Dave Sands (born David Ritchie; 4 February 1926 – 11 August 1952) was an Aboriginal Australian professional boxer.
The man the Americans called the "boxer with the educated left hand" received his due when he was inducted into the World Boxing Hall of Fame in 1998 at a ceremony held in Los Angeles, recognised as one of the greatest boxers never to have won a world title.
Sands was the 2009 Inductee for the Australian National Boxing Hall of Fame Veterans category.
Early life Sands was born at Burnt Bridge near Kempsey, New South Wales. He was the fifth of eight children of George and Mabel (née Russell) Ritchie. His parents were both Aboriginal, from the Dunghutti people, and his father worked as a rodeo-rider and timber-cutter.
Sands' brothers also boxed and, in doing so emulated their father and their maternal great-uncle Bailey Russell, who had been a noted bare-knuckle fighter.
In 1939, one of Sands' brothers Percival (Percy) went to Newcastle to train with Tom Maguire who ran the Star Gymnasium there and started going by the name 'Sands'. At age 15, Sands joined Percy there and lived at the gym. Ultimately Sands, and his five brothers took on the Sands name, taken from train guard "Snowy" Sands who helped the travel, fare-free, to Newcastle. They became known as "The Fighting Sands Brothers" and Sands became the most successful and the most well known.
Career
While training, and without Maguire's knowledge, Sands fought a four-round preliminary bout in August 1941 at Newcastle Stadium which he won in the first round. Maguire disapproved but it showed Sands skills and, by the end of 1942, he had knocked out a dozen opponents in the area and was soon boxing in twelve-round matches in front of large crowds in Brisbane and Sydney.
In May 1946, Sands defeated Jack Kirkham for the Australian middleweight title and, three months later, knocked out Jack Johnson in four rounds to become national light-heavyweight champion. By 1948, he had beaten all his local opponents and most American 'imports' who had travelled to Australia. In February 1949, following his 'mauling' of a French fighter Tony Toniolo in less than two minutes, English promoter Jack Solomons took an interest in him. In 1949 Sands travelled to London where he began a campaign for the world title, however, despite an enthusiastic reception from the British press, he had limited success. There, on 4 April 1949, while suffering from a swollen, recently vaccinated arm, he was outpointed by Tommy Yarosz. Fifteen days later Sands won, dismally, against a spoiler, Lucien Caboche.
Maguire, who had travelled with him, then moved him to Newcastle-upon-Tyne, where friendly locals and a promoter Joe Shepherd restored his confidence. After two solid victories, he returned to London and in July thrashed the much-fancied Robert Villemain in the 'fight of the year'. On 6 September, Sands demolished Dick Turpin in 2 minutes 35 seconds for the British Empire middleweight title.
Shortly after Sands triumphal return to Australia in November 1949, he survived a serious accident when the steering on his motorcar failed, and the vehicle somersaulted into a creek. Over the next eighteen months, he contested and won nine fights, one of them a fifteen-rounder in September 1950 in which he took the Australian heavyweight championship from Alf Gallagher.
Sands had become a leading contender for the world middleweight title and Maguire vainly sought to arrange a bout with the American champion Sugar Ray Robinson. In the tricky maze of international boxing promotion, his efforts were marked by a paper chase of offers and counter-offers. Sands defeated Mel Brown in London in July 1951 in a preliminary to a title fight between Robinson and another contender Randolph Turpin. Had Maguire's negotiations succeeded, Sands would have been in Turpin's place and probably would have beaten an unfit Robinson, as did Turpin.
In October 1951, Sands won two fights in the United States. Back home, he hoped for a world title-bout, but he was estranged from Maguire. A new manager Bede Kerr reopened discussions with Robinson's connections, but the chance never came.
Personal life On 11 August 1945, Sands married 18-year-old Bessie Emma Burns at St Paul's Church of England, Stockton, New South Wales.
Death On 11 August 1952, the truck Sands was driving with 15 passengers overturned at roadworks near Dungog, New South Wales when ranked number 3 in the world. He died of head and internal injuries that evening in the local hospital and was buried at Sandgate Cemetery, near Newcastle, New South Wales.
