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Priory Park duo face box-offs in Birmingham

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Priory Park Boxing Club are hoping for a double delight as they box-off in the West Midlands rounds of the England Youth Championship.

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Sam Gwilt and Finbar O'Flaherty take on Shropshire opponents tomorrow night looking to go through,

writes Craig Birch.

The first national tournament on the unpaid boxing calendar for 2016 staged their first regional phase in Shropshire last Sunday.

Gwilt was one of only three Black Country teenagers to step through the ropes there - and one of them was his opponent.

A single age range - competitors born in either 1998 or 1999 - houses the hopefuls, who are split into weight classes before being whittled down.

Tristan Davies' Donnington gym played host to the start of Youth proceedings at their club show venue, the Telford district's Sports & Social Club.

Finbar O'Flaherty after his victory at Donnington.

An unusually low number of entrants meant just four bouts were boxed, with 13 young pugilists weighing in on the day. All contests took place over three, three minute rounds.

Gwilt is up and running at 56kg after a split decision win over Wednesbury's Vinnie Court, after starting and finishing proceedings strong.

He used his southpaw stance to slow him down in the first, although he conceded the second as Court outworked him and tried to up the tempo.

Gwilt, an Ellowes Hall Sports College student, boxed on the back-foot in the third and last session to make his way to a slender points victory on the cards.

He duly improved his record to 15 wins, with seven losses, on his Youth debut as he was born in 1999. He now faces a battle of the southpaws.

Fellow left-hander Ryan Tyrer, from Donnington, will contest the weight's next battle with him at the Irish Centre in Birmingham.

Club-mate O'Flaherty joins him on the bill at 64kg against Idris Mohammed, from Wellington Boxing Academy, who has already boxed twice.

They support Wolverhampton's Lauren Johnson, who will get a crack at the England Boxing middleweight title against the army's Alex Turbitt.

'The Black Widow,' a 2012 senior ABA national champion at 75kg, now competes out of Wodensborough after starting out at Walsall Wood.

Mohammed won the right to tackle O'Flaherty with a second unanimous points Youth victory over Ethan Collins, from Brooklands in Dudley.

Their bout was specially arranged at Wolverhampton Boxing Club on Wednesday night, with Collins fresh and Mohammed in action again.

He was boxing for the second time in three days after his win over Sohan Akram, from Wayne Elcock's gym in Birmingham, at Donnington.

O'Flaherty also progressed at Donnington and nearly got the job done against Luis Martin, from Len Woodhall's Community Club in Telford, inside the first round.

On the button - Finbar O'Flaherty lands a right hand on Luis Martin at Donnington.

A stiff left hook to the head dumped Martin on the canvas, but he got up and gamely clung on to see out the round and regain his senses.

O'Flaherty overly loaded up looking for the finish working off the jab in the second, as Martin looked to hold and smother his work.

The third brought the realisation that the bout was going the distance, so O'Flaherty stuck to his boxing to roll over unanimously.

He's now won four and lost three since lacing on the gloves, with just one defeat in the past year, in the England Junior Development competition.

Priory Park's Christian Amendola will walk over this weekend without boxing, due to no other entrants at 60kg.

Reigning European Youth champion Akash Tuqir does likewise at his weight, with no opponent for him to box in the 52kg division.

The 17-year-old, who represents Merridale in Wolverhampton, is looking to claim a national club title in his last year competing as a Youth.

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