Boxing: Wins for Suffolk stars Tierney, Williams, McGregor and Jonas

In what was the first professional boxing show in Suffolk since May 2018, rising local stars Eilish Tierney, Jack Williams, Austin McGregor and Gideon Jonas all took points victories to make it a clean sweep for the county.

Tierney, the county's first-ever female pro boxer, pitched a shutout over six rounds to see off foe Amy Greatorex at super-featherweight.

Eilish Tierney lands a shot on her way to victory (Image: Brett King) The Wickham Market 26-year-old moved to 3-0 with the win and boxed at the venue where she started her journey in pugilism, initially competing as a charity boxer after taking up boxing to lose weight.

“She performed brilliantly," said Tierney's manager Matt Brennan. "A really good patient performance I would say – she had to bide her time, she waited for her opponent to come forward and then attacked.

“It’s what she does, she can box and then get aggressive when she needs to, which she did.

“We were pretty happy and so was she. I think it was emotional for her, coming full circle, and she was a lot more relaxed than she has been because she’s boxed at the venue so many times, in her hometown.”

Tierney will now box again on December 6th at London's iconic York Hall, before taking aim at titles next year.

Eilish Tierney moved to 3-0 with the win (Image: Brett King) Brennan revealed: "We’re hoping to be back in Ipswich in February and we’re pushing to see if any of the vacant titles could be available for Eilish to fight for – either the Southern Area or the English, something like that.”

Fellow Suffolk star Jack Williams made his pro debut at featherweight and pinged experienced opponent Jake Pollard around the ring on route to a wide 40-34 points win over four rounds.

And Brennan said the super-popular 28-year-old put on a show.

Jack Williams put on a show in his pro debut (Image: Brett King) "For me, Jack was the star of the show, he really put on a fantastic performance against another good, seasoned pro - his opponent has had 80 fights!" Brennan, who also manages Williams and McGregor, said.

“His opponent came up to me at the end and said he’d never been hit like that, it was like being hit by a train.

“Jack showed a lot of maturity and class. He’s got this aura about him and the promoters were raving about him, saying we’ve got a star on our hands.

“His opponent took so much punishment, you could see the power Jack has. I think if he was fighting a less experienced fighter, he would have put them down in the first round."

Jack Williams and his team celebrate his win (Image: Brett King) Williams will join Tierney on the York Hall bill on December 6th, with Brennan already thinking about title tilts in 2025.

"I did contact the promoters and see how quickly we can move Jack towards titles, and they said the board won’t approve that until he’s had four fights," he explained.

“Hopefully by the end of next summer we’ll be looking at titles – I believe the English title is vacant at his weight.

“So hopefully by the end of the summer we’ll have two more title holders in the area, that’s the way we’re pushing it.”

Williams was joined in victory by fellow debut-maker Austin McGregor, with the Lowestoft welterweight making it a double celebration personally - he turned 20-years-old on fight night.

Austin McGregor made his pro debut and won on his 20th birthday (Image: Brett King) The 6ft 3ins talent beat Nathan Darby on points over four rounds to move to 1-0.

"He boxed very well," Brennan said. "It was his 20th birthday on the day, so one he will always remember!

“Boxing and making his debut in Ipswich – which will probably be the closest he ever boxes to home – was a massive thing for him and he had a tricky opponent as well, a southpaw who had his back on the ropes the whole time and was constantly moving.

“It was a mature performance, maybe not as explosive as he would have liked, but he was clearly in control for every minute of the bout and his shot selection was on point.

Austin McGregor and his team after winning his pro debut (Image: Brett King) “He needs probably to get a bit more used to his range, being so much taller than everyone at the weight – and that’s what I’d like to see next time, him using that reach and size in a bit more of an authoritative way.

“But I’m so pleased and so proud of what he achieved.”

Gideon Jonas puts the pressure on (Image: Brett King) Serving soldier Gideon Jonas, who's based at Rock Barracks in Woodbridge, completed the Suffolk sweep, taking a four round points win over Berman Sanchez to improve his record to 7-4.

It was the first fight in almost a year for the 25-year-old middleweight, who's recently returned from a tour of duty.

Brennan, who doesn't manage Jonas but is part of his team, said: "He looked really good, sharp in a lot of moments and then a couple of times you could see he hasn’t been in the ring for a while.

“He was against a tough, seasoned operator who didn’t open up very much and only threw when he needed to throw, which made the task difficult - but Gideon worked it out, opened him up a few times and looked to have him in trouble on numerous occasions towards the end of the fight, but couldn’t quite get the finish.

“I think he was just happy to be back boxing again.”  

Gideon Jonas moved to 7-4 with the win (Image: Brett King) All in all it was a great night for the sport in the county, with hopes for another pro show at Trinity Park in February 2025.

“It was a brilliant night" Brennan enthused. "I think they sold over 1,000 tickets which was great and there was a nice buzz in the venue.

“It ran really smoothly and everyone had a great time.

“And everyone wants it back. They love having the boxing in Ipswich and they want more of it!

“I think it sets us up nicely to hopefully go again in February.”

- If you are interested in sponsoring any of the fighters, contact Brennan on matt@grangefitness.com.