SEEK AND DESTROY
MATTHEW HALL’S reputation precedes him.
The door to the famous Collyhurst and Moston gym is always open for the former Commonwealth super-welterweight champion. He doesn’t work set hours or have a defined role but whenever he feels like it he walks up the battered concrete steps, nods to the familiar faces and parks himself on the old bench in the sparring room he once graced. He might not say much at first but everybody knows he is there. Hall retired five years ago but in a gym full of strong personalities, he still has a presence. Eventually he will speak out or approach one of the fighters he has been watching, and his blunt but honest manner cuts right to the heart of the matter.
“It’s all bulls**t. They’re giving it the big ‘un like they’re living a lavish lifestyle and they haven’t even got a tin of beans in the cupboard,” Hall told Boxing News. “Same pattern. They need a two-month camp to beat a journeyman. It’s not right. You have to be in that gym all the time. You have to be 24-hour ready.
“We’re fighters. You can’t be walking down a street, have somebody try to attack you and say, ‘Just hold on a minute. I can’t fight you yet, mate. Give us a couple of weeks. I need a training camp.’ You need to be ready. Simple as that. It’s doesn’t matter what environment you’re in. It might not be a boxing ring
