Brace of wins for Black Country duo on Undefeated bill

Rizwan Rasool had a four-round professional baptism that he won't ever forget.

The Dudley light-welterweight, boxing on the undercard of Dave Coldwell's Undefeated show at Birmingham's New Bingley Hall last night [March 16], survived a opening-round wobble to edge home against durable dangerman Dan Carr.

Referee Rob Chalmers' 39-38 decision [or 2-1-1 in rounds] raised a few eyebrows at ringside but i wouldn't have had an issue with either man having their glove lofted skywards after a messy four-threes.

After all, it was a scrappy, hard-to-score contest that saw quality work and clean punching at a premium. When a rare bit of neat boxing arrived, though, it was always delivered from the Shaun Cooper-trained first-timer's fists.

But there is plenty of work for Rasool [9st 12 3/4lbs] to do in the gym. After making a solid start behind the jab, his legs momentarily betrayed him after shipping a left in the last 60 seconds. Though he re-grouped to see out the follow-up attack, a moment's lapse in concentration cost him the opening round on my card.

You get the feeling 'Dirty Dan', from Trowbridge, could be a half-decent campaigner. His ledger shows just two wins and two draws in 26 but six have those have been by single-point margins in his opponents back yard - and he thumped in enough punches last night to have a legitimate argument for his first win of the year.

The sturdy 24-year-old [10st 12oz] looked to repeat the left hook trick in the second and third rounds but, especially so in the second, absorbed several neatly-threaded uppercuts from a well-supported Black Countryman, 30, who failed to put his punches together in combinations and had a tendency to carry his chin high.

And after being warned to clean things up by Mr Chalmers at the beginning of the penultimate session, the pair continued to trade on level terms for the duration of the bout. Carr was unhappy with the referee's decision and i, like Carr's promoter Paul Rowson, couldn't separate them at the bell.

For the record, it was Rizza's first slice of competitive action in over a decade.

Another Black Country boxer on the bill - tall, tanned Tipton light-heavyweight Adam Corbett - improved his professional record to three fights without loss [one inside] with a show-opening four-twos shut-out victory over Nick Gigg [13st 1lb], now winless in five.

Errol Johnson-handled Corbett [12st 12lbs] dominated the eight-minute bout - forcing the Bristol-based boxer back onto the ropes with a solid lead and long right. Gigg, 35, tried to make a fight of it but was repeatedly speared with the jab and forced to survive a two-fisted onslaught on the ropes in both the second and last stanzas.

Mr Chalmers officiated.