Welcome to Morson Sport
At Morson our sports sponsorships are borne out of an ambition to attract skilled, hard working individuals to build high performing teams, whether on the rugby pitch, in the ring or in the world of work.
Our sport stars showcase the behaviours which we champion; team work, dedication and the ability to over come challenges. Our work with our sport stars spans beyond sponsorship and enables us to inspire our clients, candidates and employee's and give back to the communities in which we work.
We are involved with a range of sports from boxing and MMA to Rugby Union, Rugby League and golf. Morson CEO, Ged Mason, co-owns premiership rugby team Sale Sharks, sponsors Paul Nicholls Stables and supports local sporting establishments Eccles Boxing Gym, West Freestyle Martial Arts and the Manchester Academy of Gymnastics.
Morson are notably main sponsors of Salford Red Devils Rugby League and legendary boxers Anthony Crolla and Callum Smith.
Keep up to date with the latest from Morson Sport
Morson are involved in a range of sports from Rugby League and Union to boxing, horse racing, golf and MMA. So, to keep up to date with the latest from Salford Red Devils plus so much more, subscribe to our sports newsletter via the link below.
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Class of 92, Manchester United legends unveil University Academy 92!
MORSON SPORT | 3 MIN READ Gary Neville, Ryan Giggs & Nicky Butt give us their reactions to the official launch of UA92 The Manchester United legends also discuss giving back to the community, balancing friendships with business & more! The transition to life after sport is daunting for any professional athlete but The Class of 92 have more than excelled since retiring from a game they had made such a massive mark on. All members have ventured into management, punditry and of course, have steered Salford City from non–league football to League Two during their ownership. Outside of giving back to a sport that undoubtedly made them icons, the lads highlighted the importance of giving back to the community they were nurtured in, with the announcement of University Academy 92 back in September 2017. The aim The Neville brothers, Ryan Giggs, Paul Scholes & Nicky Butt had for the University was to accelerate careers in media, business, sport and psychology whilst giving students the tools, confidence and support to become their best selves. With the backing of Lancaster University and partners, Microsoft and KPMG, this vision quickly became a reality with the former Kellog’s HQ in Trafford being converted into the site’s main campus. Two years on from the initial announcement, the University officially opened late last month and we caught up Ryan Giggs, Gary Neville & Nicky Butt to find out more about their plans for the coming years with this exciting project. Former Manchester United captain and current Sky Sports pundit Gary Neville was ecstatic to see the warm reception from students, partners & guests at the launch event: “It’s the moment that it all came real tonight, listening to the guest speakers, the people that turned up and how enthused they are about what they’ve done here and what Trafford, Lancaster and all the other partners have done is absolutely amazing. From my point of view and the lads, we’re on the brink of something special with this project and if we can get this away in the first few years and start to grow it in a methodical and organic way, we can really do something that dwarfs our previous achievements in football” One of the core messages of UA92 is to give young people an opportunity at higher education and a potential career of their dreams they may not otherwise have had and Nicky Butt emphasised the importance of this: “I think it’s very important for me, Ryan and the other lads because without being given an opportunity at a young age, we wouldn’t be where we are today. We wouldn’t be looking at a journey proudly that we’ve been working on for three years. We recognise that young people need opportunities, they can be the brightest and most talented people in the world but without opportunities they’re not going to get where they need to be” He continued: “That’s the biggest thing for us as a group, giving back to the communities where we’re from and where we live. We expect it to be a place where people will get opportunities they maybe wouldn’t and it’ll be a top-notch university” Balancing friendships with business is no easy task and the success that the five Manchester United greats achieved on the pitch is clearly being replicated off it as well. Ryan Giggs shed light on the relationships and like mindedness between the group: “We’ve obviously always got on, we spent so much time as footballers but we’re also friends as well. I think it was a natural progression to work together in different capacities with Salford City and this, it was being involved in something for the next 30-35 years and we hope we will be with UA92 with thousands of students coming through the door. Like anything there’s ups and downs, I’m sure they’ll be ups and downs with UA92 but we all believe in it and we believe it’s going to be a success” The campus rightfully served as the location for the launch event and Gary Neville was more than impressed with the finished product of the building: “The building is amazing, there’s such an energy to it. It’s a modern concept, it’s contemporary in every single way and the building sort of matches that. It’s the first time I’ve seen it finished, I haven’t been here in the last month, I wanted to leave it until this moment and I was blown away when I came in earlier. It’s absolutely fantastic” Students will attend lectures for four hours a day, four days of the week, allowing time for them to have jobs alongside their education. The launch event served as the first time for the Class of 92 to meet the initial group of students to join the university and Neville made it clear of their importance to the process as a whole: “They’re excited, some of them wouldn’t have gone to university and some of them had opportunities to go to other universities and saw this space, saw the concept and believed in it. I have to say the biggest thank you really goes to our students who have turned up here for their first day, the induction day – 100 students and those 100 people are special in our lives. They’re the people who are the frontrunners, the pioneers for UA92 and they’ll become our biggest advocates” It’s brilliant to see the Class of 92 give back to the community and create so many opportunities for the aspirational youth in the Manchester area and we at Morson, look forward to see the progress of UA92 in the coming years. Stay up to date and read more Morson Sport news here
