THE below passage is going in this Friday's Boxing News, but as the family want as many boxing people to attend the funeral and wake as possible, I'm posting this today (please could someone post this on the Eastside forum too as I'm banned): DES GARGANO, the Manchester super-feather journeyman who lost to Naseem Hamed in the Princes fifth fight, has died, aged 49. Gargano, real name Des Southern, was a durable southpaw who in 87 defeats was halted just nine times. In a 13-year career he took on the likes of Pat Clinton, John Davison, Jimmi Bredahl and Spencer Oliver, taking them all the distance, although huge puncher Hamed got him out of there. Gargano died on July 2 after a long battle with lung cancer. In mid-May, he was released early on compassionate grounds after serving 18 months of a five-and-a-half-year prison sentence for cigarette smuggling. He leaves sons Curtis, Spencer and Cameron. When they let him out, he was only supposed to have a day to live, said Curtis. But my dads a fighter and he lasted for nearly six weeks. Garganos funeral is at 10am today (Friday, July 16) at the Parish Church, Middleton, M24 6DE, with the wake taking place at Norton Grange, Manchester Road, Castleton, OL11 2XZ from midday. We offer his family our sincere condolences.
Sorry to here this. I was literally just reading an old Boxing News (June 17th 1994) and Harry Mullan's editor's page has picture of Gargano receiving a splendid looking belt to mark his 100th pro fight at Middleton, with some nice words by Mullan to mark the event. my condolences to his family, he was a fine pro in the domestic game.
