DROITWICH Amateur Boxing Academy will have two fighters bidding to be England’s number one in the finals of the National Schools Championship this weekend.
Joe Doyle and Sophie Morton both scored impressive victories by unanimous decisions in their semi-final contests in Liverpool to clinch title bouts in Grantham on Saturday.
Joe, 13, defeated North-West champion Ahid Khan with his superior strength and fitness, winning the judges’ votes after a breath-taking opening round in which both boxers went toe-to-toe trading punches.
He now faces Roberto Lacourt from Repton ABC in East London for the national title.
After receiving a bye to the semi-finals, Sophie got the better of Tamworth ABC’s Patrycja Gnatowska by outpointing her opponent with a solid jab and a strong display of straight punching.
The 14-year-old now meets Alnwick ABC’s Jessica Pattinson for the crown in the under-50kg category.
Joe’s father Jayson, who coaches the impressive Droitwich duo, travelled to Milton Keynes to watch his son’s opponent’s semi-final clash and is confident of his boxers’ chances on Saturday.
“There’s no doubt that Dacourt will be a very strong and dangerous opponent but having watched him, we will be working on a game plan in training this week that will hopefully enable Joe to get the better of him,” he said.
“Joe’s in great shape and excellent form and is determined to bury the disappointment of losing out narrowly in the national finals last year, so we’re very confident.”
Jayson added: “Sophie has nothing to fear either. This is her second season with us and her progress has been remarkable so she has every chance of becoming an England champion too.”