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Rugby World Cup | Sale Sharks' AJ MacGinty on USA vs Argentina
MORSON SPORT | 3 MIN READ Sale Sharks and USA fly half, AJ MacGinty, discusses the progression of rugby in the USA over the past few years We look at his tournament so far as he heads into tomorrow's game against Argentina Progressing from Pool C was always going to be an extremely tough ask for the growing USA side; with England, France, Argentina and Tonga standing in their way. Three weeks into the tournament and the journey has proved to be as difficult as many predicted, with losses to England and France, despite valiant efforts during both games. However, Sale Sharks’ AJ MacGinty has given Eagles fans moments to cheer about, with 3 penalties and a conversion in the opening games and the fly-half will look to continue to take all opportunities that present themselves in Wednesday’s game against Argentina. A win over Argentina or Tonga in the coming weeks would be massive for the side whose World Cup record isn’t as favourable to their determination and progress that has been made in expanding the sport further. AJ spoke to us prior to heading to Japan about how far the side and the sport has come in the U.S last few years... “I think there has been a lot of progress. There’s been a lot of consistency over the last three/three and a half years since we finished the last World Cup cycle with John Mitchell coming in and his coaching staff. But that’s changed now, the progression of the squad, there’s been the same 50 players for each tour which has been really good for us. Also with the development of Rugby in America all across age groups, with the professional league now, there’s guys coming out of college with a league to come into. Whenever we get together, the standard of the training environment is really good. Hopefully that continues and we see the benefits from it” He also gave his thoughts on the competition in Pool C: “It’s obviously a really tough group. After that last World Cup cycle, the aim was to be number one seed from North America. We’ve never done that before, this is the first time in the group that we achieved that. It puts us in a really difficult group but all the groups are difficult. Every game is massive, all the games in our group are going to be unbelievable games” We wish AJ and the USA the best of luck tomorrow against Argentina! Keep up to date with our Sale Sharks players who are playing for their country during the Rugby World Cup on @MorsonGroup - exclusive interviews with Tom Curry and Faf De Klerk coming soon!
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Chris Ashton on Rugby League past, experience with Toulon and 19/20 season ahead with Sale
MORSON SPORT | 3 MIN READ The winger relflects on the challenges of transitioning from League to Union and adapting to life in France Ashton also gives his thoughts ahead of this Saturday's huge Premiership opener against Gloucester Ahead of the huge Gallagher Premiership opener between Sale and Gloucester, we caught up with Chris Ashton to discuss his storied career which saw a transition from Rugby League to Union, playing in France and now his current form with Sale Sharks. This weekend marked the end of the Rugby League season, with St Helens winning the Grand Final against surprise package, Salford Red Devils. Ashton is no stranger to the elite competition in the Super League as the winger spent two years at Wigan Warriors, scoring an impressive 30 tries in 52 appearances. Chris gave an insight into the love he still has for Rugby League and what switching codes was like back in 2007: “I’m very much a big fan, I watch it as much as I can. It was a big part of my childhood playing Rugby League growing up but it is a very different game which is probably why I struggled so much coming to Union, because nothing was natural to me. Rugby League was all instinct and automatic whereas Union wasn’t like that. It took years to make Union instinctual and natural, like hitting breakdowns was something I’ve never done before so it took repeating that over and over for it to become part of my game rather than worrying about what to do next. It was difficult but I’m glad I made the transition” Ashton joined Northampton Saints in March 2007, but it was a long process to becoming a first team regular and a prolific Union player: “I had to take half the year out at Northampton because I didn’t get what was going on, so I had to sit and watch which was a difficult time. I had to play a lot of A-League and not first team – which is what everyone wanted. I got an opportunity after that and I made sure when I got back in that, I did all the basics right. Whatever was required from my job and whatever came naturally to me was extra. I worked week by week to stay in the team and it snowballed from there” After excelling in the Premiership with Northampton and then Saracens, Chris decided to test himself in the Top 14 league with Toulon for the 17/18 season. The former England winger only spent a year in France but he more than left his mark in the country, breaking the record for most tries in a single season with 24 in 23 appearances for the club. Despite his eye-opening form, the competition in the Premiership and the homeliness of England was something that Ashton missed: “It was a very different culture, one that I always wanted to try so I’m glad I did. Probably didn’t settle as well as I’d have hoped but I really enjoyed the Rugby over there, the weather’s always sunny. You got big crowds wherever you went in France so it was a really good experience for me and my family but a year was enough for me” After a successful individual season which saw Ashton score 50 points for Sale, the 32 year old is aiming for a strong campaign in domestic and European competitions in the 19/20 season: “Thankfully we managed to get into the European Champions Cup this year, I think with the players and talent we’ve got coming in, we’re a team that needs be in this competition. We’re looking forward to being back in that after a year out, we want to be playing against the best teams and being in that is only good going into the Premiership as they’re both top level