Newsletter Vol3 No 5
Posted: 12 Oct 2008, 15:31
The Boxing Biographies Newsletter
Volume 3- No 5 11th Oct , 2008
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LIVERPOOL MEMORIES
Billy McDonald
http://www.boxrec.com/list_bouts.php?hu ... &cat=boxer
Country United Kingdom
Global Id 205155
Birthplace Liverpool, England
Division Lightweight
Born 1924-01-01
Career Record © www.boxrec.com
Billy McDonald was an all action lightweight who was always popular in Liverpool. He joined the old Unity Boys Club in Upper Parliament Street, Liverpool, before moving to the Kensington ABC. He sparred Terry Allen during the Second World War whilst both boxers served in the Middle East .When he left the service in 1947 he immediately turned pro. He had a total of 28 paid contests, winning 18 and losing only seven. The Ex-Liverpool pro Gerry McNally stated that a six-rounder between Billy and Billy Barton was the best fight he'd ever seen at the Stadium. After retiring Billy stayed in the game as first a trainer with his old Kensington club and later a manager. Amongst those he trained in their early careers were John Conteh and Harry Scott. Billy died after collapsing at a boxing show at the old Holiday Inn in 1985.
the Liverpool Echo 16 February 1974.
BILLY McDONALD
`Pet Shop' boy Billy was a whippet in the ring
At the 13 stone plus that he scales these days, it is hard to visualise the Liverpool boxing manager Billy McDonald as a speedy whippet-like lightweight. Yet that is what he was in the early post-war years when his all foam style earned him many good victories and saw him through his first contests with only two defeats. Billy, cheerful and conscientious, spends his days behind the counter of his pet shop and his evenings running one of the busiest professional boxing gymnasiums in the North at Memphis Hall. Such dedication deserves a Stadium full of champions. However, 20 years after taking out a managers licence, Billy is still waiting for the day when he will turn out his first British title holder.
One of a huge family of 10 boys and two girls, two of Billy's brothers Alec and Charlie were also boxers, while another brother, Jack played as full back for Liverpool FC during the Second World War. Billy started out With the Unity Boys Club in Upper Parliament Street when he was about 10 years of age, stayed with them for four years then moved on to Kensington ABC where he came under the influence of the Douglas brothers, Les and Edga.
Billy was a bantam and/or feather in those days, and recalls losing twice to Birkenhead's Frankie Williams and beating Larry Murray at the Liverpool Stadium on a Northern Counties v London bill in 1943. Later that year Billy, who had been deferred because he was a railway fitter, joined the Army and before he was demobbed he spent much of his time in the Middle East where, despite his amateur status, he regularly boxed with Terry Allen, later to become World champion. "At these shows we would salute the presenting officer, take our medals after the bout then go back stage and hand them back and pick up either £8 for a win or £6 for a loss in National Savings Certificates."
Billy boxed regularly at the Fleet Club in Alexandria, met Cyril Vance on the big V E Day show at the Dekhela Stadium and later had many ring battles in Palestine. When he came out of the Army in 1947 Billy immediately turned professional and though he never had an official manager his affairs were always handled by his old pal Les Douglas.
Billy made his paid debut as a lightweight at the St James' Hall Newcastle on 2 October 1947. He drew with Wilf Bone and came back with just £5 to show for his efforts and the lengthy trip. A week later he drew again, this time at the Stadium, with George Dorset and cleared £6. It was not a particularly brilliant start, but Billy had laid the foundations for a very useful career, in which he was to lose only twice in his first 23 bouts and finish with an overall record of 28 contests, 18 wins, three draws and seven defeats.
Perhaps Billy's biggest chance, and his best payday, came when he met Bert Hornby at Anfield, Liverpool, as the chief supporting contest to the clash of Stan Rowan and Jackie Patterson. It was bad luck for Billy when he had to retire with a badly swollen eye at the end of the fifth. Billy also had two good wins over South African Fanie Bushney, knocking him out in two rounds with a straight left then forcing him to retire in four and he particularly recalls outpointing Billy Barton. "My father would never watch me box but our contest was broadcast that night and he sat and listened to it at home. It made my parents' night when the commentator told how my mother had made my black and red dressing gown."
Billy's first defeat came at the hands of Mick Green of Blackpool although he reversed the result the following week. He then won 11 in a row before going in as a short notice substitute and losing to Johnny Smith (Clydebank). Apart from Fanie his best wins came over Maurice Mancini (out of the Randy Turpin stable), Mick O'Neill, Sunderland's Hugh Smith and Tony McTigue of Wigan. A hard hitter, McTigue took a non-stop pounding from Billy who ran out a decisive points winner while Smith was cut about both eyes and was down in the last round but hung on to the final bell.
When he beat Johnny Walsh of Blackpool Billy had him down for four long counts before knocking him out in six. After losing to Bert Hornby early in 1945, he hit a bad streak dropping a points decision to New Zealander Jacky Jenkins then being beaten by Roy Sharples, Les Rendle and Freddie Smith. This was five reverses in a row and the legacy of the Smith fight on 29 September 1950 was a black eye that he carried with him when he walked up the aisle to his wedding a week later.
Billy never boxed again after this but his wife Toni said, "don't let anybody think I am stopping him boxing – the decision was entirely Bill's." With his gloves hung up Billy still wanted to stay in the game and the chance came through his old amateur club, Kensington which was rather run down. Amateur stalwart Sid Thomas offered to take on the secretary's job if Bill would become trainer and this he did.
Eventually he moved on to the PBA gym in Liverpool, took a professional manager's licence and made his first signings in the shape of Billy Evans and Steve Ako. Finally in 1961 he secured his present gym, had the British lightweight champion Dave Charnley along for the official opening mid has never looked back. He feels his best prospect of all was former Central Area light-heavyweight champion Ray Ako, who is unluckily lost to the game through ill health, but recalls another light-heavy, Joe Louis, who beat Jack Bodell in two rounds at Fleetwood, then refused an Empire title with Chic Calderwood saying he was not ready. 24 hours later Louis changed his mind but the chance was gone.
Billy had a particularly soft spot for Billy Evans, a fine willing worker who twice boxed Lennie 'the Lion' Williams, and once had him down. He also trained Liverpool middle Harry Scott during his purple patch against Ruben Carter, Nino Benvenuti and Lazio Papp, and spent many mornings with the triple champion John Conteh on roadwork.
Name: Terry Allen
Career Record: click
Birth Name: Edward Albert Govier
Nationality: British
Hometown: Islington, London, United Kingdom
Born: 1924-06-18
Died: 1987-04-08
Age at Death: 62
Stance: Orthodox
Height: 5′ 2″
Allen was a clever boxer who won the Flyweight Championship of the World during his career; He began his career using the name Edward Govier; After going AWOL from the British Navy during World War II, he swapped ID cards with a person named Terry Allen; He eventually was arrested and sent to Egypt to serve out the remainder of World War II
He defeated such men as Rinty Monaghan, Jimmy Gill, Norman Tennant, Honore Pratesi, Vic Herman, Eric Marsden, Jimmy Pearce, Dickie O'Sullivan and Mickey Jones
Terry Allen (born June 18, 1924, in Islington, England, died April 8, 1987) was an English flyweight boxer of heritage. During his career, he became British, Commonwealth, European and World flyweight champion. Allen's father was a professional boxer. Allen’s mother died when he was two, and he was raised by his grandmother. Six of his cousins were also professional boxers.
