Sport

Preparation over, it's time for action at Youth Games

The McKenna brothers (l-r) Stephen, Gary and Aaron with their father Fergal and former British and European middleweight champion Herol 'Bomber' Graham
The McKenna brothers (l-r) Stephen, Gary and Aaron with their father Fergal and former British and European middleweight champion Herol 'Bomber' Graham The McKenna brothers (l-r) Stephen, Gary and Aaron with their father Fergal and former British and European middleweight champion Herol 'Bomber' Graham

“AND again, and again…” orders John Conlan as five hungry young men do laps of the ‘clubhouse’, a large space at the Sports Institute for Northern Ireland temporarily dedicated to the Ulster boxers preparing for the Commonwealth Youth Games.

On a recovery day in Jordanstown before they jetted out to Australia a fortnight ago, only light technical work is planned. Physios, nutritionists and men with iPads report to Conlan at regular intervals, providing detailed analysis of physical performance in areas such as strength, fitness and punching power.

The five members of Team NI – Stephen McKenna, James McGivern, Tiernán Bradley, Aidan Walsh and Brett McGinty – have recorded considerable improvement in all departments since the panel was announced in June.

A 10-day training camp in spartan conditions outside St Petersburg back in July was exactly what Conlan wanted. They were able to train hard and develop their technique while sparring some of Russia’s top youth boxers. Crucially, it also helped bring them together as a group.

Keeping a close eye on proceedings as she skips in the centre of the clubhouse is Commonwealth Games silver medallist Michaela Walsh, whose younger brother Aidan is ready to spring into action in Samoa at the weekend.

“Is that 10 minutes yet?” asks Conlan as the team continue laps of the room.

“No, I’ve only been skipping for eight minutes and they started at the same time as me.”

A few dirty looks light-heartedly fired Walsh’s way, the workout continues. Leading the team as they are put through their paces is their youngest-looking member.

“You’d take him for 15, no problem,” admits Fergal McKenna, father of light-fly hopeful Stephen.

At 18, McKenna is actually the team’s oldest head and, while Conlan has put the wheels in motion, it is the Smithboro teenager who is driving the bus in this session.

“Right hooks,” he shouts and the rest follow his lead, “left hooks”, “uppercuts”, “jumps”. Tagging on at the back is Conlan’s son, undefeated professional Jamie, throwing lefts and rights in tandem.

Moving on to work on fundamentals in the ring, McKenna and St George’s stylist James McGivern are giving their coach hell about who might be named team captain.

“Come on John, come on. It has to be me,” pleads McGivern with a smile.

Conlan laughs it off and keeps his counsel. With punishments meted out to those late to training – the ice bath fills some of their number with dread - he wanted the captaincy to remain an incentive towards best behaviour for as long as possible, before eventually relenting and confirming Derry's Brett McGinty on Sunday. Brought up in a family that has boxing in its DNA, McKenna doesn’t need the captaincy to drive him on, he has his two brothers, Gary and Aaron, for that.

Gary, the eldest, is an Irish U22 bantamweight champion who has been unfortunate to run into the talented Kurt Walker at recent Ulster senior championships. Youngest sibling Aaron first pulled on a pair of gloves at just six-years-old and hasn’t looked back since, sweeping the boards at Ulster, Irish and even European level in recent years.

Indeed, while Stephen is getting ready for the biggest event of his life on the other side of the world, 16-year-old Aaron is in exactly the same boat as he gears up for the AIBA World Junior Championships, which get under way in St Petersburg later this week.

“They have both brought each other on a lot in recent years and have really helped develop each other. They’re ideal sparring partners,” says dad Fergal, a junior and youth coach with the Irish Amateur Boxing Association.

Even Stephen McKenna’s team-mates can testify to the closeness of the McKenna clan. 

During the session at Jordanstown, they worked on hand-eye co-ordination with a piece of equipment that connects a tennis ball on a string to a headband. First spotted in Russia, Conlan was a fan straight away and thought it a good idea for each member of the team to bring one home.

By the time they went to purchase them, though, they were all gone – McKenna had snapped up the last three for him and his brothers. Although he eventually ordered more, Conlan couldn’t resist a chuckle at the sheer cheek.

“Oh aye, he’s a boyo like that alright. He’s a rascal,” smiles Fergal.

Although Fergal McKenna runs the Old School Boxing Club in Monaghan – formerly Smithboro ABC, one-time home of Barry McGuigan – it is at their house outside the town where the day-to-day work is done. With a custom-built gym at their disposal, it’s no wonder the family live and breathe boxing.

Training side-by-side twice a day, the three boys spar in a ring that once played host to the dancing feet of renowned Belfast boxer and former world flyweight champion Rinty Monaghan.

“It came to us from Belfast,” explains Fergal.

“It had been virtually left to rot and I got my hands on it and did it all up. In 1981, we put the ring on the back of a trailer and Rinty Monaghan did the St Paddy’s Day parade for us, so we have that connection to Rinty as well.”

“We train there every night, so it’s just always been like that – it’s always been about boxing,” adds Stephen.

“It’s just how we are.”

Despite being the youngest, Aaron is undoubtedly the most experienced. Out of almost 200 bouts, he has lost only five, and he travels to Russia on Tuesday as one of Ireland’s main medal hopes.

Small and underweight, it was a different story for Stephen. He struggled to get fights until the last couple of years, but has moved through the gears quickly. After picking up bronze at the prestigious Nikolay Pavlyukov memorial tournament in Russia earlier this year, he is targeting Commonwealth Youth and European Youth gold by the end of 2015.

“That’s the plan anyway,” he says.

“I’ve trained hard for this, the hardest I’ve ever trained. I’ll be hoping to come home with a medal, the same as all the boys.”

Holding his own with two-time Olympic medallist Paddy Barnes down in Dublin gave the teenager a welcome boost.

Fergal explains: “Paddy and him went to war a few times, and it was good to watch. You’d have paid money to watch it. Stephen did nothing but talk about it for days after and how well he had done. He took a lot of confidence from it.”

Aaron and Stephen have been texting regularly since the elder sibling headed Down Under for a training camp at the Australian Institute of Sport. On the international beat since he was just 13, Aaron was the obvious choice to lead his country into battle.

Leading by example, whether at training or between the ropes, Stephen McKenna doesn't need to be captain to provide inspiration. With the opening ceremony on Friday and the first bell just days away, the time for talking is over - let the Games begin.