By Elijah Fa’afiu in Sydney
As a relieved Paul Gallen rides off into the sunset with his sporting career drawing to a close, Sonny Bill Williams will be wondering how his final act as an athlete finished on a sour note.
A single point was the difference in Gallen’s split decision victory in Sydney, in their long-awaited boxing bout that was a decade in the making.
One judge had the fight 77-74 Gallen, another scored it 77-74 Williams, and the final adjudicator marked it 76-75 Gallen.
Williams suffered a crucial point deduction in the seventh round for continuously holding Gallen, having made a habit of doing so throughout the contest, before official Les Fear finally had enough in the penultimate round.
Frustration behind the decision led to Williams opting not to front the media following the fight, and despite claiming bragging rights, Gallen took to the stand without feeling the need to gloat.
“I’m just so happy it’s over. That’s it, that’s my sporting career done,” Gallen declared.
“I’m 44 years old in less than a month and I’m too old to be having gripes with other grown men, so I’m happy to break bread with him [Williams].”
From the outset, the crowd seemed torn on who they wanted to back. While boos initially rained down on The G-Train during the ring walks and introductions, the volume dial turned up several notches in the jeers against SBW.
While Gallen’s mounting pressure and volume of hits gave him the edge, Williams was no slouch, pacing himself while landing a few combinations, although his numerous holds in the clinch eventually backfired on the scorecards, and even lost fan support, with the majority of the crowd of 6000 appearing to back Gallen as the fight went on.
The two-minute rounds offered a small canvas for the fighters to establish momentum and leaves questions about what would have happened had the rounds been the professional standard of three minutes.
Gallen shared his surprise that the result came down to a single moment.
“I don’t know how but it did, it was pretty clear he was holding me.”
The Australian found success with plenty of body shots, which he says came as a result of a strong second round from Williams - the clear decisive round as the former All Black found a home with a flurry of uppercuts.
“I don’t know why he didn’t keep throwing them,” Gallen said, “That’s why I wasn’t trying to go over to the head, I just kept going to the body.
“I kept hitting the body and I was safe with my head out that way and they were scoring shots, so that’s all that mattered to me.”
The war of words between the pair over the years appears to be left in the past, with Gallen sharing that Williams had asked to meet for coffee in the future to settle their differences.
“I don’t know him very well, I don’t know him at all to be honest but I’ve seen him with his kids and he seems like a fantastic father, highly devoted to his religion, so you got to respect him for that.”
As Gallen waves goodbye to his storied career as a professional athlete, he reflects one last time on his boxing chapter.
“It was business to me. Boxing was a business and thankfully, that’s all over now.
“I love the sport, I’ve loved it since I was a kid and to be able to jump in the ring and fight, it’s pretty crazy to think about the rugby league I’ve had and the boxing career I’ve had.”
Earlier in the night, cruiserweight boxer David Nyika returned to the win column with a 5th-round TKO victory over compatriot Nik Charalampous in a catchweight bout, after The Greek’s corner called for his retirement.
Nyika, who stepped foot in the ring for the first time since his devastating IBF world title loss to Jai Opetaia in January, dictated the bout for the majority of the contest, with Charalampous only proving to be a threat on the counter.
The Nice Guy made the most of his 18cm height and 14cm reach advantage, slowly frustrating Charalampous as the fight went on.
Prior to the start of the 5th round, the ringside doctor looked into a bump above the right eye of Charalampous, signalling the beginning of the end for The Greek, although it didn’t stop him from swinging for the fences against Nyika.
A solid body shot from Nyika in the fifth would send his opponent to a knee, before Charalampous’ corner called for an end to the bout following the round.
FULL CARD RESULTS
Alex Leapai Jr def. Herve Silu Mata via 1st round KO (6x3 min rounds heavyweight)
Rahim Mundine def. Joe Vatusaqata via 2nd round TKO (4x3 min rounds super middleweight)
David Nyika def. Nik Charalampous via 5th round TKO (8x3 min rounds heavyweight)
Johan Linde def. Kane Baker via split decision (6x3 min rounds heavyweight)
Kris Terzievski def. Troy Pilcher via 6th round TKO (10x3 min rounds bridgerweight)
Clay Waterman def. Mose Auimatagi Jr via unanimous decision (8x3 min rounds light heavyweight)
Paul Gallen def. Sonny Bill Williams via split decision (8x2 min rounds heavyweight)
Elijah Fa’afiu travelled to Sydney with assistance from Manuka Phuel and Duco Events.