Luke Keeler: Reputation: The Man in the Glass
Cool Hand Luke Shoots From the Hip #2
By Luke Keeler
Reputation is a funny thing; it can take a lifetime to build and be lost in a split second.
Last Saturday, KatieTaylor got the perfect farewell her career deserved and she left the sport with her reputation imprinted in the stars. Paddy Donovan cemented his with a world-class display against Tyrone McKenna. Emmet Brennan was knocked down five times and got up four, the epitome of âgoing out on your shieldâ. Then Thomas Cartyâs fight with Dave Allen ended with the Dublin heavyweight falling head-first through the ropes after being hit behind the head – and unfortunately, he wasnât given a chance to prove his credentials or build his reputation.
The online verdict on Carty was immediate. He jumped out. He wanted a way out. He bottled it. I myself thought at first glance that it did look suspect, but only one man knows the truthâeither a freak accident or a way out. This made me think of reputation and write this article. Itâs up to Thomas to prove the doubters wrong. As Emmet Brennan said after his loss, you donât really know until youâre in that position if youâre willing to go out on your shield.
When I first saw Thomas lying on the ground, I had the same questions. I wonât pretend otherwise. In my losses to Tom Doran and Demetrius Andrade, when I was dropped, my instinct was to scramble back to my feet and fight on.
Carty turned his head as Allen threw, making the punch look accidental, but it still landed behind the head. He then went through the ropes and landed heavily outside the ring. None of us watching knows what he felt, and he easily could have been genuinely unable to move. A reputation for going out on your shield, just like Emmet mentioned, has to be earned, and Iâm sure there will be a burning desire in Thomas to go out and prove the doubters wrong.
The pile-on was unfair, but reputation plays a part. Katie Taylor has spent twenty years proving what she is made of. Tyrone McKenna has been through enough wars that nobody could question his courage. If either had fallen through the ropes and a doctor stopped the fight, would people have accused them of looking for a way out? I doubt it.
The Dublin heavyweight hasnât had time to build that reputation yet, either as an amateur or professional. That doesnât make the abuse right or prove the fight is not inside him, but it means he hasnât earned the same benefit of the doubt.
Now it is up to Thomas to answer those questions. Not by arguing with trolls, but by getting back in the ring and proving what is inside him. If he does, Croke Park becomes one bad night rather than the story of his career.
Emmet Brennan showed he definitely has it inside. Taylor Bevan dropped him five times and Emmet rose four times. Afterwards, he spoke with pride because he had gone out on his shield. The defeat didnât take his self-respect. It confirmed something he already believed about himself.
But watching his vicious final knockout brought back a reminder of Lee Reeves and forces us to ask what going out on your shield really means.
Lee was criticised as an Instagram fighter who had not stepped up through the levels quickly enough. I was critical of him myself. Against Gary Cully at the 3Arena, he left everything in the ring and proved everyone, including me, wrong about his ability and courage.
But at what cost?
Lee suffered a bleed on the brain, needed emergency surgery and remains in hospital. There have been signs of improvement, and everyone is praying for him. He proved his bravery, but no reputation is worth paying that price.
Boxing celebrates fighters for continuing when hurt, then attacks them when they donât. The same people who praise one boxer for taking punishment will call another a coward for protecting himself. Leeâs condition should make all of us stop and think before judging from outside the ropes.
I pushed for a farewell fight with Jason Quigley on this card because I had visions of one last big night and leaving the sport with my head held high and some pride. I had left myself out of the ring too long, and it didnât happen.
For a long time, I had regret and a sense of disappointment that I hadnât reached the absolute pinnacle. But listening to the pride in Emmet Brennan after his defeat has changed how I look back at my own career. Emmet woke up with the pride of knowing that every time he could get up, he did, and he got deserved praise for this.
Looking back at myself scrambling to my feet against Doran in my first title fight, doing the same in my world title fight against Andrade, or wiping blood from my eyes in the Cummings fight, I feel more pride now than the previous regret. I may not have reached the pinnacle, but when the question was asked, I know I had that fight inside me.
Maybe closure isnât always the perfect farewell. Maybe being able to look at the man in the glass and know what is inside is enough.
Katie Taylor sacrificed her whole life to this beautiful sport and received the rewards she deserved. She transcended boxing and will be remembered forever. But Katie is the exception, not the norm. Thousands of fighters make similar sacrifices without the glory, with zero money and the best years of their working careers behind them, and some with poor health.
Thomas Carty, Iâm sure, will push for an immediate rematch and prove the criticism unjust. As Emmet Brennan said, he always knew he had that inside himself, but until you drag yourself back up and keep fighting, that reputation isnât in the bank.
As the poem states:
âThe fellow whose verdict counts most in your life
“Is the guy staring back from the glass.â
âPeter Dale Wimbrow Sr., The Man in the Glass
