HE arrived in a blaze of glory and left in a huff – Muhammad Ali’s ‘forgotten fight’ at Paisley Ice Rink in 1965 was a strange affair.

The boxer was at the height of his fame, aged 23 and a world champion, having just won his rematch against Sonny Liston.

Scottish flyweight boxer-turned-promoter Peter Keenan and London fight impresario Micky Duff had teamed up to stage an exhibition bout at the ice rink, but they had no idea that despite promising so much, it would turn out to be such a damp squib.

Ali had ditched his ‘slave name’, Cassius Clay, although that name still followed him – it was even on the poster for the Paisley fight, with Muhammad Ali in much smaller print below.

Ali’s arrival at Prestwick Airport was all-singing, all-dancing, with pipers to greet him, and he visited hospitals and Celtic Park on a promotional tour before the bout.

But only around 1000 people turned up on the night, and they were less than impressed. When the boos started, Ali stormed out of the ring and went straight to the airport, demanding to be put on “the first flight outta here.”

This little snippet of Scottish sporting history prompted writer Alan Muir to create a play around it.

The Greatest, which returns to Oran Mor later this month after a successful run earlier in the year, grew out of Alan’s research into the Paisley Ice Rink bout.

“The play originally started with the main character - Jimmy Marshall, who claims he met and fought Ali just before he went in to the ring for the exhibition bout,” says Alan, who is from Cumbernauld.

“I’d written about him in a book which died a natural death before it was even published, but Jimmy never left me.

He smiles: “I always knew Jimmy had a big story in him - something in his past which was mysterious and funny and outrageous - I just didn’t know what it was.

“One day - and I honestly don’t know why - I typed “did Muhammad Ali ever fight in Scotland” into an online search engine.

“Would you believe it - up popped an article from the Evening Times describing a bout which Ali fought in Paisley in August 1965.

“It was perfect and Jimmy immediately began to tell me his story.”

Using the Evening Times and other archives, Alan discovered more about the ‘forgotten fight’ and the play took shape.

He also discovered a newfound respect for the famous boxer, who died in 2016.

“I’ve always been fascinated by Ali,” says Alan. “He’s an icon - in and out of the ring - and a genuine inspiration.

“He had many faults and held some beliefs which I don’t agree with, but he also enshrined a lot of positive ideals - strength, wit, compassion, intellect and more.”

He jokes: “Plus, he could beat people up - that’s a big attraction when you’re a skinny kid at high school with no friends but plenty of bullies…”

Alan has never boxed, but says he “understands the purity of the sport.”

He adds: “It’s just you and your opponent. There’s no room for self-doubt or worrying about whether you have left the cooker on - it’s living in the moment, where everything can change in the jab of a glove or the throw of a towel.”

Ali was not the only big name boxer to appear at Paisley Ice Rink, which was the most up to date arena in Britain when it opened its doors in 1940.

It could seat up to 5000 spectators and boasted a first class restaurant, café, milk bar and shop.

Sugar Ray Robinson, said by some to be the best boxer ever - better even than Ali – also fought at the venue, in August 1964, when he was 42 and considering retirement.

Promoter Peter Keenan took him to Paisley Ice Rink, where he suffered a rare defeat to Irish boxer Mick Leahy. Top tickets for the fight cost eight guineas, but you could get a cheap seat at the back for two.

The Greatest returns to Oran Mor from July 23 to 28 and Alan is delighted his story has been so well-received.

“It has been fantastic - I even heard from a man who had actually met Ali, completely out of the blue,” he smiles. “When Ali was staying at a hotel in Giffnock, Eddie McCusker got his picture taken with him. He was only nine, and his mother was horrified that his dirty knees had been in display in the local newspaper!

Alan adds: “Ali really was Eddie’s hero and he cried when Norton beat him in 1973. What a treat to speak to him.”