All Blacks legend Sonny Bill Williams is set to fight the man who bullied Ireland in International Rules action years ago as he takes on Barry Hall - but the former has Andy Lee in his corner.
The fight is set to take place on Wednesday, March 23 at the Aware Super Theatre, International Convention Centre in Sydney.
It will mark Hall's first appearance in the boxing ring since 2019.
His counterpart, two-time Rugby World Cup winner Williams will have the benefit of guidance from Irish boxing legend Andy Lee.
Lee believes Williams has all the ingredients required to become heavyweight champion of the world and did not shy away from the big predictions when asked about his experience with the All Blacks icon.
He said: "I’m not blowing smoke; my ambition with Sonny is to one day fight for the heavyweight championship.
“It is well within his reach. With the progression he has made in the past six to eight weeks, the way I see him going in the future, with the right fights and the right training, he certainly has the ability.
“Is that the greatest story in sports history, if he fights for the heavyweight title?
“The blueprint is there. He’s a different person altogether.
“If Sonny wins the fight against Barry Hall, it might be a stinker of a performance and people will be saying, ‘You’re crazy saying that.’ Trust me, with progression and time he’ll get more comfortable in the ring. You’ll see.”
Williams himself has been engaged in a war of words with Hall in the lead-up to the fight and was in disbelief when his opponent labelled him as 'arrogant.'
He said: “I’ve just stated the facts.
“For him to call me arrogant is laughable in the sense that he’s already said that he’s going to fight me and Paul Gallen and then walk off into the sunset.
“In his head he must be thinking that it’s a foregone conclusion that he’s just going to walk straight through me and then onto Paul – I think that’s arrogant.
“I’ve been over to Ireland for six weeks to prepare for Barry, that’s how much I respect him as a fighter.
“Obviously he doesn’t respect me as a fighter.”
Hall's confrontational style will not be unfamiliar to shrewd observers in Ireland; many will remember him as a no-nonsense competitor in the International Rules Series between Ireland and Australia.
Hall was often reprimanded domestically throughout an eventful career, and the headbanging approach was no less prominent when he featured in the compromise rules games.
Following the 2003 series of the games, Hall described how he had poked fun at Cork legend Graham Canty after the final whistle.
He said: ”When we swapped jerseys, I told him that I really enjoyed myself.
“He said the same. And I said, ‘Well, in that case, I hope I’m on you again next year, mate.’”
As an AFL player, Hall notched over 700 goals for Sydney Swans, but he will probably always be best remembered in Ireland for those highly charged International Rules moments against some of the GAA's finest athletes.
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