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Cardle hits out towards finals

29/ 3/2007

SCOTT Cardle, a sports student at Hopwood Hall Boxing Academy, took another step towards the Junior ABA national title at Atherton Sports Centre on Sunday.

He met James Burke of Atherton ABC in what was always going to be an exciting contest, considering Burke was an ex-Academy student.

Cardle applied early pressure with an all-out assault on the taller Burke who tried to avoid the thunderous shots delivered but soon had to take a standing eight count.

The assault continued in the second round, and Burke had to take another count of eight.

In a last-ditch effort Burke delivered a three-punch combination in the direction of Cardle, but the Hopwood student cleverly avoided every shot and countered with a vicious right-cross left-hook combination to the head of his opponent.

The referee had little option but to stop the contest in favour of Cardle.

Pat Ward was on the end of an unlucky decision in his Class A 66Kg contest.

The Boarshaw ABC and Hopwood boxer gave an excellent account of himself in a close bout against Chris Betteridge from the Larches Amateur Club.

Betteridge took the opening round by a couple of points, but Ward seemed to pull the contest back in the second with some excellent scoring shots.

In the third and final round Betteridge rallied, but Ward matched him punch for punch and scored well towards the end.

To the disappointment of many, Betteridge took the contest on a majority decision.

Terry Flannigan, James Barker and Ashley Peyton all received walkovers to the North West finals which will be held on Saturday in Liverpool.