Town vs Gown boxing marred by ticketing trouble

The Oxford Union replaced barbed comments and hacking for the much gentler sport of boxing last Tuesday as OUABC hosted their annual Town vs. Gown show. The evening, however, was ruined for many as those who had spent upwards of £40 were left without a guaranteed seat.

Rumours circulated amongst the crowd that OUABC had deliberately oversold tickets. Others blamed overzealous bouncers, with one visibly upset fan claiming “the bouncer was a bit of a dickhead”.

Packed to the rafters

The first fight pitted Chantelle Julienne, sporting an outlandish hairstyle and gilet to the ring, against former OUABC fighter Julia Bee Lee. Neither competitor needed feminism as their fists offered protection against any form of misogyny. Lee’s superior fitness carried her to victory.

Oxford’s Jamie Burke, however, did not fare as well against Leo Swintham taking a standing 8 count early on. Jamie fought back to tag Leo for a three count, but two further standing counts led to a technical knockout for Swintham.

View from ringside

Emeralds ABC’s Tom Widdows dared challenge Callum Pyrie and was punished by Pyrie’s spirited comeback to take the decision. The Oxford club’s conditioning was rewarded as Widdows was unable to take the pace of the fight.

Mike Taylor versus Mikey Davis was a fans’ favourite fights on the night. Davis was left with blood gushing from his nose early on, but stuck it out until Taylor retired due to an ankle injury. The plucky and bloody Davis left the ring with a remodelled faced and the win.

Float like a butterfly, sting like a bee.

Reading Boxing Club’s Tchinga Muchapondwa eased to victory over James Watson,   Muchapondwa showing quicker hands and movement in a comfortable win.

Iain Holland triumphed over Rai Butera in an internal squad fight, but was met by a slight lull in the crowd who still bayed for townie blood. Collins came away with victory and a claret face. Next the well supported Arthur Knaggs took on the Reading Club’s Viktram, who took the majority decision.

Captain Tom Eliasz was up next, expectations were high after his devastating win in last year’s Varsity. He faced an incredibly experienced opponent in Christian Michigan. Michigan took a unanimous victory, but Eliasz was able to take away invaluable ahead of Varsity.

Terrific tankards

Jack Prescott took on club companion, Chris Davies. Prescott edged the fight backed by exuberant chants of  “Press-what? Prescott!” .

UCL’s Leo Dorr edged Harry Miller with a majority decision in a close fight. Dan Bailey then defeated Dennis in an internal squad fight. The aggressive Bailey’s huge crowd following helping him to the win.

Town were able to edge the close contest and come away with victory, but in the words of Jack Prescott: “It was a good evening fought hard by the all the boxers, but the real winner this evening was sport”