San Antonio light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1911-1993, 1923-01-07
BY ROBERT EDGREN.

BY ROBERT EDGREN.
What's bred in the bone will come
out in the ring. There's fighting fam
lily near Waterbury that has shown
pretty well in boxing and that is likely
| to have q champion among its members
within q few months.
It's good old Irish strain and flows
| through the Shugrue's. They fight I'M
der their own name, and are proud OF 1t.
| Shugrue is as good as an Irish name
as Kelly or Murphy or any other, al
though not by any means as common.
There was Joe Shugrue a few years
ago who whipped nearly ell the best
| liehtweights in this and other countries
when he lived in New Jersey, and was
kept from the championship only by
nearly losing his eyesight.
l saw Joe Shugrue make Freddy
Welsh look like n novice in node
cision bout, and there were few. that
could do that. Freddy was a lucky lad
that night that there was no-decision.
| Otherwise he'd never have had any title
to lose TO Benny Leonard.
And this same Joe Shugrue, by the
way, was the lad who once flattcned
Benny himself for n ten-count in four
rounds before Benny became champion
That lad Joe Shugrue could box like a
wildcat and fight like the ODOnnell
himself. Didn't John J.. Sullivan tell
me that Shugrue was the best little tel-
low he'd seen since Terry McGovern,
who always was Johns idol, just as
Wolgast was Jeffries' pet?
! Shugrue beat Pal Moore. Charlie Crit
! fin. One Round Hogan, Owen Moran
and a bunch of good ones.
Taught the Younger Ones.
When Joe Shugrue gave up boxing
because Of his weak eyes, and all hopes
. of the championship with it, there were
younger Shugrue's growing up, and Joe
began showing Johnnie how to hit and
block and when to go in and when to
/ stay away. Johnnie was an apt pupil.
After awhile he began fighting prelim-
inaries at first, like all the rest of the
| youngsters, but main events before long.
Now Johnnie is in the championship
! class among the lightweights, and Will
E lie, who is still n feather, is knocking
'em over like his older brothers.
There are two or three more Kid Shu'
grues between bantam and featherweight
and they all box. Brother Joe, who
coaches the lot of them, says that some
body in the Shugrue family is going tC
grab the title he didn't get.
Johnnie Shugrue is a well-built fel
low, twenty years of age. He has beer
= boxing four years. He doesn't box often
y because his eyes aren't very strong ant
he doesn't want TO strain them. But HI
{ doesn't need glasses in the ring, al
D though he wears them outside.
He can see well enough to put hi
punches where he wants them. Only {
5 few weeks ago he knocked out Will,
jackson, who is one of the TOUCHES
y lightwcights in the business, and WIT
!, once knocked Johnny Dundee out in
punch and had Lew Tender founder
ing on the floor after a clip on tn,
e chin.
Gave Jackson Bad Beating.
II Johnnie Shugrue gave Jackson ;
a fierce hammcring, knocking him dow
IS and so completely beating all the ugh
e out of him that jackson couldn't com
y up for the eleventh round. but had {,
Il stay Topped down in his chair with hi
seconds still working on him when tn
bell rang,
To show what he could do with clcver
fellows, after knocking out Willie Jack
son, John beat Elmo Flores. the FLIP
e Pine lightweight who came here to figh
Leonard, and was busy working his wa!
y, up to Benny when Shugrue interviewed.
Il Tex Richard took an interest in John
~ ME after the Jackson fight, so Shugru
9 is "made" if be goes on fighting in tn
n same way.
a. Flores is very clever boxer, big
n ger Villa. Gean and hard hitter. II
was good enough TO have given Benn,
m Leonard a hard fight. But Johnni
n Shugrue outboxed and outfought Flore
Dr. through nearly all of the twelve round
winning with plenty TO spare.
Joe Shugrue. who has been followin
= fights closely since he retired, being abb
TO see quite well enough to follor
punches, says that in his judgmen
brother Johnnie IS good enough RICH
now to match Benny Leonard in boxin
skill and traSr punch for punch wit
the champi0S, He has one adyantag
over Benny. He's coming, and comm
fast. Leonard has been champion n lon
time.
1t might not be good thing to SEN
the boy along too fast and match hin
with the champion right away. Bu
how can you send a youngster too fas
when he is just after knocking gu
Jackson and beating Flores? He ma
be just right in his stride TO go higher.
Many Fighting Families.
The Shugrue fighting family may hav
more fighters than any other when a
tire youngsters get under way, but |
isn't entirely along in showing famil
fighting form. The Leonards hav
done pretty we'll. Charlie was Amer
" can amateur lightweight champion. an
if he had an awful punch. He lacked an
We bition TO go on as a professional pr,
e. ferred business, Benny's younger brotl
n. er, joey, according 70 Ben, has chan
Of pionShip stuff in him, and has starte
d well in the ring. OF course the Leo1