He started boxing when he was nine and won a schoolboy championship. During his amateur career, he won 102 out of 107 contests.He had his first professional fight in September 1942, at the age of eighteen. He beat Jim Thomas on points over six rounds at Caledonian Road Baths, Islington.
He then proceeded to win his first thirty-two fights. In 1942, during the Second World War, he joined the Royal Navy, and while stationed at Alexandria, Egypt, he fought and won fifteen bouts, between May 1944 and December 1945.
His first defeat was in May 1946 against Alex Murphy by a knockout in the sixth round at Harringay Arena.He continued to win the vast majority of his fights, until, in September 1949, he challenged Rinty Monaghan, for his British, Commonwealth, European and World flyweight titles. The fought in Monaghan’s hometown of Belfast, and the result after fifteen rounds was a draw.
Shortly after this fight, Monaghan retired, relinquishing his titles, and in April 1950, Allen fought Honore Pratesi of France for the vacant European and World flyweight titles. The fight was held at Harringay Arena and Allen won on points over fifteen rounds to gain both titles.
In August 1950, he defended his World title against Dado Marino of the United States. The fight was held in Honolulu and Marino won a unanimous points decision to take the title.
In October 1950, Allen lost his European title when he defended it against Jan Sneyers of Belgium in Nottingham. Sneyers won on points, but the British crowd thought that Allen had won, and booed the decision.
In June 1951, Allen fought Vic Herman for the British flyweight title vacated by Rinty Monaghan. The fight was in Leicester and Allen won on points.
In November 1951, Allen had a re-match with Dado Marino for the World flyweight title. The fight was in Honolulu, and Marino won again by a unanimous decision.
In March 1952, he fought against Teddy Gardner for the British, Commonwealth and European flyweight titles. The fight was held in Newcastle-upon-Tyne, and Gardner won on points to take all three titles. Shortly afterwards Gardner retired leaving the titles vacant.
In October 1952, Allen fought for the vacant British flyweight title, against Eric Marsden. He won the title when the fight was stopped in the sixth.
In October 1953, he had another shot at a World title when he fought Yoshio Shirai, in Tokyo. Unfortunately for Allen, the Japanese won a unanimous decision.
In February 1954, Allen defended his British title against Eric Marsden, who he had beaten previously. He won again, this time on a disqualification in the fifth round.
Allen’s last fight was an unsuccessful challenge for the vacant European flyweight title. He fought Nazzareno Giannelli, in Milan, Italy, but the Italian won on points.
Retirement
Allen had worked as a barrow boy at the beginning of his boxing career, and after retiring, he was able to open his own vegetable business in Islington market.
Boxing News September 3, 1952
GETS CHANCE FOR REVENGE
A CAPACITY crowd of 5,000 saw Terry Allen earn the right to again meet holder, when he battled his way to a Middlesbrough (7-12-15), in the final British title eliminating contest over twelve rounds.
.
Pearce, with an advantage in reach which he used to good effect in the second half, gave a good account of himself, but Allen's speed was the decisive factor and the Middlesbrough boy just failed to turn the tables.
The Londoner was always a shade faster to the punch. Pearce, however, was the crisper hitter and with a little more confidence in the early rounds might well have realised his schoolboy ambition to fight for a British crown.
Allen comfortably took the opening three rounds with his faster punching and more experienced inside work. Refusing to be shaken out of his stride by his opponent's fierce attacks. Pearce settled down to counter with strong straight lefts and also showed a willingness to " mix it " whenever they got close. which was often.
TOE-TO-TOE SESSION
Allen in an all-out last round effort put everything he knew into action and a grand toe-to-toe slamming session had the large crowd on their feet throughout the round. Allen moved straight to the attack in the opening round, but Pearce neatly countered with a short right high to the head. Pearce was shaken near the end of the round as Allen landed a strong right swing.
Terry took the initiative again in the second, but Pearce was the first to score with a left to the face. Allen continued to move in at speed and caught his man with a good left to the body.
Back-pedalling hastily to get clear of a swinging left as Allen attacked, Jimmy failed to dodge a further left as his opponent pressed forward. Twice Allen rushed his man to the ropes. but though he took no serious punishment Pearce looked a little anxious
CROWD YELLING
Just before the bell, however. Jimmy had the crowd yelling wildly as he attacked and scored with a right to the face.
In the fourth Allen again attacked with two-fisted rushes. but. Pearce, gaining confidence, was ready and stopped him short with a solid punch or two to the body.
Pearce moved back from a powerful body blow as they came up for the fifth and was almost caught off balance. He recovered smartly, how• ever, and scored with a left to the face, before another speedy attack by Terry resulted in a hard close-quarter exchange.
Pearce came out for the next round with a two-handed swinging attack, but with first-class ringcraft Allen dodged clear. Jimmy twice caught Allen with his guard down and scored rapidly to the face with both hands.
In a grand toe-to-toe session in the seventh, Pearce scored with a good uppercut which shook the Londoner More than a little. but in a later exchange on the ropes, Pearce was the recipient of a similar blow.
Allen attacked with flicking lefts in the eighth. Pearce then landed a right to Allen's face and took a two-handed shower in reply.
Pearce won the ninth, scoring with two good lefts and then beat a hasty retreat from a powerful Allen rush. Quickly coming back. Jimmy shook his man with a straight right to the face.
For all Allen's speed. Pearce gave as much as he received in the follow- 1 ing round, countering well with straight blows to the body. Firmly standing his ground in the eleventh, Pearce stopped Allen in the centre of the ring with his right. Allen did most of the attacking. while Pearce boxed well on the retreat.
FIERCE LAST ROUND
Terry went all out in the final round and fierce shoulder-to-shoulder sessions often had to be separated by the referee. Keeping up the fast pace, Allen launched attack upon attack and the round ended as they slammed it out in the middle of the ring. : .
John ‘Rinty’ Monaghan
Undefeated World Flyweight Champion
1918 - 1984
‘Rinty’ Monaghan became the world flyweight boxing champion at the Kings Hall, Belfast in 1948 and retired undefeated in 1950 at the end of a sixteen-year professional boxing career in which he fought sixty-six contests, winning fifty-one, drawing six others and being beaten only nine times.
John Joseph Monaghan was born on 21 August 1918 at 23 Lancaster Street, Belfast and, after marrying Frances Thompson in 1938, he moved to Little Corporation Street, in the Docklands area of the city. There he raised his three daughters, Martha, Rosetta and Colette and son, Sean, and lived for the rest of his life.
Earlier, while still at school in St Patrick’s Christian Brothers at Donegall Street, aged just 11, he began taking part in street boxing contests earning a fish and chip supper when he won. By the time he was fourteen he was picking up purses of a few shillings for victories and at the age of fourteen was well on the way to a professional boxing career, training in a tumbledown gym in Hardinge Street.
