Nick Ball holds on to world title with points win over Sam Goodman to stave off unwanted British boxing record
A few years ago we were in double digits of gold holders across the men's divisions.
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But now the Liverpool pocket rocket is the only bloke flying the flag and the 28-year-old did it brilliantly against a worthy challenger.
The three judges - who had the horrible job of picking a winner when both men deserved the victory and every Riyal - called it: 117-111, 118-110 and 115-113.
The undefeated Scouser tried to live up to his 'Wrecking' nickname from the bell but Aussie Goodman, 26, wisely used his height and reach advantages to keep the pitbull at bay.
The 5ft 2in mini-Mike Tyson kept crouching low and launching uppercuts and hooks at the challenger.
But Goodman was tough and happy to take-one-to-give-one when the time called for courage,
Goodman enjoyed more success in the second, putting his long levers to work against Ball's little pistons.
The only noise in the silent Saudi arena was a thick West Coast Australia accent booming 'good boy!' with every scoring shot their lad landed.
By the third, Goodman was the leading man and the matador against the Raging Ball, even whipping into hooks to the Brits ironing-board abs.
Ball's face was reddening from regular accurate digs and missed wildly and bounced off the ropes when frustration got the better of him.
Ball kept hurling haymakers but Goodman was the little grasshopper always dodging the swinging scythe at the last second.
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Ball enjoyed some success early in the fourth but Goodman, who was up from super-bantam for the title challenge, ate the servings of scouse up happily.
In trademark fashion, Ball refused to sit between rounds and he raced into the fifth with a couple of smashing right hands.
Goodman was replying with plenty of accuracy but blatantly lacking power to trouble the Brit.
Ball wisely abandoned the desperate search for a one-punch KO by the sixth and started connecting with more combinations.
The seventh was another even affair with neither man willing to take a backward step and both landing scoring shots to impress the judges.
Ball reverted to his wild haymakers in the eighth and missed by miles with a pair of left hooks.
His right hand was far more effective and might have banked him the round as Goodman never got off the back foot.
The ninth was another razor-tight stanza to try to split them. Both warriors were boxing with as much guts as guile and missing as many as they landed.
Ball earned a rare cheer from the crowd in the tenth he slashed a couple of uppercuts and hooks through Goodman's guard.
But Goodman matched him punch-for-punch in a bout that was running away with our fight-of-the-night award.
Ball still had the tenacity to hurl himself in Goodman's direction in the 11th but the underdog was fresh enough to bounce off the ropes like a kangaroo and away to safety.
Goodman met the deck in the final session but it was rightly ruled a slip after a rough clinch.
Ball finished the humdinger bleeding from his right eye but still landing crackers and Goodman confronted the tiny terror, at every opportunity, until the final bell closed off a superb advert for 9st - and all of - boxing.
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an hour ago
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