HARWICH Boxing Club held their AGM and presentation night at their Main Road gym.

An appreciative audience heard of the boxers' exploits over the last season, in the club’s 20th year since being formed in April 1997.

The premier award, the President's Cup, is awarded to the boxer who has amassed the best results over the year-long season and it went to 21-year-old welterweight Paul Gordon.

Gordon had an exceptionally busy and successful season, culminating in 11 wins from 13 bouts.

This included making the national novice final before Christmas, scoring a knockout win in Holland and picking up silver in the recent Haringey Box Cup event.

Gordon's excellent season also saw him awarded the Harwich International Port Cup for best senior boxer and also the "boxers' boxer award".

The USC Shield club champion runner-up spot went to 19-year-old Pat Allen Cripps, whose excellent season saw him win the Essex and Eastern Counties light heavyweight titles and a gold at the Haringey Box Cup.

His season log saw him win a creditable seven from nine contests, which helped him pick up the Tom Parsons Cup for best senior boxer award.

The Smiler Perkins Trophy, sponsored by the Ipswich Ex-Boxers' Association, for best junior newcomer went to Toby Gledhill.

The 15-year-old won three from five in his debut season.

Another boxer to win three from five in his debut season was 17-year-old Killian Hardy, which saw him lift the the Harwich Shoecraft Cup for best youth prospect.

Ever improving 15-year-old Stevie Martin, who made it to the national junior semi-finals, took the KMS Cup for best junior boxer while the Rugby Club Shield, awarded to the best club member, went to the determined Gavin Hewitt.

Rio Gordon had a season of two halves, which saw him go undefeated in four bouts to take the junior national novice title towards the end of 2016.

However, a serious shoulder injury kept him out of the ring for the remainder of the season.

Rio’s fantastic achievement saw him take the rotary club shield for best youth boxer and it is hoped he will return to the ring before the end of 2017.

Head coach Martin Webb said: "It's been our best competitive season in 15 years, which was when we last enjoyed real squad success with boxers during the Jacobs brothers, Marcus Poston and Aaron Deex era.

"We’ve improved our win rate percentage to 67 per cent, taking part in contests from Yorkshire to the Netherlands and London to Lincolnshire.

"The coaching team are very proud of our boxers' achievements this last 12 months and everyone in the squad has the potential to go onto greater successes next season.

"We'll have a short break from full training now and then commence pre-season training towards the end of August.

"We’ve had four former club boxers return to the fold recently to add to the existing ten-person squad, so its going to be a busy 2017/18 season."