SCOTT HARRISON'S career is once again the subject of intense speculation following the disgraced former world featherweight champion's latest indiscretions.
But while the British Boxing Board of Control continues to deliberate on how best to deal with the 34-year-old from Cambuslang in the wake of last week's revelations that Harrison had been arrested and reported to the procurator fiscal in connection with an alleged theft and minor public order offence, he is not entirely friendless, it would appear.
George Fleming, the boxer's strength and conditioning coach, has offered a stout defence of Harrison, presumably in an effort to curry favour with the sport's governing body, in the hope that he might help dissuade them from once again suspending his licence.
Fleming stated that he feels obliged to speak out on his client's behalf, adding that he finds it infuriating that some might interpret Harrison's actions as those of someone who has "lost the plot".
"That is far from the case," he claimed. "I see all the hard work Scott has put in and he trained very hard for his scheduled fight on March 31, in Blackpool.
"When he was told he would be boxing he was really up for the fight and not a week went by when he didn't mention how happy he was at the prospect of earning money to support his family.
"Scott is a dream to train. He works until he leaves the gym and he has a very high level of fitness. I would say he is the most intense trainer I have seen.
"The only person I could compare to Scott, in terms of how hard they work, is John McNiven, whose weightlifting career saw him compete at six Commonwealth Games."
Fleming insists that Harrison was in the "zone" until uncertainty arose about his comeback bout due to a contractual dispute involving rival promoters Frank Maloney and Frank Warren, temporarily sending him off the rails. But Fleming is adamant that it was an isolated incident, born of frustration, and that Harrison had not been drinking regularly.
"I can assure you that would be impossible," he stressed. "There is no way Scott would be able to complete the workouts I have put him through if he was drinking before coming to the gym.
"I know the real Scott Harrison and he comes across as a decent man, a family man, and I pride myself on the fact I work with him."
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