IT was a night to savour for the north-west contingent in north Belfast last Friday night as four Ulster elite titles made their way to Derry and Donegal.
Talented teenagers Oakleaf pair Carleigh Irving and Jack Harkin, both in their first elite outings, and the Illies GG duo of Cahir Gormley and Matthew McCole all came up trumps at Girdwood Community Hub.
But it was southpaw McCole who made the biggest statement of the night by defeating defending light-middleweight champion Jon McConnell who, until relatively recently, had been in the mix for a spot on the Ireland team heading to the next World qualifier in March.
McConnell had edged to a 3-2 split decision win when the pair met at the Irish elites a year ago, and this time it was the Dungloe man who caught the eye of the judges – with a smart performance earning McCole the Best Boxer award.
“At the Irish elites, we were sure we won, lost a split decision, so the plan was just to be nice and relaxed - when I’m relaxed, I perform,” said the 25-year-old.
“I seem to like losing split decisions because that’s probably the first split decision I’ve won… it’s hard when you come out the wrong side of so many of them.
“The amount of trips we’ve done where we’ve come back sickened in the car, you don’t know what to do, so this one is pretty sweet.”
McCole had been with Dungloe Boxing Club until father and coach Jim sustained life-limiting spinal injuries in a freak 2019 accident, and family weren’t too far from his mind when his hand was raised on Friday night.
Yet it could have been so different as, after a disappointing performance at last October’s Irish elites, McCole wasn’t sure whether he had any future in the sport.
“I boxed poor in the last Irish elites, I didn’t know what I was going to do after that - them boys [the Illies GG coaches] were asking me to go to the Ulsters and I was like ‘I don’t know’. We got sparring with Aidan Walsh over Christmas but, even after that, I still wasn’t sure.
“I could’ve taken the easy option, Jon was Irish number two at the weight last year, but I thought if I’m going to do it, I’ll do it the hard way.
“I have to give a shout out to my granja, Hudie McCole, he’s boxing through and through, to bring that back to him is class, and then dad, mum, the whole family… without them I couldn’t do it.”
The long journey home was a bit more enjoyable this time around, especially since team-mate Gormley also clinched his maiden Ulster elite crown with victory over Gianni Richmond.
“It’s a big win for me,” said the 20-year-old.
“I won the senior [intermediate] last year and fell short in the Ulster final against Barry McReynolds, 3-2, but hopefully this is the first of many.
“I won schoolboy titles and probably fell short around youth level, but I kept at it, kept working hard and it’s starting to pay off now. I want to be one of the best elites - that’s what I’m aiming for.
“We’re going to the top, this is only the start of it.”
Letterkenny’s Harkin, who competed at the World U18 Championships last year, made it a Tir Chonaill trio when he proved too much for Matthew Boreland in the 54kg decider.
“It was a wee bit quicker than the U18s, the pace of it, you need more fitness for this,” said the 18-year-old after his first bout without a headguard.
“But I loved every bit of it. I was so excited coming here, just buzzing to get in the ring and do the business.”
Club-mate Carleigh Irving, meanwhile, marked her step up to the senior ranks with a unanimous decision win over the experienced Chloe Fleck in the light-fly final – and admitted she had to overcome big night nerves before having her hand raised.
“The nervous energy kind of took over me
“I don’t think it was my best performance but I’m happy enough to get the win. Coming into this here, a big competition, you want to make a mark, you want to show everybody what you’re capable of.
“It was a tough fight, Chloe’s been here many times, I knew she was going to put the pressure on. She took a lot of punches, she’s a strong girl – she didn’t make it easy for me, definitely not.
“Now I just want to go and build up the experience at this level.”
**********************************
McKELVIE DOES THE BUSINESS TO CLAIM IRISH U18 CROWN
BIG-HITTING Brandon McKelvie brought home the back from the Irish U18 Championships in Dublin at the weekend.
The towering Clonard heavyweight landed a dynamite left hook that sent Galway’s Paddy Sweeney to the canvas, the fight eventually stopped in the second round as McKelvie continued his recent run of form.
Emerging light-fly Scott Thompson, who boxes out of the Spartans club in Ballyclare, showcased his potential on the way to a 3-2 split decision win over East Meath’s Antonio Bozkaya.
Saturday saw some impressive action at the National Stadium, with the meeting of talented Ava Henry (Dublin Docklands) and recently-crowned World junior champion Siofra Lawless earmarked as one not to miss.
And so it proved, with Henry eventually forcing a second round stoppage of the Four Kings ace to claim the 63kg crown and start 2024 on a high after an all-action contest.
And super-heavy Adam Olaniyan added to his burgeoning reputation with a second round stoppage of Franco Ernjes (Saviours Crystal), following the lead of older brother Joshua who took the Irish elite middleweight title in October.
Meanwhile, the Antrim 12s get under way the Shankill leisure centre on Tuesday night (7pm), with the action continuing on Wednesday before Thursday’s finals.
Tuesday
Semi-finals
B1 29kg: M Doherty (Glengormley) v K Harbinson (Cairn Lodge), J McDonagh (Phoenix) v C McGarry (Holy Trinity); B1 37kg: O McGarry (Glengormley) v C Cawley (Rathfriland); B1 38.5kg: J Burke (Banbridge) v O Ivill (Townland)
B2 35kg: Y Aldhifan (North Down) v B McKeown (All Saints); B2 38.5kg: P Reilly (St Paul’s) v J Agnew (Antrim); B2 48kg: M McConnell (Ardoyne HC) v O Lamour (Canal)
B3 40kg: S Cousins (Abbey) v H Hassin (SJB), J Jamieson (SJB) v D Grigorjev (Lisburn); B3 44.5kg: O Brown (Star) v O Woods (Ormeau Road)
B4 46kg: D McGuinness (St Monica’s) v G McComb (Midland); B4 52kg: C Connors (St Paul’s) v M Carlin (Clonard), P Varadi (Abbey) v B Martin (Phoenix)
