Boxing: Six South Island titles for Otago fighters

Colin Falloon.
Colin Falloon.
Otago boxers won six titles at the South Island Golden Gloves in Timaru on Saturday.

Four fighters from the New Zealand Fight and Fitness Academy, one from Olympic Boxing and one from Rowes gym won titles.

Another four Otago boxers were runners-up.

Otago Boxing Association president Colin Falloon said he was incredibly proud of how the boxers performed.

"I am really pleased. It's a good indicator of how our fighters are going and now we must keep plugging away every year, every season."

He said the ultimate goal was to one day have an Otago boxer as a national champion.

Of Saturday's winners, Falloon said NZFFA's Alex Hanan, who won the cadet male novice 46kg division, was particularly impressive when he stopped Gore's William Agnew in their second-round bout.

Falloon said Hanan showed good hand speed and impressive punching power.

Another good win came from Rowes gym's Timothy Gonzales in the elite male novice 69kg division. He won a points decision over Christchurch's Nathan Searle by 14-10.

Falloon said he was unaware Bruce Bond, from Rowes gym, was sending a fighter to compete, but was pleased he did.

Two Dunedin women fought it out in the elite female open 75kg division.

NZFFA's Bridget Sefton won a points decision over Siraya Wilson, from Olympic. After four close rounds Sefton won the decision by 9-6.

Falloon said both fighters put on a fine display of boxing and given that it was Wilson's first fight in three years, she could hold her head up high.

NZFFA's Cherine and Awatea Henry had differing results.

Cherine was unable to fight due to a lack of an opponent, but her son did the family proud when he was runner-up in the cadet male novice 42kg category.

He lost on a points decision (12-1) to Invercargill's Jason Scobie.

Falloon said considering Awatea (10) was four years younger than Scobie and it was his first fight, he could be happy with his effort.

Other Otago fighters to win their divisions unopposed were NZFFA's Bridget Morton and Sam Beck, and Olympic Boxing's Samuel Usher.

Beck won the junior male open 72kg division and Morton won the elite female open 55kg division, while Usher won the youth male novice 84kg division.

The next events on the Otago boxing calender are the Gore boxing championships on June 30, followed by the Otago boxing championships on July 7 in Dunedin.

Falloon said Otago and Canterbury's boxing associations were also hoping to organise a tournament between the two provinces in the coming weeks.

 

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