It was a night for the history books with the first all-female boxing event in Scotland taking place, and the home fighters rose to the occasion in impressive style.
With a combined Scotland and England Select team taking on a Canada Select team, home advantage paid dividends ensuring Scotland claimed the win in this milestone moment for the sport in this country.
The event was held at Bowhill Miners Boxing Club in Fife and the club’s own fighter – and one of the most promising talents in the country – Niamh Mitchell was headlining the card.
Mitchell rose to prominence last year by winning European Junior gold in unexpected fashion and in the process, became the first Scottish female fighter to win gold at a major championship.
As the star attraction on this card, the 16-year-old was boxing in the final bout of the evening and her victory ultimately sealed the result for a strong Scotland squad.
A team of Canadian boxers from the Bradford Blackeye Boxing Club in Ontario travelled to Scotland especially for this event and they certainly made their presence felt.
However, it would not be enough for the visitors to challenge for overall victory.
Particularly notable bouts on the 15-fight card, which was streamed online by JATV Live, included the opening contest which, due to the height and weight differential, was contested as a non-scoring exhibition, between Scotland’s first-female winner of the GB Elite Championships, Stephanie Kernachan of Falkirk Pheonix BC and last year’s Scottish Elite Championships silver medallist, Frances Heath of Lochend BC.
Later in the evening, notching up impressive wins for Scotland against their Canadian opponents were Ava Alison of Southside Boxing Academy who defeated Rileigh Tyler, Sienna Thomson of Meadowbank BC who defeated Ava Figleora and Rosie Swailes of Hawick BC who defeated Ava Fenton with a decisive second-round stoppage.
The final exhibition on the card was also noteworthy, with Rebecca Gray of Linkwood BC taking on Alisha Armstrong of Doonhammers BC in what was a re-run of last weekend’s Scottish Elite Golden Gloves Championship Finals, which saw Gray defeat Armstrong to become Scottish champion.
It was Mitchell who, in the final fight of the evening, stole the show, however. The teenager was up against Canada’s Kelsee McPhee, with the Scot forced to move up from her usual weight of -52kgs to -57kgs for this bout.
However, she showed no signs of being out of her depth at the higher weight and as the rounds of what was a highly competitive fight progressed, Mitchell exerted her dominance, ultimately being awarded the win by unanimous decision to ensure the Scottish team ended the historic night on a high.
“Most shows that you go to are mainly boys and males, and you only see one or two female bouts on the card itself,” Mitchell said.
“So to see a card full of female boxers is crazy and exciting as it is so different.
“When I started there were not many girls fighting in the Scottish Championships, and now you are seeing loads of girls coming through.
“This is a show where girls can show off what they can actually do in the ring.
“I don’t think there has ever been a show like this. I hope that it inspires young girls coming through.
“It would be good for more girls to come through and prove what they can actually do.”
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