Barrow ABC's Ethan Greer showed no signs of ring rust in what was his first fight in three years, and his first at senior level, at the England Boxing Development Championships in Manchester.

There was a lot for 19-year-old Greer to get used to, as it was the first time he had to box three three-minute rounds, but he gave a superb account of himself in the semi-finals of the -75kg division.

It wasn't quite enough for him to be awarded the decision, but his coach Jeff Moses felt he produced a more polished performance than he had any right to after his long absence.

Moses said: "He boxed lovely and he boxed far better than I thought anyone could after three years out.

"I felt confident that I could put him straight into the Championships and see how he'd get on and it wasn't a problem.

"Obviously, that's another senior that we can add to our ranks for this year. It's a good start for him and he gave a good account of himself.

"The reason why he wasn't training was because he got an apprenticeship at BAE and he focused on that. Now he's settled down and got his own house and everything, he's back in training, which is brilliant."

Two of Barrow's juniors are into their divisional finals without having to step into the ring after Ethan Holt and Louis Smith's opponents pulled out of their fights in the -75kg and -60kg categories, respectively.

The northern counties finals will take place a week tomorrow.

Meanwhile, the club has received the news that they have been granted funding from Fisher House, which will allow them to buy new gloves, bags and other equipment for their gym.