tournaments. The goal this year is to get as high up in the table as we can, we just can’t get too excited, we have to start well” With a new Premiership season looming, an opportunity for Sale’s new recruits to showcase their skills at the highest-level beckons and Ashton is impressed with the international names and the academy graduates that have joined the side this year: “It’s just good to see a group of players come in fit and in shape, they’re keen to learn and get to training, that pushes everyone on. We’ve got a good group of young lads coming through but once the games get going that’s the difficult time. Maybe you don’t get picked and you’re constantly pushing for it, that’s when it gets tough. In the summer and you’re training it’s not easy but it’s easier when you’re pushing for a place, so let’s hope they do that throughout the season and they play well when they’re picked. The majority of the new lads who have come in are international players, so I’m really looking forward to seeing them” The Sharks come up against Gloucester in the season opener, the same side they finished the 18/19 campaign against in a thrilling 46-41 win at the AJ Bell back in May. Despite the game being an attractive display of attacking play, Ashton has made it clear that Saturday won’t be a similar high scoring affair, with both side’s defences looking to stand tall: “It was a typical end of season game, the sun’s out and everyone knows they’ve got some time off coming up so they want to score tries more than they want to defend. I think it’ll be a very different game to start the season, the defence will be a lot tighter for both teams” We wish Chris Ashton and the rest of Sale Sharks the best of luck this Saturday against Gloucester and stay tuned to see who our Morson Game Changer from week one is! Stay up to date and read more Morson Sport news here
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Rugby World Cup | Sale Sharks' Faf de Klerk on South Africa vs Japan
MORSON SPORT | 3 MIN READ Sale Sharks and South Africa scrum-half, Faf de Klerk discusses the pressures to perform at the World Cup Faf also gives an insight into the expectations he placed on himself prior to the World Cup After a difficult start with a loss to favourites - New Zealand, South Africa won their remaining games in Pool B with empathic victories over Italy and Canada to secure progress to the World Cup Quarter Finals. Sale Sharks scrum-half, Faf de Klerk’s energetic and non-stop style of play has seen him become a fan favourite for the Springboks since his first cap in 2016 and the 27-year-old will be looking to showcase his finest form in Sunday’s huge game against Japan. Home nation, Japan has taken the tournament by storm so far, with a shock win over Ireland and followed it up with eye catching defeats of Scotland, Samoa and Russia to maintain a perfect record so far. Going up against a fearless free-flowing side like Japan will put the pressure on South Africa to perform at the level they have previously shown in this competition and Faf gave us an insight into what the pressure to perform in a World Cup is like: “I think it’s good, I think we’re still a bit of an underdog in the World Cup, I think that’s good as well. I think we’re always in with a shout every time. Even though through the year it might not go as well, I think the Springboks always have a chance to win it. I do think there will be a lot of pressure on the guys but we’re a nice group of lads, we get along really well and we’ll feed off that and hopefully take into games” De Klerk also described the expectations he placed on himself and the rest of the side prior to flying to Japan: “I think just to perform as consistently as possible, being a good 9 for the team, making sure my basics are 100% on the money; especially in games that are going to be tight. It’s going to come down to the little stuff you do well. As a team, we haven’t spoken about where we want to go with it but obviously the main goal will be to win it” Sunday’s game promises to be another scintillating contest in what has been an eventful tournament, we at Morson wish Faf and South Africa all the best this weekend.
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Rugby World Cup | Sale Sharks' Tom Curry on England vs Australia
MORSON SPORT | 3 MIN READ Sale Sharks' Tom Curry talks adapting to his new role at the World Cup Eddie Jones gives pre-match thoughts ahead of Saturday's quarter-final against Australia Described by Eddie Jones as one of England’s ‘Kamikaze Kids’, Tom Curry has taken the Rugby world by storm since making his professional debut in 2016 and his impressive form has seen him rapidly become an integral asset for club and country. At 21 years old, Curry is England’s youngest player at this World Cup and what’s more impressive is the fact that the flanker has been given the task of learning a new position, playing at six whilst the whole world watches. Tom recently spoke to the Independent’s Jack de Menzes about the transition to the role: “The toughest thing is probably the edge defence. Naturally you want to make a tackle and then get up and make another tackle but you need to try to work the big lads inside you and try and keep them all safe, and then try to get yourself into those positions out wide. That is pretty difficult sometimes” He added: “At the end of the day I don’t think there is anything massively different. I want to stay true to myself and how I want to play and from that adapt to what the team needs after that” With convincing wins over Tonga, United States and Argentina, England progressed from Pool C into the Quarter Finals where they will play Australia on Saturday morning. Australia won all but one of their games in Pool D, slipping up to Wales which saw them finish in second place. During a recent interview with the The Guardian, Eddie Jones gave his thoughts on what he expects from Saturday’s opponents: “Once you get to the quarter-finals it’s about having the right mindset. Australia are a clever team, they will have some specific strategies to play against us so we need to have a great situational awareness. We need to defend with brutality and when we have the ball we need to play on top of them” We look forward to a mouth-watering game on Saturday which begins a brilliant weekend of Rugby and wish Tom and England all the best.
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Morson revealed as Salford Red Devils main sponsor for the 2020 season!
