MOUNT Gambier is now home to another state champion, after Liam English claimed the Boxing SA amateur welterweight state title on the weekend.
It was only English’s third career fight, but he took the challenge head on and finished his opponent – Lucas Bowman – in the third and final round by TKO.
English was clearly pleased with his effort when he spoke to The Border Watch this week.
“It did not really hit me until I got back to the hotel, had a sit down and thought about it,” he said.
“After that I was pretty happy with myself.
“I worked really hard for it.”
English said he did not go into the bout with a real plan, just to fight his normal style.
“I know when I box well, with lots of torso and head movement, I am hard to hit,” he said.
“But to be honest I thought I boxed poorly.
“I was a bit sloppy and was a bit disappointed with that, but I managed to get the TKO in the last round.”
The final result was simply a matter of time, with English on top after the first round.
But he said it was certainly not an easy fight.
“I got two standing-eight counts on him in the second round and nearly finished him off, but he was saved by the bell.
“In the third round I got one standing-eight count then finished him off.
“But he was a tough opponent – he took some big shots and was still upright.
“All credit to him.”
Before the state-title bout English had competed over one weekend, with two fights on the card back in October 2018, which he won.
While that experience helped settle the nerves, he said he felt the pressure a bit more this time around, with “a bit more on the line”.
However, he used his previous experience to relax and settle into the fight.
At just 22 years of age English has been boxing for less than two years.
He fights out of Barry Nilsson’s gym and was all praise for his coach.
“Barry is a great coach,” he said.
“He is down at the gym every night and is always happy to stay longer and help out.
“He puts his heart and soul into the boxing gym and the fighters he trains.
“He just loves the sport.”
Now English said he simply plans to keep working hard and see where the sport takes him.
“There are a few tournaments coming up so I will just keep training and fighting,” he said.
“You can go anywhere with it if you keep going, but you have to get a name for yourself in amateurs first.”
