Robert Lloyd-Taylor SD3 Takaloo
Robert Lloyd-Taylor was a last minute stand-in and showed himself to be well worthy of his place. He started well with the jab early on and didn't let Takaloo into range until the final round. The veteran was second favourite for the whole tournament coming into the fight but was unable to land anything of significance early on. He looked every one of his 35 years and was unable to produce any of the form that took him to a world title shot, falling short when throwing from range and getting tied up when he made it inside. All the crisp punches came from Lloyd-Taylor, with the sharp jab being backed up by a decent right hook. All three rounds were fairly close and the punch counts were near identical, but the quality of the punches was the key factor in a deserved win for the substitute.
Peter Vaughn SD3 Wayne Goddard
A decent match-up that threatened to be a tear-up but turned into something more cat and mouse. The pattern of the fight was the same all the way through with Vaughn charging forward and Goddard boxing on the back foot. For the first couple of rounds Goddard was moving well and boxing smart, catching Vaughn on the counter and slipping away when backed towards the ropes. Vaughn was unable to land anything firm because the movement from Goddard was too good. They both tired towards the end of the second and with Goddard slowing down he was caught in the third and at one point looked as if he may be in trouble, but he survived until the bell and should have won 29-28. However two judges at ringside saw it the other way, including one with the ridiculous score of 30-27 to Vaughn. There were boos at ringside and dissent in the studio. Vaughn was undoubtedly lucky to get through but it may have taken more out of him than he would have liked as he was knackered at the end.
Kris Agyei-Dua SD3 Jeff Thomas
A cracking bout between two fighters with contrasting styles but who were both out to attack with little thought to saving energy for the semi-final. Agyei-Dua was comfortably on top in the first couple of minutes, looking slick and comfortable, landing some crisp combinations and moving well. It all changed in an instant though as Thomas landed a flush left hook which put Agyei-Dua on the canvas. He made it up but looked unsteady. In the one minute between rounds Agyei-Dua seemed to recover fully and for the next six minutes imposed his class on the fight. He was stringing together combinations and moving away before Thomas had the chance to counter. Thomas looked for more big, single shots to try to repeat the early success, but despite landing a couple he was unable to further trouble Agyei-Dua and . The fight went to the judges who scored it a majority draw meaning referee Terry O'Conner had the casting vote, and he scored the first round as a 10-9 to Thomas, meaning Agyei-Dua took the fight 29-28. Thomas was gracious enough to admit in the post-fight interview that the better man won.
Nick Quigley SD3 Steve Harkin
A scrappy fight, partially caused by the fact that Harkin seems an awkward fighter who doesn't look to have great balance or movement, meaning that the boxers were tangled up a lot of the time. Quigley was comfortably the better fighter, being first to the punch and able to move out of trouble when needed. He probably should have done it a bit more in the final round because there were a lot of head clashes towards the end of the fight as the two men tired. Somehow it was a split decision but thankfully the right man went through. Not an encounter for the ages.
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