We are delighted to announce that Morson have joined Rugby Leagues Salford Red Devils as their main sponsor for the 2020 season! The Morson logo will sit proudly, front and centre of the Red Devils’ home, away and magic weekend shirts as well as on the players socks. Salford Red Devils director Paul King said: This agreement is a symbol of the direction in which the club is travelling ahead of the 2020 season. To have formed a partnership with a global brand shows the level the club intends to operate at, following our Grand Final appearance. With Morson’s head office based in Salford, it also highlights our identity as a community club. We’ve been really encouraged by the number of businesses coming forward to support the club since our play-off campaign and hope to see this continue ahead of the 2020 season. The announcement of the new partnership follows Salford’s appearance in the Betfred Super League Grand Final at Old Trafford, which received record TV viewing figures for the competition. You may have noticed several of the Red Devils players sporting Morson caps before and after the thrilling match, giving our brand excellent exposure over terrestrial TV and social media channels. 2019 has been a significant year for Morson as we celebrate 50 years as leaders in the recruitment and engineering design industry. Proud of our Salford heritage, a significant part of our landmark anniversary has been focussed on giving back to the local community. Founded in Eccles in 1969 by our current CEO's father, Gerry Mason, we employ many people from the surrounding area and have this year accelerated our community outreach with our '50 Weeks of Giving' campaign, a weekly £1,000 donation to local causes. Morson CEO, Ged Mason, OBE said this morning: “We’re delighted to be involved with Salford Red Devils. Our company head office is still based in Salford and I lived and went to school in Salford, so there’s a lot of heritage. I’m obviously proud of my roots and thought it was a good time to support the local club. The Grand Final was a great event for the whole city, which led to me being asked to support the club and I was delighted to get the main sponsorship position on the shirt. Hopefully the momentum and enthusiasm from the final will carry on and the community will get behind the club. Local businesses have had the opportunity to advertise on the shirt as well, which was a great idea, and I’m pleased that the winning company, Cannon, are based in Trafford Park, so quite local. The benefits that Salford offer through TV coverage now, and their performance on the pitch, elevates what they offer to sponsors. The coverage was one of the decisions which helped me decide to advertise on the shirt, because of the fantastic reach it has. I know the back office are working their socks off to help the club and get more sponsorship in and I think if we can all rally round and support our local club, and support the local community, it will be an exciting season ahead. Salford Red Devils would like to thank all businesses who have joined the club as partners for the 2020 campaign, including those who entered the draw to be featured on the Red Devils’ shirt. The Salford Red Devils 2020 kit will be launched in the coming weeks so watch this space!
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Sale Sharks vs Gloucester Match Report
MORSON SPORT | 3 MIN READ We take a look back at Sale Shark's opening game of the season and present our game changer of the week The 19/20 season began with a game very similar to the one that finished the 18/19 season for Sale Sharks, a nail biting thriller with Gloucester at the AJ Bell. The result, however was different this time as it was the away side that came away with the victory, with the Sharks’ unbeaten run coming to an end. Sale got off to an emphatic start as a great line break saw Akker van de Merwe march past the Gloucester defence and the South African found Byron McGuigan, who went over for the first try of the day. Rob du Preez followed up with the conversion and the fly-half extended the home side’s lead further with a penalty before half time, to put Sale 10-0 up at the break. Sale stretched the gap between the two sides to begin the second half through another Rob du Preez penalty, but this clearly lit a fire in the away side. Gloucester turned the pressure on Sale following this, with tries from Atkinson and Marshall and a conversion from Twelvetrees reducing the deficit to one point. This brought the score to 13-12 heading into the final 20 minutes. The game came to a frantic close as Gloucester earned two penalties, with Twelvetrees missing the first and dispatching the second to momentarily put the cherry and whites ahead by two points. Rob du Preez replied with a penalty of his own to put Sale 16-15 ahead, but soon Twelvetrees answered back with one of his own after Sale were penalised for offside. With the scores at 16-18 heading into the last seconds, Rob du Preez had the opportunity to win the game in dramatic fashion as the Sharks won a penalty. du Preez’s kick came agonisingly close, but heartbreakingly hit the post and the score-line remained unchanged as Sale lost an intense contest at the AJ Bell. Teams: Sale Sharks XV: 15. Hammersley, 14. Ashton, 13. Sam James, 12. Cam Redpath, 11. Byron McGuigan, 10. Rob du Preez, 9. Will Cliff, 8. Dan du Dupreez, 7. Ben Curry, 6. Jono Ross, 5. Jean-Luc du Preez, 4. Josh Beaumont, 3. Jake Cooper- Wooley, 2. Akker van der Merwe, 1. Ross Harrison Replacements Rob Webber, Coenie Oosthuizen, Will-Griff John, James Phillips, Bryn Evans Gloucester XV: 15. Jason Woodward, 14. Tom Marshall, 13. Billy Twelvetrees, 12. Mark Atkinson, 11. Ollie Thorley, 10. Danny Cipriani, 9. Joe Simpson, 8. Ruan Ackermann, 7. Jaco Kriel, 6. Lewis Ludlow, 5. Gerbrandt Grobler, 4. Ed Slater, 3. Jamal Ford-Robinson, 2. Franco Marais , 1. Ruan Ackermann Replacements Corne Fourie, Josh Hohneck, Fraser Balmain, Freddie Clarke, Aaron Hinkley, Charlie Chapman, Llyod Evans , Matt Banahan
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Rugby World Cup: De Klerk vs. Curry – which of Sale’s stars will come out on top this Saturday?