There are conflicting versions of how he acquired the enduring nickname ‘Rinty’: one says it originated in his childhood because of his enthusiasm for ‘Rin Tin Tin’, the heroic German Shepherd dog, which starred in a series of popular 1920’s movies; another is that it was a tribute to his nifty footwork in the boxing ring.
Whatever the truth, his early career was highly successful and he did not suffer a defeat until he was knocked out by Glaswegian Jackie Patterson during his twenty-fifth professional fight in 1938.
The defeat was only a temporary setback but Monaghan’s career was interrupted by wartime service in the Navy which chose not to exploit his fighting instincts but sent him instead to such places as Norway, Gibraltar and, in 1944, forty-eight hours after D-Day, to Normandy where he entertained the troops as a song and dance man. He managed to fit in a small number of fights during the wartime years but in November 1945, out of uniform and back in full training, Monaghan knocked out Eddie ‘Bunty’ Doran to win the Ulster flyweight title.
His target now became the world title and in 1947 he beat Londoner, Terry Allen, the fight being stopped in the first round. Later that year he lost then won against Dado Marino, securing the NBA flyweight title.
In March 1948, there followed the highpoint of his career when he knocked out his old adversary, Patterson, in the seventh round of a fight at the Kings Hall to become the undisputed British, Commonwealth and World flyweight champion, reputedly the first Northern Ireland boxer ever to hold a world title. Monaghan later claimed that the clinching factor in his pre-fight preparations had been a diet of goat’s milk and raw eggs.
As Patterson was carried from the ring, it was besieged by thousands of jubilant supporters and Monaghan later said he had to fight again that night, this time to reach his home through the milling crowds in York and Corporation Streets where celebratory bonfires had been lit.
In April 1949 he retained his world championship and won the European flyweight title when he defeated Frenchman, Maurice Sandeyron, in Belfast and the following September, although he could only draw with Terry Allen in Belfast, he held on to his titles.
By this time, Monaghan had developed a chronic lung and sinus condition and in April 1950, aged 32,he was forced to renounce his titles and retire undefeated. He tried to make a comeback a few years later but he was refused a licence to fight again professionally and finally hung up his gloves. At that point, it was calculated, he had fought a total of some 180 bouts. Of the sixty-six officially recorded contests, he won fifty-one, drew six others and was beaten only nine times.
From his £3,500 purse for winning the world title, Monaghan bought a radiogram and a large three-piece suite, which left hardly any room in his tiny terrace house. Although he made good money, but not a life changing fortune, from his boxing, it was quickly dissipated for he was badly advised and fell for too many hard-luck stories.
Trying to cash in on his undoubted popularity as an entertainer - he had always performed his trademark ‘When Irish Eyes Are Smiling‘ at the end of his fights - he went on the road as a singer with a small band and even tried to train winning greyhounds. He also indulged heavily in his passion for snooker, several times reaching the finals of amateur competitions. In the end, although no other boxer ever stripped him of his titles, the taxman relieved him of his remaining money forcing him to work successively as a taxi driver, lorry driver and then a petrol pump attendant to make a living.
For the rest of his days, Monaghan was philosophical about his lot and said he had no complaints. He remained a much loved and highly popular figure and, as he went about his various jobs, people throughout Belfast invariably recognised the battered little man with his twinkling eyes and permanent smile.
He remained, too, a gregarious figure and is widely remembered for his constant willingness to burst into song, his eye-popping impersonation of ‘Popeye the Sailor’, tap dancing and mouth-organ playing. On one famous occasion, he entertained a train load of ex-boxers and their friends for the six hour duration of an excursion by train to Cork.
His sense of humour did not desert him in 1976 when a local radio station wrongly broadcast news of his death. ‘I’m not floored yet,’ he chuckled when he phoned to correct the report.
Soon afterwards, however, illness forced him to give up his cabaret spots and he finally succumbed to lung cancer and died on 3 March 1984, aged 65. He is buried in the Belfast City Cemetery beneath a headstone with the inscription ‘Undefeated World Flyweight Champion’ etched between the images of two boxing gloves.
Earlier in his life, Jack Solomons, the renowned boxing promoter, had described Monaghan as ‘a leprechaun with fists of steel’. On his passing the Belfast Telegraph devoted an editorial to him: ‘The death of Rinty Monaghan marks the end of the last fight by the former world champion, who battled bravely against illness, but the memory will live on. He was more than a boxer or a showman. He was also an institution, His name was known by people inside and outside boxing. He personified courage, style and, above all, a sense of fun.’
Location of plaque: Kings Hall, Balmoral, Belfast Date of unveiling: 2 May 2007
Name: Dick Richardson
Career Record: click
Nationality: British
Hometown: Newport, Wales, United Kingdom
Born: 1934-06-01
Died: 1999-07-15
Age at Death: 65
Division: Heavyweight
Trainer: Johnny Lewis, Johnny Williams
Manager: Wally Leslie
Dick Richardson
Hard man of British boxing who left his mark on Henry Cooper
· The Guardian,
· Friday July 16 1999
Those who only met the genial Welshman Dick Richardson in recent years, when he was an affable, smiling presence at the ringside of numerous boxing shows, and an enthusiastic supporter of boxing reunions and charity events, knew only half the story. The former European heavyweight champion, who has died aged 65, was a genuinely hard man, who thrilled a generation of British fight fans with his rough-house style.
In an era which produced such top British heavyweights as Henry Cooper, Brian London, Joe Erskine and Joe Bygraves, Richardson nevertheless made his mark, sometimes literally. "Dick was a dirty bastard," Henry Cooper once said in an interview. "He loved to put the nut in. He used to do it deliberately, usually in the first round." A jagged scar between Cooper's eyes is lasting testimony to a head butt Richardson dished out to his opponent when they fought at Porthcawl in 1958.
Cooper won that fight when his trademark left hook halted Richardson in the fifth round, and he was to beat him at the same stage - and in similar style - when they met again in 1963, when Cooper's British title was at stake. But, between 1960 and 1962, Richardson was good enough to win the European title from the German Hans Kalbfel with a 13th round stoppage in Dortmund - and to defend it successfully on three occasions, before losing in the eighth round in Gothenburg to the former world title holder Ingemar Johansson.
It was Richardson's European title defence against Brian London in August 1960, captured by BBC television, which has gone down in boxing folklore; the night was consigned to sporting history as "the brawl in Porthcawl". London had been forced to retire with serious cuts in the eighth round, but protested that Richardson had been butting him and should have been disqualified. Richardson's trainer, Johnny Lewis, remonstrated with London, and was promptly knocked to the canvas for his pains. A scene reminiscent of a wild west saloon fight broke out, as seconds piled into the ring and Richardson had to be pinned to his stall by corner men to prevent him joining the fray. London was fined £1,000 - a sizeable sum at the time - by the British Boxing Board of Control for the episode.
On hearing of his old adversary's death, he said: "Whenever we met, we would always laugh about that night in Porthcawl. There was never any animosity between Dick and me. He was a great lad, a very good fighter, and he will be greatly missed."
