Barnes leads demolition

There was an explosive start to last night’s Elite amateur boxing international between Ireland and France at the Rochestown Park Hotel in Cork, double bronze medallist Paddy Barnes leading out an Olympian one-two-three for the home side with a second-round stoppage of young light-flyweight Dylan Beccu, a stunning right hand right on the bell doing the damage.

Power was the name of the game also for bantamweight John Joe Nevin, silver medalist in London and far too strong here for game teenager Elias Friha, who at least did go the distance, recovering well from a knockdown the third round.

In between those two there was yet another Irish win, the third London medalist, Michael Conlan, proving far too classy for yet another young Frenchman, Samuel Kistohurry.