Griffiths so tough in losing Birchall battle

Ryan Griffiths…pushed prospect into ninth in feather title battle

RYAN Griffiths can hold his head high after taking red-hot prospect Nelson Birchall into the ninth round of their English featherweight title fight.

As yet, however, what Griffiths achieved – and the pride in what he achieved – remains lost to the Dudley warriror. “I’m just gutted,” he told me.

Before Saturday’s scheduled 10 rounder on Queensberry’s huge Co-op Live Arena, Manchester, show, I did a straw-poll of figures within the local game. All felt Morecambe’s Birchall would prove too much for 25-year-old Ryan by the half-way point.

On paper, it looked a very big ask for the Black Country battler.

Birchall, aged 21, collected eight national titles during a stellar amateur career. He’d won all 10 pro outings, with only three going the distance.

Griffiths, part of BCB’s stable, has come from the white collar circuit and had been held to draws in two Midlands title fights last year.

Yet he’s a very, very tough individual and that Dudley grit saw him push Birchall farther than he’s been pushed before. Ryan had his moments before buckling from the accumulation of punches, referee Howard Foster stepping in at 53 seconds of the ninth.

At present, the first stoppage loss on a 13 bout career is too raw for Griffiths to gain satisfaction from his stand, but it will come.

“I’m just gutted, not for myself, but for my team,” Griffiths said. “All the coaches at BCB have put so much into me. In the corner I saw the passion from (manager) Errol (Johnson). He wanted me to win so much, it was how much he wanted me to win. I saw it in his eyes.

“From the first round, I thought Nelson Birchall didn’t hit that hard – Liam Davies has hit me the hardest (in sparring) wearing 16oz gloves. He (Birchall) stopped me, but I think it was the amount of punches that finally got to me in the ninth. Listen, Birchall did what he did.

“I came in at 124lbs (8st 12lbs), I came in light. That’s only the second time I’ve had to make weight away from home and I over-cooked it.

“I’m not trying to make excuses – the better man won. It was down to him to win, there was no pressure on me. It didn’t go my way, Nelson won because he was the better boxer. There’s no more to it than that.”

Griffiths has now gravitated from the small hall circuit to a major, televised arena show. That, in itself, is something of a Cinderella story.

He said: “When I got there, I stood in the arena and thought, I should not be here. On the ramp as I was walking out for the fight I looked up at the big screen, saw my face and thought, this is crazy.

“It’s one of those. I thought, ‘I should not be there’, but I felt at home at the same time. I thought nerves might get the better of me, but it all just felt natural. It was a good experience. I’ve never been spoon-fed opponents, I’ve come from white collar, now my mug’s on a Queensberry show.

 “I’m still going to box and potentially I will be back on a Queensberry show. It’s all down to Errol. I’m one of those people, I’m not scared of anyone.”

 Griffiths’ bravery earned praise from Birchall.

 He added: “I went to Nelson’s dressing room and he thanked me for taking the fight because no one wants to fight him, no one wants to spar him.”