Fans entertained as six scorching bouts set Ancient County alight

Oct 07, 2013 Sports

---

By Michael Benjamin

Ron Smith (GDF) turned in a classy and determined performance to earn a victory over his gym mate, Eon Bancroft, when action in the final of the Mackeson Fight Night boxing cards concluded in open air at the New Amsterdam Ferry Stelling, in Berbice, Saturday evening last.
The card was supported by a large fan base out of the Berbice communities and several individual performances had the crowd in wild ecstasy. The Bancroft/Smith shindig was a welterweight encounter and even before the first punch was thrown the fight was touted to be the ‘main bout’ of a six fight card. Both pugilists demonstrated respect for the other in the early stages of the bout even as each attempted to assert his dominance. Bancroft attacked but Smith looked unflustered and delivered his punches with precision and mean intentions. Bancroft was the busy body, shuffling forward with right crosses and looping overhand rights. A few breached Smith’s defence and set the pace for an entertaining bout.
Bancroft came to life early in the second stanza and lashed out at his man with vicious flurries but Smith retained a cool composure and retaliated with several right crosses. The crowd loved it and egged him on but Bancroft refused to be bullied and ended the round with several well timed offerings that had his man on the back foot.
If the preceding rounds were the smoke, round three was fire; both pugilists met each other centre ring, but it was Bancroft that looked the superior, backing up Smith with several volleys.
The former boxer then lashed out with a one two combination but though he appeared to be tired, Smith responded with a vicious right cross and a left hook for good measure.
As the seconds ticked away, both boxers met each other in centre ring and engaged in a delightful exchange that sent the crowd wild, right up to the final bell.
It was a very competitive match and very hard to call but in the end, the judges awarded a close decision to Smith.
The Republican Boxing Gym has a rich history in the fistic arena and the only boxer to represent that gym on Saturday night was middleweight Kevin Rodney.
He was matched against Trevon King (GDF) in the final bout of the night; this after King had punched his way to a victory over a pudgy Marvin Ageday of the Forgotten Youth Foundation Boxing Gym (FYF) in the first bout of the night.
His second fight was more competitive and King attacked from the very first bell. Rodney refused to be bullied and responded with several bombs of his own.
The bout then developed into a ‘no retreat, no surrender’ affair with both pugilists giving as much as they received.
Rodney came out slugging in the second round and connected to King’s body and head and unsettled him a bit. The latter boxer quickly asserted himself and delivered several thumping blows that evened up things somewhat. Rodney then demonstrated staunch determination, lashing out with hard punches and when the bell sounded to end the second round he was pounding away at his man.
King changed his tactics and jolted Rodney early in the final round with sharp right crosses. Sensing he was ahead on the scorecards, Rodney dug deep and matched his opponent’s aggression with clever punches.
Suspecting that he was behind on the scorecards, King upped the ante but Rodney matched his aggression and when the bell sounded, even before the decision was announced, Rodney started to celebrate.
The announcement several minutes later served as vindication.
There were two knockouts on the card and the most brutal occurred when seasoned contender, jnr/welterweight, Bert Braithwaite, poleaxed Kelon King in the second round. By far the more experienced, Braithwaite advanced purposefully at the start of the encounter while King boxed around, fending off the attack with tame jabs.
He managed to survive the first stanza but it was always going to be a challenge to keep Braithwaite at bay. A thudding right hand early in the second round connected to King’s temple and he fell to the canvass.
He demonstrated pluck and determination when he rose and nodded affirmatively to the referee who wanted to know if he was able to re-enter the fray.
However, upon resumption, he was met with a vicious onslaught and down he went once again. Referee, Paulette Nurse tolled away the count but even before she had reached the halfway stage, it was evident that King was terribly out of sorts; Nurse had no other option but to wave the contest off at 1:02secs of the second frame.
The win improved Braithwaite’s record in the championship to 4-0 after he had won a point verdict over King in Linden. He also defeated Quincy Harvey and Kurt Kendall in the Georgetown leg of the tournament.
Otherwise, Stephan Gouveia (HE), fighting out of a southpaw stance, outclassed Clairmont Gibson to take the honours in the lightweight division. A wiry boxer, Gouveia employed a two fisted attack while dancing his way out of trouble.
Gibson plodded behind him hoping to land a big bomb and finish the fight but was met with staunch resistance. Gouveia then launched a two fisted attack that forced the referee to institute 2 mandatory eight counts.
Gibson managed to survive the first round but the writing was already on the wall. An especially wicked combination forced referee Ramona Agard to institute another count before ending the bout after realizing that Gibson was too hurt to continue.
Earlier, Jamal Mona (GDF) and Keon Williams (PRBG) engaged in an exhibition matchup that was well received by the crowd. Activities were sponsored by Ansa McAl under the Mackeson label, under the auspices of the Guyana Boxing Association.

---

---