LAST year when Paddy Donovan shared a picture of a school project he had worked on as a seven year old at Ennis CBS it quickly went viral on social media.
In his child’s handwriting he gave details of his family, where he went to school, his sporting preferences and it closed with a bald statement ‘When I grow up I will be a boxer.”
After growing up in Ennis he followed that dream, and now with 14 professional victories to his name, the 26 year old stands on the brink of a world title shot, if he can go to Belfast this weekend and inflict defeat on Lewis Crocker.
The winner becomes mandatory for the IBF World Welterweight title, currently held by Jaron ‘Boots’ Ennis, and with that pot of gold on the horizon, Saturday will be the biggest all-Irish fight seen for many years, possibly ever.
Both fighters are deservedly highly rated, both are undefeated and both are now potentially facing their most difficult fight to date.
In some quarters it is being billed as a battle between the slicker boxing skills of Donovan and the power of Crocker, but that narrative neglects the fact that Donovan has recorded 11 stoppages.
Former middleweight world champion Andy Lee will be in Donovan’s corner on Saturday and he feels…
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Owen Ryan has been a journalist with the Clare Champion since 2007, having previously worked with a number of other publications in Limerick, Cork and Galway. His first book will be published in December 2024.