating punch and it was clear to everyone present that Murphy was in a bad way. As he reached his feet at the count of nine, Murphy staggered across the ring and met with a right uppercut that dropped him like he had been shot! Up again at the count of nine, Murphy was hit with a hard left to the jaw that almost sent him through the ropes, but was pushed back by spectators and turned around into a storm of blows. At this point Tommy was defenseless and after McGovern dropped him on two more occasions referee McGuigan stopped the bout and awarded McGovern the win by technical knockout at 2:08 of the first round. Philadelphia Public Ledger
1908
May 16 vs. Young Loughrey: The bout took place in Philadelphia, PA at the National AC. Going into the bout, Loughrey had a record of 48-21-21 (17 KO). According to the DKJ, Loughrey had the better of the mill. Daily Kennebec Journal has a good write-up of the bout. Daily Kennebec Journal
May 26 vs. Frank "Spike" Robson: The bout took place in New York, NY at the National AC. The bout was somewhat tame. McGovern started well and landed enough blows to knock out any man had the punches had any steam on them. In the sixth round there was a glimpse of the McGovern of old, but the strength was not there. According to the Washington Post the bout was even. Washington Post