Women’s Coach Development Programme: Cornering Workshop
October 16, 2023 | by Nabillah Akhtar
The latest Women’s Coach Development Programme session has taken place at the English Institute of Sport on Sunday 15th October.
The ever-popular ‘Cornering Workshop’ did not disappoint. Although coaches were thrown in the deep end, they were swiftly briefed upon arrival and got stuck in with their pod of (sixteen) boxers within 30 minutes of being present.
Once their athletes were identified, they managed to build up a rapport with them and took to their corners of the ring in gym-style bouts.
Programme Lead, Laura Sargeant said: “This is a major part of their development journey. A lot of them have taken corners already and some are new or have only handed up in competitions, so to take a corner of a boxer who you have just met is a major challenge for them.
“It really puts them outside their comfort zone! Each coach’s confidence grew throughout the day, and it was great to see this and the improvements that came with this once they relaxed a little.”
The day was made even more realistic with the help of Grade A Referee, Dougie Clifton from Midlands Counties and Grade B Judge, Jason Kilkenny from TTW who kept time.
Laura continued: “Having the officials there makes it even more real and it’s very beneficial for everyone, as it also helps the boxers deal with different scenarios such as getting a standing count etc. I honestly can’t thank them enough for giving up their Sunday to come and help us out.”
A special mention must also go to the boxers from Mikey’s Gym, Ipswich, Telford, Gladiators and East Middlesbrough, all of whom embraced the experience, gave honest feedback to the coaches, and showed impeccable behaviour and sportsmanship throughout the day. They are an absolute credit to their clubs.
Finally, England Boxing would like to thank the team of mentors in attendance, who helped arrange the sparring and went above and beyond to help and support this session and the development of the coaches: Rachel Bower, Kara Mikolajczyk, Donna Harvey-Arnell, Lindsey Jarrett and Naadrah Hafeez.
