Liverpool want Alex Pearce to replace Jamie Carragher

Posted on November 7, 2012 by adminsports

Get me the new Carra! Rodgers ready to raid old club Reading for defender Pearce

UPDATED:

13:45 GMT, 7 November 2012

Brendan Rodgers wants to sign Reading defender Alex Pearce as a long-term replacement for Jamie Carragher.

Liverpool have had a bid for the 23-year-old rejected but are monitoring his contract situation.
Pearce – Reading’s Player of the Season last year – is out of contract in the summer. If no new deal is signed, Pearce would be available for a knockdown fee in January or for free next summer.

Red alert: Liverpool are interested in signing Reading defender Alex Pearce

Sportsmail understands Pearce is unhappy with the terms Reading are offering and believes he has been benched for the last seven games as punishment for not agreeing to the deal on the table.

Pearce had not missed a minute of league football for Reading for more than a year before being dropped and his impressive start to life in the Premier League saw him make his Republic of Ireland debut in September.

He last played for Reading in the 1-0 defeat to West Brom in September and without him Brian McDermott’s side have shipped 18 goals.

Long term: Liverpool manager Brendan Rodgers wants to find a successor to experienced star Jamie Carragher

His continued absence has raised speculation about his future and has put Liverpool on red-alert as Rodgers looks to bolster his squad in January.

Rodgers is an admirer of Pearce’s professionalism and promoted him to the role of Reading captain when he was in charge of the club in 2009.

It is also understood that Rodgers has doubts over the quality of the young centre-backs at Liverpool and believes Pearce is a better bet to replace Carragher, who at 34 is nearing the end of his Anfield career.

Chavez Jnr faces losing 2m purse after failing drugs test after Martinez defeat

Posted on September 20, 2012 by adminsports

Chavez Jnr faces losing 2m Martinez purse after testing positive for cannabis

UPDATED:

10:30 GMT, 20 September 2012

Julio Cesar Chavez Jnr could lose his $3million (1.9m) purse after testing positive for cannabis after his unanimous points defeat to Sergio Martinez last weekend.

The son of the Mexican legend lost his WBC middleweight title in Las Vegas, coming alive only in the last round he dropped Martinez.

But the Argentine recovered to hear the final bell and inflict a first defeat on Chavez Jnr.

In the dock: Julio Cesar Chavez Jnr (left) tested positive for cannabis

'Julio Cesar Chavez Jr will have the opportunity to
explain the situation to the Nevada State Athletic Commission,' said a
spokesman for Top Rank, who promote the fighter.

Nevada boxing chief Keith Kizer confirmed one of the 32 fighters who were in action in Vegas last weekend tested positive for a banned substance, but refused to confirm his identity.

Winner: Sergio Martinez recovered from a knockdown to beat Chavez Jnr

Chavez Jnr is no stranger to controversy having served a seven-month ban for testing positive for a banned diuretic after his 2009 win
over Troy Rowlands, which was changed to a no-contest.

He was also arrested on drink-drive charges in January and struggled to make the weight for his February bout with Marco Antonio Rubio.

Demba Ba latest: Alan Pardew admits striker could leave

Posted on September 20, 2012 by adminsports

Pardew admits Ba could still leave while he tries to play down rift with Newcastle striker

UPDATED:

20:11 GMT, 19 September 2012

Alan Pardew has taken Demba Ba to task over his agent's outburst but been forced to concede the Newcastle danger man could leave for a knockdown 7million in the January transfer window.

It was widely believed Demba Ba's buy-out clause expired at the end of July, but, as he prepared for Thursday night's Europa League tie against Maritimo, in Madeira, Pardew revealed that it kicks in again in the New Year.

Getting ready: Alan Pardew with defender Mike Williamson ahead of their clash with Maritimo

Heat: Newcastle players train in the sun on Wednesday

The Newcastle manager was delighted
with Demba Ba's two-goal response to going on as a second-half
substitute at Everton on Monday but less impressed with his agent Alex
Gontran's subsequent claim that they may seek a move, if the 27-year old
continued to be left on the bench.

