Petty officer A petty officer (PO) is a non-commissioned officer in many navies and is given the NATO rank denotation OR-5 or OR-6. In many nations, they are typically equal to a sergeant in comparison to other military branches. Often they may be super ...

Matthew 'Nutty' Curran (1882 – 1938) was an

Irish Irish may refer to: Common meanings * Someone or something of, from, or related to: ** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe ***Éire, Irish language name for the isle ** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...

professional A professional is a member of a profession or any person who works in a specified professional activity. The term also describes the standards of education and training that prepare members of the profession with the particular knowledge and ski ...

heavyweight

boxer Boxer most commonly refers to: * Boxer (boxing), a competitor in the sport of boxing *Boxer (dog), a breed of dog Boxer or boxers may also refer to: Animal kingdom * Boxer crab * Boxer shrimp, a small group of decapod crustaceans * Boxer snipe ee ...

, from 1900 to 1930. His fighting name, "

Nutty ''Nutty'' was a British comic magazine that ran for 292 issues from 16 February 1980 to 14 September 1985, when it merged with ''The Dandy''. Published by D. C. Thomson & Co. Ltd, ''Nutty'' was an attempt to create a more lively and chaotic co ...

", was derived from the

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

slang term for someone who is mentally unbalanced. Curran won the Irish heavyweight title, British Empire heavyweight title, and vied for the British Boxing Board of Control British heavyweight title. British heavyweight title bouts featuring Curran were neither recognized by the

National Sporting Club The National Sporting Club was a club founded in London in 1891, which did more to establish the sport of boxing in Great Britain than any other organisation. Origins The club was founded on 5 March 1891 as a private club. Its premises were at ...

(NSC) at the time, nor retroactively by the British Boxing Board of Control, because the bouts did not take place on

premises. His professional fighting weight varied throughout his career from 178 lb. (81 kg) to 199 lb. (90.3 kg).

Boxing career

Matthew 'Nutty' Curran's first professional boxing bout was a disqualification defeat by Seaman Jim McDonald at Royal Naval Barracks Gymnasium, Devonport, Devon, in October 1908. Other notable fight results included: * Points defeat by James Doran for the

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against ...

Heavyweight TitleLloyds Weekly News (8 August 1909). ''Lloyd's Weekly Newspaper - Royal Navy Heavyweight Title''.

Lloyd's Weekly Newspaper ''Lloyd's Weekly Newspaper'', called the ''Sunday News'' after 1924, was an early Sunday newspaper in the United Kingdom, launched in 1842., ceased publication in 1931. Founding Edward Lloyd launched ''Lloyd’s Weekly Newspaper'' in 1842. It wa ...

, Page 21. ISBN n/a * Knockout victory over Jack Ripper for the Irish heavyweight title at Ancient Concert Rooms,

Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of the Wicklow Mountains range. At the 2016 c ...

on 20 October 1909 * Knockout victory over James William 'Bill' "Iron" Hague for the British heavyweight title (not recognized by the

(NSC) * Knockout victory over Fred Drummond defending the British heavyweight title * Disqualification victory over 'Ex Gunner' James Moir defending the British heavyweight title * Knockout victory over Seaman Grant defending the British heavyweight title * Knockout victory over Jem Roche defending the Irish heavyweight title at Empire Theatre,

on 18 August 1910 * Knockout victory over

Peter Rice Peter Rice (16 June 1935 – 25 October 1992) was an Irish structural engineer. Born in Dublin, he grew up in 52 Castle Road, Dundalk in County Louth, and spent his childhood between the town of Dundalk, and the villages of Gyles' Quay and ...

defending the British heavyweight title *

No contest ' is a legal term that comes from the Latin phrase for "I do not wish to contend". It is also referred to as a plea of no contest or no defense. In criminal trials in certain United States jurisdictions, it is a plea where the defendant neith ...

and a knockout victory over Jewey

Smith Smith may refer to: People * Metalsmith, or simply smith, a craftsman fashioning tools or works of art out of various metals * Smith (given name) * Smith (surname), a family name originating in England, Scotland and Ireland ** List of people wi ...

defending the British heavyweight title * Retirement victory over Gunner

Harry Hewitt Harry Hewitt, sometimes spelled "Hewit", "Ewart" or "Hewett", ( – 23 January 1907) was an Indigenous Australian cricketer and Australian rules footballer. In 1889, Hewitt played for the Medindie Football Club, and so is believed to be the f ...

defending the British heavyweight title * Disqualification victory over

Bill Lang Bill Lang (born William Lanfranchi; 6 July 1882 – 3 September 1952) was an Australian professional boxer who held the national heavyweight title. He was also an Australian rules footballer who played with Richmond in the Victorian Football ...

