Impressive Ward sets up clash with Egan

JOE WARD (Moate) had a word of warning for Kenny Egan on Saturday night after he comprehensively outpointed former world youths bronze medallist Davy Joe Joyce (St. Michael’s, Athy) in the semi-finals of the national senior championships to qualify for the finals.

“The way I see it, everyone is beatable. Hopefully, I will come out on the right side of it,” he said, speaking ahead of next Friday night’s clash with the Olympic silver medallist. “You have to give Kenny respect - he’s ten-times senior champion.”

Ward, at just 17 years of age, has won world youths and world junior titles at light middleweight and middleweight, and showed in Saturday night’s 8-2 victory over Joyce that he is blossoming into a fine light heavyweight. He is the possible, if not probably successor to Egan, who himself is going for an unprecedented 11th successive national senior title next weekend.