Furious at such a blatant attempt to
influence his selection policy, Pardew held talks with Demba Ba before
leaving Newcastle Airport on Wednesday and made it clear he would not
tolerate such interference.

The set-to came amid a continuing
wrangle over Demba Ba's future, with the former West Ham marksman
leaving club officials dismayed with his pay demands. His current
50,000-a-week contract runs out at the end of next season, and the
figures he has been asking for have evidently been branded unrealistic
by Newcastle and clubs interested in signing him.

'I have spoken to Demba (about his
agent) and told him I was disappointed with some of the comments around
him,' said Pardew. 'Sometimes it's out of his control and out of my
control.

'But we know each other well enough,
and I've got no problems with him, because he is a team player who wants
to do his best for the team. He has always been like that. The
situation with him is ongoing in terms of his contract, as there is that
clause in there and it makes us vulnerable. That's where we are. It's
still open in the next window.

'I just think the agent stuff was
people saying things they shouldn't say, really. It doesn't really
affect myself and Demba, because we've got a very good relationship.

On song: Demba Ba struck twice against Everton

Stretch: Sammy Ameobi during the training session

'The
bottom line is that you have to get your players to play at their best,
and sometimes there are different methods for doing that.

'If I'm honest, he gave me exactly
what I wanted (when he went on at Everton). But I knew there would be a
response from him. Sometimes you've got to be honest, and I don't think
he's played particularly well. The same can be said of Papiss Cisse, so
he might have to deal with missing out next time.'

Pardew made the expected wholesale
changes to his squad and was also forced to leave Cisse behind, after
the striker went down with a sickness bug.

Strong: Pardew says he has a good relationship with Ba

Shola Ameobi will start on a night when 37-year-old Steve Harper hopes to extend a European career which he admits he thought was over.

The goalkeeper made his first senior appearance for the club in almost 17 months in the away leg of the play-off against Greek side Atromitos last month, and as a result of number one Tim Krul's elbow injury, returned to Barclays Premier League action at Everton.

Asked if he thought he would ever play
in Europe again, Harper said: 'Last year, probably not. But this year
it's well-documented the conversation I had with the manager.

'He
said we had a lot of games and if I still wanted it, it was there for
me, so at the start of the year there was light at the end of the tunnel
and here I am.'

Despite
spending much of his career as Shay Given's deputy, Harper has
experienced most of the Magpies' big nights on the continental stage.

Ready to go: Steve Harper is set to start

He played in a famous 1-0 Champions League victory over Juventus at St James' Park and was in the side which beat Dynamo Kiev 2-1 in the same competition in 2002-03, while he was on the bench the night Craig Bellamy's late winner against Feyenoord in Rotterdam fired the club into the second group stage.

Harper said: 'Obviously, the two Champions League games against Juventus and Dynamo Kiev were special, the Feyenoord night, going to Barcelona, the San Siro. It was fantastic.

'The good thing about this is, I was able to sit and look at the draw and the bonus is we are going to three places we haven't been to before.

'We are going to Madeira, Bordeaux and Bruges. I was looking at the draw and looking at Partizan Belgrade thinking, “I've been there twice, can we please go somewhere else” Not that there's anything wrong with Belgrade, but you just want to go out and experience new places.

'It's fantastic to come to Maritimo and I'll hopefully get to Bordeaux and Bruges as well.'

Sergio Martinez beats Julio Cesar Chavez Jr in Las Vegas

Posted on September 16, 2012 by adminsports

Martinez survives final round scare to beat Chavez Jr in Las Vegas

UPDATED:

08:55 GMT, 16 September 2012

Argentina's Sergio Martinez survived a torrid final round to defeat Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. and claim the WBC middleweight title in Las Vegas on Saturday.

A series of Chavez left hands early in the final round knocked Martinez down, and had him badly hurt but the challenger returned fire and hung on to reach the final bell in a fight that, until the knockdown, he had been dominating.

'Julio fought a great fight,' Martinez said. 'He showed he had heart right until the end.'

