Amateur boxing: Irish Elite Championships (today, 5pm, streamed live on Sport TG4 YouTube channel)
BOXING at the lighter weights, Caitlin Fryers is used to being among the first into the ring when making the pilgrimage to the National Stadium.
However, it is a measure of the west Belfast woman’s standing that she has been bumped up the bill tonight, her mouth-watering showdown with Daina Moorehouse slated for 8pm before the likes of Kellie Harrington and Amy Broadhurst step between the ropes.
“It’s a bit unusual alright,” she smiles, “but I’m happy enough. It gives me time to refuel, get a good feed in and go in there nice and comfortable….”
Pushing towards the business end on Irish boxing’s biggest night is no less than Fryers deserves after a brilliant, breakthrough 2022 that saw her gain a wealth of international experience on the road with Ireland, the year crowned with a European silver medal in Montenegro.
And now her sights turn towards Paris 2024, with the Irish elites marking the first step on the road to qualification. Like Fryers, Moorehouse has been one of the most talked about talents in the country during recent years and, despite never having gone toe-to-toe before, each is familiar with what the other brings to the table.
“She was always the weight below but we’ve sparred the whole way up through junior and youth, been away on Irish teams since probably 2016, so we know each other well,” said Fryers.
“I’m expecting a tough fight, she’s a tricky opponent. Any time we spar it’s a good, technical spar but we know we need to change it up this time – bring the element of surprise into it.”
Moorehouse has already eased herself into the Irish elites, scoring opening weekend wins over European bronze medallist Shannon Sweeney and the tough, talented Niamh Early to seal her spot in tonight’s flyweight final.
Fryers, meanwhile, had been due for an all-Ulster dust-up with Carly McNaul last Saturday, only for sickness to force the two-time Commonwealth Games silver medallist out of the championships and that eagerly-anticipated bout with her Belfast rival.
“I was a bit disappointed,” said the 22-year-old.
“We were ready, all week we had been preparing for the fight, then to get the call… we didn’t get a call, we were just told by people that the fight was cancelled. Then we had to ring about to make sure that was actually right and the fight was off.
“I know she [Moorehouse] has the two fights on me now, she’s got in a rhythm, so I’m a wee bit behind in that respect. I would’ve liked an extra fight going in, but it happens and we just have to take it how it is.
“We might be a bit more fresh because we haven’t had those two fights, two weigh-ins, so hopefully we can go down and do the job.”
And Fryers, the defending Irish champion at 50 kilos, hopes to carry the momentum of that European silver into tonight’s showdown as she returns to the ring for the first time since.
“I took a good bit of confidence from that – I surprised myself a lot.
“Coming up to those Europeans, I was a wee bit iffy, I wasn’t really performing in sparring so I didn’t know how it would go.
“I’m starting to believe in myself more, it showed me what I can do well in there and what I still need to improve.”
The Fryers-Moorehouse fight is just one of several that catch the eye, with World, European and Commonwealth champion Broadhurst taking on Irish team-mate Grainne Walsh for the 66kg title later in the evening.
Olympic champion Harrington boxes on home soil for the first time since Tokyo glory when facing Zara Breslin in the lightweight decider, while rising star Dylan Eagleson – who has decided not to join the 57kg ranks just yet – is up against Jorge Rogla Castanno at 54kg.
Eagleson’s fellow Commonwealth Games gold medallist Michaela Walsh aims to add another Irish title to her collection, with Holy Trinity’s Clepson dos Santos staking his claim for the flyweight crown against Dublin’s Sean Mari.
