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Crolla bids for glory in the ring

27/10/2005

ANTHONY Crolla of Fox ABC and the Hopwood Hall Boxing Academy will step into the ring at Preston Guild Hall tomorrow night (Friday) in search of a Senior ABA East Lancashire/Cheshire title.

He will face Alan Winterbottom of Oldham Boys.

Crolla won two bouts last Friday night to qualify for the Preston finals.

His first fight brought a unanimous decision. His jab proved the difference when he beat Mark Cosgrove (Barton) 8-9 only an hour later.

Hopwood Hall sent a team of fighters to the Bushey Police College for a "match" against the Police Community Clubs of Great Britain.

Hopwood coach Jimmy Barker was worried his lads might not fare too well from the London judges, but there was no need for those judges to come into play as four of the lads won on stoppages.

Shahid Aktar (62 kilos) won in the second round, Chris Shepherdson (60 kilos) won in the third round, Carl Groombridge (62.5 kilos) won in round three, and Northside's Carl Place made it seven wins in nine contests.

Place was up against a far more experienced opponent who took two standing counts before the fight was stopped.

Barker said coach Alan Belcher had done a lot of work with Place and added: "They laughed at Carl's inexperience, but they weren't laughing at the end after he had beaten Sammy Smith from Chelmsley Wood."

Lee Ward was beaten on a majority decision, but his opponent could have had no complaints had he lost.

Some of the Hopwood lads were left without bouts following the withdrawal of opponents.

Hopwood have been asked to return to Bushey in March when they should have 10 boxers in action.