Spike O’Sullivan: How Roberto Duran and Ger Cunningham got me back in the ring at 41

I know this sounds mad but I certainly believe I still have what it takes to be a world champion.

STILL DOING IT: Gary 'Spike' O'Sullivan during the SSE Airtricity Men's Premier Division match between Cork City and Galway United at Turner's Cross. Photo by David Fitzgerald/Sportsfile

Would Roberto Duran head out of an evening in Glasheen and make for a high stool in Flannery’s? Maybe not. To be fair, Ger Cunningham probably would have looked a bit out of place at the Hard Rock Casino in Atlantic City a couple of weeks ago too though.

One of the truths of what I do for a living is that when you spend your life in the ring you end up moving in lots of circles. I’d make friends in a phone box so I probably take things a bit further than most. But it was those two very different sporting giants who have helped lead me back to a place I know all too well.