REPTON & RAINHAM DOMINATE
Matt Bozeat is at the final stages of the England Boxing Schools championships
BANBURY
MAY 14-15
REPTON and Rainham dominated when the Schools Championship reached its climax at the Spiceball Leisure Centre
Repton had seven champions and Rainham won five of their eight finals, with southpaw Archie Coates one of their stars.
He made it back-to-back Schools titles by winning Class A at 37kgs with a unanimous points win over Isa Hussain
(Longsight) in the final.
Coates boxed well on the outside in the opener, countering with fast combinations, before Hussain came back in the second by getting Coates to make the first move more often.
The last was a clear round for Coates as he drew leads and countered with fast lefts.
He had a good test in the semi-finals.
Reuben Huczman (Leicester Lightning) had won all six – four early – and was on the front foot throughout.
From the second, Coates was able to read his attacks and by the last he couldn’t miss with countering lefts.
Dean Goodearl was another winner from Rainham, taking the Class B title at 35.5 kgs by outpointing Jake Mccoy
(Tower Hill), who made him work hard for his unanimous points win.
Goodearl dropped his hands to bring Mccoy onto punches and was clipped a few times in the second before Mccoy’s feet slowed in the last.
In the semi-finals, Goodearl had his hands full with Callum Evans (Redcar) for a round before he started to walk him onto punches to win unanimously.
The closest Class B final was at 48kgs where Noah Barney-smith
(Camberley) edged out Benny Tokeley
(West Ham) by a 3-2 split.
Barney-smith, who wore knee-length pink socks, had his nose bloodied in the second and was handed a public warning for holding in the last, but had a strong finish when he repeatedly scored with check left hooks and rights.
Barney-smith had outpointed Mohammed Eesah Elahi (Platinum) in the semi-finals, going up a gear in the last to force a count with a right handleft hook combination.
Kevin Satchell used to wear “Alfie” on his shorts in a pro career that brought him British and Commonwealth flyweight titles. Alfie Taylor-satchell is now a fighter himself and made it backto-back Schools titles with a unanimous points win over Edward Mcdonagh
(Pinewood) in the Class B final at 34kgs.
Boxing from the centre of the ring and not wasting much, Taylor-satchell made sure by handing Mcdonagh a count in the last with a jolting combination of punches.
The previous day, he had stopped 7 Hills southpaw Billy Lomozik in the third.
The finishing punch was one of the best of the weekend’s boxing, Taylorsatchell shifting his feet to walk Lomozik onto a pinpoint straight right that stiffened his legs.
One of the best finals was in Class
B at 68kgs, Louie Harper (Weedon) and Johnny Murphy (Sporting Ring) produced three rounds of non-stop action. Harper did enough for four of the five judges.
The taller Murphy jumped all over Harper at the opening bell.
Harper was composed under fire and replied with a salvo of punches that made Murphy touch down for a count.
Harper reacted better when Murphy found his chin. He either fired back instantly with better quality punches or switched stances to make Murphy rethink.
Bailey Wilding (Mikey’s) didn’t need the judges in the 65kgs final. The referee waved off his fight with Martin Ward (Rainham) in the first. Wilding forced a count with a combination and Ward was on rubbery legs on its completion.
Lexi Walker (Wodensborough) was the outstanding female boxer at last year’s championship and she shone again in Banbury.
She unanimously outpointed Gracie Farnworth (Halliwell) in the Class B final at 63kgs.
The compact Walker smoothy put together two-fisted combinations to body and head throughout.
There was a terrific Class A female final at 45 kgs, Serena Mali (Cleary’s) outpointing Lily Bassett (TM Boxing).
Mali stopped Ellie Spencer (Sudbury) inside two rounds in the semifinals – using her long levers to force two counts – and looked on course for another early finish in the final when a pinpoint three-punch combination forced an ‘eight’ count.
Bassett responded by tearing into the taller Mali in the second and there were some furious exchanges before Mali found more room and boxed her way to a hard-earned unanimous points win.
Chadwell St Mary’s cadet Freddie Roast caught the eye at 28kgs.
Henry Adams (Phil Thomas) had impressed in his semi-final win over
George Cole (Sporting Ring), but Roast pulled away in the last round of the final to win unanimously.