Dublin Boxing Board Officials

Commandant D V (Vinny) Horgan

By any assessment, Commandant D V Horgan was a remarkable man. He became President of the Dublin County Board in 1941 and continued in that position for 25 years, while from 1942 to 1946 he was also Honorary Secretary of the IABA. Born in Cork, he was educated in North Monastery and joined the army in 1922. In an interview in 1966, he recalled some experiences from those early years. One of those related to the fact that he and his brother Ned took opposite sides in the Civil War. On one occasion, it fell to his lot to take his brother as a prisoner to Cork jail. Boxing people remember Vinny as an outstanding boxing administrator and international referee/judge. However, his sporting interests were not confined to boxing; he was a superbly versatile athlete. Below is just a flavour of his achievements. Hurling Played for North Monastery. Played for Kildare Junior Hurling Team 1924. Golf Playing off 2, he was army champion in 1935, 1937, 1945 and 1947. Won Irish Mixed Foursomes Championships 1940, 1945 and 1948.
Played Junior and Senior Cup, Milltown Golf Club. Basketball Played with Air Corps 1926-1937. Drew up first set of basketball rules in 1934. Hockey Air Corps 1936 – 1940. Played Senior League and Cup for Curragh, Monkstown and Clontarf 1935 – 1939. During the Second World War, the world controlling body, FIBA, went out of existence. Shortly after the war, Vinny travelled to London with IABA President W R E Murphy and Rev Fr McLoughlin to a meeting of representatives of leading European boxing nations with a view to the formation of a new body. That body became what is now called AIBA. Vinny took the minutes of that meeting and remained secretary pro-tem until official elections were held. In 1931, the FIBA had decreed that henceforth all contests would be controlled by a referee ‘within the ring’ rather than from a high chair outside the ring. In addition, 3 judges would mark the contest at
ringside, rather than the referee and 2 judges as had previously been the practice. This rule was adopted by the IABA but for many years was resisted by the ABA of England. In 1947, a Dublin boxing team travelled to compete against an English army selection in Slough. Vinny Horgan was invited to referee and, as the competition was being held in the ABA jurisdiction, refereed the first contest from outside the
ring. However, in the second contest, he entered the ring and stayed there until the end of the tournament His actions earned headlines in most of the London papers that weekend. However, most of the British boxing media took Vinny
Horgan’s side for refusing to be bound by the archaic and inefficient system that the English ABA was alone in enforcing. Thus, Vinny Horgan became the first referee in England to officiate a boxing contest from within the ring. Conscious of the fact that the Olympic games were coming to London the following year, the ABA invited Vinny to give a demonstration of refereeing within the ring.Two hundred members of the Referees and Judges Association turned up for the seminar and subsequently Vinny was invited to Cardiff to give a similar demonstration to theWelsh ABA. As President of the Dublin Board, Vinny Horgan tactfully steered many debates through rocky channels. His shrewd handling of many difficult situations was of inestimable value to Dublin boxing in particular and to Irish boxing in general.

Major General W R E Murphy

Major General W R E Murphy who became President of the IABA in the early 1930s, is considered to have been the main driving force behind the decision to undertake the building of the National Stadium. A native of Wexford, Murphy became a teacher before joining the British Army in 1915 as an officer cadet in the Staffordshire Regiment. Having seen action at the Battle of Loos and the Battle of the Somme, he had reached the rank of Lieutenant Colonel by the end of the war. Following the end of WW1, he returned to his position as a teacher. However, in 1922, Murphy enlisted as a General in the Free State Army. At the start of the civil war, he was put in command of troops charged with taking posts held by Anti-Treaty forces in Limerick. Subsequently he was put in overall command of Free
State forces in Co Kerry.Murphy left the National Army after the end of the Civil War in 1923 and became first Irish Commissioner of the Dublin Metropolitan Police. He later became Deputy Commissioner of the Garda Siochana when the DMP merged with the new National Police Force in 1925. During his term of office in the IABA, Murphy brought the same level of dedication and enthusiasm to his sporting activities as had been manifest during his successful career in the armed forces. Many of his published opinions remain noteworthy to the present day. The following is an extract from opinion published by Maj General Murphy in 1934:

It is interesting to note that after 75 years, this issue continues to be the subject of debate at the highest levels of World Amateur Boxing.

Mr Austin Carruth

Mr Austin Carruth - Austin was a boxing man whose enthusiasm for the sport was matched only by his devotion to his family. He gave huge service to the sport both at local and national level. Being the father of a large family, it is certain that Austin saw many ups and downs but, when reflecting on the highs, it is probable that few could have compared with the pride of being in the corner with his own son in Barcelona in 1992. The massive attendance at Austin’s funeral was fitting tribute to the esteem in which he was held, not only in boxing circles but in the wider community.

Ben McCartney

Mr Ben McCartney - As the chef in the Ringside Club, Ben McCartney was an institution. He was generous and accommodating to a fault. However, Ben’s contribution to the spirit of boxing went far beyond the provision of meals for boxers and officials. Firstly, associated with Consolata Boxing Club, Ben went on to be a founder member of Greenhills Boxing Club and became President of Corinthians. For a number of years, he was President of the Leinster Council and an active member of Dublin Co Board. In addition, Ben was one of the founder members of the Ringside Club.

Mr John Aylward

Mr John Aylward - John was an active and dedicated member of the Bay City Boxing Club since 1979. As a referee/ judge, he officiated up to international level. However, it was his commitment to boxing in the Dublin area that earned him the highest respect and admiration. Always available to officiate at Championships, Leagues and Club tournaments, John was noted for being dependable, honest and trustworthy. He never let anybody down and, right up to the end, was still travelling all over the country to officiate at club shows. John was slow to express an opinion but when he did, everybody listened. He is sadly missed.

Peter Perry (Centre)

Leo McCurtain, Peter Perry and Ando Reddy

Peter was proud of the CIE Boxing Club. From the time he was invited to manage the club in 1965 by the Chairman of the CIE Athletic Union, it was “his” boxing club. He ran the club virtually single handed for 45  years.Peter was strong willed; he was proud and most of all, he was a very caring person. He put many champions through his hands and, to quote Bernard Dunne ‘ one thing he always gained was unwavering respect’.

John Whitehead

John spent a lifetime in boxing. At the end of his active boxing career, he became a founder member of the Greenhills Boxing Club, together with Austin Carruth and Ben Macartney. He went on to officiate at many levels within the Organisation - Secretary of the Dublin Board; Treasurer of the IABA; Trustee; Stadium Manager and Manager of the Ringside Club. Many former International boxers still remember John as a man with a generous nature, who, in spite of a stern approach, never let any boy travel abroad without a little spending money in his pocket.

Mr George Peters

A former President of the Dublin Board, George was highly respected at all levels in the Organisation. He was an International referee and
during his period as National Registrar of the IABA, was responsible, together with John Whitehead, for the training and passing out of new officials. George expected the highest standards from all referees and judges; many still have cause to remember the occasional sharp rebuke at what George perceived as a below-par performance. He retired to his native Galway some years ago but still liked to return for major championships.