Barry never saw knock-out blow

Press, 15 May 1985, Page 72

Barry never saw knock-out blow

By

JOHN COFFEY

Kevin Barry, jun., never saw the punch which knocked him out in Melbourne last week-end. Nor did Peter Matthews, the Australian light heavyweight boxer whose “overhand haymaker’’ caused the biggest upset of the Oceania amateur tournament. “I haven’t seen it yet — not even on video,” said Barry yesterday. “Apparently Matthews wasn’t looking either. I’d hit him with the right hand and his head was turned. He threw a million-to-one shot and I jumped into it.” Ironically, the younger Barry would probably have completed his third win at Matthews’ expense had it not been for the advice given him by his father and trainer, Kevin Barry, sen., after the first round. Barry knocked his opponent to the canvas in the opening round and was eager to finish the bout as quickly as possible. But Mr Barry felt he needed as much ring-work as possible after a nine-month lay-off since claiming the silver medal at the Olympic Games in Los Angeles. “I made a bad blue,” said Mr Barry. “Kevin was boxing as well as he has ever done, in spite of being out of action for so long.

“Had he moved straight back into Matthews he would have finished it. But that would probably have meant going home from Melbourne with only two rounds of boxing, when Kevin needed as many rounds as possible,” said Mr Barry. “Looking back, I miscalculated what might happen. I’ve instructed Kevin and other boxers to do it before and never had any problems. Matthews made the most of his reprieve and I congratulate him,” he said. His son feels the loss “could not have happened at a worse time.” It was his first contest since last August and he now faces a mandatory four-week standdown period. Both Barrys consider he would lack sufficient preparation to make himself available for the Australasian team’s trip to the British Isles next month. “The referee told me after the fight that he almost stepped in and stopped it to save Matthews further punishment near the end of round one,” said Barry. “Matthews himself looked as if he was going to chuck it the first time I knocked him down. “I was told that Matthews was not even keen to meet

me after the beating he got last time. He's quite strong, but only an average boxer,” he said. Barry had regained his feet by the count of three, but the Australian referee — whose actions brought no hint of criticism from the New Zealand camp — felt Barry could not resume and continued through to 10. The World Cup tournament in South Korea in October is still the younger Barry’s top priority in 1985 — “so many people have offered encouragement since it happened that I couldn’t finish up now.” His only previous defeats in an international career which began in early 1982 were to two world-ranked Russians and when a cut above an eye forced him to retire from a bout against another Australian, Tom Sawyer — a result Barry later emphatically reversed. Both Barrys are hopeful of arranging a rematch with Matthews in Christchurch this winter. Mr Barry has two other opponents in mind — Raeli Raeli (Auckland), who recently beat the 1982 Commonwealth Garties champion, Sani Fine (Fiji), and Armin Basic, the Australian who was a points winner over Matthews in the final at Melbourne last week-end.