By Lee Costello

THE phrase ‘hard man’ has always been synonymous with the GAA.

Mick Lyons, Diarmuid O’Sullivan, Francie Bellew are just a few such hard men who were not to be trifled with. We can all remember tales of a gorilla-like full-back who has boulders for shoulders, shovels for hands and forearms as thick as their accent.

Quite often these giants would be more involved with what is commonly referred to as ‘handbags’ – meaning a bit of pushing, shoving and verbal jostling.

But what would really happen if footballers swapped the Murphy’s gloves for boxing gloves?

There’s no question that most county footballers have the athleticism, drive and competitive appetite to succeed in the sweet science.

However, there are other factors that need to be considered, such as weight to height ratio, tenacity and discipline to stay cool when under a barrage of attacks.

Tyrone All-star Pádraig Hampsey enjoyed a successful stint in boxing during his teenage years, picking up two underage Ulster titles and reaching two Irish finals. He also represented the north of Ireland in European competition having boxed out of the Clonoe club.

When speaking on the ‘His and Hers Boxing’ podcast, he revealed the three Tyrone players that he thinks could be successful in the ring.

“The likes of Mattie Donnelly would have a bit of a background in jiu-jitsu and he’s done a bit of boxing as well,” said the Fianna man.

“Mattie would be up there but is probably a bit heavy for his size and height, he would have to strip back down to 75kg and he’s sitting at about 90kg.”

Hampsey understands the struggle of cutting weight for fights and admits that it is one of the things that made him choose football over boxing.

Footballers are often told to put on muscle and add bulk in order to make them strong in a tackle and hold their own in tussles on and off the ball.

For this reason in the boxing ring ¬- although finely conditioned for most competitive sports – they might be paired with people twice their height.

“There’s a young lad, Conall Grimes,” added Hampsey.

“I reckon he could give it a good go if he was trained right.”

The Loughmacrory prospect was drafted into Tyrone’s McKenna Cup squad earlier this year and impressed Hampsey in training, who stated that; “He’s just got that bit of a treacherous streak in him.”

Last but not least on Hampsey’s list of potential pugilists was Pomeroy’s very own Kieran McGeary.

“You can probably see by his style of play, he would die for you on the pitch.

“If them lads were all at it (boxing) from a young age, they would probably make a good go at it.”

The common theme among Hampsey’s selected sluggers is their bravery.

“They would put their heads where most men wouldn’t put a shovel.”

You can follow the podcast at @hisandherboxing on Twitter.

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