Boxing: Hamer Boxing Club reports

Date published: 19 October 2023

It was to be progression, discontinuation, and frustration when six Hamer boxers hit the road last weekend to participate in club shows and championship bouts.

The first two boxers to participate were 14-year-old Isaac Coyle and 15-year-old Austin “Powers” Heneghan, when they travelled, along with their coaches Matt Lagard and Bethany Connellan, to Garston Legion Haig House in Liverpool on Friday 13 October 2023.

Isaac stepped out of the blue corner to meet local boxer Sam Grime of Gemini ABC in a non-verdict skills bout, where both boxers showed the public their ability as they used the ring with their swift jabs to connect to the chin of their opponents, whilst also defending themselves against their punches.

In round two, both boxers used their swift and straight one-two combinations, and both gained success with their right hands.

In the third and last round, both boxers were allowed to open up and throw any combination, whilst also showing the public their skills and ability, which gave Isaac the opportunity to take the fight to his opponent, he landed numerous punches, until the bell rang to end the round, and both boxers received tremendous appreciation from the crowd, whilst the referee raised both arms.

Austin “Powers” Heneghan entered the ring to meet Maddox Mould of Gemini ABC and both boxers instantly began to use swift punches upon each other as they moved around the ring throughout the round.

Austin came out for round two with a terrific right-hand punch, which landed flush upon the chin of Mould. The Gemini boxer began to press forward, which suited Austin, as he waited for Mould to throw his punches before slipping them and stepping back into the action to land his own crunching blows to take the round.

In round three Austin instantly landed a one-two combination to the chin. Then he began to land his right hand every time Mould stepped into range and as the fight progressed, he caught his on-coming opponent with a swift left hook to the side of the jaw, before spinning on his front foot to evade his opponents on-coming punches. Then towards the end of the bout, Mould began to gain success with his continuous on-coming action. But it wasn’t enough to gain victory, which was awarded to the Hamer boxer via a split decision.

That very same night (Friday 13 October), three more Hamer boxer travelled to Stalybridge in Tameside, along with coaches Frank Maddocks, Alan Bacon and Steven Connellan to compete in the first round of the NABGC National Championships.

This is where frustration suddenly seeped in, when 16-year-old “Champaine” Charlie Braddock was told his opponent, Rico Winston of Bridgewater Salford, came in over-weight. Then, 15-year-old “Charming” Alfie McKay was told that his opponent Preet Solanki of Premier Boxing Club, never turned up for the bout. Although both boxers progressed into the next round, they were disappointed because they wanted to have their first bout of the new season.

The only Hamer boxer to step into the ring in Tameside that night was 20-year-old Aeron “The Viking” Maddocks, who met Hemedan Rostam of Moss Side Fire Station ABC.

As the bell rang for the first round, Aeron showed his instant intention, when he came out to land a solid right hand to the chin, followed by a left hook to the side of the head. From there on, the bout became an aggressive display of boxing. Aeron constantly forced his opponent upon the ropes to unleash hooks to both the body and head, only for the Moss Side boxer to grab hold of him until the referee split them apart, so that the bout could continue. The Hamer boxer started to dominate the fight much more in the second round, as he constantly caught his opponent with straight right-hand punches to the chin, followed by hooks to the body and head, before his flagging opponent started to grab hold of him again, which brought more warnings from the referee.

Then in the third and last round, Rostam surprised Aeron, when he landed a ferocious right hand to the chin of the Hamer boxer, who momentarily stepped back out of the action, before stepping back in to deliver a right hand of his own to his opponents face. This instantly forced Rostam to grab hold of Aeron, before landing a low blow, which forced the referee to step in and give the Hamer boxer eight seconds respite before allowing the action to continue. When the bell rang to end the contest, it was the Hamer boxer’s arm that was raised in victory by a unanimous decision.

The action from the Hamer boxing club didn’t stop there. Because 18-year-old North West Champion, Kieren “Special K” McMenamy made his way to Bolton on Sunday 15 October to compete in what was to be a very entertaining bout in the National Development Quarter Finals against Sonny Boy Hughes of Kings ABC, Sheffield.

Both boxers came out for the first round, probing with their jabs to find openings so that they could land their right hands. But as the round progressed, it showed why Hughes had only lost one fight in nine contests, when he began to force the Hamer boxer onto his back foot and move around the ring as he used his jab and right hand to keep his opponent at bay. This allowed both boxers to connect with solid and straight right armed punches, until the last ten seconds or so, where Hughes began to land even more.

Hughes began to force the action again in the second round, but Kieren began to follow his coaches’ instructions as he stepped onto his back foot before landing his right hand to the chin, every time Hughes threw his jab, which was brought back to his chest to leave an opening. Kieren also gained success when he stepped forward with his double jab, followed by his right hand to the chin. But although the Hamer boxer was gaining success, the Kings ABC boxer was still stepping forward and slightly dominating the round.

The action was much the same in the third and last round, as Hughes stepped forward, looking for openings, whilst Kieren also tried to find openings, but in the end, it was Sonny Boy Hughes who had his arm raised in victory.

14-year-old Max Dunleavy also showed great skills in his first bout for Hamer, he lost to the more aggressive Dylan Harvey-Hamilton of Radcliffe Elite, when they met at Tameside on Saturday 7 October.