Feargal McCrory goes the distance at the Europa

By Diarmuid Sherry

Peter Mellar proved himself to be an extremely tough journeyman at least, somehow surviving a four round beating from Fergal McCrory, who was boxing in front of his travelling Tyrone support base. McCrory will have been happy at least to be in a proper contest, after his soft opponent in his professional debut in the Waterfront Hall in November.

The Coalisland man started at a blistering pace, refusing to give his opponent an inch of breathing space. The Coalisland man managed to bloody the nose of Mellar, whose face turned the colour of a sunburned tourist by the close of the first round.

McCrory continued his assault in both the second and third. A straight left right hook combination left the Hungarian staggering into the corner in the second, and Mellar’s legs always looked as if they were about to collapse in the third, as Fergal relentlessly followed and trapped Mellar on the ropes, hitting at the body and head.

The non-stop punching of McCrory inevitably slowed in the final round, as he had to settle for a points victory only, although a long left nearly decapitated the head of Mellar. The import was to survive to the final bell, smiling as he hugged and raised the hand of McCrory. McCrory now has his second win in his fledging pro career.