King of the ring: Sergio Martinez celebrates his victory over WBC middleweight champion Julio Cesar Chavez Jr

On the attack: Martinez lands a shot on Chavez Jr

Until the final round, the 37-year-old Martinez, 50-2-2 (28 KOs), was far too fast and skillful for Chavez, 46-1-1 (32 KOs).

He bloodied his opponents' nose and closed his left eye with southpaw right jabs and straight left hands, and progressively weakened him with left hands to the body.

For his part, Chavez seemed intent on attempting to pin the smaller Martinez in a corner or against the ropes and dig to the body with hooks and uppercuts.

Not going all his own way: Chavez Jr lands a punch on Martinez

He's done it! Martinez celebrates his win

But each time it appeared he might be starting to turn the momentum in his favour, Martinez would respond, repeatedly succeeding in spinning away or returning fire.

'I was 20 seconds away from knocking him out,' Chavez said.

'I started way too late. Going into the fight, I thought I was going to be able to do all night what I did in that final round.

'A rematch is justified.'

Martin Jol hopes Fulham can get back on track

Posted on September 14, 2012 by adminsports

Fingers crossed! Jol hopes Fulham can regroup after distracting break

UPDATED:

15:31 GMT, 14 September 2012

Martin Jol hopes a lot of work in a short time will help Fulham get their Barclays Premier League campaign back on track against West Brom at Craven Cottage.

After opening the new campaign with a 5-0 trashing of Norwich, Fulham have suffered three straight defeats, being knocked out of the Capital One Cup at Sheffield Wednesday and then turned over 3-0 at West Ham before the international break.

Jol accepts it has not been an ideal schedule kicking his heels at Motspur Park for the best part of two weeks as he looks to reshape the group following the transfer deadline departure of Moussa Dembele and want-away Clint Dempsey also eventually ending up at Tottenham.

Improvement: Martin Jol is hopeful Fulham will make a better show of themselves

'It was almost ridiculous after the West Ham game that everybody left for the international period,' said the Dutchman.

'We could not do a lot with them, but we have done something today and hopefully it was enough to play in a different style again with different players.

'We threw everything away in the first couple of minutes against West Ham, when we could not stay with the runner from the knockdown, we should have done better.

'Now we must look forward to the next game, when West Brom will play a different style, and we have talked about that with the players today.

'We have done something about it in our training session, so hopefully we will get a better result.'

Jol offered no excuses for his side's failures at Upton Park, where they could not cope with the direct balls up to Andy Carroll.

'If you have the experience we have got, then the players can cope with any style,' said the former Tottenham and Ajax coach.

'Now it will be a challenge again because we play with a totally different midfield.

'We have to try to find a solution, maybe change it a bit because we have lost a lot of players, and hopefully we can take a step forwards again.'

Veteran Greek international Giorgos Karagounis will go into the squad following his free transfer move from Panathinaikos, but Iranian midfielder Ashkan Dejagah needs a bit more time to get match fit after joining from Wolfsburg.

Jol is expecting big things from the 26-year-old.

Big signing: Dimitar Berbatov can make his mark at Craven Cottage

'He is a player who is pretty young, and played in the Bundesliga,' said the former Hamburg manager.

'I know him very well from when I was in Germany, so I thought to get some competition in that area was good, he also wanted to come to England at Fulham, so it was a nice transfer to get him over here.'

The manner of Dempsey's departure, however, continues to irk Jol, who made it clear the American remained an integral part of Fulham's plans despite the player clearly wanting to further his career elsewhere.

'We were really disappointed,' said Jol. 'It always looked like he was going to Liverpool, everything was almost wasted, because five or six weeks ago, we thought he would join them, then Spurs came in on the last day.

Injury doubt: Bryan Ruiz

'We had to make a decision, it was not probably what we wanted, but the club decided to let him go.

'Clint did not literally say “I will not play”. Everyone knows we wanted to keep him, but there was one player who wanted to leave.

'If you have a bit of imagination, you know he did not want to play here.'

