Jack does the Kingfisher club proud with his Great Britain appearance

Silver medal winner Jack Blencowe Picture: Tony Blencowe (Image: Archant)

The 13-year-old from the Kingfisher Amateur Boxing Club, pulled on his country's colours for the first time when he boxed for the Great Britain 3 Nations Title in Barnsley.

The Amateur Boxing Association of England, rebranded as England Boxing, offers the only pathway to selection for GB Boxing which enables aspiring champions to compete for medals in the Olympic Games.

The first step is the England Boxing National Schools Championships, whose semi-finals and finals this year were held at the K2 Sports Centre in Crawley,

Jack came up against Harry Lavelle, from the Transport Club in Merseyside & Cheshire in the semi-finals. The under-72kg contest started at a furious pace, with Jack soon establishing his presence at the centre of the ring and commanding the first round with some excellent rear hand right crosses. An accidental clash of heads near the end of the first round caused some concern for Jack's corner, but he kept a tight guard and boxed three quality rounds to take his place in the final by a unanimous decision.

Ethan Moore, last year's beaten finalist, awaited Jack in the final. The two had faced each other before when Jack took the spoils at Kingfisher's home show at the Hippodrome Circus. This time following a hard-fought technical bout, the judges saw the split decision the way of the Western Counties boxer from the Downend Club.

"The general feeling in the arena was that Jack was unlucky to be on the wrong side of the decision," said Tyrone Harold, Kingfisher secretary and coach. "However, it was a massive achievement to box to reach the final and Jack had done himself and Great Yarmouth proud."

The prize for reaching the final was an England vest for the Tri-Nations battle between England, Scotland and Wales for the right to be called the GB champion. Once again the final of the 72kg category saw Jack against Moore. The third clash was close again, but Jack had to settle for the silver medal in his first outing for his country.

"Once the dust had settled and the disappointment had waned a little, Jack realised that his prize for this season's hard work was not only his first major international medal but also a place on the English Schools Academy," added Harold. "The Academy is one of the pathways put in place by England Boxing to monitor, develop and nurture emerging talent across the country."