THE CENTRAL Council of the Irish Boxing Association will decide today if a young boxer can take part in next week’s European Youth Boxing Championships.
Michael O’Reilly (18) brought High Court proceedings arising from a decision to deselect him from the Irish panel due to take part in the championships following an alleged breach of discipline at a training camp.
The boxer also asked the court to order a box-off between him and boxer Christy Joyce for the right to represent Ireland in the championship’s 69kg division.
The association opposed the application.
In his ruling yesterday, Mr Justice John Cooke said O’Reilly was entitled to injunctions, pending the full hearing of the action, preventing the association from confirming the decision to drop him from the panel. The association’s central council must also disregard the decision when it meets on Saturday to finalise the team.
However, the judge was not prepared to order a box-off between O’Reilly and Joyce. The judge noted that the final selection for all international boxing teams must be ratified by the association’s central council. It was now up to that council to decide which boxers to select.
The judge added the council was free to consider any matter it deemed relevant before making a final decision as to who it selects.
The council will meet this morning to ratify team selection for the championships due to take place at Citywest, Dublin, from August 22nd to 28th.
It is understood a decision should be made sometime during the day. O’Reilly, from Portlaoise Boxing Club, sought an injunction preventing the association from “deselecting” him from the squad on the grounds that he had been denied natural justice.
Michael Conlon, for the boxer, said his client was earlier this month attending a training camp when he allowed a 17-year-old unlicensed, uninsured fellow competitor to park his van in the underground car park.
Counsel said there was a minor accident which had caused some damage to O’Reilly’s van. O’Reilly left the camp to drive to Portlaoise to obtain an estimate for the repair of his van but returned for training later that evening.
O’Reilly claimed he had permission from his coach to leave. Later he learned his name had not been put before the officer board by international youth coach Billy McLean for selection on the Irish team and that Joyce, a boxer he had recently beaten, was selected instead.
Opposing the application Edward Farrelly, for the association said it was “within the coach’s discretion” to omit O’Reilly from the squad. Counsel said it was the association’s case that O’Reilly did not have permission to leave the training camp. O’Reilly, he said, failed to adhere to strict conditions expected of him and Mr McLean was entitled not to select him.
It was inconceivable that every decision made by a coach in an amateur organisation could end up coming before the courts, he said.