By Terence Dooley
Middleton's Matthew Hall was training for a scheduled September 24th EBU-EU 154lb title fight when the call came through to take on Lukas Konecny for the vacant EBU light-middleweight title in the wake of former holder Ryan Rhodes' withdrawal from this Saturday's Frank Warren-promoted bill at the LG Arena, Birmingham. Hall leapt at the chance to take on the Czech, believing that it was the perfect opportunity to put last year's reverse to Anthony Small behind him.
“I had a strange feeling that something like this was going to happen. It's a dream come for me to fight for the European title and I'm going to win it,” revealed Hall when the news came in; the fighter was stopped in the eighth round by Small, a defeat made worse by the bitter build-up to the British and Commonwealth title clash. Hall, though, believes that he has regrouped well from the setback and feels that a change of scenery, moving from Brian Hughes' gym to join Anthony Farnell, has rejuvenated his training regime.
“Yeah, I'm enjoying it,” smiled Hall when asked about the change. “I've only had one fight here [a TKO win over Tony Randell]. I should have had more but a few fights didn't come through. I'd got to the point where I felt I was going stale, which was down to myself. Pat [Barrett] and Brian and everyone at Collyhurst had taught me all I know and I'd done really well but sometimes you need a change.”
The 26-year-old views both Barrett and Hughes as close friends and was also sad to leave his gym-mates behind, revealing that the move involved some personal sacrifice. “I'd been there since I was thirteen and had gone a bit stale,” admitted 'El Torito' – 'The Little Bull'.
“It was hard, some of my best friends in life are there – Pat, Michael Jennings, Thomas McDonagh and Scott Quigg – but in this sport you need to make sacrifices, and for me it was leaving my close friends and Brian behind. I'd grown up around Brian so it was obviously a hard move. Brian probably looks at it the way a lad does when he gets dumped by his girlfriend, you don't like it, and I respect his feelings because he might think I'm blaming him for my defeat but I don't blame him, I blame me.”
Indeed, the former Commonwealth title-holder believes that he owed to it to Hughes to give him the news personally, he said. “I went to his house and told him I was leaving. I got Brian and Pat face-to-face, thanked them for everything, told them it was my fault that I'd got beat but that I thought we'd gone as far as we could go. In life you need a change and I needed a change to get that bit of hunger back.
“I trained alongside Arnie anyway early in my career, so knew that if he could put that dedication into training he'd be a top trainer. I spoke to [promoter] Frank [Warren] about it, I was thinking about retiring because I'd put so much into training for the Small fight and to lose so terribly in the biggest night of my life made me think that I didn't want to waste my time if I was only going to be second best.”
Initially, the 23-2 (16) fighter felt that he could no longer carry on in the sport; Warren intervened, recommending that Hall give it another try, and the popular pressure fighter decided to make the tough decisions needed to have another run at glory.
“Frank said I should give it one more go, he pointed me towards Arnie and here I am. Brian and Arnie fell out in the past but that is between them. I take things at face value, I have my own view on things and if two of my mates fall out then I'll still talk to them because they're still my mates. It might be a bit uncomfortable at the shows but that is between them. I'm not here to play piggy in the middle. I'm here to get the most out off my boxing career,” insisted Hall, who won the Commonwealth belt by belting Bradley Pryce into defeat in two rounds back in March 2009.
Pat Barrett, Hughes' assistant, gave Hall his blessing, recently telling me that Matthew did things the proper way and that his decision was respected by all involved, this was a welcome relief to Hall, who valued the friendships he had forged during his time at Collyhurst.
“Me and Pat are very close, he looked after me when I was growing up and he told me that the door was always open because I'd done things the right way, I went round in person and we all sat down. It was hard, we were both close to tears because we're close. Pat said that any time I'm fighting he'll be there supporting me,” he reiterated.
“I'm a man at the end of the day, if I've got something to get off my chest I'll do it face-to-face instead of by Chinese whispers or over the phone. I gave them the same respect they gave me over the years.”
Still, Hall wasn't prepared to use his change of training regime as a chance to gloss over the Small defeat, which saw Hall dominated by Anthony en route to the loss, the fighter feels that the finger of blame should stop at himself and was quick to address the issues surrounding the display.
“Nah, no excuses,” he stated, “I over-trained and was doing silly runs but I could have got in on a good night and boxed like that, who knows? It is trial and error, anyone who knows me could see that I was flat-footed. I'm an explosive fighter and didn't show that on the night but fair play to him, he beat me fair and square.”
“No, people have asked that,” said Hall when asked if Small's mind games had worked during the build up, “but it might just have been that I wanted to win so much that I was running when I shouldn't have been and putting too much in. It is better to under-train than it is to over-train. If you under-train there is still something in your body but if you over-train you haven't got anything in you from the start. I could feel it when I was warming up and thought to myself, 'If I don't get him out early, I could be in trouble,' and you could tell by my body language that the thought was going through my head.
