Gavin: "Woodhouse couldn't make it at Blues and he won't as a boxer."

Fervent Birmingham City supporter Frankie Gavin has won the first round in a war of words with his next opponent, Curtis Woodhouse - labeling the former Blues player "rubbish".

Gavin dominated former British welterweight champion Young Mutley over 12 rounds last month and it could be argued that his interesting-looking scrap with Woodhouse, at Liverpool's Echo Arena on July 16, is a step down.

But the 31-year-old former England under-21 international footballer, who joined the St Andrews side for £1m in 2001, is solid, fairy tough, willing, carries a decent dig and is eager to close the mouth of Britain's only-ever World Amateur gold medalist.

The East Yorkshire scrapper is no stranger to the Midlands as a fighter either, having knocked out West Brom southpaw Wayne Downing with a body shot inside a round at the National Indoor Arena, Birmingham, in 2008 - as well as stopping dangerous former Midland Area champion Dean Hickman in a toe-to-toe war in 2009.

That said, he'll never have met anyone as sharp, quick and accurate as the Second City southpaw, who's won all ten of his paid outings (eight quickly). Aside from a one-sided taming of Mutley, for the WBO Intercontinental strap he'll defend for the first time in Liverpool, Gavin halted ex-Prizefighter champion Michael Lomax, cut up Irishman Michael Kelly in five and won every round of a six against a man who'd go on to beat Woodhouse.

Irish-born Peter McDonagh was picked off at will against Anthony Farnell-trained Frankie last year. Eight months later, however, Woodhouse, 15-2 (10), was old-man'd in an eight-rounder with the same fighter - slumping to a one-point defeat (77-76) that looked (for me at least) generous to the loser.

Smooth-boxing Gavin won the 2006 Commonwealth Games and holds victories over world-class pro pair Selcuk Aydin and Lenny Zappavigna as an amateur and said: "He's rubbish. He will fall over his own feet and his technique is terrible. He is not in the same class as me and that will be clearly shown next month.

"Woodhouse has been saying that he'll be in front of me all night but that's not right because he won't last the distance. He's also been saying that he'll knock me out and i can't punch but he'll see what i can do.

"He couldn't make it as a footballer at Birmingham City and he certainly won't make it as a boxer," added the Brummie, 25, coldly.