THE CHATTERIS TRIO
Gill is picking up from where Boon and Green left off
FOR a town of little over 10,000 residents, Chatteris, in Cambridgeshire, punches well above its weight in boxing history. I can think of no other town as small which has made a similar contribution to the sport. On October 27, Jordan Gill, who currently lives in Chatteris, will be fighting for the Commonwealth featherweight title against Ryan Doyle. If he wins this contest, then he will become the third boxer from the town to hold a title of international significance. His predecessors, Eric Boon and Dave “Boy” Green, both stand out as two of the most famous residents in the town’s history.
It has always struck me as a fascinating coincidence that in the two fights that brought Boon and Green to the forefront, they both fought men from Bethnal Green. This part of London has a long and proud reputation for producing boxers of the highest class, and the contrast between it and the sleepy rural town of Chatteris could not be more marked.
Boon started out as a young boy winning many bouts at the village halls and corn exchanges of his native county, and he soon came to the attention of promoter Jack Solomons, for whom Boon fought many times at the Devonshire Club in Hackney. At the age of 18 he beat the British lightweight champion, Jimmy Walsh, in a non-title bout over 10 rounds at Chatteris football ground in May 1938. And before the year was out he was matched with Dave Crowley, who had recently beaten Walsh for the title.
There was no radio broadcast and it was arranged that the good people of Chatteris would be notified of the result after it had been telephoned through to the village hall. Green rockets would then be fired over the town if Boon became the champion and red ones if he failed. It was the green ones that hit the night skies.
Arthur Danahar came from a longstanding Bethnal Green fistic family and his rise to the top was very different. Arthur was an exceptional amateur, winning the ABA lightweight championship in 1937, and when he turned professional in 1938 it was under a blaze of publicity. By the end of the year he had won 14 straight, and the title match with Boon was made for February 1939. Both fighters were under the age of 21, and what a fight they put up. After 14 glorious rounds Danahar was rescued by referee Barrington Dalby, out on his feet, having been on the canvas nine times. Boxing News described the contest as “the Battle of the Century”.
Thirty-eight years later, Dave “Boy” Green fought John H Stracey at the Empire Pool, Wembley in a 12-round eliminator for the world welterweight title. Stracey won this belt in 1975, beating the great Jose Napoles in seven rounds in the Mexican champion’s backyard. I still consider this to be the greatest performance by a British fighter on foreign soil. It was a huge upset, and Stracey went on to defend his title against Hedgemon Lewis in early 1976, before losing it against Carlos Palomino later that summer.
Green turned pro in 1974 and quickly worked his way through the ranks, defeating Joey Singleton for the British super-lightweight title in 1976. Under the shrewd tutelage of Andy Smith, who also managed Joe Bugner, he had become a very exciting and hard-hitting fighter and the winner of all 23 of his contests. He was ready for Stracey and, once more, Chatteris was paired with Bethnal Green.
It was very evenly matched, but most pundits predicted a win for the more experienced Londoner. History repeated itself, however, with the Chatteris fighter punching out a late stoppage. Boxing News called it “one of the most exciting seen in Britain over the past 20 years. Indeed, ringsiders were struggling to think of a contest that bettered it. The bout had raw drama, hard punching and unbridled action from start to finish.”
Boon was one of the first to congratulate his townsman, and I suspect Green will do likewise should Gill bring another title back to Chatteris next month.