John does a great job getting youngsters involved in the sport in his boxing club in Far Cotton, Northampton.
Boxing is a great sport for teaching youngsters a bit of self-discipline, fitness, respect for other people and awareness that nothing is achieved without hard work. It can come in handy too.
Another friend of mine tells me how, when he was a kid, he got bullied. His old man, who had done a bit of boxing in the army, soon showed him how to defend himself.
Incidentally, when he stood up at a meeting recently and suggested a bit of boxing or other martial arts as a cure for bullying, the do-gooders were horrified.
John Daly has done a great job with his boxing club and none of this has been financed by local or national government.
I'd like to invite Brian Binley MP, Sally Keeble MP, and even Gordon Brown and David Cameron to come here to Northampton to have a look at what's going on in these boxing clubs and how kids can learn self-respect and discipline.
Instead of allowing the building of more greedy supermarkets selling alcopops, the Government should be building more youth clubs to help keep the kids occupied and off the streets...that's what I call boxing clever.
Chronicle & Echo, 10/05/2008.
