Hanif stops his opponent in the final round to help lead the Walsall club to victory.
Images: Mkuu Amani/PML
CANNOCK – Haidar Hanif opened his season with a big win, Sonny Loveridge impressed on his debut and Pleck ABC beat the Midlands Select 5-3 on Friday night at The Premier Suite.
Pleck ABC held a 4-1 lead when Hanif entered the ring to face Tamworth Boxing Club’s Kyle Berwick. The bout was scheduled for three rounds but Berwick was overwhelmed by Hanif’s speed, agility and power. The referee gave Berwick three standing-eight counts during the first two rounds and, seeing that Berwick was being outclassed, stopped the bout during the third.
It was a showcase of emerging talent for Pleck ABC with four members of the team; Callum Rose, Patrick Purcell, Matt Dolley and Sonny Loveridge, making their debuts.
All of the debutants won except for Callum Rose whose skills bout, in accordance with the rules of the bout, had to be scored as a draw.
Pleck’s William Webb also came away with a win.
The Midlands Select Team consisted of boxers from six different clubs with Great Wyrley ABC represented by Ryan Woolridge and Layke Bell, Tamworth Boxing represented by Oliver Gibson and Kyle Berwick, Exhall represented by Thomas Mellor, Rugeley represented by Callum Grey, Donnington represented by Theo Szlarzewickz, Ethan Hand representing Burntwood and Alex Round representing Wolverhampton Boxing Club.
Ryan Woolridge and Layke Bell both won their bouts making it a good night’s work for Great Wyrley ABC and, in the penultimate contest of the event, Wolverhampton’s Alex Round’s impressive victory also added a point to Midlands Select’s final tally.
Pleck ABC and England Coach Shiney Singh commented, “It was good. It’s a relatively new team. It’s an open show so it was more of our inexperienced kids that boxed on it and it was nice to get some of the kids out.”
He added, “A couple of schoolboys were on there for their first bouts and I think quite a few of them looked quite good to be honest. Four kids were having their first bouts today so it was quite a nice little experience to give them the opportunity to box.
“Sonny Loveridge had his first bout today against Callum Grey, Ron Grey’s grandson, and he (Sonny) really stood out. He looked well. He should have a promising future as long as he sticks at it.
“And Haidar Hanif stopped his kid. Four standing eight counts, first bout of the season. He’ll be in the Championships next month so a nice little win for him to get him ready for the Championships.”
The Premier Suite is a renowned club with a history of staging prestigious boxing events. A number of boxing celebrities and legends of the sport have visited the venue including Marvin Marvellous Hagler, Gerry Cooney, Steve Collins, Roy Jones Jr, George Groves, Barry McGuigan and Steve Bunce.
Olympic Gold medalist and British lightweight superstar Luke Campbell MBE is scheduled to attend on November 7th. His visit will add another high profile event to the venue’s busy calendar.
“It was a great night. Excellent boxing. Good quality.” the club’s owner Scott Murray said.
“Great Wyrley have got a show here a week on Thursday. They’ve got their club show here against a Midlands select on Thursday 24th October.
“And we’ve got two big tournaments here. November 24th England v Ireland. The official England team against the official Ireland team.
“And then on November 28th England v Scotland, which just caps off a great year of Internationals.”
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