Cowie calling for Sparta BC’s district title hopes hopefuls

Nine Sparta boxers are preparing for the Eastern District Championships at the Cowie Miners Club this weekend.
Robbie Melville. Pictures www.eindp.co.uk / Ruairdh BraesRobbie Melville. Pictures www.eindp.co.uk / Ruairdh Braes
Robbie Melville. Pictures www.eindp.co.uk / Ruairdh Braes

The Grangemouth-based team head there on form after three boxers competed in the first show of 2019 last month.

Ten-year-old schoolboy boxer William Retson boxed Ben Hamilton (Duries) in his first competitive contest. William boxed in October but competed in an exhibition contest as he was not yet old enough to compete in a scoring contest – it was worth the wait as he strolled to a unanimous victory.

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Retson was not fazed by his opponent’s pressure style. He stayed behind his jab and countered effectively from the lay back. As a champion swimmer, the high tempo set by his opponent played into his hands and Retson sensed his opponent fading in the second round so tactically pressured Hamilton with three punch combinations and second phase attacks. By the third round his opponent was very tired and on the retreat until the bell.

William Retson. Pictures www.eindp.co.uk / Ruairdh BraesWilliam Retson. Pictures www.eindp.co.uk / Ruairdh Braes
William Retson. Pictures www.eindp.co.uk / Ruairdh Braes

Next up for Retson is the schoolboy Eastern District Championships this weekend.

On the same night Ryan Murray lost by 3-2 split decision against Yaseen Naweez (Duries).

Murray boxed clever through the first two rounds landing his jab effectively and side-stepping his straight-forward attacking opponent. Ryan took a heavy shot on the throat in the third round and received a standing eight count. The Sparta boxer recovered well and finished the round strongly.

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Robbie Melville removed his headguard and boxed his first senior contest. He lost on points in another close contest against the opposing coach’s grandson Jamie Durie.

William Retson. Pictures www.eindp.co.uk / Ruairdh BraesWilliam Retson. Pictures www.eindp.co.uk / Ruairdh Braes
William Retson. Pictures www.eindp.co.uk / Ruairdh Braes

Head coach Sam McLeod said: “It was an exciting match up. Both styles gelled really well and I’ll be looking for the rematch on our home show on Saturday, June 1 at the Grangemouth Town Hall.”

Meanwhile 30 boxers of all ages attended the sessions of the Boxing Scotland Performance Pathway Programme in the Eastern Region with the boxers engaging in various drills based on the “What it Takes to Win“ model focusing in the initial sessions on co-ordination, footwork and technique.

SBA coaches Sam McLeod and Vitali Cojocar were selected to run the programme with Sparta the base camp for the eight sessions. A similar programme will run in the future.