The Clevedon boxer’s triumphant streak continues in Australia
The England number two, who was born Down Under and has dual citizenship, was in Nailsea in Australia on a work secondment with her employer Baker Hughes.
Poole wasted no time in joining Western Australian boxing club RingFit, who soon kick-started her Australian boxing career by signing her up for the annual women’s interstate boxing tournament, Queen of the Ring.
She boxed at light welterweight (63kg), her first opponent was another WA boxer and professional MMA fighter, Annie Thatcher of Peterson’s Boxing Club.
The first round was a hard-fought battle, with Thatcher’s physical presence and ability to hold the center of the ring meaning a slow-starting Poole had to work hard to outwit her.
In the second round, a better known Poole dominated the round with her technical ability and excellent footwork, with her straight right and left hook combination causing Thatcher a lot of trouble.
In the third round, a more aggressive Poole forced a standing count by following up a double jab with a clean right hand strike to the head.
Poole continued to dominate, forcing two more points in the third round before the referee stopped the fight and awarded Poole the win by TKO.
The final was a closer fight against experienced boxer and South Australian state champion Nadine Parsons.
Parsons, an unorthodox southpaw, forced Poole to adapt her style, using her footwork and boxing brain to outwit her.
She made life difficult for Poole by stifling her attacks and keeping them regular, but Poole managed to land more clean hits and convinced the judges to award her the win by a split four-to-one decision, giving Poole the win was crowned Queen of the Ring.
Two weeks later, Poole dropped a weight class to lightweight (60kg) to face Premier Boxing Club’s Emily Spasevski for the WA State Champion title.
Spasevski was an orthodox boxer with good footwork, quick hands and a dangerous jab, but Poole was in a different league in this fight.
Poole dominated from the start, her superior power and some excellent combinations never allowing her opponent to gain momentum.
90 seconds into the third round, a series of unanswered punches caused the referee to stop the fight.
Poole is crowned WA state champion in front of a very proud Australian father and grandfather who rarely get to see their box.
Her state championship belt qualifies her for the Australian National Championships in Canberra at the Institute of Sport on November 20-23.
Poole thanked Baker Hughes for the valuable career opportunity and continued support of her boxing.