Olympic gold medallist Anthony Joshua said it great to watch ‘the future’ at St Albans and London Colney Amateur Boxing Club’s show at Oaklands College on Friday.
The heavyweight powerhouse, who has won all of his 13 professional fights inside three rounds, was the main attraction at the event, signing autographs and taking photos with fans for over three hours, but the action inside the ring was not overshadowed by the formidable figure of Joshua.
The 500 fans that bought tickets to the dinner show, which was held in memory of Jamie Hulse, were treated to 11 exciting contests, from skills to senior bouts.
All the proceeds from the night were donated to the club by the Hulse family and will be spent on a minibus to transport its growing stable of fighters around the country. The club also donated £700 to Daisy’s Magic Carpet Appeal.
After the event, Joshua told the Herts Ad: “I didn’t get to see every fight but it is more about the cause so I was happy to be here. I started in a similar place – every boxer started at events like this. It was great to watch the future [of the sport].”
Kevin Matthew, one of the event’s organisers, added that the night was better than he could ever have imagined.
“For the St Albans community, for the Jamie Hulse tribute, the boxing club and for the St Albans business fraternity, it was an absolute success.”
Inside the ring, it wasn’t the night St Albans had hoped for. The club’s first winner was announced at 11.35pm, three hours after the first bout, when Moses Mabote recorded a unanimous points win over Islington’s Rommel Smith.
Mabote fought brilliantly behind a double jab-straight combination and landed clean hooks and counter punches in the third round to win the contest.
It preceded the bout of the night between St Albans’ Phil Denny and Ed Coy from Welwyn Garden City.
There wasn’t a feeling out period as both fighters flew out of the corners. Coy had no answer to Denny’s right hand but several heavy hooks convinced the judges, somewhat surprisingly, that he had done enough to earn a points win.
In the night’s sole female fight, Rebecca Stone produced a flawless second round against Zara Johnson from East Middlesbrough Boxing Club. Stone slipped punches, held the middle of the ring and controlled the tempo from the first bell to the last.
It wasn’t enough in the judges’ eyes however, and Johnson was awarded a unanimous points win.
Liam Murphy won the Jamie Hulse Tribute trophy for his display in a loss to Islington’s Tommy Kerrigan.
St Albans coach Jim Crawley said “I’m pleased with the boys and girls and the way they performed. I’m disappointed with some of the results but that’s amateur boxing for you.
“The night was fantastic on the whole.”
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