Roy Coote

This book was published in a limited edition (800 copies) in 1998, just a few months before Roy Coote died. The publisher was an off-shoot of the old-established Packet newspaper company, based in Falmouth, Cornwall, where Roy lived for most of his life. In the book, Roy reminisced about his ring career and recalled some of his most notable opponents, including Mickey Duff, who was later to become London's premier matchmaker. Though never a national champion, Roy Coote was a respected West Country fighter who travelled far and wide in pursuit of his trade. Besides being a noted boxer, he was a popular waterfront figure in Falmouth, where he worked as a tugmaster. This book is now something of an artefact among boxing aficionadoes because it was a short-run edition bought primarily by old-time fight fans in the West Country. It provides an interesting snapshot of British boxing in the immediate post-war era, when many young working men with pugilistic skills turned to the ring for extra income. Roy Coote was one of those honest toilers of the ring who could never be under-estimated. He was a crowd-pleaser who always gave a good account of himself, and opponents learned to respect him, both as a man and a fighter. The late Eric Clarke, a boxing fan who watched several Coote fights, said when this book was published: 'It's a good account of an interesting era in Cornish boxing. Roy was an excellent boxer who gained quite a name for himself in the West Country and beyond.'