The Dictionary of Sydney was archived in 2021.
Foley, Larry
Pugilist who introduced the Queensberry rules into boxing in Australia and helped to revitalise the sport. A building contractor who joined the Catholic larrikin gang The Greens and as its leader he lasted 71 rounds in a fight with Sandy Ross, leader of the Orange Protestant group, at Como on the Georges River in 1871. He ran two hotels in Sydney. The first, Foley's Hotel, was on York Street. In 1885 he refurbished an old tavern named Nissen's Cafe on George Street and renamed it the White Horse Hotel. Bouts were fought and boxers trained in a gym at the back of the building.
