Mates, rivals, gladiators.
Billy Leckie and Joe McNally were Dunedin stars in an era when boxing was the most popular sport in town.
Both men were products of Archie Leckie's school of boxing.
They clashed four times for the national professional lightweight crown, with three of the bouts held in front of massive crowds at the Dunedin Town Hall.
McNally won all four fights: the first (June, 1957) with a TKO in the 10th round, the other three on points after 15 bruising rounds. But after slugging each other to a pulp, they held no grudges.
"There was certainly no love lost when we were fighting. But we were always good friends.
We'd have a beer later," Leckie recalled.
That mateship came to the fore years later when McNally, confined to a wheelchair following an accident, received massages from his old ring-mate.
McNally died in 1998. Leckie still lives in Dunedin.