As England prepare to take on South Africa in the Rugby World Cup final in Yokohama, Japan – two Sale Sharks players will go head to head in the fight to become world champions. England flanker, Tom Curry, and South African scrum half, Faf de Klerk, have both delivered stand out performances during the tournament, with many questioning if the ‘mini Hercules’ de Klerk can be stopped by a relentless England side who dominated the All Blacks. Ahead of a game that will no doubt bring back demons for Sale's commercial director, Mark Cueto (remember his disallowed try against the Springboks in the 2007 world cup final), we analyse Curry and De Klerk, get to grips with their pre-tournament mindsets and look at how the respective teams weigh up against each other ahead of Saturday’s nail biting final. Player profiles: Tom Curry, England Age: 21 Position: Blindside Flanker Height: 1.87 m (6 ft 2 in) Weight: 106 kg Top fact: Tom became the youngest player to start an international for England in 90 years in Argentina on the 2017 summer tour. Tom’s identical twin brother, fellow Sale player, Ben Curry, will be flying out to support his brother in Japan this weekend. Described by Eddie Jones as one of England’s ‘Kamikaze Kids’, Tom Curry has taken the rugby world by storm since making his professional debut in 2016 and his impressive form has seen him rapidly become an integral asset for club and country. At 21 years old, Curry is England’s youngest player at this World Cup and what’s more impressive is the fact that the flanker has been given the task of learning a new position, playing at six whilst the whole world watches. Tom recently spoke to the Independent’s Jack de Menzes about the transition to the role: “The toughest thing is probably the edge defence. Naturally you want to make a tackle and then get up and make another tackle but you need to try to work the big lads inside you and try and keep them all safe, and then try to get yourself into those positions out wide. That’s difficult sometimes. At the end of the day I want to stay true to myself and adapt to what the team needs” Faf de Klerk, South Africa Age: 28 Position: Scrum-half Height: 5 ft 7 in Weight: 80 kg Top stat: Faf, full name Francois, nickname is ‘mini Hercules’. At just 5 ft 7 he is one of the smallest players on the field but his confrontational attitude and fighting spirit has earnt him a reputation as a giant slayer. After a difficult start with a loss to favourites - New Zealand, South Africa won their remaining games in Pool B with empathic victories over Italy, Canada, Japan and Wales to secure progress to the World Cup Finals. Faf de Klerk’s energetic and non-stop style of play has seen him become a fan favourite for the Springboks since his first cap in 2016 and the 28-year-old will be looking to showcase his finest form in the final against England. Faf gave us an insight into what the pressure to perform in a World Cup is like: “I think it’s good that we were look upon as an underdog in the run up to the World Cup and that’s good because it takes the pressure off. I think we’re always in with a shout every time, the Springboks always have a chance to win it.” England vs. South Africa – what you need to know The Springboks have the edge over the Red Rose with 25 wins to England's 15, and two drawn matches. Most memorably, South Africa secured a 15-6 victory over England in the 2007 final to win the tournament for the second time. This game is particularly significant for another Sale Sharks and England legend, Mark Cueto, who still lives with the ghosts of his disallowed try against the Springboks which cost England the 2007 World Cup. The former Sale player, who is now commercial director at the club, was a bootlace away from becoming England’s hero in the 2007 World Cup final against South Africa in Paris, where he was denied what he still believes was a match-winning try. But England have had the better of things recently... In the last five meetings between the two sides, Eddie Jones' men have emerged victorious three times to South Africa's two. Whatever happens in Saturday's final, what we should expect to see is these two nations, along with New Zealand, dominate world rugby for at least the next four years. We can be sure that we’re in for an intense morning on Saturday!
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Callum Smith's Hometown Return | Smith vs Ryder Preview
MORSON SPORT | 3 MIN READ Callum Smith and Joe Gallagher preview Satuday's huge fight Mundo also looks ahead to a possible Anfield main event next year and who that could be against! Team Morson’s Callum Smith returns to the ring this weekend to fight in his hometown of Liverpool for the first time in two years. The Super-Middleweight will be defending his WBA World, WBC Diamond and Ring Magazine world titles against mandatory challenger, John Ryder. 30-year-old, Ryder is currently on a four-fight win streak, with all coming as a result of KO or TKO and Callum recognises the toughness his opponent brings: “He’s on a good run of form. I’ve got to expect an even better version of him than we’ve seen before but I’m on good form myself, the form of my career. I’ve become the best super-middleweight in the world for a reason. There’s potentially huge fights out there for me but they all disappear if I slip up against John Ryder. He’s got my full attention, he’s the man I’m focused on. I’m not looking past him at all, I believe I’ll put in a big performance and unfortunately for John, I think he’ll come across the best version of me” Joe Gallagher, who has coached Callum since his debut back in 2012, has seen the youngest Smith brother develop into one of the sport’s elite and he believes the best is still yet to come: “You’re dealing with Callum Smith, who in my opinion is one of the best pound for pound fighters in the world. He’s punching very hard and hasn’t produced the best performance he can do in a ring yet, which is very scary for opponents out there. I know what I see every day in the gym” Since ‘Mundo’ last fought in Liverpool, he has won the Ali Trophy, multiple world titles he’s set to defend and also boxed at the prestigious Madison Square Garden. Despite all the accolades and international highlights, nothing is quite like home for Callum Smith. “I enjoyed all the away trips, they’re all good in their own way but fighting in Liverpool is special, it always has been. From early on in my career I made a promise to bring a world title back to the city, this is it now, this is me bringing