“He beat a tired man. He wasn't out-boxing me because I boxed terrible so it wasn't that, I was tired on the night but he beat what was in front of him. He came in the dressing room after and we shook hands. It got a bit personal in the build-up and we said some things, it did sell the fight and got people interested so you can't complain.”
Small has become British boxing's biggest pariah after voicing his views on the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. Small, who's Muslim name is Abdul Haqq, stands by 'baby killer' comments and has remained steadfast in his beliefs, refusing to be browbeaten into making a public apology. Hall doesn’t go in for politics or religion, he just wants to get Small into the ring again and beat him in order to take a measure of personal revenge.
“Yeah, I would like to fight him,” said Hall when asked if there is a way back for his former foe, who lost the British title on points to Sam Webb earlier this year. “I'm the only fight out there for him after what he's said because I don't think anyone will touch him with a bargepole but I want him because I don't want him to hold a win over me. It would be a decent fight and you could market it as it sold last time and could sell again.”
Hall, though, jokingly insisted that he won't go in for Small's conversational battles. “Nah, I'll smack him one, instead of waiting for the ring I should go with my instincts and shut him up,” laughed Hall when reminded of the pre-fight war of words that took place ahead of their fight.
“Normally, I'd sort someone out if they were doing that to me, he was a bit out of order and where I come from you shut someone up if they do that so I'd like that chance in a rematch. I would do things differently but I need to win this next fight but I can even start thinking about Anthony Small.”
Hall has long-hankered after a fight with Konecny, believing that the 44-3 (21) visitor's style is suited to him and that a collision between the two has 'Hall KO win' written all over it, although he believes that he needed to go back to school with Farnell before heading into this sort of fight.
“Arnie told me to go back to basics, faster feet and head movement,” he said when talking about Farnell's input. “More combos instead of just walking forward. First day I came here, I was just back off holiday and a bit depressed so he killed me straight away, and then the next day as well. We were doing different things everyday.
“I just got on with things straight away. We went through what I should have done in that fight and what I need to do in the future. I really enjoy it. We've got young prospects here who are going to the top so they keep you on your toes, you want to be with them and everyone thrives off each other. We've got Frankie [Gavin] and Ronnie Heffron coming through so we are all pushing each other.”
If Lukas is overcome and Small proves elusive then there is another decent fight on Hall's radar, a local showdown with the 6' 3'' Prince Arron, who recently won Prizefighter: The light-middleweights and could face Hall in a British title eliminator.
“I'd love Prince Arron, he's local, I'm local so lets make the fight for the city. [British boss] Sam Webb has got Martin Concepcion [who handed Hall a first round defeat back in 2007], that is no foregone conclusion as Sam's been down a few times and Concepcion can bang. But I'm just taking it one fight at a time,” mused Hall when asked about his future plans, plans which do not include Cedric Vitu, the Frenchman has messed Hall about once too often and is now out off the picture.
“Vitu kept pulling out of EBU-EU fights for one thing or another. He pulled out last time after we'd heard he'd been on holiday for a few months. Dean and Frank got someone new for me so I just carried on,” he said before returning to the idea of a showdown with Droylsden's Arron.
“It would be a good fight, he's local and has lifted his name. I'd test his heart. I've seen him fight lots of times and even though he was matched tough early I've seen him when people put it on him. John Duddy wasn't catching him clean but he was dropping to the floor so I think he wouldn't be able to take what I was putting on him,” predicted Hall.
“Who knows what will happen but it is a fight I want because of the local pride at stake.”
As mentioned, Hall has fought once since the Small defeat, a third round stoppage over tough journeyman Tony Randell; the result was expected, Hall, however, thinks that the performance, last on the bill against a decent fighter, spoke volumes as to his improvement since the Small defeat.
“I got there at half three in the afternoon and was on late at night. First round I was a bit sluggish but he gave it a good go and I was catching him with good shots, he was all over the place and I thought the finish was pretty decent. Getting a win is the best feeling in the world and I could see the hard work and improvements coming off. A lot of people commented on those improvements,” noted Hall, before stressing that he didn't pay attention to the criticism that came his way after the Small fight.
He admitted: “I don't want to be second best, I want to win titles and don't want to get to fight night any more and let myself down. I know myself that I didn't perform. People are allowed their own opinion and I was rubbish that night, a worse fighter would have beat me, no doubt abut it. This country is known for shooting people down and liking losers, no disrespect but Frank Bruno is more loved than Lennox Lewis and Lewis was a winner. Frank had a better personality but at the end of the day I'd rather be a winner that isn't loved than the opposite.
“It is all about getting in the ring to the best of my ability on the night. As long as I'm fully fit then I can show my game and you will see the best of me. I'll be peaking on the night from now on and just want big fights, especially domestically, as they are the fights people remember. If me and Arron fight the people will remember it locally for years to come.”
Sky Sports Box Office HD will televise the Birmingham bill from 6pm on Saturday.
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