IN most cases punching other people is a bad idea but boxing trainer Tommy Greenwood believes it teaches discipline and sets troubled kids on the right path.
With John Hinsey, Michael Caine and Gary Garner he has been training Collie children for five years.
"If you're in the local footy team or hockey team then you're fine but if you're not a team player than you are left with nothing," he said.
"Boxing gets the kids who slip through the cracks.
"The idea of boxing is to teach kids how to fight, give them confidence so they get to like who they are.
"Kids that like who they are rarely become involved in anti-social behaviour and are more likely to set themselves on a positive road.
"Boxing is the hook to get them in, then we teach them all the other things such as self discipline and boundaries."
The gym keeps functioning due to the generous support of the Collie community and volunteers such as Mr Greenwood.
"Between the four volunteer coaches and the good people of Collie we've raised $20,000 in the past 18 months," he said.
"I chose Collie because I live 30 kilometres away and it's my belief that in a community everyone should put something back in.
"Boxing has given me a great life so I'd like to give back to that, my coaches never charged me so we don't charge the boys here.
"Kids pay $4 to the centre but the trainers are volunteers and if the kids don't have the money we don't turn them away."
His passion for boxing started at the age of 12 and, as a Melbourne street kid, he didn't have much to lose.
"Boxing saved my life," he said.
"I hung around in Melbourne gyms but took off to Kings Cross in Sydney at 18 to start fighting pro in clubs.
"We would fight with horse hair- filled eight-ounce gloves and the horse hair would break away but boxing is much safer now with the medicals and supervision."
Not being a natural at the sport meant he had to learn the basic skills really well and that helped strengthen his career as a coach.
"I was a stumbling block for opponents, I was the sort of bloke where if you beat me you'd go somewhere if you didn't you wouldn't," he said.
"I won most of my fights but I just couldn't beat the good guys.
"That's why I had to learn the basic skills really well because I wasn't a natural, it made me a good coach though."
Training and sparring with some of the best boxers in the world also helped.
"I fought some big events but my main claim to fame was being a sparring partner for a bloke called Lionel Rose, he was a world champion, ranking number one in the world."
At 25 Mr Greenwood was past boxing and began working as a trainer. He quickly took on a mentoring role to children off the street and set up a boxing gym with PCYC in Gosnells.
"I've had three or four really good mentors in my life who have saved me from jail," he said.
"I've been around a long time and understand the importance of self-discipline and boundaries for teenagers.
"At the gym we're strict, nobody has derogatory nicknames or gets put down.
"If you get caught with your hands on your hips then you get 10 push-ups, you have to have rules."
For Mr Greenwood it's not about his successes with upcoming boxers who he's trained but more about giving back to the community which gave him a chance.