His wife, and their son and two daughters survived him; their third daughter was born in November. Sands had earned about £30,000, but it went on manager's fees, travel costs, tax, family expenses and generosity to his kin. A public appeal raised more than £2500, sufficient to pay off his Stockton home and create a trust fund for his family.
Legacy On 9 December 1986 Sands was inducted into the Sport Australia Hall of Fame and later, in 1998, was inducted into the World Boxing Hall of Fame.
In May 2022 Sands' family were presented with a replica belt, in recognition of his achievements, at NSW Parliament House as he never received one in life.
His portrait, by an unknown photographer, is held at the National Portrait Gallery.
Professional boxing record
ResultRecordOpponentTypeRound, timeDateAgeLocationNotes100Win87–10–1 Jim WoodsKO4 (15), Jul 9, 195299Win86–10–1 Al BourkeKO5 (15), May 9, 195298Win85–10–1 Chub KeithTKO14 (15), Mar 31, 195297Win84–10–1 Ron TooheyTKO10 (12), Feb 8, 195296Loss83–10–1 Yolande PompeyTKO7 (10), Nov 13, 195195Win83–9–1 Henry BrimmKO10 (10), Oct 30, 195194Win82–9–1 Bobo OlsonUD10Oct 3, 195193Win81–9–1 Doug MillerPTS10Aug 20, 195192Win80–9–1 Mel BrownPTS10Jul 10, 195191Win79–9–1 Henry BrayTKO7 (12)Feb 10, 195190Win78–9–1 Irvin SteenPTS12Feb 5, 195189Win77–9–1 Boy BrooksPTS12Jan 12, 195188Win76–9–1 Don MullettPTS12Dec 14, 195087Win75–9–1 Alf GallagherPTS15Sep 4, 195086Win74–9–1 Henry BrimmTKO2 (12), Aug 8, 195085Win73–9–1 Boy BrooksUD10May 12, 195084Win72–9–1 Boy BrooksDQ4 (10)Apr 21, 195083Win71–9–1 Bobo OlsonPTS12Mar 20, 195082Win70–9–1 Pete MeadPTS10Oct 11, 194981Win69–9–1 Dick TurpinKO1 (15), Sep 6, 194980Win68–9–1 Robert VillemainPTS10Jul 5, 194979Win67–9–1 Jan de BruinPTS10Jun 3, 194978Win66–9–1 Jackie JonesTKO1 (10), May 16, 194977Win65–9–1 Lucien CabochePTS10Apr 19, 194976Loss64–9–1 Tommy YaroszPTS10Apr 4, 194975Win64–8–1 Antoine TonioloTKO1 (12), Feb 18, 194974Win63–8–1 Tommy PrinceKO3 (12)Dec 17, 194873Win62–8–1 Len DittmarTKO5 (12)Oct 9, 194872Win61–8–1 Doug BrownTKO1 (12), Sep 27, 194871Win60–8–1 Billy MeyersPTS12Aug 27, 194870Win59–8–1 George AllenTKO6 (12)Jun 26, 194869Win58–8–1 Billy MyersPTS12Jun 12, 194868NC57–8–1 Jackie MarrNC7 (12)Apr 19, 194867Win57–8–1 Don MullettPTS12Apr 10, 194866Win56–8–1 Jackie MarrPTS12Mar 27, 194865Win55–8–1 Doug RollinsonKO1 (12)Mar 6, 194864Win54–8–1 Alabama KidKO4 (12)Feb 7, 194863Win53–8–1 Alex BuxtonPTS12Nov 29, 194762Win52–8–1 George AllenTKO9 (12)Nov 24, 194761Win51–8–1 George 'Wildcat' HenryPTS12Oct 13, 194760Win50–8–1 George 'Wildcat' HenryPTS12Sep 8, 194759Win49–8–1 George AllenKO2 (12), Aug 5, 194758Win48–8–1 George AllenTKO1 (12)May 31, 19475747–8–1 Emory JacksonNC7 (12)May 3, 194756Win47–8–1 Emory