Richardson was born in Newport, the son of a milkman who supplemented his earnings as a motor cyclist with a fairground wall of death show. His father's death, when Richardson was only seven, contributed to a difficult childhood, and the youngster was frequently acquainted with street violence. National service helped give him much-needed purpose and discipline, and it was then that he was introduced to boxing, which he pursued with such success he became the 1954 army champion.
A professional career which ended with retirement in 1963, brought him 31 victories, 14 defeats and two draws - along with handsome financial rewards, which, unlike many boxers, he invested wisely to develop a successful butcher's business in Camberley, Surrey.
He is survived by his wife, Betty, and a son and a daughter.
• Richard Alexander Richardson, boxer, born June 1, 1934; died July 14, 1999
Boxing News September 7th 1956
SIDLE up to a covey of managers, casually mention that you have seen a young heavyweight who shows promise, watch their eyes light up, then step aside quickly in case you get crushed to death in the rush for further information. Jack Dempsey’s one remaining ambition is to find a likely lad and guide him to the World heavyweight crown. To this end he stages annual talent competitions. Many managers have gained fame and fortune and have retired still regretting that they never experienced the thrill of guiding a 200 pounder to the coveted championship. Yet the chance could fall right in your lap – just as it did to Wally Lesley.
Wally has been a fight manager for well over twenty years but it was not until two years ago that one of his boxers, Johnny Lewis, introduced him to Dick Richardson. The later then a raw youngster is now one of Britain's best prospects for the World heavyweight honours.
At first glance Wally liked the look of Dick. but it was not until seven months and nine fights later in April 1955, to be precise, that Wally realised he'd got a find " Dick was fighting Denny Ball at Cardiff" he said. "As I watched him that night it came to me like a flash that here was a prospect who could win the British title. and possibly the World's crown. And he was mine, all mine.
" From then on I determined to do everything in my power to ensure that Dick received the correct guidance and resolved to profit by the mistakes made by other promising young British heavies. They had been built up quickly only to fall by the wayside.'
But this is not the Dick Richardson story. You'll find that in our issue dated October 14. 1955 Yes "Boxing News " realised his potentialities early in his career too.
Pro at 13
No. this story 's about Wally. Born in the Elephant and Castle district of South-East London, watched his first fight at the age of nine, and turned pro at thirteen.His dad, Bill Lesley, helped to instill the urge to use his mitts. The elder Lesley boxed at the old Lambeth School of Arms with great success. Then one day Willie Farrell and Charlie Ward of Blackfriars took Wally to the Catholic Club in South London where he was initiated into the " Noble Art."
Wally's pro career lasted seven years. During that time he had about 150 contests, winning most of them. and retired at the early age of 21. Among those he met were Johnny Broker, Billy Pimm, Hugo Francis. Teddy Murton, Sammy Baker, Harry Pullen, Young Clancy and Syd Whatley.
Retired at 21
And why did he retire at 21 ? Let Wally take up the story. "I loved boxing," he declared.
"I never weighed more than 8st. 41b. But averaging nearly 20 fights a year, I felt I wanted to retire while I was still winning. It was a step I never regretted.
"I didn't get any money at all for my first pro bout," he chuckled. "It was at the Empire
School of Arms in Marylebone Road. I was compensated (?) by seeing my name in the papers
the following day.
" My first purse was fifteen bob for beating Teddy Ganley, at The Ring. I used to walk
from the Elephant to Walham Green, not even sure of having a fight when I got there.
' Then I had to walk back again.
"I did plenty of instructing, too at the North Camberwell Radical Club and the Bow Street and Hunter Street Police Club. Always kept good company.
" It was while instructing at the Crossways Athletic Club that I met Margaret Waller,
who was a champion sprinter. And in 1923 we got married, Now we have three sons, youngest
of whom is 28, and three grandchildren.
" For years I worked in Covent Garden Market in a variety of capacities, checker, porter,
the lot. I once worked in a pawnbroker's shop, but got the sack for turning up with a couple of black eyes. Incidentally, I never used a protector or gumshield in my life."
In 1934 Wally took out a manager's licence, and his •first boxer was bantamweight Harry
Graham, who was sent to him by Mike Honeyman, British feathers champ in 1920. When war broke out Wally joined the Royal Artillery and was soon posted overseas to East
Africa Ind Egypt. He became a sergeant instructor in battle courses, but did he neglect
his boxing ? No, sir.
" I think I was the first one to teach boxing in Kenya," he said. " I staged a tournament there that will go down in history. We knocked tree trunks into the ground and put boards over them to make a ring, borrowed the lights from a R.A.F. hangar, then crossed our fingers and ' On with the show.' We just hoped it would stand up under the strain.". " And, did it ? " I asked.
" Sure thing," replied Wally. "And it attracted a crowd of 12,000, comprising
7,500 East Africans. 3,000 Italian prisoners, and 1,500 British troops." Came the end of the war and he came back to pick up the threads of boxing managership. He always had a good little stable, and- no reference to the Lesley clan would be complete without mention of Johnny Lewis.
Johnny was introduced to him by George Daly, whom Wally describes as "the cleverest boxer never to win a title.". "I had Johnny in the gym for ten months before I considered him ready to make his pro debut," declared Wally. " And he never let me down. His career lasted about four years. and when he retired in 1953 he became trainer to my stable.
I have no hesitation in saying that Johnny is now one of Britain' top trainers. Dick Richardson i fitter and better than he's eve been. His condition against Joe Erskine was a revelation. And it's mainly due to Johnny.
Wally has proved himself to be one of the shrewdest managers in the game, too. Although Dick': fight with Erskine was a non-title affair, Richardson's share of the purse was in the region of £5,000 far more than Erskine's. A typical Lesley stroke, and an outstanding example of his expert guidance.
Not lonely
" They say a 'loser's dressing room is the loneliest place in the world," chuckled Wally. "But not that night. I had to fight my way through the mob to get near Dick. Everyone wanted to shake his hand.
" A lot has been written about our tackling moderate Continentals. My view is this : It's better for Dick to keep fighting than lay about in the gym. And he's learning—and earning—all the time.
" Why didn't I put forward Dick's name as a contender for the British title ? Simple. Because I didn't want to be tied down at that the first time I was asked officially. The next time it cropped up I was not even asked. Presumably it was taken for granted
that my answer would be the same."
In addition to his normal duties, Wally has also acted as business manager in promotions at Crystal Palace, Manor Place Baths and Reading.When he does get a chance to relax it's the cinema (twice a week) or the London Palladium. " I love Variety," he told me, " especially ' pop ' singers like Billy, Daniels, Dave King and Dickie Valentine.
" Why are all your fighters milk roundsmen ? " I asked him. Don't tell me it's -pure coincidence."
Loves fighting
" No," replied Wally. " I believe a fighter should be near his manager. I have friends in the milk business. So, if one of my boys wants a job, then its there—on my doorstep. And don't forget they start early and finish early, leaving plenty of time for training. Good stuff for drinking, too—so they tell me.
" As to the future—this is my plan. We will meet any leading American heavyweight that may come to Britain. If they don't materialise quickly, then we'll go to the United States.
"Dick is like me. He loves fighting. He reminds me very much of Ted ' Kid 'Lewis. So I'll make a prediction. Richardson for the World's heavyweight title. And the date-1958."
