Gloves go on against Tahiti

Whangarei boxer Josh Bowman is hopeful of bidding his Tahitian rival Heiarii Ai an early au revoir when he faces him in the feature bout tomorrow night.

Tomorrow's Tahiti versus New Zealand fight night at Hora Hora Rugby Club, hosted by Whangarei Boxing Gym, is the first tournament of the year for Bowman and three clubmates Kaylah Munday, Ross Malthus and Jeff Hesley who are also fighting.

Three Tahitian boxers flew in yesterday for the event, including 25-year-old Bowman's 21-year-old opponent, Ai.

"Our guys are all in really good form and the fight between Josh and the Tahitian should be really competitive. I haven't seen him fight but I've heard good things... and he has represented his country before," Whangarei coach Tim Bowman said.

While the Bowman versus Ai middleweight bout is the main attraction on the 16-fight card, Munday's rematch with Tahitian Zamora Nena in the 70kg plus class will be a noted match, the coach said.

Last year, Munday fought Nena in Tahiti when she travelled there for a tournament with her coach and clubmate Deane Carpenter. "It was a very close match with only one point in it. It will be interesting to see how this match pans out," Bowman said.

The third Tahitian fighter is 13-year-old Yee-on Manutehi fighting an opponent from Rotorua in the lightweight division.

The rest of the matches will be confirmed tomorrow following weigh-in. Entries have also been received from Kerikeri, Auckland and Rotorua.

Whangarei Boxing Gym's Tahiti versus NZ fight night at Hora Hora Rugby Club gets under way from 6pm tomorrow.