Show goes on as Saqub Shafiq bows out

Telford's Saqub Shafiq represented the county's last hope of glory in the competition and bowed out last Sunday,

The Ercall Wood Technology College student, who represents Wellington Boxing Academy, travelled to Scunthorpe for his tie.

His confidence was high after the previous weekend's pre-quarters clash, where he'd unseated the more experienced Thaum Wright unanimously on points.

That was Shafiq's first action in the juniors, all featuring entrants of between two to 10 bouts of experience, separated into two age ranges by weight.

Class A is for boxers born in 2001, while Class B is for 2000. Shafiq, after a series of byes, featured at 52kg in Class A.

After victory against Wright, he then travelled to the Riddings Sports Hall for the quarters to take on Manley Brown, from Clifton in Nottinghamshire.

Again, Brown had more ring experience and looked to assert his authority from the opening bell, but Shafiq kept his guard and threw straight shots back after being pressed.

Shafiq had to stand firm again in the second as Brown tried to take the session on work rate, attacking with waves of combinations.

A vital third and last round saw Shafiq throw caution to the wind to secure a favourable result, as the judges were called into play. Brown's hand was raised on a split decision.

Wellington's wait for a second national champion goes on. They crowned their first, England Junior Championship title winner Husan Hussain, in March 2015.

The club has been in existence for six years after moving to their current home on Mill Lane, from their previous base on Haygate Lane.