a world title back in front of the home fans” Gallagher reiterated the importance of an impressive win in terms of opening the doors for long-awaited super-fights in the stacked Super-Middleweight division: “He’s got to take care of business, there’s huge pressure on Callum. The whole city of Liverpool needs him to win here, because if he does, they’ll get their Anfield night. He’s got to take care of business, there’s huge pressure on Callum. The whole city of Liverpool needs him to win here, because if he does, they’ll get their Anfield night” Speaking of a potential Anfield main event, Smith highlighted who he believes would be standing across the ring from him, if a match could be made at the iconic football ground: “I’d be a fool to look past John Ryder, but obviously Eddie has massive names for the Anfield date. If it does come off, I think Billy Joe Saunders would be easiest to make with us both being at Matchroom. I think there’s others Eddie would prefer to make, whether he can and deliver them is a different matter. Over the next few months we’ll see what they come up with” Regardless of the exciting future that may await Callum he is completely focused on the task at hand this weekend: “From my debut till now, I’ve always had the outlook that if the best version of me turns up, I’ll beat anyone in the world. This fight’s no different, I’m going to do what I’m good at and let John Ryder adapt to my style. As long as I perform and do what I’m good at, then I should be good enough to get the win and look good doing it” Saturday night promises to be a special night for the fighting city of Liverpool and we at Morson wish Callum the best of luck in the defence of his world titles. Stay up to date and read more Morson Sport news here
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Reflections, Retirement and Reverence : Crolla, Smith and Gallagher look back on their storied careers so far
MORSON SPORT | 3 MIN READ Anthony Crolla, Callum Smith & Joe Gallagher look back on their huge year in discussion with Dom McGuinness! 2019 has been an eventful one to say the least for the Morson sponsored Anthony Crolla and Callum Smith. The former said farewell to the sport in his home city whilst the latter defended his multiple world titles on two of Matchroom's marquee shows. We recently hosted a panel event with the two boxers and trainer Joe Gallagher to reflect on the careers of the three men to date and look ahead to their futures. Crolla: Retirement and Reflection Anthony Crolla has always stated that he has wanted to leave the sport before he is forced to leave it. With exciting work in coaching prospect Dylan Evans and punditry with Sky Sports presenting itself throughout the year, this was the right time for Million Dollar to walk away from boxing. Prior to his final fight, Crolla had the opportunity to fight P4P great, Vasily Lomachenko back in April. This was a massively valuable experience against a truly elite athlete and a payday that would secure a fruitful future for his family. After the Lomachenko fight, Anthony entered the Manchester Arena for the final time as he defeated the tough and durable Frank Urquiaga. When speaking with Dom McGuinness at our panel event, Crolla looked back on a memorable night back in 2013, which was truly make or break for his career: “I remember the Gavin Rees fight; my wife was heavily pregnant at the time and winning that fight allowed me to have that contract with Matchroom. If I’d have lost that fight, I think I wouldn’t have been able to be a full time professional boxer. That win allowed me to put a deposit on the house and you can see after that what it meant to me” Anthony suffered seven losses during his 45-fight career, with an early loss to part time ice-cream manYoussef Al Hamidi momentarily setting his career back. Even though each defeat was tough to take in their own right, the 33-year-old sees them as vital learning curves to enable future progress: “Joe took me on when very few people thought I would achieve a fraction of what I did. I had a fair few defeats but I never looked at them as losses, I looked at them as lessons. I had a few harsh lessons but I wouldn’t change them, they made me who I was and that gave me career that I had.” The former WBA Lightweight Champion also pinpointed two of his proudest moments during his time in the ring: “If I had to pick two moments, it’d be winning the world title or defending my world title. Being introduced as a world champion from Manchester by Michael Buffer and walking out still champion was probably the highlight of my career” Callum Smith: Money fights and Vegas nights ahead for Mundo? Last month saw Callum Smith successfully defend his WBA Super-Middleweight world title in a tougher than expected battle against mandatory challenger John Ryder. Callum admitted it wasn’t the best performance from himself in his initial post-fight interviews and fans and pundits voiced their opinions on whether the scorecards should have been as widely in favour of the youngest Smith brother in the immediate aftermath of the contest. Now that some time has passed, Callum gave his take on the fight and his performance: “You’ve got to expect a bit of criticism when you don’t box well, that’s just part of being a world champion and I didn’t at the weekend. I’ve always said a good fighter wins when they perform and wins when they don’t and I believe I did that. Everyone thought it was going to be a blowout but it wasn’t, he earned his position to challenge for the World title and I went in there and go the win” He continued: “I’d like to just fight the biggest names possible, it’ll give me that fear factor of if I don’t perform I’ll lose. The possibility of losing has always brought out the best in me, I get that fear when I fight the big names. I’ve got a very good team around me and hopefully they can deliver the big names next year” Speaking of big names, Callum has a particular superstar in mind that he’s looking to throw down with next: “Canelo. That’s the fight everyone wants, he’s the biggest name in boxing. It’s a fight I’d welcome and a fight I believe I would win. I believe he’s a better Middleweight than Super-Middleweight or Light-Heavyweight. If it’s not Canelo, then there’s a lot of other good fighters I’d love to share the ring with” Joe Gallagher: Man management and Sacrifice Manchester born Joe Gallagher became the first trainer to be named the Boxing News British Trainer of the year twice with his second win this year, a testament to his work in