(Australia) for the vacant British Empire heavyweight titleNewcastle Journal (Thursday 19 January 1911). ''Newcastle Journal - vacant British Empire heavyweight title''. Newcastle Journal. ISBN n/a *

with Fred Storbeck (South Africa) defending the British Empire heavyweight title * Knockout victory over Herbert Sinnott (Ireland/Australia) defending the British Empire heavyweight title * Draw against George Gunther at Cirque de Paris on 25 November 1911. The bout was temporarily halted in the 16th round when the elastic waistband in Curran's shorts broke * Disqualification defeat by Fred Storbeck (South Africa) defending the British Empire heavyweight title * Points defeat by both

Charles Kid McCoy Charles "Kid" McCoy (October 13, 1872 – April 18, 1940), born Norman Selby, was an American boxer and early Hollywood actor. He claimed the vacant world middleweight title when he scored an upset victory over Tommy Ryan by 15th round knocko ...

and George Gunther at Palais de la Jetée,

Nice Nice ( , ; Niçard dialect, Niçard: , classical norm, or , nonstandard, ; it, Nizza ; lij, Nissa; grc, Νίκαια; la, Nicaea) is the prefecture of the Alpes-Maritimes departments of France, department in France. The Nice urban unit, agg ...

on 21 February 1912 and 27 February 1912. Curran knocked down McCoy near the edge of the ring in the 12th round. McCoy then drank brandy and

soda Soda or SODA may refer to: Chemistry * Some chemical compounds containing sodium ** Sodium carbonate, washing soda or soda ash ** Sodium bicarbonate, baking soda ** Sodium hydroxide, caustic soda ** Sodium oxide, an alkali metal oxide * Sod ...

that had been placed on the edge of the canvas, beat the count, and went on to win the fight by points * Knockout victory over 'Ex Gunner' James Moir defending the British heavyweight title *

Technical Knockout A knockout (abbreviated to KO or K.O.) is a fight-ending, winning criterion in several full-contact combat sports, such as boxing, kickboxing, muay thai, mixed martial arts, karate, some forms of taekwondo and other sports involving strikin ...

victory over Herbert Sinnott defending the Irish heavyweight title * Disqualification defeat by Dan Voyles defending the Irish heavyweight title * Two points defeat by

at Sydney Stadium on 3 May 1913 and 16 August 1913 * Disqualification defeat by Pat Doran at Melbourne Athletic Pavilion, Melbourne on 25 August 1913 * Knockout defeat by

Sam Langford Samuel Edgar Langford (March 4, 1886 – January 12, 1956), known as the Boston Tar Baby, Boston Terror and Boston Bonecrusher, was a Black Canadian boxing standout of the early part of the 20th century. Called the "Greatest Fighter Nobody Know ...

Luna Park, Paris Luna Park was an amusement park near Porte Maillot in Paris, France from 1907 (or 1909) to 1931.

on 24 January 2014 * Technical knockout defeat by

Con O'Kelly George Cornelius "Con" O'Kelly (29 October 1886 – 3 November 1947) was an Irish sport wrestler who competed for Great Britain in the 1908 Summer Olympics, where he won a gold medal. Career O'Kelly was born in County Cork, Ireland, on 29 Oct ...

for the vacant Irish heavyweight title * Knockout defeat by Bombardier Billy Wells for the British Boxing Board of Control British heavyweight title at Cosmopolitan Gymnasium, Plymouth on 31 March 2016 Matthew Curran travelled to Australia for his final professional boxing bout: a retirement defeat by Colin Bell at Capitol Theatre, Sydney, Australia, on 29 August 2021.

References

External links

Boxing Photograph (1910 - 1919) from Getty Images
*
Photograph 'P. O. Curran' I at digitalgallery.nypl.orgPhotograph 'P. O. Curran' II at digitalgallery.nypl.orgBoxer McTigue Was Kilnamonas King Of The World
{{DEFAULTSORT:Curran, Matthew 1882 births 1938 deaths Heavyweight boxers Boxers from County Clare Irish male boxers