HAPPY AS LARRY
Ekundayo is just too much for Greene
LARRY EKUNDAYO earned a unanimous 10-round verdict over Strood’s Louis Greene at York Hall. Greene, “The Medway Mauler”, had won nine straight going in, but was always coming second – and his cause wasn’t helped by a point deduction for headwork in the fourth. Scores were 100-89 (Phil Edwards), 99-90 (Luigi Zaccardi) and 98-91 (Serge Hendrice).
Greene had height and reach advantages but chose to take the fight to Ekundayo, trying to work behind the jab. Ekundayo moved well and landed counters as Greene came in. A combination to the head had Greene unsteady in the second, but in the third an accidental head clash raised a swelling and opened a nasty gash over Ekundayo’s right eye. The Stoke Newington man kept his composure, hitting back as Greene came forward, but by the end of the fourth Ekundayo also had a cut and swelling below the left eye.
Ekundayo held in the sixth when Greene got close, and by the eighth things were getting a little messy, with referee Marcus Mcdonnell warning both. Greene was cut in the corner of the left eye, and there was a large bump under Ekundayo’s right eye in the ninth. Greene tried to press in the 10th but had his gumshield knocked out, and Ekundayo kept countering accurately to the end.
A scrappy, all-southpaw 10-rounder on this MTK bill saw Gloucester’s Akeem
Ennis-brown claim a unanimous win over Darragh Foley (born in Kent, based in New South Wales, having his second British outing). Scores were 98-92 (Mcdonnell), 97-93 (Hendrice) and 96-94 (Zaccardi).
Referee Phil Edwards well earned his money as styles clashed and they frequently tangled. There were no genuine knockdowns, but both went down in the third and sixth, and Darragh was wrestled over in the sixth, seventh and ninth, and thrown down in the sixth. By the end, Brown’s right eye was swollen and there was a bump beneath Farragh’s left eye. What clean work there was generally came from Ennis-brown, but it wasn’t a memorable battle.
Danny Dignum (Bowers Gifford) scored a third-round KO of Huddersfield’s
Alistair Warren. It had been scheduled for six. Warren’s nose was reddening as early as the first, and in the second a left hook dropped him for ‘four’. Dignum followed up, and Warren held. In the third, Dignum was on target with rights and Warren was wrestled over – then a combination to the head put him down to be counted out by referee Chas Coakley after 1-56.
Two Kazakhs scored one-round wins in scheduled fours. In the curtain-raiser,
Nurtas Azhbenov knocked out Croatian Anto Nakic after 1-53. Nakic tried to come forward but was trapped on the ropes, looking unsteady – and then a left hook to the body sent him to his knees to be counted out by Mr Coakley.
Southpaw Sultan Zaurbek took 11 seconds longer to dispose of Romania’s
Stefan Nicolae, who slipped over early and was then caught by three lefts to the head. Backed up against the ropes, Nicolae tried to fight back but was caught by a straight right to the body that sent him down on all fours. Referee Jeff Hinds counted him out after 2-04. In a rare clash of unbeatens, Rainham’s
Liam Wells beat Rod Douglas Jnr (Bow), referee Hinds scoring 60-54. The first two looked close, with both trying and Warren twice being forced to hold after shipping right hands. But by the third there was a large swelling on Douglas’ left cheek, and Warren started pulling away, consistently finding the target more.
Douglas lost his gumshield twice in the fifth and once in the sixth – he was nicked under the right eye and took more and more stick as the fight went on. But he showed plenty of courage, always looking to fight back.
Billy Jackson (Bromley) outscored Canning Town’s Lee Hallett, referee Coakley marking 39-37. Elsewhere, two debutants were awarded 40-36 wins, Mr Hinds scoring for Londoner James Hawley over Eastbourne’s Scott Hillman, Mr Coakley for Orpington’s Alex Bellingham over Chatham’s Ricky Rose.
THE VERDICT Ekundayo and Ennisbrown now look to bigger things.