JacksonPTS12Apr 14, 194755Win46–8–1 Art LindTKO7 (12)Mar 24, 194754Loss45–8–1 Emory JacksonPTS12Feb 24, 194753Win45–7–1 Alf GallagherKO3 (15)Nov 30, 194652Draw44–7–1 Jackie MarrPTS12Nov 23, 194651Win44–7 Jack JohnsonTKO1 (15)Oct 12, 194650Win43–7 Jack JohnsonTKO4 (15), Aug 24, 194649Win42–7 Jack KirkhamKO5 (15)Jun 7, 194648Win41–7 Jack KirkhamTKO12 (15)May 11, 194647Win40–7 Jimmy BruntTKO1 (12), Mar 2, 194646Win39–7 Alex BuxtonPTS12Jan 26, 194645Win38–7 Tommy ColteauxRTD2 (12)Dec 27, 194544Win37–7 Al WalkerPTS12Nov 24, 194543Win36–7 Max CameronTKO11 (15)Oct 20, 194542Win35–7 Billy MyersKO5 (12)Aug 11, 194541Win34–7 Tom LamingKO2 (12)Jul 7, 194540Win33–7 Herb BroomKO3 (12)Jun 16, 194539Win32–7 Max CameronRTD6 (12)May 10, 194538Win31–7 Al WalkerKO7 (12)May 5, 194537Win30–7 Max CameronPTS12Mar 29, 194536Win29–7 Al WalkerPTS12Mar 3, 194535Win28–7 Jack BranderKO2 (12)Feb 3, 194534Win27–7 Jackie MarrPTS12Dec 16, 194433Win26–7 Jimmy GreyKO8 (12), Dec 1, 194432Loss25–7 Jackie MarrPTS12Nov 18, 194431Win25–6 Max CameronTKO3 (12)Oct 21, 194430Win24–6 Tom LamingKO7 (12)Sep 23, 194429Win23–6 Jackie DayTKO5 (12)Sep 2, 194428Win22–6 Jimmy GreyPTS12Aug 5, 194427Win21–6 Bob CoughlanPTS12Jul 15, 194426Win20–6 Dal ConwayTKO4 (12), Jun 30, 194425Win19–6 Bill BaylissKO2 (12), Jun 2, 194424Loss18–6 Doug BrownPTS12May 13, 194423Loss18–5 Doug BrownPTS12Apr 15, 194422Win18–4 Jack MitchellTKO12 (12)Apr 1, 194421Win17–4 Jack BuchananKO2 (6)Feb 25, 194420Loss16–4 Jack McNameePTS12Feb 5, 194419Win16–3 Bobby ClarkeKO6 (12)Jan 22, 194418Win15–3 George CookPTS12Dec 18, 194317Loss14–3 Billy MyersPTS12Nov 27, 194316Win14–2 George CookPTS12Nov 20, 194315Win13–2 Bobby RiversTKO9 (12)Oct 23, 194314Win12–2 Cliff BowenTKO2 (12)Sep 11, 194313Win11–2 Ken McDermottKO1 (12)Aug 21, 194312Win10–2 Ken McDermottRTD10 (12)Aug 14, 194311Win9–2 Eddie TruxelPTS6Jul 17, 194310Win8–2 Bill WarrenPTS6Jul 3, 19439Win7–2 Snowy StevensPTS6Jun 19, 19438Win6–2 Len BakerKO1 (4)Jun 12, 19437Loss5–2 Gunner WilkinsonTKO4 (4)Nov 25, 19416Win5–1 Cec BurrKO2 (4)Sep 23, 19415Win4–1 Eddie RoebuckPTS4Sep 20, 19414Loss3–1 Eddie RoebuckPTS4Sep 16, 19413Win3–0 Eddie RoebuckKO4 (4)Sep 13, 19412Win2–0 Paddy ChapmanTKO4 (4)Aug 26, 19411Win1–0 Leo Con CorriganKO1 (4)Aug 16, 1941
Titles
References
Sources Pictures held and digitised as part of the Arnold Thomas boxing collection by the National Library of Australia Dave Sands, Empire and Australian Middleweight Champion and Tom Maguire, trainer British Empire title bout, Dave Sands, 11 st. 5 lb., K.O. Dick Turpin, 11 st. 3¾ lb., in the first round at Harringay Arena, England, 6 September 1949 Dave Sands (left), 11 st. 7¾ lb. v. Henry Brimm, 11 st. 5½ lb., at Rushcutter's Bay Stadium, 8 August 1950
External links