Colne Municipal Hall show report from Friday 4th March 2011
By Jamie Albrecht
The Colne Municipal Hall once again delivered a highly charged extravaganza of boxing on Friday night, with five action packed bouts that are sure to have left the enthusiastic crowds satisfied.
The opening contest of the night saw the ring return of Jeff Thomas, the well supported warrior from Lytham St. Anne’s. His opponent over the 6×2 minute distance was the Lincoln Southpaw Rick Boulter.
Thomas began in the more authoritative fashion, throwing shots straight from the bell and attempting to unsettle Boulter. Thomas clinched the opener with his use of jolting right crosses that rained in continuously, making it clear that Thomas was on the hunt for an early night’s work. The action continued into the second, with Thomas landing eye-catching one-two’s that pushed Boulter back to the ropes, leaving him vulnerable to follow up attacks. This tactic worked for much of the round, but also initiated a wake-up call to Boulter who began to offer more resistance late on, most notably in the form of a stiff left hook before the bell that served as a reminder that he was not quite out of proceedings yet. The third saw the most successful spell for Boulter, who showcased more patience as he waited for Thomas to bull forward with his attack. Upon the aggressor doing so, Boulter took advantage of the situation by using a strategic right hook to catch Thomas coming in and disrupt his opponents determined rhythm. The fourth was a perceived awakening period for Thomas, who was unlucky not to have knocked Boulter down for a count when he detonated a cracker of a left hook on the chin. This turn of events was followed up with a frantic approach from Thomas, who with a little more patience may have scored the desired KO. Boulter’s smothering and spoiling saw him safely advance to the fifth, where he began to exert more of an effort to fight back. Thomas displayed enough defensive competence to avoid any significant peril, but it was becoming clear that tiredness and the inevitable onset of the proverbial “ring rust” may have been causing Thomas to tire. The final session meant a final act of defiance for Boulter as he tried to push the now weary looking Thomas right to the end. His tactics consisted of trying to punch through the now ever more present guard of Thomas, whose current stature pointed towards satisfaction of a points win. Unfortunately for the vociferous travelling support of Thomas, referee John Latham was unable to provide such an outcome, and to the displeasure of many at ringside, scored the contest a 58-58 draw.
Next up, Stevie Taylor gained his first taste of professional boxing when he took on Yorkshire’s Zahid Kahut in a six round Cruiserweight affair. Kahut began fairly positively, making use of the jab to keep the attack minded Taylor at bay. Meanwhile Taylor surged forward, not allowing Kahut’s jab to restrict his success and trying to land a shot capable of rocking his opponent. The second round saw even more aggression from the marauding Taylor, whose primary concern looked to be the trapping of Kahut. The latter’s jab seemed to be a minor inconvenience only, and Taylor walked through it to corner his foe and land heavy rights and lefts. The fourth was the next round that featured any real consequences for Kahut, as Taylor began to run away with the contest. Impressively launched right crosses repeatedly found their target, much to the pleasure of the crowd. Kahut looked as though he could be in trouble as every meaningful attack that landed lead to him falling back to the ropes, at Taylor’s mercy as he charged in to finish his assignment with a number of well placed combinations to the head. Circumstances were mirrored in the fifth, with Taylor landing more frequently to Kahuts overexposed chin, causing the spindly Sheffield fighter to sag against the ropes in, at this stage, almost characteristic manner. The sixth round was the most viciously fought from Taylor, whose right hook could not seem to miss it’s intended target as he desperately attempted to punch for the big finish. Despite his efforts to floor Kahut, Taylor’s first journey into the professional ranks ended with his hand being raised for a 58-56 points victory.
Liverpool’s Terry Needham impressed against Kristian Laight in a four round Light-Welterweight fight next. The opener saw Needham work off a brutally efficient jab, which was used to set up swift left hooks to the ribs that started to make an impression on Laight early and win the first round. Needham upped his work rate more considerably in the second round, continuing to utilise the left to the ribcage as well as beginning to put together flurries to the head. The action was briefly called to a halt when Needham’s fondness for work to the lower body led to an illegal low blow. The power punching began in the third, as Needham started to plant his feet and use the right hook more frequently to add to his impressive variety of punches. A highlight of the round came when Laight was pushed back to the ropes by the jab and subjected to a worrying regime of punishment that culminated in a booming left hook to the jaw of Laight. The fourth and final period saw Needham’s body work start to take effect, as Laight gasped with every instance of contact. Needham hastily rushed forward eager to seal the deal with a fabulous last round, but there was little need to over compensate with his work as Needham cruised to a landslide 40-36 win.
Powerful Super-Middleweight prospect Luke Blackledge engaged in the penultimate battle of the evening with James Tucker in a six round bout. Blackledge began well, employing a tight guard and targeting the body, which gave him much success in his debut fight. A good jab which saw more action as the round progressed set up a mixed head and body attack. The second saw a more calculated strategy from Blackledge, who began banging exclusively to the body after working his opponent back to the ropes and trying to attack the head. When Tucker inevitably resorted to covering up his facial features the now probably painful midriff became the main focus for abuse once again. The fourth marked a change in the balance of the fight. His refusal to be bullied any longer was shown as he caught Blackledge with a left hook as he poured in with his relentlessness. Round five saw Tucker grow in confidence as his self belief was boosted by his landing of punches that shook Blackledge at times in the round. Blackledge had the more successful sixth, as Tucker tried to match his work rate in a last gasp attempt to have his hand raised in victory. The final result reflected the fairly close nature of the contest, as Blackledge scored the 59-57 points win.
The main event of the five fight evening saw local star Shayne “The Pain” Singleton taking on Gavin Deacon in an exciting six rounder. Singleton began sharply, circling the ring quickly behind a stinging jab. Deacon worked his way forward aggressively despite taking a hard four punch combination of straights and hooks to the head. Singleton became trapped by Deacon late on in the round, but coolly released himself from harm with a staggering left hook that caused Deacon to stumble back thus providing a positive finish to the start of the fight. Singleton’s momentum grew in the second, as he emerged from his corner with a hurtful left/right series of shots that once again worryingly rocked Deacon’s head back. The fast jab continued to set up all the significant events in the round such as the powerful right that left some sections of the crowd in awe. Deacon’s stubbornness was an attribute to be admired though, as he failed to take a backward step despite looking like a human punching bag at times. The halfway mark signalled a period of showboating for the home fighter. The use of the jab setting up a hard hook persisted along with the flashy movement of foot which was most evident when Singleton, clearly high on his pugilistic efficiency, gave the viewing fans his take on the Ali shuffle (which I have creatively named the Singy shuffle…will it catch on?) much to his corner team’s displeasure after the round elapsed. The familiar pattern was replicated in the fourth and a feeling of déjà vu descended when Singleton landed once again with multiple punches to Deacon’s now puffy and visibly bruised skull. Deacon looked to have made a last stand in the fifth, and attempted to fight fire with fire. Singleton got the better of the exchanges and it looked as though a stoppage was imminent. The jab even looked as if it was a damaging tool by this point, and it was becomingly increasingly obvious that a miracle was needed to enhance Deacon’s record. The last round of the fight and the evening itself simply served to tie provide a relaxing end to “The pain’s” evening, as he lowered his hands in disregard for anything Deacon had left and coasted to a brilliantly deserved 60-55 win that has given him the seventh victory of his thus far promising ring career.
