Turn of the century tournament of all time contenders. 1890- 1902

[Dr. Z]

Well, as I've said before, I think Killen is not an 1890's fighter and this is shown by the fact that he hasn't one single common opponent with Ruhlin. Still, an intriguing contest. Pat was an outstanding puncher and the ko win over Cardiff was impressive. However the rest of his resume is thin, the draw with Cardiff, wins over Lannon, St Joe Kid and Duncan McDonald probably the pick of them. Ruhlin has a fantastic portfolio, the battles with Sharkey, Maher, Hart and Jeffries, wins over Choynski, O'Donnell and a slew of good second raters. But Gus could have the odd stinker, think Kennedy, Jeffords and Kenney. Killen's career was cut too short to really access him, the los to McAuley is damning, even if he was under the influnce of alcohol, surely a sign of weakWell, as I've said before, I think Killen is not an 1890's fighter and this is shown by the fact that he hasn't one single common opponent with Ruhlin. Still, an intriguing contest. Pat was an outstanding puncher and the ko win over Cardiff was impressive. However the rest of his resume is thin, the draw with Cardiff, wins over Lannon, St Joe Kid and Duncan McDonald probably the pick of them. Ruhlin has a fantastic portfolio, the battles with Sharkey, Maher, Hart and Jeffries, wins over Choynski, O'Donnell and a slew of good second raters. But Gus could have the odd stinker, think Kennedy, Jeffords and Kenney. Killen's career was cut too short to really access him, the los to McAuley is damning, even if he was under the influnce of alcohol, surely a sign ofWell, as I've said before, I think Killen is not an 1890's fighter and this is shown by the fact that he hasn't one single common opponent with Ruhlin. Still, an intriguing contest. Pat was an outstanding puncher and the ko win over Cardiff was impressive. However the rest of his resume is thin, the draw with Cardiff, wins over Lannon, St Joe Kid and Duncan McDonald probably the pick of them. Ruhlin has a fantastic portfolio, the battles with Sharkey, Maher, Hart and Jeffries, wins over Choynski, O'Donnell and a slew of good second raters. But Gus could have the odd stinker, think Kennedy, Jeffords and Kenney. Killen's career was cut too short to really access him, the loss to McAuley is damning, even if he was under the influence of alcohol, surely a sign of physiological weakness, so a tentative nod for Ruhlin.

I'll go with Ruhlin on points too. I think he is the better boxer and if he makes it out of the early rounds wins the decision. Not a confident pick by any means. I never meet or heard of a historian " expert " on Killen. He is almost famous. Had he fought Sullivan I think his stock raises in victory and defeat. Not to be forgotten here, he's in the tourney and even if he looses vs Ruhlin is 1-1.

[Dr. Z]

Up next is Tom Sharkey vs. Kid McCoy who you guessed it actually fought. The explosive Sharkey had the footwork and speed combined with the stamina and wild style to catch up and take out the speedy boxers type in Choynski and McCoy! He got the better of Corbett too. The owner if a tough chin Sharkey advances to the final four, knocking McCoy in ten rounds.

McCoy for those that are not familiar with him was a tricky boxer with pound for pound type of ability and power. He was a smart rule bender and developed a wicked corkscrew punch by twisting and rotating arm and wrist when the punch landed.

[mattdonnellon]

Yep, Sharkey and McCoy met at their peak so no reason to think anything different would happen. Incidently, McCoy dropped Tom twice in the third round, not the second as boxrec has it.

[Dr. Z]

Yep, Sharkey and McCoy met at their peak so no reason to think anything different would happen. Incidently, McCoy dropped Tom twice in the third round, not the second as boxrec has it.

Right. The Kid could punch and Sharkey was not known for defense. Sharkey's power and chin were tested in his era, and they both passed.

[Dr. Z]

Any more picks. On friday we move on to Maher vs Goddard. Now that one will be hotly contested

[Dr. Z]

Maher vs.Goddard.


They actually fought in 1898 ( surprise ). Though Goddard was past his best he KO'd Maher one round. I don't have the news review of this fight. I like the tough Aussie slugger to win again in 3 rounds. Maher to me was something of a glass cannon .

[Willow The Wisp]

I agree, and my vote plus a nickel goes to Goddard

[mattdonnellon]

They fought three times!
First contest;
Maher won the toss for the ‘lucky’ corner and the protagonists shook hands and the battle commenced with a wild exchange that saw the Irishman put to his knees. He arose and split Goddard’s eye but the Australian was unperturbed as the blood flowed and he forced Maher to the ropes with a vicious if unscientific body attack. A powerful left to the stomach sent Maher to the floor. On regaining his feet he promptly staggered Goddard with a great straight left that sliced the cheekbone open and brought forth blood in a mighty ******. Maher’s supporters raised the rafters as they saw their hero in the ascendancy but the close of the round saw Goddard butting his opponent on the chest, then both gladiators matching each other, blow for powerful blow, on the ropes.
Between rounds, Goddard smiled through the blood while Peter was panting from exhaustion on his chair. On the resumption in round two Goddard was the aggressor forcing an anxious Maher back with powerful two handed attacks but then Peter launched his powerful right, catching Joe on the neck and fairly rattling the teak-tough Aussie and followed up with a vicious body shot. The crowd went crazy as the two men went at each other hammer and thongs. The fighting was pure slugging with no pretence at finesse as Maher drove for the body and Goddard worked for the head.
A massive right sent Maher to the ground where he lay in a heap for seven seconds before dragging himself up to face the tiger that was Goddard. Not a second of respite was there for either man as Goddard roughed up Maher on the ropes but somehow the near exhausted Irishman rallied and had his man reeling about the ring from heavy right-handers at the gong. Only Maher’s lack of strength saved Goddard.
Goddard recovered the better however and at the call of time set upon Maher driving him to the ropes where he bludgeoned him with wild right and left swings until the inevitable finish, described vividly by The National Police Gazette. “With his face all grimy with gore, his white teeth gleaming beneath the short bristle of a moustache, Maher seemed little short of a demon, and slowly sank with his face to the floor, unconscious. Time of third round, 50 seconds”.

