TWO Grimsby boxers enjoyed good victories in the first hurdle of the Senior Amateur Boxing Association Championships.
Light-welterweight Nathan French and middleweight Thomas Staples – both of Grimsby Amateur Boxing Club – were successful in the ring at Derngate Auditorium, Northampton.
French triumphed by a second-round stoppage, while Staples cruised to a unanimous points win.
With a record of 20 wins from 40 contests, French faced a more experienced rival in the form of South Normanton ABC's Ashley Greaves, who boasted 29 wins from 69 bouts.
French, pictured, was fast out of his corner, taking the contest to Greaves and scoring with telling shots to the body – then switching his attack to the head.
Greaves tried to hit back but French kept moving and not many punches landed.
French kept the pressure up into the second round and, after hurting Greaves with hooks to the body, he landed a left hook to the chin that drew a mandatory standing eight count from the referee.
French never gave his opponent any respite and was soon forcing him back around the ring.
And after another barrage of combination punches, the referee gave another standing count before stopping the contest in favour of French.
Grimsby middleweight Staples faced Jack Dexter from the One Nation ABC in Derby.
Staples used his long reach to score with straight punches and long hooks.
Dexter always looked dangerous, trying to force the pace by backing Staples onto the ropes, but the Grimsby man used good footwork to keep out of trouble while scoring with counterpunches.
Staples landed solid hooks to the body in the second round.
More telling shots in the final round gave Staples the win by unanimous decision.
