Dave Sands (1926–1952) was one of the six boxers collectively known as ‘The Fighting Sands Brothers’. Of Dunghutti descent, he and his brothers Clem, Percy, George, Alfie and Russell, were born at Burnt Ridge near Kempsey on the mid north coast of New South Wales, and took up boxing as young men in emulation of their father and a great-uncle, who’d had some success as tent and bare-knuckle fighters. Dave, the most successful of the sextet, was known for his dedication, fortitude and modesty. He won his first Australian middleweight title in May 1946 and later that year took out the national light heavyweight championship. He won the British Empire middleweight boxing title while on a tour of England in 1949, defeating a fancied British fighter named Dick Turpin and rising to the rank of number 1 in the world. In 1950, he won the Australian heavyweight title, making him the middle, light heavyweight and heavyweight champion simultaneously. In all, Dave Sands won 97 of his 110 professional bouts. He died, aged 26, when a truck he was driving overturned; at the time of his death, he was rated number three in the world middleweight rankings, behind Americans Sugar Ray Robinson and Jake LaMotta. Dave Sands was inducted into the World Boxing Hall of Fame in 1998.
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