HARWICH Boxing Club light heavyweight Patrick Allen Cripps continued his quest for national honours as he contested the Eastern Counties elite title at Harlow.
He defeated old foe Gianni Antoh, from Trumpington ABC in Cambridgeshire.
Allen Cripps, 19, keen to continue the momentum from winning the Essex title the previous week, stuck to a calculated gameplan by not getting drawn into a brawl.
He did this to good effect in rounds one and two, clearly taking the sessions with the odd booming overhand right catching Antoh.
In need of a big last round, the Italian national started in determined fashion.
However, Allen Cripps weathered and contained the storm well before pushing on himself to take the round with accurate shots.
He duly took a deserved unanimous points decision to book himself into the next round of the National Championships.
The club also saw further action at the weekend, with 16-year-old Killian Hardy boxing in Debenham against Josh Harrison, from Hockley ABC.
He demonstrated great determination, supported by a solid engine as he forced the pace for the entire three-round contest.
A split decision victory went the way of the hard-working Harwich boxer.
Also on the same show was 11-year-old Cameron Walker, boxing Chalvedon's Alfie Eastwood. While Eastwood forced the issue, Walker's more accurate shots looked to have done enough.
However, a close split verdict went the way of the Chalvedon boxer.
A rematch looms.
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here