Bexhill duo triumphant in Portsmouth

Aaron Davies and Dennis Buchanan triumphed by unanimous points decisions, while Steve Garlick lost in identical fashion, all against Royal Navy opponents.

Buchanan, who weighed in a 66 kilos, gave away two kilos in weight to his opponent and lost the first round.

See also: * Bexhill captain: Match-winning duo played ‘unbelievably well’* Bexhill man leads Zambia to World Championships qualification* England World Cup star delights school pupilsThe Bexhill boxer upped the pressure in the second, as instructed by his corner, and put his opponent on the back foot. Buchanan caught his man with some lovely, clean shots to the body and head, and clearly won the round.

It was more of the same in the third and final round. Buchanan pushed his opponent back with overhand rights and good body shots to win the round and a good, hard fight.

Davies then stepped in the ring against Keaton Hill, also in the under-69 kilos category. Davies again gave away two kilos in weight and had just four previous bouts to his name, compared to Hill’s six.

Davies came out in composed fashion and held the centre of the ring, but Hill was getting more shots off and was a little bit sharper initially as he edged the first round.

Davies’ coach Graham Towse instructed him to pick his shots more and use his jab more effectively, which he duly did in the second round.

Producing good quality boxing, Davies used his range and footwork very effectively, and caught Hill with some lovely jabs to comfortably win round two.

Employing the same tactics in round three, Davies kept his distance well, landed some nice straight shots and outboxed his opponent to earn the victory.

Garlick was outboxed by a good opponent in the under-91 kilos division, but showed a lot of heart, grit and a tough chin, and did himself and the club proud.

Although Garlick had more experience than his opponent, he has returned to the sport this season following a lengthy lay-off to recover from a back operation.

Garlick displayed a nice, tight guard and didn’t let much through during the first round, but his opponent was very busy and used the angles effectively to edge a close round.

The Bexhill boxer tried to apply more pressure in the second round, but that rather played into the hands of his opponent, who continued to use the angles effectively to catch Garlick.

Sensing he had to produce something special to win the bout, Galick went all out in a third round which was very hard from both boxers. His opponent was too fit and slick, however, and edged the round to seal his win.