Alex Howes from Rye Town Amateur Boxing Club, the current Southern Counties Junior Novice champion at under 54kg, was to feature in one of the bouts at the amateur boxing tournament at the Rye Sports Centre last Saturday. Before the bout I spoke to the head coach, Carl Turner, to get some idea of how good Alex is. He said that the club has been going for nearly three years and Alex was a very early member. He has lost only one bout and that was on points.
While speaking to Turner the unfortunate news came through that Alex’s opponent had to pull out, so Rye Town’s champ would go through to the national semi-finals by default. As he was not fighting, Alex was able to tell me a bit about himself. At 15, he has been boxing for nearly three years and enjoys every aspect, including training, as he has a lot of energy to burn. He’s a student at Rye College and will be sitting his BTech this year, aiming to become a mechanic when he leaves.
His next round in the nationals is next Saturday (December 6) at the TA Centre, Napier House, Baring Road, Grove Park SE12 0BH, with a 13.30 start; the finals are the following Saturday at Merlin’s Nightclub, Leysdown, Isle of Sheppey, Kent, ME12 4RB, starting at 12.30pm.
Turner suggested that another young boxer to watch in the future was 13-year-old Elsie Pattenden, who would be fighting later in the afternoon.
Left jab like a sledgehammer
After the last bout of the nationals, it was the turn of two other local fighters to take to the ring, writes Antony Dicesare. First up was Jackson Harvey, who really slugged it out against his opponent, landing some good shots in the process. Surprisingly, the judges awarded the win to his opponent. Then came Elsie Pattenden. Elsie won hands down, her opponent never got a look in as Elsie’s left jab was like a sledgehammer, connecting time and again. Well done all those involved and good luck to Alex in the semis this Saturday.
Photo: Ray Prewer