THERE was another boost for boxing in Lydney as the open-air tournament staged by the town's boxing and rugby clubs proved a huge success on Saturday.

The 22 bout card ran from 2.30pm until 7pm at Regentsholme and attracted over 500 boxing fans. The event included contestants from clubs throughout England and Wales.

Before the boxing and during the interval there were displays of break dancing, a singer and a demonstration by members of the Severn Auxiliary Rescue Association.

Organiser Bryan Higgs described the day as a "absolutely fantastic."

"It was the third outdoor show and, thanks to the weather, it was a massive success. A lot of people worked really hard to make the day go so well but I would particularly like to thank the rugby club's Sharon Whitehead who did such a lot of the work. I would also like to thank Pete Smith Car Sales who gave us great support and, of course, all our other sponsors," he said.

Higgs added: "Perhaps we had a few too many bouts. It was our third outdoor tournament and we are learning all the time. Next year I will try and aim for around 16 contests."

The main bout featured Lydney's 19 year-old Lewis Vanpoetsch who boxed the more experienced Michael Pardoe (Droitwich).

Higgs described the contest as one of the best of the show. "Pardoe is an intermediate senior boxer. He tried to drop Poochi (Vanpoetsch) with his body shots, but he had the same given back to him. Poochi has been out of the ring since last September so it was a fantastic performance," he said.

Two young Lydney boxers took part in their first ever contests. Adam Arkell, 12, boxed skilfully to win a unanimous decision against Sam Mann (Baker Street). However Baker Street's Lewis Hallahan made amends in a very tight contest against Elliot Ozmond, shading a points decision in a bout described by Higgs as "fantastic".

Lydney's Dan Mason was also narrowly beaten in another little classic against Luke Conners of National Smelting. Both boxers were previously unbeaten and the judges' reflected the closeness of the contest with scores of 7-7, 8-8 and 7-6 in Conners' favour.