East Kilbride boxer swaps Aldi for Commonwealth Games glory charge amid Scotland disappointment on two fronts
Lightweight boxing hope marches on after impressive victory over Ghana’s African champion at the SEC
Nicholas Devlin had to take unpaid leave from his supermarket day job to compete for Team Glasgow in Boxing at the Commonwealth Games - but his decision has been vindicated after he reached the Men’s 60kg quarter-finals.
The 25-year-old lightweight hope had eased into the last 16 with an impressive opening win over New Zealander Finbar O’Sullivan by a unanimous points decision.
He faced a much tougher opponent in the shape of Ghana’s African champion Ebenezer Ankrah at the SEC this morning, but was not overawed by the occasion as Devlin delivered a power-packed display to outsmart Ankrah in a pulsating contest.
Both men traded some heavy blows but it was the Scot, hailing from East Kilbride, who emerged victorious by split-decision. And he admitted post-fight that it packed a bigger punch than stacking shelves at an Aldi branch in his hometown.
“I’ve been travelling all through this year so I’ve used all my holidays,” Devlin grinned. “I’ve had to take time off unpaid but I’d rather be here any day. They’ve been a great support for me, giving me my time off and working around my training schedule. I can’t thank them enough.
“I’m very, very happy with the outcome there. I had to grind it out, because he’s a very good fighter. My resilience took over, my timing, I just bit down on the gum shield and got the win.”
Devlin now faces Welshman Owain Harris-Allan on Wednesday morning for a place in the semi-finals.
Heartbreak for Banks as Bowls exit confirmed
In Bowls, former world indoor champion and home hope Jason Banks saw his Commonwealth medal hopes on home soil ended by Englishman Sam Tolchard.
The Inverurie man ensured he stayed in podium contention with a stunning comeback win over Ross Owen on Saturday to leave him with three wins and one defeat alongside Tolchard and Fiji’s Rajnesh Prasad in the six-play groups.
However, the 30-year-old failed to repel the challenge of familiar foe Sam Tolchard in what was a winner-takes-all clash after Prasad lost control of the section with a shock defeat to Pakistan’s Mohammed Ayub Quereshi to leave him with a worse points difference.
Tolchard edged out Banks in a Tri-Nations match just a few weeks prior and the Englishman did so again at the SEC this morning with an 8-4, 6-4 straight sets win over the out-of-sorts Scotsman.
Disappointment for Duncan but Scots retain Weightlifting medal hopes
There was further disappointment for Team Scotland in the Men’s 71kg Weightlifting competition when Edinburgh’s 18-year-old teenage prospect Corey Duncan failed to finish. But he is refusing to let that disappointment get him down as he looks to the future.
“It wasn’t the day I was looking for,” Duncan reflected. “But just to be part of this Commonwealth Games is a true honour. I’ve got no excuses, I just couldn’t quite put it together on the platform. I’ll come back and I can definitely apply some of the lessons I learned from this experience. I’ll learn from my mistakes today.”
Hope is not lost of a Scottish medal in the sport, with Iain Wilson flying the flag in tonight’s Men’s 79kg event.
A mechanical engineer by day, the local hero only transitioned from sprinting to competitive weightlifting in 2022. He is likely to have his work cut out to finish among the medals against some experienced opponents.
Comments
Want to join the conversation? Please or to comment on this article.