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BOXING NEWS: OISÍN FAGAN lives in Portmarnock, but like Eddie Hyland he was born in Tallaght, and in his mind, at least, neighbourhood bragging rights may have been even more important than the International Boxing Federation (IBF) “International” title on offer in their main event at the Basketball Arena on Saturday night.
And Paddy Hyland, realist that he is, knew that, in tapping Fagan to replace originally-announced opponent Yogli Herrera after the Colombian fell out, he was putting the eldest of his fighting sons in a much tougher scrap. Herrera, after all, had lost five fights on the trot, which is more than Fagan had lost in the past five years. (Apart from December’s ill-fated encounter with Amir Khan, from which he emerged with a broken leg, Oisín’s other two losses in that span came on split decisions – to highly-regarded contender Verquan Kimbrough, and to Paul Spadafora, an undefeated former world champion.)
