Jake Kilrain (British Boxer)
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Henry Owens (January 1, 1914 – October 1, 1984), who fought under the name Jake Kilrain (after the American boxer), was a Scottish boxer who was British
welterweight Welterweight is a weight class in combat sports. Originally the term ''welterweight'' was used only in boxing, but other combat sports like muay Thai, taekwondo, and mixed martial arts also use it for their own weight division system to classify th ...
champion between 1936 and 1939.


Career

Born in
Bellshill Bellshill (pronounced "Bells hill") is a town in North Lanarkshire in Scotland, southeast of Glasgow city centre and west of Edinburgh. Other nearby localities are Motherwell to the south, Hamilton, South Lanarkshire, Hamilton to the south ...
, Lanarkshire, Owens adopted the ring name Jake Kilrain while still an amateur. He adopted the name of American boxer Jake Kilrain. He began his professional career in 1931 and in his first three years won over thirty fights and suffered only two defeats. After a defeat at the hands of the experienced Boyo Rees in April 1934 he was out of the ring for almost a year due to hand injuries before returning with another loss by disqualification to Fred Lowbridge. He won his next four fights, including a fourth-round knockout of
Len Wickwar Len Wickwar (11 March 1911 – 1 June 1980) was a British boxer who fought between 1928 and 1947, mostly as a lightweight. He fought more verified professional fights than any other boxer in history at 473 with 4,020 rounds fought in his 19 yea ...
, before meeting Joe Kerr in an eliminator for the Scottish
lightweight Lightweight is a weight class in combat sports and rowing (sport), rowing. Boxing Professional boxing The lightweight division is over 130 pounds (59 kilograms) and up to 135 pounds (61.2 kilograms) boxing weight classes, weight class in the spor ...
title, which ended in a draw. He moved up to
welterweight Welterweight is a weight class in combat sports. Originally the term ''welterweight'' was used only in boxing, but other combat sports like muay Thai, taekwondo, and mixed martial arts also use it for their own weight division system to classify th ...
and beat Jim P Boyle in December 1935 to take the Scottish welterweight title. He followed this with wins over Harry Mason, George Purchase, and Billy Graham, before being beaten on points in March 1936 by Ernie Roderick. He beat Seaman Jim Lawlor a month later and then fought Dave McCleave in June that year for the British welterweight title, winning via an eighth-round knockout. Over the next twelve months he had nine fights – seven wins, a draw, and a further defeat to Roderick. He lost to Jimmy Purcell in August 1937, and to Jack Kid Berg in October, before successfully defending his British title in February 1938 against Jack Lord. The second defence of his title was due to take place in July against Roderick, but was twice delayed due to Kilrain's eye injuries and abdominal surgery in November following
appendicitis Appendicitis is inflammation of the Appendix (anatomy), appendix. Symptoms commonly include right lower abdominal pain, nausea, vomiting, fever and anorexia (symptom), decreased appetite. However, approximately 40% of people do not have these t ...
; The fight took place in March 1939 at
Anfield Anfield is a Association football, football stadium in the area of Anfield (suburb), Anfield, Liverpool, England, which has been the home of Liverpool F.C. since its formation in 1892. The stadium has a seating capacity of 61,276, making it the ...
, Roderick taking the title with a seventh-round knockout. After winning his next two fights, including victory over former European champion Felix Wouters, the next three years saw most of Kilrain's fights ending in defeat. By the mid-1940s, Kilrain had moved up to
middleweight Middleweight is a weight class in combat sports. Boxing Professional In professional boxing, the middleweight division is contested above and up to . Early boxing history is less than exact, but the middleweight designation seems to have beg ...
, and in January 1946 won the Scottish Area middleweight title with a points victory over Jock McCusker. He defended the title in September 1946 against the previously undefeated Eddie Starrs, retaining it with a fourth round stoppage. On 15 May 1947 he was arrested after a fight against Freddy Price at the
Kelvin Hall The Kelvin Hall, located on Argyle Street in the Yorkhill area of Glasgow, Scotland, is one of the largest exhibition centres in Britain and now a mixed-use arts and sports venue that opened as an exhibition venue in 1927. It has also been ...
in Glasgow; After being warned three times for fouls, in the fourth round he was ordered to his corner by the referee, former Scottish middleweight champion
Steve McCall Stephen Harold McCall (born 15 October 1960) is an English retired footballer who now works as a scout for Carlisle United. A defensive midfielder during his playing days, McCall built a reputation as a cultured midfield player, with immacul ...
, after headbutting Price. Kilrain refused and continued throwing punches, hitting McCall twice in the face, sparking a melee in which several spectators got involved, a man suffered a broken arm, and the referee was thrown out of the ring.Scottish Boxer Arrested for Striking Referee
, ''
The Canberra Times ''The Canberra Times'' is a daily newspaper in Canberra, Australia, which is published by Australian Community Media. It was founded in 1926, and has changed ownership and format several times. History ''The Canberra Times'' was launched in 1 ...
'', 17 May 1949, p. 1. Retrieved 22 February 2015, via trove.nla.gov.au
Kilrain was charged with striking the referee, and after being found guilty of assault was fined £25, with the option of three months imprisonment. He was subsequently suspended from boxing until the end of the year by the Scottish Council of the BBBofC and fined a further £20. He returned to the ring in March 1948, beating Johnnie McKenna in one round after McKenna suffered a badly cut mouth. After two defeats later that year he defended his Scottish area title in May 1949 at
Celtic Park Celtic Park is a Soccer-specific stadium, football stadium and the home of Scottish Premiership team Celtic F.C., Celtic, in the Parkhead area of Glasgow, Scotland. With a capacity of 60,832, it is the largest List of football stadiums in Sco ...
against Willie Whyte; Kilrain won on points to retain his title, but this proved to be his final fight. After retiring from boxing, Kilrain became an official, serving on the BBBofC's Scottish Council, and a referee. Kilrain died on October 1, 1984.


References


External links


Career record
at boxrec.com
Career record
at boxinghistory.org.uk {{DEFAULTSORT:Kilrain, Jake 1914 births 1984 deaths Lightweight boxers Welterweight boxers Middleweight boxers Sportspeople from Bellshill Scottish male boxers 20th-century Scottish sportsmen