Volume 3- No 5 11th Oct , 2008
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As always the full versions of these articles are on the website
LIVERPOOL MEMORIES
Billy McDonald
http://www.boxrec.com/list_bouts.php?hu ... &cat=boxer
Country United Kingdom
Global Id 205155
Birthplace Liverpool, England
Division Lightweight
Born 1924-01-01
Career Record © www.boxrec.com
Billy McDonald was an all action lightweight who was always popular in Liverpool. He joined the old Unity Boys Club in Upper Parliament Street, Liverpool, before moving to the Kensington ABC. He sparred Terry Allen during the Second World War whilst both boxers served in the Middle East .When he left the service in 1947 he immediately turned pro. He had a total of 28 paid contests, winning 18 and losing only seven. The Ex-Liverpool pro Gerry McNally stated that a six-rounder between Billy and Billy Barton was the best fight he'd ever seen at the Stadium. After retiring Billy stayed in the game as first a trainer with his old Kensington club and later a manager. Amongst those he trained in their early careers were John Conteh and Harry Scott. Billy died after collapsing at a boxing show at the old Holiday Inn in 1985.
the Liverpool Echo 16 February 1974.
BILLY McDONALD
`Pet Shop' boy Billy was a whippet in the ring
At the 13 stone plus that he scales these days, it is hard to visualise the Liverpool boxing manager Billy McDonald as a speedy whippet-like lightweight. Yet that is what he was in the early post-war years when his all foam style earned him many good victories and saw him through his first contests with only two defeats. Billy, cheerful and conscientious, spends his days behind the counter of his pet shop and his evenings running one of the busiest professional boxing gymnasiums in the North at Memphis Hall. Such dedication deserves a Stadium full of champions. However, 20 years after taking out a managers licence, Billy is still waiting for the day when he will turn out his first British title holder.
One of a huge family of 10 boys and two girls, two of Billy's brothers Alec and Charlie were also boxers, while another brother, Jack played as full back for Liverpool FC during the Second World War. Billy started out With the Unity Boys Club in Upper Parliament Street when he was about 10 years of age, stayed with them for four years then moved on to Kensington ABC where he came under the influence of the Douglas brothers, Les and Edga.
Billy was a bantam and/or feather in those days, and recalls losing twice to Birkenhead's Frankie Williams and beating Larry Murray at the Liverpool Stadium on a Northern Counties v London bill in 1943. Later that year Billy, who had been deferred because he was a railway fitter, joined the Army and before he was demobbed he spent much of his time in the Middle East where, despite his amateur status, he regularly boxed with Terry Allen, later to become World champion. "At these shows we would salute the presenting officer, take our medals after the bout then go back stage and hand them back and pick up either £8 for a win or £6 for a loss in National Savings Certificates."
Billy boxed regularly at the Fleet Club in Alexandria, met Cyril Vance on the big V E Day show at the Dekhela Stadium and later had many ring battles in Palestine. When he came out of the Army in 1947 Billy immediately turned professional and though he never had an official manager his affairs were always handled by his old pal Les Douglas.
Billy made his paid debut as a lightweight at the St James' Hall Newcastle on 2 October 1947. He drew with Wilf Bone and came back with just £5 to show for his efforts and the lengthy trip. A week later he drew again, this time at the Stadium, with George Dorset and cleared £6. It was not a particularly brilliant start, but Billy had laid the foundations for a very useful career, in which he was to lose only twice in his first 23 bouts and finish with an overall record of 28 contests, 18 wins, three draws and seven defeats.
Perhaps Billy's biggest chance, and his best payday, came when he met Bert Hornby at Anfield, Liverpool, as the chief supporting contest to the clash of Stan Rowan and Jackie Patterson. It was bad luck for Billy when he had to retire with a badly swollen eye at the end of the fifth. Billy also had two good wins over South African Fanie Bushney, knocking him out in two rounds with a straight left then forcing him to retire in four and he particularly recalls outpointing Billy Barton. "My father would never watch me box but our contest was broadcast that night and he sat and listened to it at home. It made my parents' night when the commentator told how my mother had made my black and red dressing gown."
Billy's first defeat came at the hands of Mick Green of Blackpool although he reversed the result the following week. He then won 11 in a row before going in as a short notice substitute and losing to Johnny Smith (Clydebank). Apart from Fanie his best wins came over Maurice Mancini (out of the Randy Turpin stable), Mick O'Neill, Sunderland's Hugh Smith and Tony McTigue of Wigan. A hard hitter, McTigue took a non-stop pounding from Billy who ran out a decisive points winner while Smith was cut about both eyes and was down in the last round but hung on to the final bell.
When he beat Johnny Walsh of Blackpool Billy had him down for four long counts before knocking him out in six. After losing to Bert Hornby early in 1945, he hit a bad streak dropping a points decision to New Zealander Jacky Jenkins then being beaten by Roy Sharples, Les Rendle and Freddie Smith. This was five reverses in a row and the legacy of the Smith fight on 29 September 1950 was a black eye that he carried with him when he walked up the aisle to his wedding a week later.
Billy never boxed again after this but his wife Toni said, "don't let anybody think I am stopping him boxing – the decision was entirely Bill's." With his gloves hung up Billy still wanted to stay in the game and the chance came through his old amateur club, Kensington which was rather run down. Amateur stalwart Sid Thomas offered to take on the secretary's job if Bill would become trainer and this he did.
Eventually he moved on to the PBA gym in Liverpool, took a professional manager's licence and made his first signings in the shape of Billy Evans and Steve Ako. Finally in 1961 he secured his present gym, had the British lightweight champion Dave Charnley along for the official opening mid has never looked back. He feels his best prospect of all was former Central Area light-heavyweight champion Ray Ako, who is unluckily lost to the game through ill health, but recalls another light-heavy, Joe Louis, who beat Jack Bodell in two rounds at Fleetwood, then refused an Empire title with Chic Calderwood saying he was not ready. 24 hours later Louis changed his mind but the chance was gone.
Billy had a particularly soft spot for Billy Evans, a fine willing worker who twice boxed Lennie 'the Lion' Williams, and once had him down. He also trained Liverpool middle Harry Scott during his purple patch against Ruben Carter, Nino Benvenuti and Lazio Papp, and spent many mornings with the triple champion John Conteh on roadwork.
Name: Terry Allen
Career Record: click
Birth Name: Edward Albert Govier
Nationality: British
Hometown: Islington, London, United Kingdom
Born: 1924-06-18
Died: 1987-04-08
Age at Death: 62
Stance: Orthodox
Height: 5′ 2″
Allen was a clever boxer who won the Flyweight Championship of the World during his career; He began his career using the name Edward Govier; After going AWOL from the British Navy during World War II, he swapped ID cards with a person named Terry Allen; He eventually was arrested and sent to Egypt to serve out the remainder of World War II
He defeated such men as Rinty Monaghan, Jimmy Gill, Norman Tennant, Honore Pratesi, Vic Herman, Eric Marsden, Jimmy Pearce, Dickie O'Sullivan and Mickey Jones
Terry Allen (born June 18, 1924, in Islington, England, died April 8, 1987) was an English flyweight boxer of heritage. During his career, he became British, Commonwealth, European and World flyweight champion. Allen's father was a professional boxer. Allen’s mother died when he was two, and he was raised by his grandmother. Six of his cousins were also professional boxers.
