Clinton Woods: The night my heart went
Woods is now passing on his knowledge and mindset to his members.
It is 15 years ago on Friday since Clinton Woods' last professional scrap, a 12-round defeat to the then-unbeaten American, Tavoris Cloud.
It was a hard night at the Hard Rock Hotel in Florida as one of Sheffield's most popular sons blew his chance to regain the IBF World Light Heavyweight belt.
A career which had started in 1994 had come to an end.
It had been a noble spell in the professional ranks and it was no dishonour to lose to a fighter whose career roster of opponents has included Artur Beterbiev, Bernard Hopkins and two of Woods' rivals, Glen Johnson and Julio Cesar Gonzalez.
Looking back at the August 2009 fight in America, former world champion Woods says: "I remember being hit by a massive left hook. I went back to the corner and saw about 12 lots of Glyn Rhodes (his trainer) - seeing one Glyn Rhodes in front of you is bad enough!
"Earlier on in that fight, I had been trying stuff and it just wasn't working...I felt I hadn't got it any more" said Woods, now living in Ridgeway.
"But I found out later than Cloud was almost finished - his trainer told me afterwards he'd been struggling.
"I went into Cloud's changing room after and he was lying in the floor completely dehydrated.
"Despite losing, my main feeling was that I was so relieved I had finished boxing" said Woods, now aged 54.
"I was buzzing. I knew I'd finished, I hadn't trained as hard as I should have, that was down to me. I wasn't running the big hills; I wasn't bothered.
"It was probably the only fight where I cut corners. My heart had gone.
"But if I'd have fought him two or three years earlier I'd have beaten him."
Woods, the former Westfield Comprehensive schoolboy who held the IBF light-heavyweight title from 2005 to 2008, set up a gym 18 months after retiring, and is now passing on his knowledge and mindset to his members.
Many veteran boxing analysts would have loved to see him take on Joe Calzaghe, but it never got off the ground.
"Calzaghe was special; he threw a lot of shots and maybe he would have beat me on points," he said.
"But there again, on the day I fought Rico Hoye (March 2005) I don't think anybody would have beaten me."
Rhodes, who runs Sheffield Boxing Centre in Hillsborough, also has lasting memories of that fateful night in Florida.
"It was a story of old bull versus young bull," he said.
"I also remember the left hook. Clinton's back leg wobbled and I was thinking of pulling him out.
"But he just fired back on all cylinders - and that was typical Clinton.
"I am proud to have coached him three times - the Central Area Super Middleweight victory over Darren Littlewood at Pinegrove Country Club, Stannington, another win over Mark Baker for the Commonwealth title and then the Cloud fight.
"These were great times and we are good friends to this day!"