Ringside Report Remembers Boxer Robbie Davis, SR (1948-2017)

By Donald “Braveheart” Stewart

To many in the modern British boxing game, the name Robbie Davies is synonymous with a Junior. A British light welterweight prospect, Robbie Davies Jr, has been an active fighter of the scene for years, and for many an exciting fighter more than worth to watching, as befits a former British, Commonwealth and European champion.

Hardly surprising, given his pedigree…

You see for most of us recently we have been caught in the circus headlights of the dynasties of Benn and Eubank. We cannot see past the 1980’s and when the fathers were at their highest and they made us all stop in our tracks to watch boxing on the TV. It was an exciting time, it was the best of times, apparently.

But such a focus often takes away from the landscape and we begin to miss other, just as significant, just as important father/son boxing legacies. For Robbie Davies Jr.’s dad, Robbie Davies Snr, 11-4, 10 KOs, was no slouch in the square circle. In fact, this Birkenhead native, fighting professionally at middleweight, is a former Commonwealth Games bronze medalist and a former Olympian, having represented his country at light middleweight at the 1976 Montreal Games.

Now that is something neither Chris Eubank Sr. nor Nigel Benn ever achieved.

His record at the Commonwealth Games in Auckland, New Zealand, was a round one win against Fidelis Olayiwola by stoppage in the very first round, then the quarter final victory on points against Willaim Allen before coming up against Lottie Mwale, Zambia’s most successful boxer. Davies lost to the hard hitting African in that semifinal on points, hence the bronze medal. Mwale went on to claim gold.

From there his qualification for the Olympics turned out to be far less than straightforward. In an Olympic trial, Davies Snr. was disqualified for a low blow against the Scottish contender, Willie Lauder. It cost Davies Snr. his place. Lauder, however, then went on to be stopped in the first round of a fight as part of an international contest against the US. The selectors changed their minds and Davies Snr. got the nod for the team.

And so, two years later in Montreal he won his first bout against Wayne Devlin of Australia, with an expected knockout – something he was becoming renowned for – in 28 seconds of round two, before coming unstuck against Venezuela’s Alfredo Lemus. Davies Snr was in some company as the seven man team sent to Montreal included Pat Cowdell, Sylvester Mittee, Colin Jones and Charlie Magri.

Returning home, he stayed as an amateur, and went on to glory in the British amateur national finals winning the Amateur Boxing Association (ABA) middleweight title in 1977 stopping Michen Shone in the first round. He had been a beaten finalist in the 1973 and the 1975 finals at the weight below the one he eventually excelled at.

His professional debut, aged, 27, was near his home, in the Liverpool Stadium and on the 8th of September 1977 when he beat Joe Hannaford on by stopping him in the fourth round of a scheduled eight. It was the right time for him as he had apparently become disillusioned with the amateur game. Hopes were high as explained in the Box¬ing News of the time: “Even so early in his ca¬reer Rob¬bie Davies is car¬ry¬ing a lot of re¬spon¬si¬bil¬ity – the sur¬vival of pro¬fes¬sional box¬ing on Mersey¬side.”

This was principally down to the reopening of the Liverpool Stadium – Robbie Davies Snr. was a massive draw for the brothers – Mike and Charles Atkinson – who reponed the venue. Davies Snr. could whack. He had a massive support. His style, alongside a new breed of fighters form the city were pure excitement. Things were looking very rosy for all. Ten fights in, he had knocked out nine of his opponents. Only one of those fights had been held outside of the stadium.

It was not long before he was in line for a British title eliminator and that came in 1979, on the 5th of April in his home stadium when he faced Pat Thomas of Wales. Thomas was to win by the slimmest of margins – one point – after ending up on the canvass no less than four times in the final round. The British light middleweight title was not to be his and he was never to regain the form that would take him there. Never less than a gold medal entertainer, Davies Snr. retired from the game after two losses against Johnny Heard on the 21st of February 1980 back at home and then on the 15th of April, in the same year against Glen McEwan in Blackpool. Both were knockouts and clear indications he needed to hang up the gloves: so, he did.

Unfortunately, in 2017, Robbie Davies Snr. lost what was probably his biggest battle against dementia and passed away on the 4th of August that year. And whilst the dynasty of the Davies, might not register as much as others, we forget familial roles at our peril in the sport and this surely must rank up there as one from the fighting area of Liverpool and Merseyside that ranks up there with many of the best. But the final word is left to a former colleague and Mersey boxer, Robbie Robinson, who contacted the local paper, the Liverpool Echo when Davies Snr. passed. “For those who may not remember Robbie Senior at his peak, he was an exciting, fearsome, big hearted, value for many fighters idolized at the old Liverpool Stadium. He was a TV favorite, appearing in three ABA finals, winning the championship in 1977 and is one of only two Merseysiders (the other being George Gilbody) to have the distinction of representing his country at all three major international tournaments – The 1974 Commonwealth Games, 1975 and 1977 European Championships and 1976 Montreal Olympics. I had the great honor of boxing on the same bill as Robbie many times at the old Stadium and well recall his epic battles there, especially with his great Liverpool rival Joey Lally.”

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