He started boxing when he was nine and won a schoolboy championship. During his amateur career, he won 102 out of 107 contests.He had his first professional fight in September 1942, at the age of eighteen. He beat Jim Thomas on points over six rounds at Caledonian Road Baths, Islington.
He then proceeded to win his first thirty-two fights. In 1942, during the Second World War, he joined the Royal Navy, and while stationed at Alexandria, Egypt, he fought and won fifteen bouts, between May 1944 and December 1945.
His first defeat was in May 1946 against Alex Murphy by a knockout in the sixth round at Harringay Arena.He continued to win the vast majority of his fights, until, in September 1949, he challenged Rinty Monaghan, for his British, Commonwealth, European and World flyweight titles. The fought in Monaghan’s hometown of Belfast, and the result after fifteen rounds was a draw.
Shortly after this fight, Monaghan retired, relinquishing his titles, and in April 1950, Allen fought Honore Pratesi of France for the vacant European and World flyweight titles. The fight was held at Harringay Arena and Allen won on points over fifteen rounds to gain both titles.
In August 1950, he defended his World title against Dado Marino of the United States. The fight was held in Honolulu and Marino won a unanimous points decision to take the title.
In October 1950, Allen lost his European title when he defended it against Jan Sneyers of Belgium in Nottingham. Sneyers won on points, but the British crowd thought that Allen had won, and booed the decision.
In June 1951, Allen fought Vic Herman for the British flyweight title vacated by Rinty Monaghan. The fight was in Leicester and Allen won on points.
In November 1951, Allen had a re-match with Dado Marino for the World flyweight title. The fight was in Honolulu, and Marino won again by a unanimous decision.
In March 1952, he fought against Teddy Gardner for the British, Commonwealth and European flyweight titles. The fight was held in Newcastle-upon-Tyne, and Gardner won on points to take all three titles. Shortly afterwards Gardner retired leaving the titles vacant.
In October 1952, Allen fought for the vacant British flyweight title, against Eric Marsden. He won the title when the fight was stopped in the sixth.
In October 1953, he had another shot at a World title when he fought Yoshio Shirai, in Tokyo. Unfortunately for Allen, the Japanese won a unanimous decision.
In February 1954, Allen defended his British title against Eric Marsden, who he had beaten previously. He won again, this time on a disqualification in the fifth round.
Allen’s last fight was an unsuccessful challenge for the vacant European flyweight title. He fought Nazzareno Giannelli, in Milan, Italy, but the Italian won on points.
Retirement
Allen had worked as a barrow boy at the beginning of his boxing career, and after retiring, he was able to open his own vegetable business in Islington market.
Boxing News September 3, 1952
GETS CHANCE FOR REVENGE
A CAPACITY crowd of 5,000 saw Terry Allen earn the right to again meet holder, when he battled his way to a Middlesbrough (7-12-15), in the final British title eliminating contest over twelve rounds.
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Pearce, with an advantage in reach which he used to good effect in the second half, gave a good account of himself, but Allen's speed was the decisive factor and the Middlesbrough boy just failed to turn the tables.
The Londoner was always a shade faster to the punch. Pearce, however, was the crisper hitter and with a little more confidence in the early rounds might well have realised his schoolboy ambition to fight for a British crown.
Allen comfortably took the opening three rounds with his faster punching and more experienced inside work. Refusing to be shaken out of his stride by his opponent's fierce attacks. Pearce settled down to counter with strong straight lefts and also showed a willingness to " mix it " whenever they got close. which was often.
TOE-TO-TOE SESSION
Allen in an all-out last round effort put everything he knew into action and a grand toe-to-toe slamming session had the large crowd on their feet throughout the round. Allen moved straight to the attack in the opening round, but Pearce neatly countered with a short right high to the head. Pearce was shaken near the end of the round as Allen landed a strong right swing.
Terry took the initiative again in the second, but Pearce was the first to score with a left to the face. Allen continued to move in at speed and caught his man with a good left to the body.
Back-pedalling hastily to get clear of a swinging left as Allen attacked, Jimmy failed to dodge a further left as his opponent pressed forward. Twice Allen rushed his man to the ropes. but though he took no serious punishment Pearce looked a little anxious
CROWD YELLING
Just before the bell, however. Jimmy had the crowd yelling wildly as he attacked and scored with a right to the face.
In the fourth Allen again attacked with two-fisted rushes. but. Pearce, gaining confidence, was ready and stopped him short with a solid punch or two to the body.
Pearce moved back from a powerful body blow as they came up for the fifth and was almost caught off balance. He recovered smartly, how• ever, and scored with a left to the face, before another speedy attack by Terry resulted in a hard close-quarter exchange.
Pearce came out for the next round with a two-handed swinging attack, but with first-class ringcraft Allen dodged clear. Jimmy twice caught Allen with his guard down and scored rapidly to the face with both hands.
In a grand toe-to-toe session in the seventh, Pearce scored with a good uppercut which shook the Londoner More than a little. but in a later exchange on the ropes, Pearce was the recipient of a similar blow.
Allen attacked with flicking lefts in the eighth. Pearce then landed a right to Allen's face and took a two-handed shower in reply.
Pearce won the ninth, scoring with two good lefts and then beat a hasty retreat from a powerful Allen rush. Quickly coming back. Jimmy shook his man with a straight right to the face.
For all Allen's speed. Pearce gave as much as he received in the follow- 1 ing round, countering well with straight blows to the body. Firmly standing his ground in the eleventh, Pearce stopped Allen in the centre of the ring with his right. Allen did most of the attacking. while Pearce boxed well on the retreat.
FIERCE LAST ROUND
Terry went all out in the final round and fierce shoulder-to-shoulder sessions often had to be separated by the referee. Keeping up the fast pace, Allen launched attack upon attack and the round ended as they slammed it out in the middle of the ring. : .
John ‘Rinty’ Monaghan
Undefeated World Flyweight Champion
1918 - 1984
‘Rinty’ Monaghan became the world flyweight boxing champion at the Kings Hall, Belfast in 1948 and retired undefeated in 1950 at the end of a sixteen-year professional boxing career in which he fought sixty-six contests, winning fifty-one, drawing six others and being beaten only nine times.
John Joseph Monaghan was born on 21 August 1918 at 23 Lancaster Street, Belfast and, after marrying Frances Thompson in 1938, he moved to Little Corporation Street, in the Docklands area of the city. There he raised his three daughters, Martha, Rosetta and Colette and son, Sean, and lived for the rest of his life.
Earlier, while still at school in St Patrick’s Christian Brothers at Donegall Street, aged just 11, he began taking part in street boxing contests earning a fish and chip supper when he won. By the time he was fourteen he was picking up purses of a few shillings for victories and at the age of fourteen was well on the way to a professional boxing career, training in a tumbledown gym in Hardinge Street.
