“And Rihanna called New Lodge a hopeless place”
JOHN Paul Hale wasn’t even in the country when the Commonwealth Games team was announced last week, but he wasted no time getting that line up on social media to mark the Star club’s stellar representation.
The big-hitting 25-year-old – who was boxing in America the weekend previous – returns for a second crack at the Commonwealths, having fallen at the first hurdle four years ago.
Long-time mentor Liam Corr was part of the Northern Ireland coaching team in Birmingham, and is there again, helping get the new crew ready for Glasgow this summer.
That Star double act has now become a trio, with the New Lodge club also pinning hopes on the talented Louis Rooney – the fact he is Hale’s cousin strengthening the connection even further.
“I remember before Birmingham, I was only 16, and Liam brought me up for the last three weeks of the sparring camp,” recalls Rooney.
“That’s when I was starting to love boxing – I was like, ‘one day, this is us, this is me going’. And then, for years, once I turned senior, me and JP were talking about going to the Commonwealths together, and now it’s happening. It’s real.
“With Liam there too, it’s just class.”
“It’s amazing for the club,” adds Corr, “it just shows the club’s doing good things. JP and Louis come back into the club on a Monday or a Friday, and all the kids look up to them.”
Although there is five years and four weight classes between them, Rooney and Hale have shared the ring from time to time through the years – though the 20-year-old knows to steer clear of his big cousin’s bombs.
“A bit of touch sparring just,” smiles Rooney, “you wouldn’t want him going too hard – he’d put me back up to Ardoyne if he hit me…
“Just from being in the gym for the last 10 years, though, boxing definitely brought us closer.”
JP Hale feels he has unfinished business after a broken hand affected his preparations for the last Commonwealth Games. PICTURE: PA
And, unlike in Birmingham, Hale will go to Glasgow firing on all cylinders.
The five-time Ulster elite champion suffered a broken hand months before the 2022 Commonwealths, and was a shadow of his usual self when bowing out to Uganda’s rough, tough Joshua Tukamuhebwa.
This time around, though, Corr hopes the viewing public will see the real JP Hale.
“JP was out for 10 weeks coming into those Commonwealths – 10 weeks with absolutely no contact on his right hand because of the break at the Europeans.
“He had a good first round, but was it always going to go like that? Maybe. He was just catching up, there was a lot of ring rust.
“But he made that decision himself that he wanted to try and qualify for the next Commonwealths, and show the full representation of himself out there.
“Fingers crossed he’s a medal hope.”
Rooney, however, has a different sort of challenge to overcome.
The 20-year-old has had plenty of international exposure since arriving on the elite scene in recent years, including boxing at the last September’s World Championships in Liverpool, the prestigious Strandja memorial tournament and World Box Cup in Brazil.
But, with World Boxing removing the 50kg weight class, Rooney finds himself having to jump up to 55kg in a relatively short space of time.
“Like, last January [2025] I was 48. I made the change to go 50. I won an elite title at 48, an elite title at 50, and an elite title again at 55 – all in the same year. Seven kilos is a jump, but I’m getting a bit bigger now, building into 55.
“It’s not healthy jumping between 50 one minute, 55 the next. But next year is when the Olympic qualifying starts, so I’m going to start building into 55 anyway.”
And Corr insists Rooney is capable of stepping up in Glasgow.
“It’s a massive jump, but he just has to play with the cards he’s dealt.
“He could’ve just said ‘no I’ll miss out on the Commonwealths, stay at 50’, but he was up for the challenge and he had a great fight in here with Clepson [dos Santos].
“It will be a challenge, and it’s a challenge he’s willing to take it on, then he’s going back down for the Europeans after. It’s something he’s fully capable of doing; if I didn’t think that, he wouldn’t be going.
“I think it’s moreso that World Boxing need to take a look at themselves, because all the small men are being cut out – they’re making boxers make these decisions, and make these jumps, instead of fighting at their natural weight.”
Team NI coaches Liam Corr and JP Delaney are looking ahead to the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow. PICTURE: BRIAN LINCOLN
Although it is a long time since he too was lacing up gloves, Corr’s education within the sport is also continuing as preparation steps up a gear for his second Commonwealths.
He and JP Delaney were new to the elite set up four years ago, but the experience of Birmingham has stood to both of them ahead of the next journey.
“You’re a bit more confident.
“We were coming in as the two junior coaches who had worked with the youth and juniors, and then stepping up to the elites, and there were some Olympians, world champions…
“It was daunting, but it set us up for where we are now. You weren’t thrown in the deep end where you couldn’t deal with anything, but you were put in positions that made you learn, made you a better coach.
“It was a brilliant experience, the environment, everything about it was class, and that’s hopefully set us up for this time around. And getting to do it with the two boys makes it all the more special.”