Jude Gallagher moves into medal contention at European Junior Championships
Jude Gallagher progressed to the quarter-finals of the European Junior Championships in Albena, Bulgaria today.
The Two Castles BC dynamo beat Azeri pinweight Maksud Khasmetov en route to the last-eight and his second victory in 48 hours, with Khasmetov taking a standing count in the first round following a relentless period of pressure from the eventual winner.
Gallagher will now face Georgian Luka Kublashvili for a bronze medal on Friday.
There was quadruple disappointment today though for Myles Casey, Irish captain Brandon McCarthy, Mikey Stokes and Gavin Rafferty this afternoon.
Casey can consider himself particularly unlucky. The Limerick flyweight found the target with a barrage of lefts, with a few rights thrown into the bargain, in the second and third rounds, but the judges opted for the busy Romanian.
McCarthy lost the first across the board to English southpaw Harry Kinsella, took one of the judges with him in the second and won the third 3-2 in a bout which could have gone either way.
Stokes was involved in a tight affair with Georgian feather Bakur Chikovani, both young men having their say in all three frames.
Rafferty lost a tactical battle with Turkey’s Emir Buyukdas.The Irish middle clipped home some solid punches throughout, as did his opponent, and finished out the contest with a clean headshot, but the Turk got the decision.
Meanwhile, Patrick McCarthy is in against Russia tomorrow with at least bronze up for grabs in the light-fly class. Dean Clancy, Callum Walsh, Peter Vrinceanu and Thomas Doherty box in the last 16.
European Junior Championships Albena, Bulgaria
September 18th
Preliminaries (Last 32)
46kg Jude Gallagher (Ireland) beat Paul Cameron (England) 5-0
52kg Dean Clancy (Ireland) beat Nazar Fadzeyeu (Belarus) 5-0
54kg Brandon McCarthy (Ireland) beat David Gvasalia (Georgia) 5-0
57kg Mikey Stokes (Ireland) beat Luca Filip (Croatia) TKO1
63kg Peter Vrinceanu (Ireland) beat Luca de Chiava (Italy) 5-0
66kg William Hayden (Ireland) lost to Jaba Tchumbashvili (Georgia) 2-3
70kg Jake Tucker (Ireland) beat Gyula Varga (Hungary) 5-0
80Kg+ Cathal Crowley (Ireland) lost to Aleksei Dronov (Russia) TKO1
September 19th
Last 16
48kg Patrick McCarthy (Ireland) beat Owen Paton (Scotland) 5-0
70kg Jake Tucker (Ireland) lost to Ilia Bogaturev (Russia) 1-4
September 20th
Last 16
46kg Jude Gallagher (Ireland) beat Maksud Khasmetov (Azerbaijan) 4-1
50kg Myles Casey (Ireland) lost to Madalin Popescu (Romania) 0-5
54kg Brandon McCarthy (Ireland) lost to Harry Kinsella (England) 0-5
57kg Mikey Stokes (Ireland) lost to Bakur Chikovani (Georgia) 0-5
75kg Gavin Rafferty (Ireland) lost to Emir Buyukdas (Turkey) 0-5
September 21st
Last 16
52kg Dean Clancy (Ireland) v Artur Shahakyan (Armenia)
60kg Callum Walsh (Ireland) v Racz Kristopher (Hungary)
63kg Peter Vrinceanu (Ireland) v Anatalii Fedotkin (Russia)
80kg Thomas Doherty (Ireland) v Sahin Ergul (Turkey)
Q/Final
48kg Patrick McCarthy (Ireland) v Vakhaev Mukhaed (Russia)
September 22nd
Q/Final
46kg Jude Gallagher (Ireland) v Luka Kublashvili (Georgia)
Irish squad
46kg Jude Gallagher (Two Castles)
48kg Patrick McCarthy (Tralee)
50kg Myles Casey (Rathkeale)
52kg Dean Clancy (Ballinacarrow)
54kg Brandon McCarthy (St. Michaels Athy) Cpt
57kg Mikey Stokes (Athlone)
60kg Callum Walsh (Riverstown)
63kg Peter Vrinceanu (Crumlin)
66kg William Hayden (Crumlin)
70kg Jake Tucker (Holy Trinity) V/Cpt
75kg Gavin Rafferty (St. Cianans)
80kg Thomas Doherty (Baldoyle)
80+kg Cathel Crowley (Spartan)
Team Manager – Peter Brady
Coaches – Billy McClean & Dmitri Dmitruk
R&J – John Casey
