Sutherland confident ahead of Healy duel

MIDDLEWEIGHT Darren Sutherland will make a welcome return to competitive action this tomorrow evening when he meets Ed Healy of Portlaoise in the semi-finals of the Seniors at the Stadium.

Sutherland, a DCU Sports Science student, suffered a serious eye injury in a senior international with Russia last May which kept him out of the game for over three months.

But the St Saviours OBA ace is now back in the frame and he is very focussed on retaining the title he won last year.

He said: “This is a massive year for us as the Senior Championships are vitally important as they are the first in a series of tournaments which will lead to the Olympic qualifiers next September.

“I would be confident that I can retain my title at this years championships but there is no way I will be taking anything for granted as there is just too much at stake.”

Meantime, St Michael’s Athy welterweight Roy Sheahan is keeping his fingers crossed that it will be 13 times lucky at the Seniors Championships.

The defending champ says he is very determined to add to the twelve Irish titles he has won from underage level up.

But the 22-year-old admitted that tomorrow nights semi-final against Fergal Redmond from Arklow is going to be tough.

He said “I have beaten Fergal already but he is an experienced boxer and he will be really up for this one and it will be a tight fight.

“That’s what I’m preparing for anyway and I have a plan and I’m sticking to it and I would be confident that I will successfully defend my title this year.

“There are some key tournaments coming up this year including the EU Championships which will be held in Dublin this summer and I want to be part of that.

“The World Championships in Moscow in December is the one we are all targeting as it is the first of the Olympic qualifiers.

“But I’m not looking beyond the National Senior Championships for now as it all begins here and I am very focussed.”

If Sheahan — ranked in the top 20 in Europe — can see off Redmond then an All St Michael’s Athy final could be on the cards against David Joyce.

Joyce meets TJ Hamill in the other semi- final on Saturday night.

Sheahan admitted: “It can be strange meeting your own club mate in a major final and lets face it they don’t get any bigger than the senior championships.

“But at this point I am just concentrating on the final and I am not looking beyond that.”