Derrylin Boxing Club had a successful night at the Clones Boxing Club tournament at the Creighton Hotel, Co Monaghan last Friday. Brandon Cassidy and Dylan McManus both secured good wins in very close and competitive contests against opponents from Virginia Boxing Club.

McManus making his competitive debut was pitted against Colin Halpin (Virginia Boxing Club) and started well using his jab to control the contest from range and scored with good jab/cross combinations to dominate the opener.

The second and third sessions were much closer as Halpin waited for McManus to lead off before darting in with two-handed attacks.

But a determined McManus fought more aggressively and his determination saw him outwork his opponent to edge a very close but deserved points win.

Brandon Cassidy entered his contest with Aaron Preston (Virginia Boxing Club) full of confidence having enjoyed a good win in Dublin at the Smithfield tournament six days earlier.

Cassidy with significant height and reach advantages used them to control and dictate the early action.

Cassidy boxing very well behind the jab forced his opponent into the corner and to cover up on several occasions as he dominated the first round.

In the second session, Preston fought with much more self-belief and applied good pressure to break Cassidy’s rhythm and land with good close range punches to take the round.

In the final session, Cassidy started like a whirlwind and a sustained two-handed attack had Preston covered up and in trouble on the ropes early on but the Virginia boxer responded well and in the second half of the round landed with goods shots of his own to make the round very close and put the decision in doubt.

However, the judges favoured Cassidy’s earlier work and he earned a hard-fought points decision and registered his second win in a week.

The previous Saturday, Brandon Cassidy ventured down to the Smithfield Boxing Club tournament in Dublin and took on the host’s Robert Puilips (Smithfield Boxing Club). The contest was a chess match as both boxers looked to feint and counter.

However, Cassidy was the more successful and landed with the more eye-catching and cleaner shots in all three round to take a deserved unanimous decision.

Derrylin Boxing Club coach Sean Crowley commented: “The results last week are very encouraging, the club had experienced a great deal of churn this season with several championship level boxers leaving the club for various reasons and we’re now in a process of building again. Dylan McManus did very well to win his debut. His opponent was more experienced but Dylan handed the occasion well and impressed.

“It’s now two wins on the trot for Brandon Cassidy and he’ll be hoping to make it a treble when he boxes on our home show later this month. We have deliberately kept Brandon out of the championships to give him more time to learn and develop. The signs are this policy is working and he may well feature in championships and make an impression in 2015 if he maintains his focus and work ethic.” Derrylin Boxing Club advised that they will be hosting their annual boxing tournament at the Don Carragh Hotel in Lisnaskea on Saturday, May 24, see www.facrebook.com/derrylinboxing for more details.