BOXER’S CLAIM

Press, Volume LXXXIII, Issue 25269, 22 August 1947, Page 9

BOXER’S CLAIM

ALLEGED DEFAMATION OF CHARACTER

HEARING ADJOURNED UNTIL SEPTEMBER 15

(P.A.) WELLINGTON, Aug. 21. William or “Yank” Davis was the last witness called to-day in the case in which Boswell Murphy, a professional boxer, is claiming £25 damages from each of three defendants for alleged defamation of character. The defendants are William Matthew Brosnan, a former member of the committee of the Hutt Valley Boxing Association; James Russell Simpson, chairman of the council of the New Zealand Boxing Association; and Alan Stanley Parker, a member of the council of the association. Mr A. M. Goulding, S.M., was on the Bench.

Davis, who was called by Mr E. F. Rothwell, counsel for Brosnan, admitted to the authorship of a letter which was quoted from by counsel on Wednesday, in which it was alleged that Percy Galvin, Murphy’s manager, bad agreed to three “fixed” fights for Murphy in Australia with Vic Patrick. Davis admitted that he had not had Galvin’s authority for the statement, and said he had included it in the letter to allay any fears which Mrs Patrick might have had because she had told Patrick after his fight with Murphy that he would not fight any more welterweight contests. Davis said he wrote the letter when Patrick was on his way back to Australia after having fought Murphy at Petone. He said he was assisting Patrick and McQuillan, Patrick’s manager, during their New Zealand visit. Davis said Galvin did not give him authority to use Galvin’s name in connexion with the letter he had written. Meeting with Jones Davis was questioned about his meeting with Willie Jones last Friday. He said he saw Jones at a private hotel. Witness was asked if it was correct that he had said to Jones, in connexion with the present case, "Which way are you going?” By that, said Davis, he wanted to know which of the two statements Jones had made concerning the Murphy-Jones fight he was going to live up to. Davis said he rang Galvin on Friday to say he had a subpoena to appear in connexion with the case which Murphy was bringing. Davis said he thought it would oe right if Galvin said Davis had seen him (Galvin) at his factory on Witness added that he had a poor memory. He had forgotten every word of what he had written in the letter to Patrick. Galvin and he did not discuss the contents of the letter.

Questioned about the contents of the letter which he said he had written to Patrick, Davis said he had asked Galvin if Murphy would fight Patrick again. Galvin had said the boys would need a spell after the hard fight they had had. Davis then recounted the details about Mrs Patrick’s being insistent after the fight with Murphy that Patrick should not fight as a welter-weight again. To allay Mrs Patrick’s fear, he had suggested in the letter than the boxers need not annihilate each other. Galvin had said to witness that he could get three'fights in Australia, but witness had added what followed In the letter about each man winning one. Murphy’s Evidence “I say that they are gross lies,” said Murphy when his counsel (Mr W. J. Stacey) asked if he had heard suggestions that his first fight with Willie Jones was a “frame-up.” With vivid actions and in some detail Murphy recounted his story of his first fight with Jones, ending with “A full-blooded left cross, flush on the jaw.” Murphy said that Galvin (his manager) had never received a penny for any of the fights. "He would not take it if I did offer it to him,” he said. Mr Stacey: In these fights do you fight for any other money but the purse? Apart from film rights, none. w Mr Stacey: Betting? Murphy: I never bet. Murphy was then questioned about the fight which had been proposed between himself and Enright at Timaru. Murphv said his eye had been cut against Caltaux. “I could not have carried out the Enright fight for £1,000,000. This was obvious to anyone who had a look at my eye.” Murphv said it was made obvious the Boxing Council thought he had received a "framed-up” doctor’s certificate about his eye. The contract purse with the Hutt Valley Association for the first fight with Willie Jones was £lOOO. He considered he was taking a risk with such an unknown quantity as Jones. He had plans at having a shot at the Empire title in England, and his .stocks were bound to fall if he was beaten, especially by a lighter man. Jones had been written up as a freak, but had knocked out almost ail his opponents in Australia. Asked about the refereeing of the fight, Murphy said he thought Stewart one of the most competent referees in New Zealand. Fight with Jones He then described the first fight with Jones, saying that he found Jones’s tactics very surprising, as instead of using his phenomenal reach he came in weaving all the time. "I had no difficulty in hitting him with straight lefts,” said Murphy. “The, target I was presented with was the top of his head and his forehead. There was no chance of a lethal punch.” Murphy said h*e and his trainer, Parker, had seen Jones’s sparring and noticed that when he wetft in punching with two

hands to the body he left them down for a fraction when he stepped back. They decided in the forthcoming fight to hit him with a left or right cross when he stepped back in that manner.

Murphy then described the fifth round of the fight. He said: "Jones came inside my guard, rattling his two hands to my body—l deliberately left that open. I was trying to time him for the instant he stepped back. The instant he stopped I moved my right over and changed to a southpaw stance. I hit him with a fullblooded left-cross flush to the jaw. He spun round with the punch and dropped.” Mr Stacey asked if the Magistrate would like to see the incident demonstrated, but Mr Goulding declined. Murphy said that after Jones fell he realised that the gong had* gone. He could not say how long it might have been, half a minute or half a second. He considered that Jones would have had a hard time beating the full count after that blow.

Murphy said that he was very indignant about Stewart’s -returning his welterweight title belt to the Boxing Association. He had never given any indication that he intended to relinquish the welter-weight title. Murphy said to Mr J. F. B. Stevenson (for Simpson and Parker) that with regard to Jones’s habit of dropping his hands as he came out of in-fighting, Jones had not given witness an opportunity to use this opening before the fifth round. The opening was only there for a split second, and a boxer had to be ready to take advantage of it. Murphy said Galvin could not make decisions about fights without consulting him. He, Murphy, could make a decision on his own, but he had always consulted Galvin. Murphy said he knew Galvin had put a statement in the paper after his second fight with Jones advising Murphy to retire. Murphy said the published statement that he had relinquished the welter-weight title was untrue. Had he received the letter which the Boxing Council sent to him acknowledging receipt of the championship belt, he would have informed the council to that effect.

About the meeting between himself, his wife, Galvin, McCann, Stewart, and Willie Jones in Cuba street some time after his second fight with Jones, Murphy said that to his knowledge there was no talk about the two fights. He did not hear anybody tell Jones to keep quiet about purses, or threaten Jones. Murphy said no one was admitted to his dressingroom at fights without saying who they were, and then they were not always admitted. Before the Patrick fight, the Prime Minister (Mr P. Fraser) and Mr W. Nash had asked to come in. "We said, ‘Keep them out’,” stated Murphy. The Magistrate: You make the Court envious.

Murphy’s evidence closed the case for the plaintiff. The hearing was adjourned until Monday, September 15, because the Magistrate has other engagements.