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Heavy-hitting Waterford star secures Irish debut date

One of the biggest-hitting amateurs of recent times will finally make his Irish debut later this month.

Following two fights in exotic Dubai, Waterford welterweight Rohan Date [2(1)-0] will make his Irish debut on Saturday May 27th.

The former St Paul’s amateur, now living in the United Arab Emirates, will return to Dublin for the ‘Celtic Clash 2: The Rising’ bill at the National Stadium.

Date had been due to make his return to Ireland last month at the same venue, but saw his scheduled April 1st fight shelved due to the cancellation of the Táimid Laochra card.

The Déise power-puncher boxed twice in 2016, debuting with a Knockout of the Year contender against Gerald Dah in June before scoring a dominant win over Stephen Okine in November.

An opponent for 24 year old Date will be announced in the near future.

The announcement comes hours after it emerged that Irish super featherweight champion James Tennyson will no longer feature on the bill after he secured a spot on the June 10th Sky Sports bill in Belfast.

Also set to fight next month on the packed card, the largest in Irish boxing history, are Eric Donovan, Jake Hanney, Stephen Carroll, Jay Byrne, Gerard Whitehouse, Sean Creagh, Allan Phelan, Vladimir Belujsky, Carl McDonald, Lynn Harvey, John Joyce, Liam Gaynor, Regan Buckley, and Keane McMahon.

Tickets for ‘Celtic Clash 2: The Rising’ are priced at €15 (Under 15s), €30, €40, €45, and €55 (Premium), and are available from the boxers involved.

Gavan Casey and Joe O’Neill on Episode 4 of The Irish Boxing Show

Joe O'Neill

Reporting on Irish boxing the past five years. Work has appeared on irish-boxing.com, Boxing News, the42.ie, and local and national media. Provide live ringside updates, occasional interviews, and special features on the future of Irish boxing. email: joneill6@tcd.ie

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