Tributes to Torquay legend who trained Tyson Fury and inspired generations

Torquay legend Dave Stacey, known to generations as the town's 'Mr Boxing' and to his proud family as a loving husband and father, has died at the age of 85. For decades, Dave was synonymous with the Devon boxing scene, training hundreds of aspiring fighters in the noble art, giving youngsters from tough backgrounds valuable direction in life.

The most famous boxer to be trained by Dave was Tyson Fury who was a teenager when he walked into the ABC (Amateur Boxing Club) in Hele Road. The Gypsy King later went on to world domination as heavyweight champion but never forgot the months he spent training at the club.

Football was another passion and Dave was well-known at Torquay United where, later in life, he worked to maintain facilities. Family and friends of Dave, including daughter Nicole and former Gulls chief executive Colin Lee are among those who have paid tribute.

Nicole said: "First and foremost, he was a real family man and was always very proud to tell other people that he felt like the luckiest man in the world to be a husband and father and we really felt that love.

"He was a very loyal person and would do absolutely anything for us. People would always describe him as a real character and he was unashamedly himself. He had the ability to talk to anyone and put them at ease.

"If there was a setback of any kind he wouldn't dwell on it, he would tell people how he felt, pick himself up and take the challenge on. I suppose that's the boxing mentality and focus."

Colin Lee, one of Torquay United's most famous former players who ran the club between 2007 and 2010, said Dave was the sort of 'do anything employee' that every club needs and epitomised its strong links to the community.

"He was there when I arrived and was the guy who would help in any way he could. The role was near-on voluntary but he would always enjoy helping and you need those types of people. I'll remember him as a really nice person and there was always good banter. He was part of the furniture at the club."

Colin said he would sometimes accept Dave's invitations to visit the boxing club and remembered his friend sat with his medals on, judging fights.

"I think what he did in the community was immense," he said. "You were talking about getting kids off the street and giving them a focus, an interest and discipline. I don't think he got enough recognition for that. A lot of people probably don't know the huge number of people he would have helped."

Born in Shoreham-by-Sea in 1939, Dave, his mother and siblings were moved to Torquay as evacuees during the war. His potential as a boxer was noticed at Audley Park Secondary School. The schoolmaster, a Mr Stan Powell, was a Devon County boxing judge, who typically settled quarrels between boys by giving them a pair of gloves after school.

Dave proved himself in one such encounter and then very quickly in the school boxing team which was one of the most formidable in the Westcountry. It was the start of a boxing career that lasted 22 years and 428 amateur contests, winning many county titles.

He continued winning fights while serving in the RAF and, after leaving the forces, boxed all over the country and in Europe. He was known for his fitness and enjoyed a number of notable victories, showing no fear against formidable opponents. He fought in front of raucous crowds at Torquay Town Hall, The Imperial Hotel, and civic halls in Exeter and Totnes in the 1960s where his courage always had the respect of the crowd.

By the end of his amateur career he had 100 trophies and had fought some of the top fighters in the country. He also played football for local teams and trained players in Watcombe, Hele and St Marychurch.

Dave married Debbie in 1984 when he was in his 40s. The couple had two children, Lee and Nicole. He was also a devoted granddad to Payton and Lucas.

His love of boxing never waned. After hanging up his own gloves Dave poured all his efforts into coaching the next generation.

He had joined the Torbay Amateur BC after leaving the RAF and built its reputation as the town's best fighting gym. He was a key figure in the club's move to Hele Road in 1977 and sometimes ran the club single-handedly.

Dave admitted that because of the thousands of youngsters he saw in his 60 years of coaching, he only has vague memories of Fury coming into the ABC gym as a 6ft tall teenager.

He later recalled: “This young boy turned up on his own one night and asked to train with us. He was a big lad, I’d say nearly six foot tall then. We didn’t turn away boys who wanted to train.

“Although he never boxed for us, he kept coming to train and spar for about six months, and then his family must have moved on. I didn’t remember much about him, because I treat everyone the same and there were lots of other boys to look after.”

Years later Dave took one of the Torquay lads up to Blackpool for a tournament, and Tyson was the guest of honour.

“He presented our boy with a prize, realised where he was from and said ‘I trained at your club when I was a kid’. “Our lad told him ‘And the guy who trained you is stood over there’, and then Tyson came over, shook my hand and thanked me.

“It was nice of him to come over and speak to me, because there were lots of other people wanting to talk to him.”

Dave was made boxing club president in 2011 and received the Herald Express Editor's Lifetime Achievement Award in 2014.

"To us all as a family, he was simply the best," said Nicole.

The funeral of Dave Stacey will take place at St Matthew's Chelston on November 18.

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