There was, as the man himself would have put it, standing room only at the Clonmany Community Centre at the weekend as the first Peter O’Donnell Box Cup.
Around 400 young boxers from Ireland and England – at schoolboys, schoolgirls, youth, junior and under-19 grades – weighed in for the inaugural tournament – on the weekend of the first anniversary of the passing of O’Donnell, Donegal’s ‘Mr Boxing’, on October 19, 2025 after a short illness.
A total of 78 finals and another 14 skills bouts, for the budding young pugilists of the future, played out before a capacity crowd, including former world middleweight title challenger Jason Quigley, ex-pro Paddy Doherty and former Irish super-heavyweight kingpin Eamon Coyle.
The day began with an eye-catching display by Laurence O’Loughlin, the Galway Boxing Club man scoring a unanimous decision over Letterkenny BC’s rising ace Wacky Connors. O’Loughlin managed to cut through Connors’ guard to claim victory.
There was an early win for the big home Clonmany crowd to cheer as Keelan Kearney – younger brother of Donegal’s newest professional Conan Kearney – landed an emphatic win over Caleb Wright from All Saints. Kearney, a multi nations gold medallist last year, was given the nod by all three judges at ringside.
Another St Bridget’s Clonmany puncher, Shay Devlin, wasted no time in claiming victory in his 60kgs contest. The referee brought his bout with Churchlands Golden Gloves’ Antos Norzka to an end in the first round, Devlin firmly in command.
Twin Towns Boxing Club’s Aoife Gillespie, who was crowned the Irish Girl 2 43kgs champ earlier this year, earned a noteworthy win over Amy O’Shaughnessy from Rathnew BC. Gillespie forced a count and, ultimately, the referee waved the bout off in the third stanza in favour of the Ballybofey girl.
Her club-mate Blake O’Carroll, however met a ferocious opponent in the form of Tiger Sexton from the Hoddesdon Boxing Academy in England. Sexton, an English junior champion last year, showed his worth as he forced a stoppage in the second round after clipping a powerful blow on O’Carroll in their U17 57kgs clash.
Dunfanaghy Boxing Club’s Tiernan McGinley got the better of Eagle BC’s Malaki Jahn in a well-matched 50kgs fight. McGinley edged it when the sums were totted, taking a 2-1 split decision.
“Today is about more than boxing,” County Donegal Boxing Board President James McCarron said. “It is about remembering a man who meant so much to our sport and to the people involved in it. Peter was a man whose contribution to boxing in Donegal will never be forgotten.
“He gave his time, his energy and his passion to the sport, and he helped build something that was much bigger than what happened inside the ring.
“He understood that boxing was about developing young people, teaching discipline, building confidence, showing respect and giving people a sense of belonging.
“That is the real legacy Peter leaves behind. One of the special things about Peter was the respect he earned throughout the boxing community. His name continues to mean something to the people who knew him. We remember not only what he did for boxing, but also the commitment and character that made him such an important part of our community.”
On behalf of the O’Donnell family, Rory O’Donnell said if there was a Heaven on earth then “this would be it for my father”. He said: “Look at this, three rings and boys and girls just boxing and just getting on with it and coming out with a smile on their face.
“Win or lose, that was what he wanted to have and he just loved boxing.”
O’Donnell was a founder member of Raphoe Boxing Club in the late 1980s and was the President of the County Donegal Boxing Board from 2012 until his death. He also managed Irish international teams on several occasions and became the voice of Irish boxing as the ring announcer at the National Stadium.