Boxing: Local boxer wins representing England

Queensway ABC amateur boxer Joseph Crawford made the long journey north to Cumbria worthwhile on Friday night by winning after being selected to represent England in an England versus Scotland representative team match hosted by Whitehaven ABC.

The bout was Crawford’s first since being inducted onto the England boxing team last month and he was keen to impress. He was matched with highly touted Kyle Kerr boxing out of Forgewood ABC in Motherwell representing Scotland.

A former European Bronze and GB gold medallist, Kerr boasts a record of five Scottish titles and came into the bout fresh from claiming a silver medal in this year’s GB championships held last month in Glasgow - so was going to present Crawford with a stern test.

The opening bell saw both boxers take centre ring both moving well looking to create space a gauge range.

A fast feint and slip created an opportunity for Crawford who fired in a fast jab that rocked Kerr’s head back. A flurry of punches from both boxers finished with Crawford landing a three-punch combination to head and body that finished with a powerful right hand that caught Kerr flush on the chin forcing him to hold onto the advancing Crawford.

Kerr started to box on the back foot using his feet to move in and out of range but Crawford cut the ring off well stepping from side-to-side with attacks from body to head, finding success with his lethal jabs with Kerr struggling to cope with the speed and accuracy.

A quick one-two followed by a swift left hook reminded Crawford of the calibre of Kerr but undaunted, Crawford finished the round strong once again feinting and bringing Kerr onto a powerful right hand.

The pattern of the first round followed into the second with Crawford forcing Kerr on to the back foot, working well on the inside a from range.

A neat one-two from Kerr brought a swift reply from Crawford, dropping in a right hand to the body followed by a vicious hook to the head that sent Kerr onto the ropes. Crawford followed up with a stinging jab and screw shot to take the exchange.

As Kerr’s confidence began to wane and Crawford’s began to grow, Crawford’s ram rod jab started to create an opening in Kerr’s tight guard bringing the Scottish fighters hands up so Crawford could work his body.

As the round drew to a close, a fast three punch combination from Crawford stamped his authority on the round as the bell sounded.

Sensing he was behind, Kerr came out strong to start the third and final round finding success with his jab and counters.

Crawford kept his composure well, blocking shots with salutes from his tight guard.

Crawford was dictating the pace and landing shots that were beginning to take their toll on Kerr, once again his jab proving the thorn in Kerr’s side as he struggled to find an answer to it.

A warning from the referee for holding added to Kerr’s woes and Crawford, seeing victory in his sights, pressed forward setting up combinations with his jab and using his feet well to move in and out of range.

A strong exchange from both fighter’s midway through the round showed why they are both highly thought of in the junior division as both boxers landed well but Crawford wasn’t going to be denied and pursued Kerr relentlessly landing hooks and uppercuts that once again had Kerr holding on.

As the bell sounded for the end of the contest, both boxers embraced to a rapturous applause from the 600 strong crowd for a tremendous contest.

The referee brought the two boxers to the centre of the rind and it was no surprise when the MC announced that the judges had declared Crawford the winner by a unanimous decision, which was greeted by a huge round of applause from the crowd.

David Hodkinson, head coach at Queensway ABC and Crawford’s trainer, said: "We knew that Kerr was a tremendous boxer with an outstanding record. We put a plan together that we had been working on for the past six weeks, we devised a strategy that we put into place on the night that worked perfectly."

Crawford will be joining up with the England squad next Saturday for a training camp in Liverpool then straight back into the gym at his club as he joins his team mates as they start a five week training camp for the East Midlands box cup at the end of July. Queensway ABC will be sending a six-man team to participate against the best boxers in the country.