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A group of Timaru boxers have relished the opportunity to fight in front of a hometown crowd.
The Timaru Amateur Matched Tournament was held at Phar Lap Raceway late last month and featured 13 bouts in total.
Timaru Boxing Association Gym coach Hannah Guthrie said the card featured seven Timaru boxers as well as two from Temuka.
“It’s always nice to have a home tournament; [the boxers] always want to be fighting in Timaru. We had three out of seven win, so not a bad night at the office.
“They all did pretty well, battled through their fights and learnt something. We had a good crowd, great hometown support and it was nice not to have to travel.
“There were a few teething issues being in a new venue, but overall the night was quite a success and it was great having the catering options out at the Grey Way Lounge.”
One of the highlight bouts of the night was Timaru boxer William Crooks, 15, taking on Woolston’s Thomas Sutherland for the Joel Hill Memorial belt, she said.
“It was a really good fight. William stepped up against Thomas, who is a bit older with more experience, but they met at the same weight of 68 kilos.
“William came out strong and established a good dominance I thought, and got the win unanimously, which was awesome. It was a good, strong fight from them both.
“The Hill family was there to watch that fight, they presented the belt and gifted the boxers with a pounamu each at the end of the fight, and then did a haka. It was a really nice tribute to Joel, there was a lot of emotion in the room.”
It would be a busy September for the Timaru gym, Guthrie said.
“We’ve got Cameron Clarke fighting at the weekend in Papanui, and he’s fighting for the Joel Hill belt as well because it can be contested at any time in a Canterbury versus Timaru bout.
“The person who’s got the belt doesn’t hold it. It’s just up for grabs whenever there’s a Timaru and a Canterbury boxer fighting, and it’s chosen to be on.
“Then at the end of the month, in the last week of September, we’ve got George Cann and William heading to Whanganui for Nationals. William went last year, and George has stepped up, so it’ll be a big new challenge for him.”