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Spring by name and spring by nature |
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Scientific punches
Tom "Light Tapper" Spring was not quite the leviathan brute that so many of his opponents were. It was not too long after his first fight, at the age of 17, in 1812 that Spring earned himself nick-names that, for a boxer, were none too complimentary. "Ladies-maid-fighter" and "Light-Tapper" were two that gave away much about his style and little about his awesome fighting prowess.
His father and grandfather were both aficionados of the sport, and it was at an early age that Tom took to pounding the punch-bag. 
Spectators of all classes came to cheer on their hero
© Courtesy of Jon Hurley |
It must have been then that he also developed his fleet of foot style to avoid the prospect of a heavy blow or two from his father in training.
He had a classic orthodox stance with left hand extended, chin protected, left foot forward and well balanced. With the addition of his tremendous recuperative powers, he was to become a formidable fighter. Despite these attributes, he was not a big hitter; in fact he had rather fragile hands. Instead, he relied on his fast, repetitive "springing-style" punching, and nimble footwork to dodge the counter attacks – all rather scientific at a time when bare knuckle fighters' supporters were baying for blood in the way the Romans did.
In his early years, he followed his father into his butchering business in Fownhope, and was to be in good company with other great boxers of his time such as Jem Belcher, John Gulley, Bill Neat and Peter "Rumpsteak" Crawley – butchers all.
Spring continued his boxing training in the evenings and at weekends, but the opportunities for real sparring were few and far between, until the chance encounter with the 11th Duke of Norfolk who lived at Holme Lacy House only a mile away. The Duke was in the habit of holding magnificent dinner and lunch parties for guests from all over the country. As entertainment, his Grace would hold sparring matches on the lawns. With boxing holding the position of horseracing today, he would demand the very best of fighters to perform.
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