There are conflicting versions of how he acquired the enduring nickname ‘Rinty’: one says it originated in his childhood because of his enthusiasm for ‘Rin Tin Tin’, the heroic German Shepherd dog, which starred in a series of popular 1920’s movies; another is that it was a tribute to his nifty footwork in the boxing ring.
Whatever the truth, his early career was highly successful and he did not suffer a defeat until he was knocked out by Glaswegian Jackie Patterson during his twenty-fifth professional fight in 1938.
The defeat was only a temporary setback but Monaghan’s career was interrupted by wartime service in the Navy which chose not to exploit his fighting instincts but sent him instead to such places as Norway, Gibraltar and, in 1944, forty-eight hours after D-Day, to Normandy where he entertained the troops as a song and dance man. He managed to fit in a small number of fights during the wartime years but in November 1945, out of uniform and back in full training, Monaghan knocked out Eddie ‘Bunty’ Doran to win the Ulster flyweight title.
His target now became the world title and in 1947 he beat Londoner, Terry Allen, the fight being stopped in the first round. Later that year he lost then won against Dado Marino, securing the NBA flyweight title.
In March 1948, there followed the highpoint of his career when he knocked out his old adversary, Patterson, in the seventh round of a fight at the Kings Hall to become the undisputed British, Commonwealth and World flyweight champion, reputedly the first Northern Ireland boxer ever to hold a world title. Monaghan later claimed that the clinching factor in his pre-fight preparations had been a diet of goat’s milk and raw eggs.
As Patterson was carried from the ring, it was besieged by thousands of jubilant supporters and Monaghan later said he had to fight again that night, this time to reach his home through the milling crowds in York and Corporation Streets where celebratory bonfires had been lit.
In April 1949 he retained his world championship and won the European flyweight title when he defeated Frenchman, Maurice Sandeyron, in Belfast and the following September, although he could only draw with Terry Allen in Belfast, he held on to his titles.
By this time, Monaghan had developed a chronic lung and sinus condition and in April 1950, aged 32,he was forced to renounce his titles and retire undefeated. He tried to make a comeback a few years later but he was refused a licence to fight again professionally and finally hung up his gloves. At that point, it was calculated, he had fought a total of some 180 bouts. Of the sixty-six officially recorded contests, he won fifty-one, drew six others and was beaten only nine times.
From his £3,500 purse for winning the world title, Monaghan bought a radiogram and a large three-piece suite, which left hardly any room in his tiny terrace house. Although he made good money, but not a life changing fortune, from his boxing, it was quickly dissipated for he was badly advised and fell for too many hard-luck stories.
Trying to cash in on his undoubted popularity as an entertainer - he had always performed his trademark ‘When Irish Eyes Are Smiling‘ at the end of his fights - he went on the road as a singer with a small band and even tried to train winning greyhounds. He also indulged heavily in his passion for snooker, several times reaching the finals of amateur competitions. In the end, although no other boxer ever stripped him of his titles, the taxman relieved him of his remaining money forcing him to work successively as a taxi driver, lorry driver and then a petrol pump attendant to make a living.
For the rest of his days, Monaghan was philosophical about his lot and said he had no complaints. He remained a much loved and highly popular figure and, as he went about his various jobs, people throughout Belfast invariably recognised the battered little man with his twinkling eyes and permanent smile.
He remained, too, a gregarious figure and is widely remembered for his constant willingness to burst into song, his eye-popping impersonation of ‘Popeye the Sailor’, tap dancing and mouth-organ playing. On one famous occasion, he entertained a train load of ex-boxers and their friends for the six hour duration of an excursion by train to Cork.
His sense of humour did not desert him in 1976 when a local radio station wrongly broadcast news of his death. ‘I’m not floored yet,’ he chuckled when he phoned to correct the report.
Soon afterwards, however, illness forced him to give up his cabaret spots and he finally succumbed to lung cancer and died on 3 March 1984, aged 65. He is buried in the Belfast City Cemetery beneath a headstone with the inscription ‘Undefeated World Flyweight Champion’ etched between the images of two boxing gloves.
Earlier in his life, Jack Solomons, the renowned boxing promoter, had described Monaghan as ‘a leprechaun with fists of steel’. On his passing the Belfast Telegraph devoted an editorial to him: ‘The death of Rinty Monaghan marks the end of the last fight by the former world champion, who battled bravely against illness, but the memory will live on. He was more than a boxer or a showman. He was also an institution, His name was known by people inside and outside boxing. He personified courage, style and, above all, a sense of fun.’
Location of plaque: Kings Hall, Balmoral, Belfast Date of unveiling: 2 May 2007
Name: Dick Richardson
Career Record: click
Nationality: British
Hometown: Newport, Wales, United Kingdom
Born: 1934-06-01
Died: 1999-07-15
Age at Death: 65
Division: Heavyweight
Trainer: Johnny Lewis, Johnny Williams
Manager: Wally Leslie
Dick Richardson
Hard man of British boxing who left his mark on Henry Cooper
· The Guardian,
· Friday July 16 1999
Those who only met the genial Welshman Dick Richardson in recent years, when he was an affable, smiling presence at the ringside of numerous boxing shows, and an enthusiastic supporter of boxing reunions and charity events, knew only half the story. The former European heavyweight champion, who has died aged 65, was a genuinely hard man, who thrilled a generation of British fight fans with his rough-house style.
In an era which produced such top British heavyweights as Henry Cooper, Brian London, Joe Erskine and Joe Bygraves, Richardson nevertheless made his mark, sometimes literally. "Dick was a dirty bastard," Henry Cooper once said in an interview. "He loved to put the nut in. He used to do it deliberately, usually in the first round." A jagged scar between Cooper's eyes is lasting testimony to a head butt Richardson dished out to his opponent when they fought at Porthcawl in 1958.
Cooper won that fight when his trademark left hook halted Richardson in the fifth round, and he was to beat him at the same stage - and in similar style - when they met again in 1963, when Cooper's British title was at stake. But, between 1960 and 1962, Richardson was good enough to win the European title from the German Hans Kalbfel with a 13th round stoppage in Dortmund - and to defend it successfully on three occasions, before losing in the eighth round in Gothenburg to the former world title holder Ingemar Johansson.
It was Richardson's European title defence against Brian London in August 1960, captured by BBC television, which has gone down in boxing folklore; the night was consigned to sporting history as "the brawl in Porthcawl". London had been forced to retire with serious cuts in the eighth round, but protested that Richardson had been butting him and should have been disqualified. Richardson's trainer, Johnny Lewis, remonstrated with London, and was promptly knocked to the canvas for his pains. A scene reminiscent of a wild west saloon fight broke out, as seconds piled into the ring and Richardson had to be pinned to his stall by corner men to prevent him joining the fray. London was fined £1,000 - a sizeable sum at the time - by the British Boxing Board of Control for the episode.
On hearing of his old adversary's death, he said: "Whenever we met, we would always laugh about that night in Porthcawl. There was never any animosity between Dick and me. He was a great lad, a very good fighter, and he will be greatly missed."
