He Beat Heeney

Sun (Auckland), Volume II, Issue 415, 25 July 1928, Page 1

He Beat Heeney

Hectic Days in N.Z. Prize Ring

JIM SULLIVAN'S CAREER

One of the few men who have beaten Tom Heeney is an Aucklander. Jim Sullivan. These days, Jim cheerfully confesses to the fact that he tips the beam at 18st. but when he beat Heeney he scaled 14st. was 6ft 4in in height, and had a reach of 81 inches, nine inches more than Heeney.

1925 was a hectic year in heavyweight boxing in New Zealand. Tom Heeney was carrying all before him. He beat Cyril Whitaker at the Auckland Town Hall, the Southland boy meeting a tragic death as a result of the fight. Then followed victories over Flett and Brian McClearv, the latter of whom was in hospital for several weeks as a result of the pounding he took from the Gisborne man. WAS NEXT ON LIST Jim Sullivan was next on the list. A great, raw-boned bushman, Jim was trained by Charlie Peoples, one of the cleverest trainers in New Zealand, who shrewdly divined that it would be fatal for Sullivan to go in and mix matters with the hammer-fisted Heeney. Sullivan made a running fight of it, poking out his long left, and banging at Heeney from long range. In vain Heeney tried to rush his man. Sullivan kept him off, and got the decision on points. WILD NIGHT AT GISBORNE The pair met twice afterwards. Heeney secured a much disputed decision against Sullivan at Gisborne, his home town, where the crowd nearly mobbed the referee when it thought that Sullivan had been declared the winner. The official in charge then announced that Heeney was the winner, and Sullivan was disqualified. Heeney, however, won the third fight betwen them by a knock-out. Although many good judges regarded Sullivan as a coming man, he dropped out of the game shortly afterwards, there being little inducement for heavy-weight fighters in New Zealand.