Composed and assured debutant Ryan O’Rourke gets manic weekend of Irish boxing off to a winning start

Ryan O’Rourke [1-0] got his pro boxing career and an action packed weekend for Irish boxing off to the perfect start tonight.

The 20-year-old Dubliner made his paid bow on a dinner show at the Millennium Gloucester Hotel, Kensington tonight and emerged victorious.

‘The Silent Assassin’ looked comfortable against the extremely experienced Qasim Hussain [4(0)-100(2)-4] and became the 100th fighter to beat the 26-year-old.

A stoppage never looked on the cards particularly but with O’Rourke debuting and the fact the Sheffield fighter has only been stopped twice that was to be expected.

O’Rourke managed to open his account with a shutout 40-36 points win.

The first Irish debutant of the the new decade, who had his father Steven O’Rourke in his corner, started positively and settled into pro life fairly quickly. He was busy with his jab and used it as a tool to work off rather than inflict damage.

Intelligently noticing his experienced foe felt safe behind a high and tight guard he went down stairs to good effect.

The 20-year-old smartly tapping around the head before putting weight behind body shots.

Hussain started the second a little more aggressively in front of the suited dinner crowd and tried some rough house tactics, but the debutant wasn’t to be phased.

He continued to look comfortable and composed, was economical with his shots and again had his best work down stairs.

The fact experienced journey man had his protector and shorts raised before the third could start suggested they was having an effect.

The journey man began to talk in the third and was warned by the referee, but the first timer past another test and didn’t react even well followed to the corner at the end of the third.

Win number☝️for the ‘Silent Assassin’ Ryan O’Rourke 🇮🇪 #orourkesgym #boxrooms @MTKGlobal @JonnyRashman @RyanOR12345 https://t.co/hjF7ZKFnLe

— O’Rourke’s Gym 🥊🇮🇪 (@ORourkesgym) January 30, 2020

O’Rourke smiled and switch hit comfortably against a more vocal foe and again was a clear winner of the round.

The St Michael’s Inchicore graduate moved slightly up a gear in the final stanza, although still seemed to be easing through proceedings. He did manage to find a home for the right hand down the stretch and knocked his opponents gum shield out, but Hussain is a fighter that 98 of 100 times has taken his defeaters the distance and wasn’t going anywhere.

O’Rourke told Irish-boxing.com he wanted six fights in his debut year will be out again as soon as March 14 as he is penciled in for a fight on a Bolton show.

BUI Celtic Champion Victor Rabie was scheduled to be on the card alongside his stable mate, but didn’t appear.