Richardson was born in Newport, the son of a milkman who supplemented his earnings as a motor cyclist with a fairground wall of death show. His father's death, when Richardson was only seven, contributed to a difficult childhood, and the youngster was frequently acquainted with street violence. National service helped give him much-needed purpose and discipline, and it was then that he was introduced to boxing, which he pursued with such success he became the 1954 army champion.
A professional career which ended with retirement in 1963, brought him 31 victories, 14 defeats and two draws - along with handsome financial rewards, which, unlike many boxers, he invested wisely to develop a successful butcher's business in Camberley, Surrey.
He is survived by his wife, Betty, and a son and a daughter.
• Richard Alexander Richardson, boxer, born June 1, 1934; died July 14, 1999
Boxing News September 7th 1956
SIDLE up to a covey of managers, casually mention that you have seen a young heavyweight who shows promise, watch their eyes light up, then step aside quickly in case you get crushed to death in the rush for further information. Jack Dempsey’s one remaining ambition is to find a likely lad and guide him to the World heavyweight crown. To this end he stages annual talent competitions. Many managers have gained fame and fortune and have retired still regretting that they never experienced the thrill of guiding a 200 pounder to the coveted championship. Yet the chance could fall right in your lap – just as it did to Wally Lesley.
Wally has been a fight manager for well over twenty years but it was not until two years ago that one of his boxers, Johnny Lewis, introduced him to Dick Richardson. The later then a raw youngster is now one of Britain's best prospects for the World heavyweight honours.
At first glance Wally liked the look of Dick. but it was not until seven months and nine fights later in April 1955, to be precise, that Wally realised he'd got a find " Dick was fighting Denny Ball at Cardiff" he said. "As I watched him that night it came to me like a flash that here was a prospect who could win the British title. and possibly the World's crown. And he was mine, all mine.
" From then on I determined to do everything in my power to ensure that Dick received the correct guidance and resolved to profit by the mistakes made by other promising young British heavies. They had been built up quickly only to fall by the wayside.'
But this is not the Dick Richardson story. You'll find that in our issue dated October 14. 1955 Yes "Boxing News " realised his potentialities early in his career too.
Pro at 13
No. this story 's about Wally. Born in the Elephant and Castle district of South-East London, watched his first fight at the age of nine, and turned pro at thirteen.His dad, Bill Lesley, helped to instill the urge to use his mitts. The elder Lesley boxed at the old Lambeth School of Arms with great success. Then one day Willie Farrell and Charlie Ward of Blackfriars took Wally to the Catholic Club in South London where he was initiated into the " Noble Art."
Wally's pro career lasted seven years. During that time he had about 150 contests, winning most of them. and retired at the early age of 21. Among those he met were Johnny Broker, Billy Pimm, Hugo Francis. Teddy Murton, Sammy Baker, Harry Pullen, Young Clancy and Syd Whatley.
Retired at 21
And why did he retire at 21 ? Let Wally take up the story. "I loved boxing," he declared.
"I never weighed more than 8st. 41b. But averaging nearly 20 fights a year, I felt I wanted to retire while I was still winning. It was a step I never regretted.
"I didn't get any money at all for my first pro bout," he chuckled. "It was at the Empire
School of Arms in Marylebone Road. I was compensated (?) by seeing my name in the papers
the following day.
" My first purse was fifteen bob for beating Teddy Ganley, at The Ring. I used to walk
from the Elephant to Walham Green, not even sure of having a fight when I got there.
' Then I had to walk back again.
"I did plenty of instructing, too at the North Camberwell Radical Club and the Bow Street and Hunter Street Police Club. Always kept good company.
" It was while instructing at the Crossways Athletic Club that I met Margaret Waller,
who was a champion sprinter. And in 1923 we got married, Now we have three sons, youngest
of whom is 28, and three grandchildren.
" For years I worked in Covent Garden Market in a variety of capacities, checker, porter,
the lot. I once worked in a pawnbroker's shop, but got the sack for turning up with a couple of black eyes. Incidentally, I never used a protector or gumshield in my life."
In 1934 Wally took out a manager's licence, and his •first boxer was bantamweight Harry
Graham, who was sent to him by Mike Honeyman, British feathers champ in 1920. When war broke out Wally joined the Royal Artillery and was soon posted overseas to East
Africa Ind Egypt. He became a sergeant instructor in battle courses, but did he neglect
his boxing ? No, sir.
" I think I was the first one to teach boxing in Kenya," he said. " I staged a tournament there that will go down in history. We knocked tree trunks into the ground and put boards over them to make a ring, borrowed the lights from a R.A.F. hangar, then crossed our fingers and ' On with the show.' We just hoped it would stand up under the strain.". " And, did it ? " I asked.
" Sure thing," replied Wally. "And it attracted a crowd of 12,000, comprising
7,500 East Africans. 3,000 Italian prisoners, and 1,500 British troops." Came the end of the war and he came back to pick up the threads of boxing managership. He always had a good little stable, and- no reference to the Lesley clan would be complete without mention of Johnny Lewis.
Johnny was introduced to him by George Daly, whom Wally describes as "the cleverest boxer never to win a title.". "I had Johnny in the gym for ten months before I considered him ready to make his pro debut," declared Wally. " And he never let me down. His career lasted about four years. and when he retired in 1953 he became trainer to my stable.
I have no hesitation in saying that Johnny is now one of Britain' top trainers. Dick Richardson i fitter and better than he's eve been. His condition against Joe Erskine was a revelation. And it's mainly due to Johnny.
Wally has proved himself to be one of the shrewdest managers in the game, too. Although Dick': fight with Erskine was a non-title affair, Richardson's share of the purse was in the region of £5,000 far more than Erskine's. A typical Lesley stroke, and an outstanding example of his expert guidance.
Not lonely
" They say a 'loser's dressing room is the loneliest place in the world," chuckled Wally. "But not that night. I had to fight my way through the mob to get near Dick. Everyone wanted to shake his hand.
" A lot has been written about our tackling moderate Continentals. My view is this : It's better for Dick to keep fighting than lay about in the gym. And he's learning—and earning—all the time.
" Why didn't I put forward Dick's name as a contender for the British title ? Simple. Because I didn't want to be tied down at that the first time I was asked officially. The next time it cropped up I was not even asked. Presumably it was taken for granted
that my answer would be the same."
In addition to his normal duties, Wally has also acted as business manager in promotions at Crystal Palace, Manor Place Baths and Reading.When he does get a chance to relax it's the cinema (twice a week) or the London Palladium. " I love Variety," he told me, " especially ' pop ' singers like Billy, Daniels, Dave King and Dickie Valentine.
" Why are all your fighters milk roundsmen ? " I asked him. Don't tell me it's -pure coincidence."
Loves fighting
" No," replied Wally. " I believe a fighter should be near his manager. I have friends in the milk business. So, if one of my boys wants a job, then its there—on my doorstep. And don't forget they start early and finish early, leaving plenty of time for training. Good stuff for drinking, too—so they tell me.
" As to the future—this is my plan. We will meet any leading American heavyweight that may come to Britain. If they don't materialise quickly, then we'll go to the United States.
"Dick is like me. He loves fighting. He reminds me very much of Ted ' Kid 'Lewis. So I'll make a prediction. Richardson for the World's heavyweight title. And the date-1958."