The Dragons were born out of humble origins and their early years were spent training in Upperby Church Hall. They made the move to the Atlas Works in 1991 and have remained there since. The man most responsible for it all - and the bloke who has been behind the success - is the above mentioned Mr Haslam. This is the fella who trained the Carlisle team and eventually took them to Thailand - the home of the sport of course - to take on the locals. No mean feat when you think that the vast majority of top Thai boxers begin their training at the age of five-years-old. It's not really common knowledge - but it should be - so I hope you will be impressed and a tad proud too, to discover that only did Carlisle send a team out to Thailand they went into folklore by becoming the first team from anywhere in the world, yep the whole world, to inflict defeat on a Thai team. How cool and bloody good is that? Certainly the locals out in the Far East were impressed - and stunned no doubt. Once they had got over the shock they decided Mike must have something about him and invited him to return to both train and learn more about the sport from some of their top trainers and fighters. The feeling of mutual respect between those concerned must be pretty high. Mr Haslam has just been over there for the 51st time! With so much travel and having a full-time job as well, Mike felt that he could not give the Carlisle gym as much attention and time as he felt was both needed and deserved. But he's still very much a part of the place and even did his bit for Carlisle United by letting the players use the gym and also making sure none of the lads did themselves any real damage in the ring. (No prizes for guessing which of the United players Mike thought 'handiest' when putting the gloves on for real - go on you can work it out - who do ya reckon?). The gym also helped Roddy Collins out when he wanted to get some boxing gear, bags and a ring to put up at Brunton Park. The place is now in the just as capable hands of Christian Percival who keeps the gym ticking over and is in charge of all the training - whether it's with the novice beginners right through to the lads who actually fight for real. Those lads are in the minority of course and it should be well and truly pointed out that the vast majority who train at the gym do so for fitness (and fun) and have no intention of entering into combat. There is not an ounce of pressure to fight, nor should there be of course, infact it works the other way and Christian's biggest headache must be when someone decides they actually want to fight for real. If Chris does not think they are ready or good enough then much as the person might not agree or like it - it ain't happening! Well I sort of knew it before even giving it a go but I can confirm that Thai boxing is without doubt the toughest sport on the planet. What makes it so is, yes nearly every part of the body can be used as a weapon in real contests - but that means as well as focusing on the physical aspect the boxer has to concentrate totally for every second of the fight. So many ways to attack, so many ways to defend yourself, trying to outguess what your opponent's next move will be, planning what yours will be, etc. Even when training against the pads, (there's no pain obviously), but after five minutes of trying to follow what the trainer tells you to do - well it is taxing mentally as well as physically. But whatever level you are at, there's always that little bit of improvement that lifts the old spirits. At the very least it is something which is impossible to do and not get fitter. So there we were last year, myself and me pal, Radio Cumbria's finest Paul Newton, down in Denton Holme beginning to learn the basics. Not getting any younger coupled with 'average fitness' probably presented Mr Percival with one of his more 'challenging' roles in his role as trainer. Regular classes were out due to the time I spend in London so we booked up for some private lessons. These are a really good idea if your lifestyle means you can't attend normal classes and also if you want to learn the basics before joining in a class - maybe due to a fear of shanning yerself in front of others. The cost of private lessons is not reasonable, it's a bloody bargain! Two of us pay £10 each for a 90 minute one-on-one session at the gym. I know beer down south is approaching the £3 a pint mark but for similar private coaching in the capital, you'd be looking at about £50. But even here in Cumbria, you'll not find better value. If the two of us did test his patience as we attempted to add the word 'wassock' to the Thai language then Chris never let it show. Of course he's a pro and more than used to teaching complete novices. The classes at the gym consist of men, women, boys and girls. All are treated with the same respect and the trainers fully focussed approach ensures that nobody gets hurt - ever. The only manner that the bloke in charge will not tolerate is 'ego'. Thats the one thing guaranteed to have you back on Nelson Street before you can say MuayThai. But I've yet to witness any such behaviour and if anyone reading this decides to give it a go, you won't witness it either. Some people