Reigning gold for Ennis boxers

In a historical 50th year for the Ennis Boxing Club, five youngsters endorsed the club’s milestone with three gold and two silver medals at the Irish Juvenile Championships in the National Stadium in Dublin  last week.
Two more, one from Kilfenora and another Ennis-domiciled native who boxes out of the Limerick club, OLOL, also captured gold and glory for Clare.
Conor Doyle (44kg), Brian McDonagh (54kg) and Keelan Sexton (70kg) were the Ennis winners, while Shannon Murrihy (Kilfenora) and Paddy Donovan (OLOL) won the 50kg Girl 3 and 36kg Boy 1 titles respectively. Lee Sherlock and Tara Dowling in the 57kg and 60kg were the silver medal winners.
They are the finest results Clare boxers have achieved in the National Championships and a solid endorsement of the progress and attainment of the Ennis club in its anniversary year.
Conor Doyle was making his debut in championship boxing this year and laid down a marker in the Munster tests in February with a couple of smashing victories in the 44kg division. He saw off the challenge of Leinster champion Evan Leigh of St David’s, Naas, 5-3 in the semi-finals on Wednesday to set up a final battle with Graham Dawson from the Furbo club in Galway and was notable throughout for his accuracy and persistence even under pressure. Doyle
is a precocious talent and should continue to improve in the years ahead in the sport.
Brian McDonagh made his debut last year and was beaten in the provincial championships but he promised to hold his weight category and was conspicuous throughout the current season, winning all of his fights. Before the Irish championships he said he was in prime condition and had the utmost confidence in his coaches and his positivity shone through consistently in all of his contests in Dublin.
He beat Ulster champion Ryan McGarrigan from Antrim in the quarter-final on Easter Monday, easing his way to a third-round stoppage and used his perfect left jab to great effect in Wednesday’s semi-final for a 5-1 victory against Leinster champion John McComiskey (St Joseph’s, Dublin). His best was yet to come however and he set up Connaught champion Cathal Griffin from Connemara for a third round KO after dominating the first round with powerful left jabs and right hooks before applying the coup de grace with two rights to the chin in the last round.
Keelan Sexton was going for his third national title in as many years at 70kg and his progress was being monitored by the international selectors. He encountered the anticipated dogged resistance in his quarter-final with Gary Ward from St Michael’s, Galway, in the quarter-final, winning a unanimous decision, before dropping Gary Maughan from Cavan twice to force the referee’s intervention midway through the second round in his semi-final.
Sexton was gathering momentum with his trademark left hook to the head and body and he delivered in style in the final against the outclassed James Laverty from Cavan, dropping him in the first with a left hook to the body and punishing with a perfectly executed left uppercut to the solar plexus midway through the second round.
Sexton, at 14, is a phenomenal talent, very much influenced by his grandfather, Martin Burke from Quilty, in his boxing career. He is also a fine Gaelic footballer and plays with Kilmurry Ibrickane.
Shannon Murrihy from the Kilfenora club and Tara Dowling from the Ennis club were the girl aspirants in the championships, with Murrihy capturing the 50kg Girl 3 title with an emphatic victory over Aoibheen Joyce from the Connemara club in Galway.
This was Shannon’s first title and trainer Pat McCormack has high hopes that she will emulate sister, Kayleigh, who is a reigning Irish champion and a member of the elite Irish squad.
Ennis 60kg Tara Dowling, who was also making her first attempt in the Irish championships, had to settle for silver after losing out to reigning champion Courtney Doherty in a one-sided final.
With a height and reach advantage, Doherty was always in control and her left jab proved accurate and strength-sapping and allowed her to build a commanding lead from the opening bell.
Paddy Donovan, who hails from Ennis and does his sparring in the Ennis club, also got on the winners rostrum when he captured the 36kg Boy 1 title with victories over Connaught champion Damian Hulstor from Frenchpark in the semi-final and a comprehensive and decisive 6-1 final victory over Hanlon Crowley from Derrylin, Fermanagh.
The prodigious southpaw looks the part, extremely focussed and accurate with his punching. He is a fine handballer and his conditioning in that sport complements his power and dexterity in the ring.
Earlier in the week Ennis featherweight Lee Sherlock boxed his deferred final in the senior cadets national final and was pipped in the final minute against the Holy Trinity Belfast boxer Caoimhin Hynes.
Sherlock led all the way through the first and second rounds, only to be tagged with two scoring punches in the final seconds, losing out by a single point.