George Naufahu, one of that fine group of Tongans who came
to Britain in the mid nineteen-fifties, died on February 13th aged
88. The victim of a stroke, George’s
passing will be greatly mourned not only by the
many people associated with the game in and around Chesterfield, but
also by many who remember him in his native Tonga, ten thousand miles
away. He is to be buried today at the
Salem Methodist Independent Chapel in Chesterfield.
George arrived in
Britain in 1956 aged 29. He joined the
same stable as his compatriot Kitione Lave and trained initially at the Cantley
Saw Mills Gymnasium near Doncaster. He weighed fourteen and a half stone and he claimed to have had 50
amateur and 38 professional contests prior to making his British debut.
For his first UK
contest he took on Brian London, the future British Heavyweight champion, in
July 1956 at the Engineers Club Grounds in West Hartlepool. London was on the comeback trail after
recently being hammered in one round by Henry Cooper and it was an extremely
tough contest for George to undertake. ‘Boxing News’ commented that George “has a deceptive style, is adept at
slipping and riding punches and he packs a good punch in his right hand”. He gamely stood up to some rough punishment
against London, was never off his feet, and he hurt the Britisher in both the
second and the fourth rounds. Despite
this the referee halted the contest in round four as George had become very
tired and was on the receiving end of rather too many damaging blows.
Like Kitione Lave,
George was sometimes known as the ‘Tongan Terror’ and after his career ended in
1958 he settled in Chesterfield and coached boxers for very many years. His good friend Nick Atu has penned the
following words in his memory and they well convey the warmth and respect that
I know George was held in by all who knew him, both within the game and also
amongst the Chesterfield community within which he spent so many years:
George, whose real
name was Melekiseteki Tapueluelu Naufahu, started his boxing career in his
birthplace of Tonga in the Pacific and fought his way to be the Heavyweight
Champion of the South Pacific in his early 20s before embarking on a
professional career in Tonga, New Zealand and then in the UK, where he proudly
gained British citizenship and made his home in Chesterfield, Derbyshire.
George was of a
powerful build, a genuine hard man and a natural athlete and sportsman. He
could move fast, punch fast and could take a punch. In 1953 and 1954 he fought
extensively in New Zealand, including famously winning in two rounds by knock
out against the 7 foot tall Jim Hall in the Newmarket Olympic Pool in Auckland.
In 1956 he was invited to box in the UK by Bruce Woodstock. At the time Queen
Salote of Tonga told George that when he moved to the UK he fought for Tonga
and carried the Tongan flag in his heart at all times. With this pride George
always fought to win by knockout and in fact, attitudes meant in those days
that it was probably the only way he, as a Tongan, could win. George always felt
though that by 29 years old he was fighting in the UK past his best but he
still managed some notable wins including, in 1956 against Cliff Purnell, who
George knocked out in 2. The same year he lost to Brian London, who had just
been a contender with Henry Cooper and would go on to fight Ali for the world title.
After retiring from
the ring himself, George became a trainer of note. Boxers he coached included
Chris Devine, a European Amateur Championship medallist, and Johnny Halafihi,
who drew with Mike Holt for the British Empire title.
George put his
boxing skills to good use outside the ring too when he became the respected
head of security at various northern Nightclubs, including the Aquarius, where
he worked from its opening in 1972 to its closure in 1996. Life was never dull
for George, who was even shot once!
He leaves behind
many children and grandchildren, including four daughters and two sons in the
UK, two sons and two daughters in the States, a daughter in New Zealand and,
knowing George, maybe a few others elsewhere.
Nick did tell me
that George once sparred with Rocky Marciano, around the time that a match
between Marciano and Lave was being mooted. According to those who saw the session George gave the champion plenty
to think about and his aggressive style, so typical of the Tongans at that
time, may have caused Rocky to think again about taking on Lave, for the bout
never happened and Rocky remained in retirement.
Such is the esteem
in which George is held, the Queen of Tonga is understood to be flying in to the
UK to attend his funeral.
May he rest in peace.
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