Limerick's pride and joy in the boxing world, Andy Lee, contests an Irish title as a professional for the first time, in Dublin on Saturday.

And when he steps into the ring there will be huge support from Castleconnell and from all boxing enthusiasts in the region who managed to get a ticket for the showdown against Jason McKay, from Banbridge, to decide who will be the new Irish Super Middleweight champion.

Andy faces Jason McKay from Banbridge in a bout for the Irish Super Middleweight championship.

Andy Lee, honoured with a civic reception by Limerick County Council under the chairmanship of sports enthusiast, Eddie Wade, was born in London in June 11, 1984.

He is one of six children born to Tom and Ann, and from an early stage he was interested in boxing. He has three brothers, Tommy, Ned and Roger, and two sisters, Dawn and Hayley.

"I spent my childhood in Bow in East England, and I have been boxing for as long as I can remember," he said.

One of Andy's earliest memories is of sitting in the ring apron at the Repton Boxing Club, watching my older brothers, Tommy and Ned, train.

"Sitting there with my dad I couldn't wait for it to be my turn. By the time I was old enough to start training, I already knew how to hold my hands in the correct position, and how to throw a number of combinations," he recalled.

Looking back on his first fight, Andy said, "I was aged eleven and while I was sitting in the dressing room, there were fifteen others getting ready as well. Everyone was asking each other 'who are you fighting', and there was one big guy sitting in the corner wrapping his hands. Someone asked him who was he fighting and he replied, 'Someone called A Lee.'."

Andy admits that, as he stood in the corridor before entering the ring, his stomach was "in knots". "It would be an understatement to say that I was nervous. Walking into the ring I looked across at my family, all of whom had turned up to support me. I remember thinking to myself that I did not care how big he was and that I was going to beat him. I did and I won many more fights after that," he said.

Though born in London, Andy and the family never lost sight of their Irish roots and they frequently spent their holidays visiting relatives and friends in Dublin, Cork and Limerick.

In 1998, Tom and Ann decided to return to Ireland and they set up home in Castleconnell just outside Limerick city, and there they have resided ever since.

By this point in time, Andy was determined to continue his boxing career, and he quickly joined the St Francis Club in Limerick City.

Down through the years, the St Francis Club has produced many outstanding amateur boxers. It continues to do so, and a number of their youths have won Irish titles.

"By the time I was 18 I knew that boxing was what I wanted to do with my life. At that time I was working with my dad as a landscape gardener, but I much preferred the thought of becoming a world champion rather than a landscape gardener," he said.

Andy fought his way through the ranks and he was included in a five-man Irish team to fight in Cuba, for the World Junior Championships.

"For those championships I had five fights in a week. I won four of them, when reaching the final. One of the wins was against a chap called Jesus Gonzales, and that win was a turning point in my career," he said.

In early January in 2003 Andy took a phone call in Castleconnell from Belfast man, Tony Dunlop, who had been the Irish team coach when they travelled to Cuba for the World Juniors.

Tony put Andy on to his cousin Damien who told him that he had a call from the world famous trainer, Emmanuel Steward, who was impressed when he saw Andy box in Cuba.

"I told Damien that my goal was to stay amateur and to represent my country in the Athens Olympics the following year," he said.