A GLASGOW night out that ends with a punch-up is not necessarily unique but there is something about the St Andrew’s Sporting Club that has seen it endure hardship and tragedy,
incorporate change and still make it safely through to celebrate its 50th anniversary.
The bar was set high back on
January 29, 1973, a British lightweight title fight between Jim Watt and Ken Buchanan at the Albany Hotel the star attraction on opening night of this new private members club.
It has since moved to a new home along the street to the Radisson Blu Hotel where Watt will this evening be one of several special guests to attend the Burns Night dinner a half-century on from that famous contest with old rival Buchanan. This time there will be a Scottish super-lightweight title on the line with Ahmed Mweva and Martin Crossan set to duke it out for the belt once the haggis has been addressed, the puddings cleared away and guest of honour Joe Calzaghe, the Welsh former world champion, has said a few words.
Sitting proudly at the top table will be Iain Wilson. The 45-year-old
businessman had been a long-standing attendee at the club before the
opportunity arose in 2014 to succeed legendary promoter Tommy Gilmour and run the operation himself. Nine years on and he continues to do so with the same enthusiasm and passion as he did on his first day in charge.
There have been challenges along the way. There was the tragic death of Dundonian welterweight Mike Towell in 2016 following a fight at the club, something that left an indelible mark on those involved. Then came
coronavirus, placing small-hall boxing on hold for years, ending careers and stalling the development of others. The club, though, has endured. And Wilson, who heads up a small but ded-icated team, believes it will continue to go from strength to strength.
“It’s a huge thing to be marking the 50th anniversary and an honour to be guiding the club at this time,” he said. “I think this will be quite an emotional night, just getting to that landmark after some difficult times.
“I went to the dinners for years before I became involved and it was always something I really enjoyed. Tommy always said he would only sell it to someone who would take the club forward. He always described it as being like one of his children! So it was an honour to get that chance to take it on. I love boxing. It’s always been my passion and now it’s grown into something a lot more.”
The club has been modernised, too, from its days as a male-only space, a mixed audience now treated to addresses from luminaries such as James Cosmo, Jim Telfer and Judy Murray.
“Something that is special with St Andrew’s that will never change is the formality of it,” added Wilson. “People like getting dressed up and it’s a different night to the usual boxing events. But there have been a lot of changes over the years, too. It’s open to everyone now which it wasn’t historically.
“Things like that had to happen, moving on from the days when it was men only. When I first started going to the dinners people were still able to smoke in the room and things like that. It’s a different world in many respects. It used to be a Monday and we’ve moved it to Thursday with the
occasional Friday night event too. Sometimes things just need to be freshened up a little bit and that’s what we’ll continue to do.”
The quarterly dinners, though, are just one part of the St Andrew’s empire. Wilson also manages a stable of 25 fighters, guiding their careers, hopefully, towards title fights and other career-defining occasions. Unlike many of his peers, he is not the most outlandish or extroverted of boxing promoters but there is a substance and integrity about Wilson.
“The management side of things I really enjoy,” he adds. “I’m fortunate that we’ve got a lot of good folk and I pride myself in having a positive rel-ationship with them all. My door’s always open and I’m on the end of the phone. I think that’s key, building rel-ationships and good communication.
“There are some horror stories out there about boxers and how they’ve been treated but we pride ourselves in making sure that’s not the case here.
“I don’t go into the changing rooms as much now but you still get those same butterflies before one of your fighters is about to go in the ring. That’s why you need to be passionate. You’re not just watching as a spectator, you seriously care about it. The nerves go when you’ve got young kids heading into their first fight. I’m up to high doh and pacing around beforehand! That lets you know you’re doing it for the right reasons.”
