A fully-powered and focused Glenn Foot will “take a bit of living with” in Saturday’s showdown for the vacant Commonwealth light-welterweight title.
So says coach, Dave Binns, ahead of Foot’s cracking match-up with Edinburgh’s Jason Easton in Glasgow, live on Channel 5.
Not for the first time in his career, the Sunderland fighter finds himself in the away corner on the big occasion.
But, buoyed by his display in the ‘wrong’ corner against Josh Leather last November, Binns is “confident” of victory at the SSE Hydro.
“If we get a better performance from Glenn, he’s going to take a bit of living with,” predicted the Peterlee-based coach.
“Jason Easton is a good kid but let’s see how he goes with a someone of Foot’s ability.
“Easton’s boxed well and he’s shown he can come through a sticky patch with a cut and perform well.
“But let’s see how he copes with Glenn Foot.”
Easton, the IBO’s inter-continental champ, will start as the slight favourite, despite his relative inexperience – this will only be his 12th bout.
The 24-year-old has clocked up 11 straight wins and Binns has liked what he’s seen, though he disputes predictions that it will be a war.
“I’ve seen Jason as an amateur when I used to take teams up to Scotland,” he said.
“But he’s a different kid to what he was then, he likes to have a fight.
“He has the range and height on Glenn, without a shadow of a doubt, but Glenn is used to fighting taller men.
“Everyone expects Glenn to just go rushing forward but there is a lot more to him than that.
“I’m quite confident.
“I’d said to Glenn ‘you are the whipping boy again’ – he’s against the home lad.
“That was the problem against Leather, it was disgraceful, I still don’t know now how that decision was made.
“But I’ve got to say that’s water under the bridge now.
“We’re looking forward to this.”
Words: Roy Kelly
