Published: Wednesday, 16th December, 2009 5:00pm

Thrills and spills leave crowd going home happy

Beer swilled, blood spilled and egos killed, not necessarily in that order. So this was Friday Fight Night, Cavan GAA-style.

They say in boxing that styles make fights, and now we know for sure that having no style makes even better fights. A few, ahem, technical imperfections in the ring aside, this was a top-class event made possible by the bottle and effort of the players and the nous of the organisers. That doesn't mean we, as spectators, couldn't have a laugh though…

Stand-out memories from a brilliantly-run event? Where to start?

Maybe Tomás Reilly attacking Raymond Galligan as if the Lacken man had just made an insulting comment about one of his relatives.

Or Galligan getting over the early shock to swarm the Killeshandra man with a flurry of haymakers, some of them even legal.

We'll begin at the bottom and work our way up. Lowlight was the opener. Ronan Flanagan may be one of the gutsiest players we have on grass, but on canvas he spent the four and a half minutes looking bemused and scurrying backwards away from Mark McKeever, while the Gowna man stalked his prey, whose tactical masterplan was revealed when he entered to the sounds of 'Why Can't We Be Friends'!

Later, some of the crowd were listening for a cry of "tiiiiiimber!" when Ray Cullivan got toasted - pun totally intended - by an overhand right from Kingscourt's Alan Clarke for the first stoppage of the night in the fourth bout.

Luckily enough, the glaze had cleared from the Ballyhaise man's eyes by Sunday afternoon when he deservedly picked up the Man of the Match award after lifting the Under 21 Division Two title, a nice icing on the cake for 'Sugar Ray'.

While we're on the subject of ironic nicknames, Cian 'the Wasp' Mackey seems about right. Coming somewhere between the Flanagan-McKeever love-in and the O'Reilly-Galligan fistic war, this was a ratty fight, both men discarding their vests as a signal of intent before the bell, but Mackey's sting was too sharp for a game Cahill by the end.

Meanwhile, Nesty Smith was ruffled at times by the smaller Bud Fitzpatrick in their clash, while no-one could save actor MacLean Burke of Fair City from Nicholas Walsh, who, of course, benefited from the experience of having played in that infamous St Gall's match!

Superb announcer Owen McConnon - whose heart, like most males in the room, must have had a sporty beat to it as the gorgeous Galwegian ring girl strutted her stuff between rounds - deserves a mention too after another top class performance.

The serious business, a heartfelt speech by the Baby Max Wings of Love (the main charity along with the fund for Kelvin Brady) founder, drew a huge applause from the 600 in attendance and put things in perspective. Funds raised, fitness improved and a crowd going home happy - overall, a job well done.

All involved, from patrons to organisers and most of all to those who had the courage to step between the ropes, take a bow.