Striker Bryan Ruiz is battling to recover from a hamstring problem to play, so Dimitar Berbatov could lead the line on his home debut after a deadline move from Manchester United.

Jol said: 'To get him to Fulham was an unbelievable thing for me and hopefully for the team as well, because he is a real quality player.'

London 2012 Olympics: Anthony Ogogo wins bronze

Posted on August 10, 2012 by adminsports

Ogogo settles for bronze as brilliant Brazilian Falcao reaches middleweight final

UPDATED:

15:02 GMT, 10 August 2012

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LIVE RESULTS |
EVENT SCHEDULE |
MEDALS TABLE

Anthony Ogogo's dream of an Olympic gold medal came to an end as he was beaten 16-9 by Brazil's Esquiva Falcao in their middleweight semi-final, and was forced to settle for bronze.

The first two rounds were cagey, nervous affairs, with the pair locked together at 3-3 after opening three minutes and continuing to grapple long into the second, with few clear punches landed by either fighter.

On the deck: Anthony Ogogo was knocked down by his Brazilian opponent

Setting the pace, Ogogo was wary of
the Brazilian's fast counters, and a right hand from Falcao in the final
half minute of the second, followed by a sharp right uppercut, helped
swing the bout in the Brazilian's favour.

Three
points up heading into the last, the Brazilian knocked Ogogo to the
canvas seconds after the restart with a straight left, and a second
knockdown for Ogogo effectively ended his hopes, as the Brazilian
cruised home.

London 2012 Olympics: Boxing: John Joe Nevin through to semi-final

Posted on August 6, 2012 by adminsports

Nevin clings on to beat Fierro to move within one fight of gold medal for Ireland

UPDATED:

22:18 GMT, 5 August 2012

LIVE RESULTS |
EVENT SCHEDULE |
MEDALS TABLE

Ireland's John Joe Nevin will add an Olympic medal to the two World Championship bronzes he has already won after beating Mexico's Oscar Valdez Fierro 19-13 in their Olympic bantamweight quarter-final.

The Mullingar man survived a final round knockdown to see off his aggressive opponent and book a semi-final clash against Cuba's top seed Alvaro Estrada on Friday with a place in the Olympic final at stake.

Nevin dedicated his win to his cousin David, who died in February at the age of 25.

John Joe Nevin (right) survived a final round knock down to progress

He said: 'He was meant to be here and I'd like to thank him. He always told me I was the best in the world. He inspired me to get into boxing.'

Nevin started the fight on the back-foot, enjoying some success picking off the former World Youth champion's crude advances, but the pair were locked at 5-5 after the first, and the Mexican started the second well.

Up you get: Nevin was seconds away from losing the fight

All smiles: Nevin looked delighted after he beat Oscar Valdez Fierro

The Irishman struggled to regain his pose as the Mexican began relying on heavy right hands, but Nevin's excellent movement blocked the majority of shots and his more patient approach saw him edge into a three point lead.

Nevin was forced to cling on to see the bout out after being dropped and clearly winded by a left hook to the body, but the judges rewarded his cleaner work and a clearly emotional Nevin celebrated in style.

He added: 'I got back from Beijing and hung on for four more years when some lads wanted me to go professional. I'd trade the two bronzes I've got for an Olympic medal. Hopefully I can turn it into a different colour now.'

Atletico Madrid 4 Valencia 2: Last-gasp Costa grabs lifeline after Falcao brace

Posted on April 20, 2012 by adminsports

Atletico Madrid 4 Valencia 2: Costa grabs late lifeline after Falcao brace

UPDATED:

21:50 GMT, 19 April 2012

Atletico Madrid moved a step closer
to their second Europa League final in three years as two goals from
Radamel Falcao and further strikes from Miranda and Adrian Lopez gave
them a 4-2 win over Spanish rivals Valencia in tonight's semi-final
first leg.

The hosts started brightly and could
have been ahead even earlier as Diego Alves saved from Diego and Adrian
before the latter showed great persistence to set Falcao up for the
easiest of headers to open the scoring on 18 minutes.

