It was the most unlikely of venues for one of the biggest prizefights in Irish history, Steve Collins remembers.
“A very unusual venue,” the legendary Celtic Warrior said of the Green Glens Arena nearly 29 years later. “It was in the southwest of Ireland – in the sticks – a place called Millstreet, in a big, giant hay barn on St. Patrick’s weekend. And I thought to myself, I can’t lose this fight. The gods are looking down on me. This is all too good to be true.”
The World Boxing Organization middleweight champion at the time, Collins was a huge underdog when tapped to challenge Chris Eubank for the brash and undefeated Englishman’s WBO super middleweight title. A day after St. Patrick’s Day 1995, the 8,000-capacity arena in the Cork countryside was bursting at the seams, sweltering hot, and pulsating. It would be an unforgettable night.
Premiering States-side at the Village East Cinema in Manhattan, New York, 7 p.m. on March 7, the documentary “One Night in Millstreet,” relives the event, its intense buildup and historic outcome. The film, directed by Andrew Gallimore and written by Lydia Monin, shows Collins – with 28 wins and three defeats going into the fight – and a Eubank [41-0-2] then considered invincible, engaging in weeks of lively engagements and press conferences before squaring off.
The premiere kicks off the three-day “Craic Fest — Film Fest,” whose other offerings include: “Rebel Wife” [7:30 p.m., March 8], directed by Williams Cole; and “Kids Fest” [11:30 a.m., March 9]. The latter is a program of the best of Irish short films and Irish step dancing for people of all ages. Visit http://www.thecraicfest.com for more information.
“Steve Collins embodies the spirit of what Craic Fest is all about,” festival manager Terence Mulligan lauded the retired champion who will attend the premiere.
“One Night In Millstreet,” which co-stars Hall of Fame boxer Barry “The Clones Cyclone” McGuigan and renowned British promoter Barry Hearn, captures a period when Ireland was emerging from an economic depression towards an unprecedented boom.
That also happened to mirror Collins’s situation then.
The Dubliner had stopped Chris Pyatt 10 months earlier to win the world middleweight title on his third attempt. A first scheduled defense against American No. 1 Lonny Beasley had fallen through twice – once in Hong Kong and again in Boston when Collins fell ill on the eve of the bout.
“I couldn’t make the weight and I got ill, and the doctor called the fight off. So I was going through a bad time you know,” he said.
Then came a huge offer out of the blue.
“I was in London, in the gym,” Collins recalled. “[Promoter] Barry Hearn summoned me to his office and said ‘it’s your lucky day.’ I said really. He said Raymond [Ray] Close had failed his medical and he wants a substitute to step in and take his place and fight Chris Eubank.”
Out of Belfast, Close had been gunning for a third shot at Eubank’s WBO belt after going 24 close rounds with him between 1993 and 1994. Their first fight had ended in a 12-round draw, with the champion retaining his title on a split decision in the rematch.
Collins jumped at the opportunity.
When Hearn said the fight would be in Ireland and began mulling over possible venues, Collins suggested Millstreet.
“And he says where the hell is Millstreet? I says, ‘Millstreet is where we held – earlier in the year – the Eurovision song contest.’”
Local businessman Noel C. Duggan who owned the space, had converted what had been a massive metal shed and equestrian center into an arena good enough to host events such as the popular Eurovision song contest.
The international spotlight would fall on Millstreet again for the Collins-Eubank scrap. Configured to hold 8,000 spectators, Collins remembers more than 9,000 souls cramming into the Green Glens Arena.
“I think the local fire fighters wanted to shut it down. It was like a sauna – the warmest atmosphere I’ve ever been in,” he recalled.
If the occasion didn’t get to Eubank – the favorite by odds of 100-1 in some betting parlors going into the fight -- some old fashion mind games by Collins surely did.
“He wanted to pull out of the fight the day before because I scared him. I told him I was hypnotized and that I was a machine, and that I wouldn’t feel pain and everything. He got afraid and wanted to quit. I tricked him.”
Eubank got outpointed, too, over 12 rounds -- succumbing to his first defeat after 10 years as a professional.
The Celtic Warrior, meanwhile, added the WBO 168-pound crown to his 160-pound middleweight belt. He became the first Irish prizefighter in his history to win world titles in two different weight divisions.
He’d give Eubank an immediate rematch – his first defense of the super middleweight belt – six months later at the Páirc Uí Chaoimh this time. Eubank had squeezed in two tune-up bouts in between, both first-round KOs. But the outcome against Collins would be the same. Another points loss, albeit on a split decision.
Collins would make six more defenses of the super middleweight titles – including a return to Millstreet a year after dethroning Eubank to KO Neville Brown in the 11th round – before retiring.
He’s been farming on 54 acres he owns outside London for more than 25 years since. His post-retirement life practically devoid of boxing. There’s no coaching, no punditry and nary a Collins ringside sighting.
I’m basically a hermit,” he laughs. “No one sees me or hears from me. If they want me, they gotta pay me and then I’ll show up, otherwise no one hears from me. My life is very good, very happy, very constructive, very positive.”
