Eggington ponders future after majority title loss to Baraou

Baraou on the attack on way to European title victory

IN recent years, a number of writers have urged Sam Eggington to consider his fighting future, only to eat their words after the Black Country force of nature peeled off another against-all-odds performance.

For the first time, following his points defeat to Berlin’s Abass Baraou for the European light-middleweight title, Eggington publicly considered it himself.

Four stitches sealing a gash over his left eye, the Stourbridge Savage told me: “I’ve always said, once you’re thinking of getting out, you should get out.” He admitted to harbouring those thoughts.

If Friday night at Telford International Centre did signal the end – and I fully expect the 43 bout warrior to fight another day, then Eggington can walk away with his head held high.

On Wasserman Boxing’s televised show – an 11 fight marathon that began at 5pm, Sam pushed a fighter being groomed for very big things all the way.

In fact, judge Freddy Rafn had it all square at 114-114 after 12 rounds. The scoring was curious: Jean-Robert Laine and Mika Lindgren had Baraou a wide winner, 111-117 and 112-117, respectively.

I was in no doubt the right man’s hand was raised. Baraou, a 29-year-old Olympian, landed the more eye-catching punches – especially with the right hand - and opened the throttle after Eggington’s brow was gashed in the ninth.

In the quiet of his dressing room, Sam, a former British, European and world champ, pondered a career that he strongly believes has never been fully appreciated.

“I’m getting tarred with a brush,” he said. “People have a perception that I’m here to make the numbers up and I think that’s getting through to the judges. I can’t shake that off.

“You sit back and think, ‘I can’t keep going through this s***’.  People think I do this because I can’t do anything else, but I can do other things. I do this because I love it.”

Of the verdict, he shrugged: “It is what it is. It was close. If I’d got it, he couldn’t complain, if he’d got it, I couldn’t complain.

The damage to Eggington’s eye is visible as he stalks German

“He was compact, sharp, but not concussive. I had the better of the boxing, I actually outboxed the master boxer.”

Paul “Soggy” Counihan, a key member of Eggington’s Eastside gym, Birmingham, training team, admitted: “At the final bell, we thought we just lost. It was a great fight and the two scorecards were very, very wide.

“Sam had more success when he kept it at range, but he stayed too long on the ropes in patches.  Baraou won the late rounds, the early rounds we had massive success.”

“It slipped away in the last couple of rounds,” manager Jon Pegg admitted. “I thought we won six, but people remember the end of a fight. This was a former top class amateur and Sam outboxed him.

“I’m proud of him – to perform like that in his 43rd fight, to lose a split decision to a world class kid.”

Surprisingly, Eggington, a man with a reputation for trench warfare, was second best at close quarters, yet won the battle of the jabs in a contest that also doubled as a world title eliminator.

Baraou, who possesses fine footwork, always threatened with right hands and also showed a whiplash left hook. The rounds he won were won more spectacularly than the rounds Eggington won.

That was pretty much the story of the fight.

With a high tight guard, the German would force 30-year-old Sam to the ropes, land rights, step to the side and deliver spiteful uppercuts.

Baraou really opened up in the ninth, a succession of right hands drawing a smile from Sam, who ended an uncomfortable round with blood running from his left eye.

Eggington worked behind his jab in the 10th, but was nailed in the 11th by a left hook and endured more uncomfortable moments on the ropes.

Baraou, who stood between each round, certainly has a remarkable engine and appeared as fresh down the stretch as he did in the opening moments.

Eggington flung himself into the fray in the last, but copped another left hook as both let their hands go.

Like the crowd-pleasing gladiator he is, Eggington went out on his shield. In the next few weeks we’ll know if this was his last glorious hurrah or whether more heroics await fans.