There was no shortage of quality action in Mahon’s Hotel, Irvinestown on Saturday as the Tyrone/Fermanagh County Board hosted the Dublin boxing team.

The Tyrone/Fermanagh select welcomed the Dublin team for a 20 contest showdown which saw plenty of experience and young prospects on the bill. There was boxers from clubs throughout Tyrone and Fermanagh including two local youngsters Aaron Baird and Charlie McDonagh. After recent success in their respective weight classes in the Tyrone/Fermanagh Championships, the two Ederney A.B.C fighters earned their right to wear the county vest.

Charlie was first into the ring, he gave a year away to his Dublin opponent as well as experience. The odds stood against Charlie but he showed great heart and made it into a great fight. Charlie started quite slow and this seemed to be his downfall, however the next two rounds he put up a great battle to his opponent boxing out of the Westside Boxing Club. He just fell short, losing on a unanimous decision, but Charlie can take great heart out of this contest and is proving his worth with a couple of fine displays so far this year.

Next was Aaron Baird who is the current Ulster Champion, and hasn’t been beaten in over a year.

Aaron hoped to build on his recent win in the Tyrone/Fermanagh championships and continue his unbeaten record. With a reasonably slow start it was a close first round but on the judges cards he just shaded it. Aaron then stepped it up and produced positive attacking boxing which saw him win the bout on a comfortable scoreline.

These two lads were also the only Fermanagh boxers represented on the night. Preparation now begins for both these young boxers for their upcoming Mid-Ulster and Ulster Championships. They hope to also make the team for the return match in Dublin in the upcoming months.

Overall it was a successful evening with the Tyrone/Fermanagh select coming out on top. There were also wins for Sacred Heart boxer and Irish Champion Callum Bradley, Peter McCarten of Bishop Kelly and more. The county board would like to thank Mahon’s Hotel for hosting the event and to the Dublin team for travelling down.