Billy Calvert
Boxer
born October 16 1933
died August 10 2016
Billy Calvert, who has died aged 82, after a six year battle with Alzheimer's, was a featherweight boxer from Sheffield who created one of the biggest upsets in Scottish ring history in 1963.
Outstanding Scottish featherweight boxer Bobby Fisher from Wishaw was considered a huge favourite to brush aside English Central Area 9 stone champion, Calvert, that year in an eliminating contest for Welsh ring great Howard Winstone's British and European featherweight titles.
After all, this was the same big punching Bobby Fisher whose wrecking ball punches had forced the referee to save Londoner and 1956 Olympic Games flyweight gold medalist Terry Spinks, from further punishment on his own London home patch shortly before the clash with Calvert at Glasgow's Kelvin Hall in February 1963.
Hard slugging Fisher would later prove his own class subsequent to his 1963 Kelvin Hall clash with Billy Calvert when the Wishaw man boxed on the Paisley undercard of American ring great middleweight ''Sugar'' Ray Robinson's only Scottish ring appearance - in September 1964 at Paisley.
Fisher's sensational and unexpected stoppage of Ayrshire's future British and Commonwealth kingpin, Evan Armstrong on that Robinson v Leahy undercard bout simply underlined why most ringsiders in the Kelvin Hall regarded Yorkshireman Calvert to be a massive outsider against Fisher - until the Sheffield boxer sensationally stopped his Wishaw opponent inside the distance.
Calvert who further emphasised his world class six months later by taking defending British and European champion and Welsh boxing legend Winstone the full 15 round distance before losing on points to the future world nine stone champion from Wales at Porthcawl.
It was the very first time that Winstone had to go the full distance in a title fight and one report of that gruelling Porthcawl title joust observed: "Calvert brought into the fray a determination and relentless punching style and an ability to work in close to Winstone that produced a close and interesting contest.''
What made Calvert's achievement particularly noteable was that Winstone had halted Calvert and outpointed the Yorkshireman in two earlier career bouts.
Billy Calvert was born in the middle of the great 1930's economic depression in the steel town of Sheffield, which had produced many famous British champion boxers like 1920's middleweight Gus Platts and 1940's British welterweight champion, Henry Hall.
Raised in the tough Darnall section of the South Yorkshire steel city, the young Calvert discovered a natural aptitude for the hardest game at Rex Gay's gym in the Sheffield boxing hotbed of Harndsworth - which still produces many accomplished boxers, even today.
Calvert made his pro debut with a knockout win over Johnny Fitzpatrick in Doncaster in 1958 and although losing his second paid bout to vastly more experienced Nottingham boxer Eric Brett this was no disgrace as Brett was a 30-bout veteran.
Calvert's career was plagued by inconsistency. He would run up six bout victory sequences before losing unexpectedly. However, those who defeated him were usually of the calibre of Ireland's British and European bantamweight champion, Freddie Gilroy who, nevertheless, had to go the distance with the doughty Calvert.
But it was the sensational and unexpected 1963 Kelvin Hall Glasgow victory over Bobby Fisher which was to prove the peak of Calvert's exciting and memorable 49 bout pro-ring career.
Another huge factor of Calvert's success was the staunch and unflinching support of his wife of 54 years, who was at his side whether he was in the ring or outside the ropes working as a builder, or later when he became the landlord of two Sheffield pubs where he was an enormously popular figure.
The last six years of former ring star Calvert's life were blighted by Alzheimer's disease but the burden was mitigated by the loyal and loving attention of his wife and extended family right up to the boxing ace's recent death.
Brian Donald
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