What I would say about Barney Eastwood is that when our relationship worked, it worked extremely well. He had a lot of strengths as a promoter and a manager.

Barney was interested in bringing professional boxing back to Northern Ireland in a big way.

If somebody had told me in the 1980s that Gerry Adams would shake hands with Ian Paisley or Peter Robinson I would have said put that man in a white suit and lock him up in a padded cell.

I get people to this day - I won my title 25 years ago - saying how wonderful a time they had during that dark period in our history when they came to watch me fight.

Boxing traditionally was received very well and accepted on both sides.

I'd had 35 professional fights and mentally I was tired of it. I'd sort ot fallen out of love with the sport.