Norton Radstock Amateur Boxing Club finally has a recognised champion in Cameron Walker, 66kgs/70kgs Western Counties Champion.

Head Coach, Sean Jenkins, said: “Cameron’s name will go down in local history alongside boxing champions of the past the likes of Ellis Grubb and Royston Fuller, and will be forever immortalised in the club’s history, I’ll make sure of that.”

Boxing for a second year in the Development Championships, Cameron continued on from last year’s efforts, which saw him reach the Semi-Final of the same competition as well as Final of the National Association of Boys & Girls Club Championships. On both of those occasions, he was up against quality opposition, and this year was no different.

In the opposite corner on Saturday at the Whitchurch Sports Centre in Bristol stood Manny Mohammed, unbeaten; a tall, strong southpaw from Essex. After a gruelling, closely-fought bout over three rounds, Cameron fell short on a points decision. The bittersweet moment soon turned to smiles, as being the only competitor left representing the Western Counties in his category enabled him to take home the Counties title, which soon overshadowed the disappointing loss.

The elated Cameron said: “I tried my best but Manny was just too strong and tall for me, though I am over the moon walking away with the Western Counties title. I was a bit surprised, because we didn’t know I was still entitled to it after losing my bout. We were walking away from the ring when one of the County representatives called me back and gave me the badge and certificate!

“I work hard in the gym with my coach, so even though it goes down as a loss, I still feel like a winner. As my coach always says, ‘hard work does pay off’. I’d like to say thanks to my gym mates for coming along and everyone who has left me messages on Facebook, and I wish Manny all the best in his next bout.”

Sean added: “We’ve finally got the monkey off our backs, as the saying goes – hopefully Cameron’s achievement will breed more success for the club.” SJ