producing a number of world champions from his Gallagher’s gym stable. Joe gave an insight into one of the important ways he developed unique working relationships with each of his fighters: “For 10 years, I’ve always ran a stable of 10-12 fighters and it’s the man management that’s key. You can’t treat them all the same. Years ago, we went to L.A but it was more for me to get to know my fighters. Outside of the gym, Callum and his brothers will go home and play a game of tennis, Anthony will help at his amateur club and others will play on their Playstation. It made me understand what made them tick.” Gallagher also highlighted the more challenging aspects that come with being a world class coach and the sacrifices that are made to consistently reach targets: ‘The hardest thing for me is the studying the opponents and getting the potential sparring partners. The lads will come in on a Monday and ask if I watched the fight at the weekend and I’ll tell them that I haven’t because I’ve been watching their opponents. It affects your family life… I’ve had to miss parents’ evenings etc” All three men should be immensely proud of what they have achieved so far and it was great to have Anthony, Callum and Joe at Adamson House to discuss manifesting goals, exceeding expectations and keys to staying motivated. We would like to congratulate the Gallagher’s Gym and Morson representatives on a great 2019 and look forward to seeing how the future unfolds! Stay up to date and read more Morson Sport news here
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Sale Sharks vs Exeter Chiefs: Game Day Highlights
MORSON SPORT | 3 MIN READ We followed Sale Sharks in yesterday's close defeat to Exeter and caught up with England head coach, Eddie Jones! It was another tough outing in the Champions Cup for Team Morson's Sale Sharks yesterday, as Steve Diamond's side narrowly lost 20-22 to Exeter in a thrilling encounter at the AJ Bell. Sale currently sit at third in Pool 2 and will be looking to keep their hopes of progression alive in the return fixture at Exeter next weekend. Prior to the game we caught up with England's head coach Eddie Jones, who gave us his pre-game thoughts: "I'd imagine it's going to be a really tough tussle. They've both looked pretty good. I think Sale's best Rugby is ahead of them, they've had a lot of new players come in and I'm sure Steve Diamond's men will be hoping it comes together" Match Report: The Sharks began the game on the front foot and opened the scoring in the 9th minute through a Rob du Preez penalty. Exeter looked to answer back as Hogg broke through the Sharks backs, but Ashton made great ground to get back and make the tackle in front of the sticks. However, a penalty try was awarded as Tom Curry tackled the 9 from an offside position. The away side extended their lead moments later, as Hogg went over after his chip and chase beat Ross. Simmonds was unable to convert and the score was 3-12 to the Chiefs after 17 minutes of play. Simmonds quickly made amends for his missed kick, as Sale were penalised for offside and he was good for the three points. The Sharks managed to get their first try of the day as Akker picked up the spills from the Chiefs’ failed clearance and got over. Rob du Preez missed the follow up from out wide and the score was 8-15 after a frantic opening 21 minutes. The end to end nature of the game continued, as Exeter responded with another try, with Cowan-Dickie getting over next to the posts. Simmonds was good for the conversion, as Exeter had a 14-point lead. Sale looked to reduce the deficit again and a fantastic drive from a line out saw Akker get over for his second of the game, to the roar of a sold-out AJ Bell. Rob du Preez pushed his kick just wide as the Sharks were trailing 13-22 heading into the break. Exeter began the second half with a relentless series of attacks, but the Sharks defence held up as the game during this period as the game reached the 60-minute mark. The Sharks managed to mount pressure of their own as they barraged towards the Exeter 22 with time running out. Sale got over in the 71st minute, but the try wasn’t given due to no clear grounding. The late pressure from the home side soon paid off, as Jono Ross stormed over and Rob du Preez was good for the follow up. This brought the scores to 20-22 with five minutes to play, setting up nail biting final moments. Despite the late charge from the Sharks, Exeter managed to hold on for their third successive victory in Europe. Post-Match thoughts: Steve Diamond relfected on a difficult first half for the Sharks, where he feels the game was ultimately lost for his side: "I thought we coughed it up in the first half to be honest. The weather looked a lot worse in the first half by the looks of it, but we hit a couple of exits and a side like Exeter will just prey on you. We just didn't exit from a couple of set-pieces and a couple of areas. Apart from that I think we did enough to challenge" There were big postives to take from the final 15 minutes of the game as Sale made a late charge in attack: "I thought in attack. The lineout functioned, we've had some issues with that recently. I thought the scrum was dominant with the starting front row and then the props came on. We emulate exeter in a lot of things they do. Their forwards were good, I thought our forwards matched them today and probably edged them near the end" We wish Sale all the best in training this week as they prepare for another huge game in Europe on Saturday. Sharks XV 15. Simon Hammersley, 14. Chris Ashton, 13. Sam James, 12. Rohan Janse van Rensberg, 11. Marland Yarde, 10. Rob Du Preez, 9. Faf de Klerk, 8. Jono Ross. 7. Ben Curry, 6. Tom Curry, 5. James Phillips, 4. Bryn Evans, 3. WillGriff John, 2. Akker van der Merwe, 1. Coenie Oosthuizen Replacements: 16. Curtis Langdon, 17. Ross Harrison, 18. Jake Cooper-Wooley, 19. Matt Postlethwaite, 20. Cameron Nield, 21. Will Cliff, 22. Luke James, 23. Denny Solomona Exeter XV 15. Stuart Hogg, 14. Jack Nowell, 13. Henry Slade, 12. Sam Hill, 11. Ian Whitten, 10. Joe Simmonds, 9. Nic White, 8. Sam Simmonds, 7. Jacques Vermeulen, 6. Dave Ewers, 5. Jonny Hill, 4. Dave Dennis, 3. Harry Williams, 2. Luke Cowan-Dickie, 1. Alec Hepburn Replacements: 16. Elvis Taione, 17. Ben Moon, 18. Marcus Steet, 19. Jannes Kirsten, 20. Don Armand, 21. Jack Maunder, 22. Gareth Steenson, 23. Olly Woodburn Stay up to date and read more Morson Sport news here
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Sharks at the World Cup | Faf De Klerk, Tom Curry, Mark Wilson and Valery Morozov look back on their tournaments
