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‘She has broken all the barriers’: First ref’ who held Katie Taylor’s hand aloft in victory It was a Halloween night with a difference as fireworks of another kind went off down the South Circular Road in Dublin. Cameras flashed to capture the action inside the greying confines of the National Stadium, the home of Irish amateur boxing. For the first time ever, a bout between two female boxers. In a place that reeks of history, those inside on Halloween night in 2001 saw the future. In what was the first officially sanctioned women’s contest ever held in Ireland, a 15-year-old Katie Taylor, representing the St Fergal’s BC from Bray out-scored Belfast’s Alanna Audley 23-12. That flyweight bout was the official start of a magical journey that will conclude on Saturday night when Taylor – who holds all of the world marbles at super-lightweight – goes for one last dance against Flora Pili in front of a sold-out Croke Park. Twenty-five years ago, Taylor had her hand held aloft by the referee after three one-and-a-half-minute rounds. The third woman inside the ring was Illies Golden Gloves BC stalwart Sadie Duffy from Donegal. “Katie has really broken all the barriers,” Duffy says. “She has smashed the glass ceiling 10 times over. I look on with pride at how far she has come and for what she has done, not just for boxing but for sport in Ireland. She is such a role model and an inspiration for young women and girls to give it a try. “You could never have envisaged how far she would go given the constraints that were in place when it all started. “The rest of Europe was developing at a pace too as regards women’s boxing and we were playing catch-up in Ireland. In the last few years, the gap has closed significantly. “Ireland was a late starter with women’s boxing compared to mainstream Europe. Katie was so talented but there were definitely boundaries and barriers in place.” Before that historic moment, Taylor pretended she was a boy, turning up to competitions with her hair tucked neatly into the headboard, disguising herself simply to get the rounds in. She fought in those days simply as ‘K Taylor’ and boxing was already, firmly, in her blood. Her mother, Bridget, also became a judge. Duffy first sat her judging exams in 1995 and two years later became a referee. She was a trailblazer herself in the sport. Alongside Mercedes Taaffe and Fiona Hennigan, Duffy was involved in recruiting boxers for that 2001 fight card at the National Stadium and she later served as secretary of the European Women’s Commission. She says: “Before that first sanctioned contest, there were competitions in the National Stadium. We had to start somewhere and we organised some competitions. We put the girls through a process of weigh-ins and matching, just to get into the proper competitive mindset. “It really felt like we were breaking new ground. When I passed my judging and referring courses, there were no girls or women boxing at all in Ireland. It was only after that that it got sanctioned. “Around the late 1990s, an interest piqued in women’s boxing. We had some training camps and weekend competitions, but they weren’t given championship status for a few years. The interest was high and the standard was pretty good. “It was difficult at the time because boxing was such a male-dominated sport. It did then get support from the Central Council and lo and behold the international came about.” Duffy was nervous as she gave the boxers their instructions in the National Stadium. The old place fell into a hush as Taylor and Audley touched gloves. It was a moment of seismic meaning in the spirt. “Everyone was nervous,” Duffy says. “I remember the fight. The first round was close, but Katie won the second and third. It was a well-matched contest between them. The two girls both went on to represent Ireland together. I remember I was in Italy at one tournament with them both and they were boxing at different weights at that stage.” Audley, who boxed out of the Sandy Row BC, is the older sister of Lewis Crocker, the former IBF world welterweight champion. The hand of the 15-year-old was held aloft by Duffy after three one-and-a-half-minute rounds. On the same bill, Tallaght bantamweight Debbie Rogers was stopped in the second round by England’s Nicola Adams, Duffy calling a halt after giving Rogers two counts. Dundalk native Sallie McArdle, fighting out of St Joseph’s in Sligo, defeated Julia Field 26-7 on points in a welterweight contest. Duffy refereed Taylor several times after that and also accompanied her on many trips as the Irish referee and judge for championships. “Katie was such a talented boxer,” Duffy says. “She was very clean and tactical and there were never any issues. She was a pleasure to referee.” In 2005, in Tonsberg, Norway, Taylor defeated Eva Wahlstrom to win her first European Championships gold. In all, the Bray woman won 18 major medals in the Irish amateur vest – the crowning moment being the 2012 Olympic Games lightweight gold. In the bout before Taylor overcame Sofya Ochigava at the ExCel Arena, one Nicola Adams defeated Ren Cancan from China to win the flyweight gold; the same Adams who fought on that 2001 card in Dublin. “It’s amazing to think that they both started that night and went on to win the first two women’s boxing medals at the Olympic Games,” Duffy said. “When Katie went into the High Performance Unit with Gary Keegan, Billy (Walsh) and Zaur (Antia), she moved to the next level. She did that because she was given the chance. The HPU was the best thing to ever happen to Irish boxing. It was amazing. “Katie kept her head down. She was never looking for praise or looking to rub peoples’ noses in it. She was very diligent and very focused. She knew where she wanted to go and had a great team of people around her.” Duffy, too, has played a big role in the sport and has taken charge of some of the country’s most high-profile bouts, including the 2011 Irish light-heavyweight final that saw Joe Ward dethrone Kenny Egan. It was a rousing night inside the National Stadium as Neilstown man Egan was aiming for an eleventh-successive title only to be shot down by Ward. The Illies Golden Gloves Boxing Club returned to training last week for the new season and Duffy is once again back in tow. “It’s great to see the kids back and raring to go again,” she says. “I’ve had some really good times in boxing and an incredible journey. I still love it. It keeps us going. We try to support the kids with whatever they want to do. They were all back last week and have entered now in the Peter O’Donnell Box Cup. “I’m back to the drawing board and you never say throw away the chalk!” On Saturday night, as she will take her spot in Croke Park and hear the iconic call from MC David Diamante for Taylor’s ring walk, her mind will surely wander back 25 years. She says: “I can’t wait for Saturday night. Over 80,000 people will be in Croke Park to watch our sport and God knows how many will be watching on tv. There will be people there who were never at a boxing tournament before but they’re going to watch Katie Taylor. That in itself could inspire someone to join a local club. “It’s win-win for boxing and it’s just fantastic for the sport – and it’s great to see Katie get this kind of chance. Nobody deserves it more.”