Sinky says

17 November 2008 – by Neil Sinclair

There hasnt been that many bills in Ireland over the last number of months but our gym is very busy at the moment.

John Breen has been working day and night getting the boys ready for their fights. At the weekend Stephen Haughian and Damian Taggart both had wins and in the next few weeks Joe Rea is in action in Prizefighter. We also have Paul McCloskey who is fighting in December and Oisin Fagan will be fighting Amir Khan. Obviously Khan is coming back from a heavy defeat so hopefully Oisin can take advantage of the opportunity he has been given. He trains unbelievably hard and he will take this chance with both hands.

Rogie is also fighting Audley Harrison on the same card in London so it could be a great night for Irish boxing. Audley hasnt been looking too great so if anyone can pull off an upset it will be Rogie. He is just so determined.

Unfortunately we found out that our middleweight Jason McKays British title fight is off because of an injury to the champion Wayne Elcock. I feel sorry for Jason. He was looking great in the gym and was up for it. The worst of it is that it may not even be rescheduled.

John Duddys fight in New York is also off for different reasons so well have to wait and see how that situation turns out.

Its disappointing when a fight falls through, if it happens once you deal with it but if it happens a few times it is hard to take. It is soul destroying when you are feeling fit and healthy but an opponent picks up an injury or a card is cancelled – it takes an edge from you. There will be highs and lows and dealing with the bad times will make you a better fighter.

It has happened to me a few times and only a few weeks ago I was to have been fighting in the welterweight Prizefighter but had to pull out with a sore back. That was frustrating but all you can do is look to the future. Im getting back to fitness so hopefully Ill be back in 09 and make that my year.

The injury was a minor setback so Id like to give myself another year before deciding whether to move on.

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Im looking forward to seeing Darren Sutherland in Dublin making his debut next month. I watched him in the Olympics and thought he had a great professional hooking style. He likes to sit behind his punches and get power in to them. He just has to be patient and Im sure he can achieve big things.