Copied from http://www.celtic-tenors.com/lyrics/contender.html

THE CONTENDER
(Jimmy McCarthy)

When I was young and I was in my day,
Sure I'd steal what woman's heart there was away,
And I'd sing into the morning,
Saw a blaze into the morning,
Long before I was the man you see today.

I was born beneath the star that promised all.
I could live my life without Cassandra's call,
But the wheel of fortune took me.
From the highest point she shook me.
By the bottle, by the bottle I should fall.

CHORUS: There, in the mirror on the wall,
I see the dream is fading
From the contender to the fall--
The ring, the rose, the matador, raving.

When I die, I'll die a drunk down on the street.
He will count me out to ten in clear defeat.
Wrap the Starry Plough around me.
Let the piper's air resound me
There I rest until the Lord of Love I meet.

CHORUS: There, in the mirror on the wall,
I see the dream is fading
From the contender to the brawl--
The ring, the rose, the matador, raving.

From a review at http://www.rambles.net/fleming_contender00.html :

"The Contender" ... was written by Jimmy McCarthy and tells the sad but true tale of Jack Doyle -- The Gorgeous Gael -- who was a contender in the boxing ring but fell from grace through celebrity.