MORSON SPORT | 3 MIN READ We caught up with Sale Sharks' World Cup stars to hear their stories from Japan! Fresh from the World Cup, Morson’s Jamal Niaz hosted a star-studded panel at Sale Sharks' supporters club featuring Faf de Klerk, Tom Curry, Mark Wilson and Valery Morozov. This marked the World Cup debuts of all four men and it was Faf De Klerk’s South Africa that were ultimately crowned winners after a tense final with Tom Curry’s England. Faf De Klerk: Realising a childhood dream by winning the World Cup will undoubtedly be the highlight of Faf’s career but the Scrum-Half isn’t short of motivation going forward despite now reaching his crowning achievement: “It’s any boy’s dream to win a World Cup. Staying motivated is quite easy, there’s still a lot of goals we want to achieve as a team and a club so the focus is right back onto that. We want to succeed and make the supporters proud. There’s a lot of targets to reach yet. I want to win the Premiership and the Champions Cup, so they’re things I’ve got to tick off. As a rugby player you always want to perform well, it’s about getting new goals and reaching them” Being on the cusp of achieving a career goal brings the danger of not truly experiencing the moment, due to being fixated with the task at hand. This was something that De Klerk actively combatted during the tournament and made sure to be completely present during the final itself: “At the World Cup when I ran out, I always tried to get a sense of the crowd and really take in what’s around me. I do remember it really well, much better than Tom! What a massive occasion it was, it was truly special” One of the most memorable pictures of the World Cup was Faf’s celebration in his now iconic South African themed speedos and the following meeting between himself and Prince Harry whilst wearing the attire. This image saw Faf launch a cancer awareness challenge known as the ‘Faf Challenge’ encouraging his supporters to screen themselves for testicular cancer. De Klerk reflected on the picture and getting to meet Prince Harry: “I popped out to get an X-Ray and he was there. He had a great speech for us and I got to meet him. I was the only guy caught but the rest of the team were in the same outfit! Something good came from it so it was nice” Tom Curry: 2019 proved to be a breakout one for 21-year old Tom Curry, with eye-catching displays in the Six-Nations and World Cup that saw him nominated for world player of the year. With Tom currently preparing for his 28th game of a crazy year, this panel event served as one of the few opportunities that the Flanker could look back on what he’s achieved in his young career so far: “This year’s been a bit of a whirlwind. I’ve obviously experienced things for the first time such as the Six Nations and The World Cup. It’s been unbelievable, you don’t actually notice what’s happening during the whole process, it’s only when you look back at times like these. It’s been an unreal year to look back on and some brilliant learning experiences to look back on going forward” It’s clear that a manic schedule is something that Curry has always thrived in, as his rise was filled with transitions through the ranks at a ridiculously rapid rate: “Having my brother alongside me and training nearly every day, things go by so quickly that you don’t have time to think about it. Going straight from school to Sale FC to Sharks and getting the call to Argentina with England, you don’t really stop and think. One of the biggest things as a professional sportsman is to stop and take things in and I should probably pinch myself along the way.” Learning to unwind away from the sport is something that Tom is still learning to do with consistent success for club and country: “It’s something you probably get better at with experience. You learn about yourself more and you learn how to get your mind and body in the best position to play rugby. When you’re younger coming through you’ve got to do this and that but as you get older, you play week in and week out and that’s when you start learning” Tom and Sharks teammate, Faf have faced each other on the international stage numerous times, with most games featuring a heated moment between the two. Curry addressed the healthy rivalry between the two and clearly enjoys the competition: “On the summer tour we had at least two and then obviously in the big game in the final but we’re both pretty natural players for a scuffle, he loves it! I lose my head easily and he finds it easy to make players lose their heads, we’re a natural couple” Mark Wilson: New Sharks signee, Mark Wilson was an integral part of the England side that reached the World Cup final both on and off the field. Wilson was full of praise of the togetherness and spirit in the England camp in Japan: “One thing that we had an emphasis on throughout the tournament is the team of 31 players. There was a real appreciation between the lads that were playing and the lads that weren’t, as the lads that weren’t playing would help the rest of the team in training day by day. Tom and the other guys who were playing day by day and were coming into training tired sometimes, it was our job to lift them up” Wilson hadn’t featured since the group stage prior to coming off the bench in the memorable win against New Zealand and the 30-year-old was more than ready for the occasion: “When you get the call for the semi- final obviously it gets exciting to get involved. I hadn’t played in about four weeks so I had about four weeks of engine in me for that game! Mark’s debut from Sale is currently on hold due to injury but gave an update on when we can expect to see him at the AJ Bell: “Hopefully in the new year, towards the end of January I should be able to play. It’s been an exciting couple of weeks being down here for the first time, being able to meet the boys so we’re itching to get involved” Valery Morozov: Progression from the stacked Pool A was always going to be extremely difficult for Russia, but representing his country on the world stage was an immensely proud moment for Valery: “I was very proud for my country because it was only our second time at a world cup. We only play 3-4 times a year with Russia and we play every week at Sale so I’d like to thank Sale for helping me as a player” It was brilliant to hear each player's story from the World Cup and we can't wait to see how their season unfolds with Sale!
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