Collins explains Keeler’s Doran defeat

‘Keeler is celebrating already’ said Nick Halling as soon as the Ballyfermot middleweight dropped Tom Doran in their highly entertaining two round dust up earlier this month.

The Welsh fighter was heavily dropped that Irish fight fans and all those who backed the likable Dub followed suit.  However, Pascal Collins indicates that is where the problem lay.

The last thing the trainer told Keeler before they took to the ring was ‘if you drop him look straight to the corner’ so he could instruct the prospect on his next move.

It seems Keeler looked to his support and in fairness it is a mistake most could make. It was like a scene from The Walking Dead – The Zombie is blasted to bits with a shot gun, the shooter walks away content only to see his foe rise and come again.

However, that moment and a rush of blood to the head cost the Dub the fight claims his coach.

“Luke didn’t listen in the dressing room before the fight. The last thing I said to him was look to the corner if you drop this guy. Once he dropped him so heavy everyone thought the fight was over. Really everyone, fair play to him for recovering from that, but he was let off a little by a rush of blood to the head from Luke. These things happen and he will learn from it. A little more composure and he would have stopped I am sure. The thing is I seen him hurt before and not just recover, but rescue the victory from the jaws of defeat,” Collins told Irish-boxing.com.

“If you look at the fight Luke was doing well with his jab and if he would have just been a little more patient another right hand would have come and it most likely would have been over then. These things happen and we can all get excited, he will learn from it he is a smart kid.”

As Keeler swarmed his foe and as a result got clipped by the Welsh warrior. Both staggered back to their corners hurt, but Collins claims Keeler was worse for ware because the shot that hurt him landed on the back of the head.

“Luke got hit on the back of the head and that takes longer to recover from. His knock down in the first was more a push because he was off balance from that shot to the back of the head. Both were a bit hurt going back to their corners, but if Luke would have taken that shot on the chin rather than the back of the head he probably would have recovered going out for the second.”

While his charge was still on shaky legs after the minute recess his opponent’s head was clear and Collins was full of admiration for Doran’s fighting spirit.

“I think Luke was on the verge of winning and, if he would have stepped off, he would have got the knockout. However, you have to admire what Tom Doran did. His recovery was unbelievable, that was some shot that dropped him. You have to love fighters like that, they don’t just get back to their feet but they get back up and go out to win.”