Stunning: Atletico Madrid's Falcao celebrates his strike

HEADER HERE

Atletico Madrid: Courtois, Juanfran, Miranda, Dominguez, Filipe Luis, Mario Suarez, Gabi, Turan (Tiago 81), Diego (Perea 88), Adrian (Salvio 89), Falcao. Subs Not Used: Sergio Asenjo, Paulo Assuncao, Koke, Martin.

Booked: Turan, Dominguez.

Goals: Falcao 18, Miranda 49, Adrian 54, Falcao 78.

Valencia: Diego Alves, Ricardo Costa, Rami, Victor Ruiz, Mathieu, Feghouli (Canales 72), Topal, Tino Costa, Jordi Alba (Piatti 72), Soldado, Jonas (Aduriz 80). Subs Not Used: Guaita, Bruno, Maduro, Parejo.

Booked: Feghouli, Diego Alves.

Goals: Jonas 45, Ricardo Costa 90.

Att: 51,000

Ref: Craig Thomson (Scotland).

After that initial burst from Atletico though, Valencia started to gain a foothold in the game and equalised in first-half stoppage time as Jonas swept home Adil Rami's knockdown.

However, 2010 Europa League winners Atletico started the second period in even stronger fashion and scored twice in nine minutes as Miranda took advantage of some slack marking to head home Diego's free-kick before Adrian slotted past Alves from a narrow angle.

Falcao looked to have all but sealed Atletico's place in the final in Bucharest with a sensational strike from outside the area that went in off the bar 12 minutes from time, but Ricardo Costa headed home from another corner with virtually the last touch of the game to give Valencia some hope heading into the return leg at the Mestalla next week.

Atletico's fast starts at home have been a feature of their run to the semi-finals and they pinned Valencia back in the opening stages.

Firstly, Arda Turan wriggled free on the right and his cut-back should have been dispatched from inside the area by Brazilian Diego, but he placed his shot too close to his compatriot Alves and he palmed the ball to safety.

Adrian then also shot straight at the former Almeria keeper, but Atletico deservedly took the lead when Adrian capitalised on Rami's dawdling to cut the ball back from the by-line and Falcao nodded home his ninth goal in Europe this season.

Deadly: Falcao heads in his first

On target: Jonas scores Valencia's first goal

Valencia's first serious attempt on goal
did not come until after the half-hour mark but it proved to be a
warning the Atletico defence did not heed as Rami rose highest to head
Tino Costa's corner just wide.

Jonas fired just over after Roberto Soldado had led a lightening quick
counter-attack but moments later the Brazilian did have the away goal
Valencia craved as he bundled the ball home at the back post after Rami
had won another header from a Costa corner.

Unai Emery's men were only level for three minutes after the interval
though as Miranda was left in acres of space from Diego's floated
free-kick to easily nod past Alves.

Fine strike: Atletico midfielder Adrian Lopez makes it 2-0

Up for it: Atletico's Diego heads the ball

And the home side had a two-goal cushion soon after as Mehmet Topal
carelessly gave the ball away in midfield and Adrian pounced to fire low
past Alves.

The Valencia keeper was called into action on three occasions to keep
his side in the tie as he made a brilliant double save to deny Filipe
Luis and Arda before turning Diego's free-kick over.

However, there was absolutely nothing Alves could do to stop Falcao's
second with in the 78th minute as the Colombian broke the offside trap,
turned inside onto his left foot and crashed a wonderful strike in off
the underside of the bar.

Atletico, though, continued to defend set-pieces in a poor fashion as
Costa was left all alone to head home deep into stoppage time to keep
Valencia just in the tie.

Safe hands: Valencia's Diego Alves, left, punches clear

Head coach Diego Simeone celebrates fourth goal

Almost there: Head coach Diego Simeone celebrates fourth goal

Leicester 2 Cardiff 1: Gallagher at the double to hit Bluebirds" promotion hopes

Posted on February 11, 2012 by adminsports

Leicester 2 Cardiff 1: Gallagher at the double to hit Bluebirds' promotion hopes

Paul Gallagher scored a goal in each half as Cardiff saw their promotion challenge falter at the King Power Stadium.

