TEENAGE boxer George Liddard has been selected to represent England in an International Boxing Tournament this week.

The 14-year-old Billericay & Wickford ABC member will box for his country in the prestigious Three Nations Tournament that starts on Friday, July 1 in Doncaster.

George recently made the English National Schoolboy Final after beating everyone else that was in his weight group, including the London Champion in the semi-finals.

"This is George's first full international and we as a club are very proud of his achievements," said club head coach Les Cooke.

"George trains hard inside and outside of the gym without having to be moaned at.

"George is a quiet lad and also very helpful, he deserves the chance to box at the highest level and we know he will do very well."

The youngster travels up with the England Squad tomorrow and will stay with them at a hotel, as he does his last-minute preparations before meeting either the Welsh or the Scottish Schoolboy Open Class Champion the following day.

Cooke said the teenage pugilist is also a talent outside the ring too.

"George regularly helps the coaches out too on non competition nights at the gym, helping to guide some of the new youngsters that are just starting off, giving up his own free time," he said.

George started with the Billericay & Wickford Boxing Club four years ago and has stayed loyal to the gym, even when they moved out of their base in Lake Meadows, Billericay, which was on his doorstep, to their new home at the Main Event Boxing Gym in Shotgate.

The club wuill be taking a team off to New York in mid July to box a select squad being put together by some of the toughest gyms in the State, including boxers from the Bronx, Brooklyn and Staten Island.

Billericay & Wickford now boasts a squad of 50 carded competition boxers and hope to carry on building on their success next season.

Cooke said the club has a further 20 boxers that are coming through the "development squad" which was set up to train new starters the skills of boxing.

The aim is to train them to a high standard before putting them through a set of elite tests to see if they can make the grade to becoming a full competition boxer.