After the fight, Goddard said, “He ****** me a bit and is a bleeding hard hitter”. He went on to challenge Corbett for the championship and elaborated on, “I am free to admit that Corbett is one of the cleverest men I ever saw. I am also positive that he cannot hit one tenth as hard as the man I have just beaten. I don’t see how he (Corbett) can get out of a match, for I am informed on the very best authority that he declined to make a match for $5,000 a side and a big purse with Peter Maher. I do not speak egotistically when I say that Maher is a good man, and that he can beat many men”.
Second fight.



Goddard had a chequered history since beating Maher back in 1892. He had become ill and this contributed to losses to “
Denver” Ed Smith and Harry Laing. Getting his act together he beat Mike Dooley, Owen Sullivan, and Smith interspersed with a loss to Peter Felix and draws with “Tut” Ryan. He came back to the States in 1897 and put together a string of losses to Tom Sharkey, Theodore Van Buskirk and James J. Jeffries. He seemed a spent force and Maher was expected to easily gain revenge for his earlier defeat.
It turned out very differently. Maher looked out of condition for the scheduled six round bout, while Joe appeared hard and fit. Peter was the early aggressor and after some feinting he forced Goddard onto the ropes. The Aussie appeared to be breaking away when he swung a backhand right which hit the Irish Champion on the side of the jaw, the impact caused by the heel of the glove sending Maher face first to the floor, striking his head with great force. To the astonishment of all in the Arena he was out dead and took fully twenty seconds to regain his feet. Time of the ending was one minute 42 seconds or one minute 51 seconds, depending on various versions.

Third Fight.

Goddard was the 100/80 favourite and entered the ring first, closely followed by Maher, dressed in his usual black trunks with green belt. Goddard said he weighed 177 pounds while Maher was 171. Goddard looked in the better condition and was seconded by Billy Leedom, Bob Kirkpatrick, Harry Crowhurst and Frank E****. Connolly, Spike Sullivan, Lowery and Burns acted for Maher, while Bill Smith, brother to Pittsburg Phil, was his timer.
The fight was savage as both men went at it, knowing that their respective careers were on the line. Maher took the opener, sending Goddard to the floor after a fierce exchange. Maher countered Joe in the second and sent him spinning like a top with a right. The fighting was fast and wild with Peter on top.
“I’ll kill him now,” Maher said at the start of the third. He boxed well defensively but Goddard staggered him with two big lefts but gamely he fought back, sending the Barrier champ down. He quickly arose only to be again smashed down, where he was found when the gong sounded. The house was in an uproar. They went at it again until the crowd shouted that the round was over.
On and on they went, Maher’s eyes starting to shut. In the fifth Joe tried to back heel Peter for the second time in the fight and for his trouble he was knocked down. Before the round was over he had to take a nine count on the ring floor but came back at Peter and fought desperately to the finish. Round six was the quietest yet with a smiling but tiring Maher keeping Joe away with his straight left.
The seventh saw Goddard force the pace but towards the end a big right put him down again for nine, and on getting to his feet the bell rang. Bravely he came out for what was to prove the last round as Maher went at him and pounded him with both hands. Vicious stomach punches mixed with wicked blows to the jaw rained on Goddard until with five seconds remaining in the eight round he, with the last vestige of energy he had, he extended his hand to Maher.
Maher’s Gameness.

“It was a pitiful spectacle which Joe Goddard presented when battered up, bruised and bleeding, scarcely able to see through the discoloured swellings which encircled his eyes, speaking through lips seamed with gaping cuts, from which blood flowed in tiny ******s, he said, ‘I can go no further’.” So wrote Sam Austin in the Police Gazette.

Austin went on. “Goddard was the better conditioned of the two, but Maher had two defeats, and the charge of ‘yellowness’ to wipe out, and he fought like a demon. More than once the heavy hand of the Barrier Champion fell upon him with enough force to drive an ox into the ground.”
“Never once did he flinch. At no stage of the fight did he show evidence of anything but a grim determination to go on to the end, whatever that end might be.”
Austin had no doubt of Maher’s heart. “He did one thing and that was to dispel all erroneous ideas touching his gameness.”

[mattdonnellon]

They never actually met at their peak, Goddard best was up to 1893 and Maher 1894 to 1899. The "glass cannon" Maher had hundreds of fights from 1889 to 1900, was rarlely floored and survived such punchers as Slavin, Sharkey, Ruhlin, Choynski, Butler and bested Hall, Godfrey, Craig, McAuliffe, Kennedy, C C Smith, Klon***e,Dunkhorst and O'Donnell. Goddard had a stellar career but shorter at the top with more unexpected defeats. I pick Maher in condition, better boxer and indeed puncher, but two top operators.

[Dr. Z]

They never actually met at their peak, Goddard best was up to 1893 and Maher 1894 to 1899. The "glass cannon" Maher had hundreds of fights from 1889 to 1900, was rarlely floored and survived such punchers as Slavin, Sharkey, Ruhlin, Choynski, Butler and bested Hall, Godfrey, Craig, McAuliffe, Kennedy, C C Smith, Klon***e,Dunkhorst and O'Donnell. Goddard had a stellar career but shorter at the top with more unexpected defeats. I pick Maher in condition, better boxer and indeed puncher, but two top operators.

Yet Goddard was 2-1, 2 ko's vs. Maher and was not in his prime for all three fights. His power level obvisouly had an effect on Maher.