Malky Mackay's Carling Cup finalists suffered back-to-back league defeats for the first time this season as they followed up last week's 3-1 loss at home to Blackpool with a largely abject display.

Only the inspired form of Cardiff goalkeeper David Marshall kept Leicester at bay until Gallagher – who replaced the suspended Neil Danns in the Foxes' only change – opened the scoring with a penalty four minutes before half-time.

Done deal: Paul Gallagher scores Leicester's second goal from the spot

MATCH FACTS

Leicester: Schmeichel, Peltier, Mills, St. Ledger, Konchesky, Gallagher (Howard 90), Drinkwater, Wellens, Dyer (Marshall 71), Beckford, Nugent.

Subs Not Used: Logan, Delfouneso, Morgan.

Goals: Gallagher 41 pen, 71.

Cardiff: Marshall, McNaughton, Turner, Gerrard, Taylor, Whittingham, Cowie, Gunnarsson (Kiss 7), Conway, Vuckic (Gestede 46), Miller, Kiss (Mason 65).

Subs Not Used: Parish, Blake.

Booked: Kiss, Cowie.

Goals: Whittingham 77 pen.

Att: 21,375

Ref: Mark Halsey (Lancashire).

Kenny Miller thought he had levelled moments after, only to be denied by the offside flag.

In a quieter second half, Gallagher found the decisive goal with a superb free-kick before Peter Whittingham reduced the arrears from the spot.

Leicester move to within six points of the play-offs, while Cardiff remain fourth but slip five points behind second-placed Southampton.

The hosts started impressively as Jermaine Beckford came within inches of finding the decisive touch on Daniel Drinkwater's cross, before Gallagher sliced wide from Lee Peltier's knockdown.

Cardiff then suffered a setback in the seventh minute as Aron Gunnarsson hobbled off with a suspected groin injury to make way for Filip Kiss, and Mackay's men continued to struggle in finding an answer to Leicester's early momentum.

Beckford engineered space on the right-wing for Gallagher to cross and Richie Wellens aimed an overhead kick, which took a deflection to force a fine save from David Marshall in the Cardiff goal.

Gallagher's delivery was becoming an increasing problem for the visitors and centre backs Sean St Ledger and Matt Mills both went close following set pieces from the former Blackburn man.

Marshall was called into action with half an hour gone to save from Beckford on the angle following some clever interplay with strike partner David Nugent, and moments later the ex-Leeds forward shot wide when Anthony Gerrard misjudged a searching ball from Gallagher.

Wellens produced an excellent half-volley from 30 yards for Marshall to push over at full stretch but, when the midfielder was felled by Kiss, Leicester had the lead they deserved in the 41st minute.

The infringement came from another Gallagher corner and the winger proved himself to be just as effective from the penalty spot, finding the bottom corner.

Cardiff appeared to have found an immediate response, but Miller's delicate lob over Kasper Schmeichel from debutant Haris Vuckic's flick on was ruled out for offside.

It was to be Vuckic's last contribution as he made way for Rudy Gestede at the interval, but the Bluebirds had Marshall to thank once more in the 51st minute as he plunged to his right to tip around the post when Lloyd Dyer teed up Nugent.

Beckford continued to probe industriously and found Marshall in his way following a jinking run after the hour.

However, there was nothing the former Norwich keeper could do in the 71st minute when Gallagher capitalised on a foul by Don Cowie on Dyer to plant a sumptuous 25-yard free-kick into the top corner.

Cardiff were offered a lifeline when Schmeichel fumbled Whittingham's corner and Peltier fouled Gestede in the ensuing panic.
Whittingham stroked home from the spot.

Kevin Mitchell beats Felix Lora on points

Posted on February 11, 2012 by adminsports

Rusty Mitchell labours to win as Dagenham Destroyer returns to the ring at York Hall

Kevin Mitchell returned to the ring with an unconvincing points win over Felix Lora at a packed York Hall in London.

