 |
|
The team from Newry.
|
By Denise Foley
When the card girls are Irish step dancers, you know this is no ordinary boxing match.
It was a great night of fights—if you like that kind of thing—Thursday, July 13, at the Pennsylvania National Guard Armory in Philadelphia as some of Philly’s finest young contenders faced off against a raft of Irish pugilists from Newry, South Armagh, Northern Ireland, in a charity event sponsored by the Ancient Order of Hibernians (AOH) and the Ladies AOH, Division 51 of Fishtown.
It was a mistake to think that those lean, ropey Celts were going to do the Christian thing just because they train at a place called the Sacred Heart Boxing Club. These parishioners took match after match against some fierce competitors from places like Champs Gym and The Rock Ministries of Philadelphia (where they intersperse time at the speed bag with prayer and bible study and, if last night was no exception, learn the art of good sportsmanship).
The 10 three-round matches were sanctioned by the Middle Atlantic LBC USA Boxing and the Ulster Provincial Council of the Irish Amateur Boxing Association and were conducted according to the Amateur Boxing Association rules.
The Irish came out swinging in the first bout. In this case, it was Matt McCartan who triumphed over local fighter Jamie Lopez. He was followed by Barry McCaffrey who trumped Paul Fernandez. But one of the best fights of the evening was the match between Sacred Heart’s David Joyce and the aptly named Ray Robinson of Philly. The solidly Irish crowd switched allegiances once Robinson got into it with Joyce, whom he knocked flat to the mat with a punch they could hear in the top row of the bleachers. “USA, USA, USA,” the crowd chanted, a dramatic switch from the “Go Irish” they shouted the rest of the night. They roared, though, when Joyce pulled himself up to his knees and got back in the game.
“The Irish,” one guy said, nodding his head appreciatively, “you gotta knock ‘em out before they give up.”
Unlike most fights, these bouts usually ended with a hug. So, maybe they were all doing the Christian thing. ...
Proceeds from the event will go to various charitable organizations supported by the AOH/LAOH. And the event itself provided an extraordinary benefit to the Irish fighters. “The Newry/South Armagh area has the highest rate of unemployment in Western Europe,” says AOH President Jay McCarrie. “Many of these young men would not have otherwise had the opportunity to visit America” without the many supporting organizations—from local unions to a host of Irish pubs and restaurants—who helped bring them to the U.S. for their night of triumph.
Read: The Boys Are Back in Town