ask is there not a danger of a 'nutter' type going along so they will be able to inflict more damage scrapping in Moods, Buskers, the taxi-rank, etc. No doubt the odd hard charver has tried Thai boxing but if so, it wouldn't be for long. See what they don't understand - but soon come to realise - is that its not about being 'hard'. It's a sport about attitude, respect (especially respect) fair play and even those that do battle for real are not fighters once the bell ends the contest. And I'd go even further to say that, though nobody ever tells you to, there seems to be an unwritten law among those involved in Thai, that when away from the gym, you also adhere to those standards in life. Thats okay in my book! I'm not going to lie and say that the training and lessons are a breeze. They are tough at times, tough in the sense that more often than not you'll be knackered at the end, but think of the benefits exercise wise. Also, it may sound like a cliche, but even if your crap at it (like me) it still gives the old confidence a boost. Some lessons are more enjoyable than others but then thats the case in most sport isn't it? Seems we dont intend to give it up so I can honestly say I would recommend Thai boxing training to anyone. So if you fancy having a go at something 'different' then this could well be for you. If your reading and thinking you couldn't do it due to being out of shape/unfit - don't let it put you off. There is no pressure and those in charge make sure you work at the pace that suits you. And let me say again all you have to lose is a lack of fitness and also stress again that you can get yourself involved in the toughest of all sports - and you need never lay one hand in anger on anyone else. For such a small club really - from this not so very big Border City of ours - the Carlisle Thai Dragons are pretty damn good when they do compete in the ring. Obviously with this martial art being the toughest of them all you are only going to get top rated fighters once in a while. But to see what can be achieved then look no further than Alex Dally. Three months ago Alex was training in Denton Holme while holding down a full time job as an engineer at Pirelli's in Carlisle. He'd impressed enough and therefore earned the chance to go and live in Thailand for a year and train full time as a professional Thai boxer. Having to give up a full-time job in this part of the world in particular is a risk but it was a once in a lifetime chance for the lad and you can understand why he had to give it a go. After 12 months out there, working out remember with guys who were learning the martial art from the age of five, the worst that could happen is Alex could return home (have no job) and be better than anyone probably in Britain in the sport. But it speaks volumes for Denton Holme, Mike Haslam, Christian Percival and Allex Dally himself - that he went over to the far east and won all four of his first fights. And though he is now a professional, the term is used in a fairly loose sense when you hear that the lad gets about £15 per fight. That's not a lot of dosh. You know even if you emerge the victor from a Thai contest your gonna feel some very real pain and then there's the mental 'pain' all fighters go through before a contest. As Christian says: "If someone tells you they don't feel fear before getting into the ring, they are telling fibs. I've seen even the best fighters actually throw up at the thought of what is to come." Dally has now tasted defeat in Thailand but it was at the hands of Thai Motek. Mr Motek just happens to be a former world champion..The boy from Cumbria was in a top-of-the-bill clash in Pattaya - and you have to say that 's pretty impressive in itself. To be in the main contest in only your fifth fight in the home of the sport is some feat for a Carlisle man. But it wasn' t the broken nose that stopped Alex - I had to laugh at his quote: "The difference was close in. He landed two solid elbows in the first round, one which broke my nose slightly". Well I'm not sure if it's possible to break your nose 'slightly' but I do it know it would chuffing hurt - a lot! But a broken nose to a Thai boxer, 'a scratch' as John Cleese said when he got his arm chopped of in The Holy Grail, and Alex continued to fight on, adding "I began to feel more comfortable (with a broken nose pal) but he caught me with a huge blow (a huge blow remember from the ex-world champion) to the neck and it finished the fight. I was a bit gutted." Alex probably was gutted too - but I don't think he's let anyone down do you? So that's Thai boxing from the humble beginner to the very best there is. Coming out of our town, available for you to be part of down in Denton Holme, here in Carlisle. If only the local professional football team was as good eh lads and lasses. Take it from me - take up Thai. It's a choice with a no- lose, no- lose guarantee attached. What are you waiting for? For more information contact - (Thanks and respect to Chris and Mike. Cheers to Peter Hill at the Evening News for the quotes) Respect Mick Mitchell Legends of Carlisle United, by Mick Mitchell, is available from WH Smith priced at £14.99 - and quite possibly the club shop, too! |