The 27-year-old had been out of action since stopping John Murray in Liverpool last year.

And the 'Dagenham Destroyer' showed a little rustiness as he made hard work of what looked a straightforward assignment on paper.

Salute to the crowd: Kevin Mitchell celebrates with son Vinnie after defeating Felix Lora

Lora, also 27, came in to the fight with a less than impressive 14-8-5 record but Mitchell had been prepared for a tough ten rounds.

And that was exactly what he got as he pushed all the way in a bout that struggled to get out of second gear.

Lora hit the canvas in the first round but had clearly slipped and it was Mitchell who landed the more meaningful blows in what was a tentative opening three minutes.

On the canvas: Mitchell stands over Lora after knocking him down

The fight came to life in the second round when Lora was down again, this time from a smart left hand. He survived the count however and Mitchell was unable to finish his man there and then.

The visiting fighter showed no ill-effects from his knockdown as the bout settled down again in the third. Mitchell was reliant on his jab, with neither man able to string together fluid combinations.

As Lora continued to look for an unlikely one-punch knockout, Mitchell fought somewhat on the back foot in the fourth session and the underdog continued to control the centre of the ring in the fifth. After Mitchell slipped to the ground, the pair squared up on the bell and had to be dragged back to their respective corners.

Putting the pressure on: Mitchell has Lora on the ropes

The York Hall crowd had been slightly muted to this stage but roared the home favourite on at the start of the seventh. The expected fireworks failed to materialise however although Lora did end the round with a bloodied nose.

If Mitchell was expecting his opponent to tire, he was disappointed as Lora landed several right hands in the eighth round. Both men shook off the shackles briefly but again it was Lora who landed the more telling blows.

Mitchell did land a superb left hook in the penultimate round as the exertions of his rival seemed to begin to take their toll before the fight threatened to turn into a tear-up in the last as both fighters sought to impress with Mitchell finishing the stronger.

Boxing clever: Kevin Mitchell lines Lora up for a shot

And the crowd rose to acclaim their winner as Mitchell was declared the victor by a score of 98-92.

The Dagenham man had hoped to use this fight as a stepping stone to a summer showdown with Scotland's WBO champion Ricky Burns but on this evidence, Mitchell will need to find another gear to challenge for a world title.

Earlier on the card, former Olympian Bradley Saunders stopped journeyman Jason Nesbitt in the third round of his eagerly-awaited professional debut.

Getting the shots away: Bradley Saunders lands a punch on Jason Nesbitt

Winning well: Saunders celebrates his victory

After a disappointing Games in Beijing in 2008, Saunders, 25, opted to remain amateur but his plans to compete in London were derailed by injury.

Instead he turned professional last year and will now look to build on this victory, having overpowered the 38-year-old from Birmingham.

Elsewhere, Enfield's Frank Buglioni, 22, was taken beyond the first round for the first time in his short professional career by Ryan Clark.

But the rising star of the super-middleweight division stalked his 22-year-old opponent from Lincolnshire round the ring and dominated for the allotted four rounds to improve his record to three wins without defeat.

Mitchell is expected to be back in the ring on the undercard of George groves' British and commonwealth super middleweight title defence against Kenny Anderson at Wembley Arena on March 16.

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Tag Archives: knockdown

Liverpool want Alex Pearce to replace Jamie Carragher

Chavez Jnr faces losing 2m purse after failing drugs test after Martinez defeat

Demba Ba latest: Alan Pardew admits striker could leave

Sergio Martinez beats Julio Cesar Chavez Jr in Las Vegas

Martin Jol hopes Fulham can get back on track

London 2012 Olympics: Anthony Ogogo wins bronze

London 2012 Olympics: Boxing: John Joe Nevin through to semi-final

Atletico Madrid 4 Valencia 2: Last-gasp Costa grabs lifeline after Falcao brace

Leicester 2 Cardiff 1: Gallagher at the double to hit Bluebirds" promotion hopes

Kevin Mitchell beats Felix Lora on points