TOP STARS TRAIN WITH TEAM IRELAND AHEAD OF EURO SCHOOLBOYS

Ireland’s young boxers received a boost at Dublin’s National Stadium gym this week after Olympic and WBO champions Katie Taylor and Andy Lee and Irish Elite champions and European medallists Darren O’Neill and Eric Donovan and head coach Zaur Antia helped put them through their paces ahead of the European Schoolboy Championships in Zagreb,Croatia.

Team manager Paddy Gallagher believes that advice and encouragement from some of the household names of international boxing can only help the young athletes in their careers.

“It is the small things like a friendly smile, a quiet word, or a well done, which current greats and former greats can give to a young boxer, that will mean so much to them as they set out on their own unique roads in boxing,” he said.

“Katie has done a number of training sessions with Zaur while the Schoolboys have been present and it has given the young boxers a real idea of the effort that must be put in if you want to become an Olympic Champion.

“World Champion Andy Lee also dropped in to see the boys on Monday and wish them well and he even did a small session while back in his old stomping ground.

“The boxers also got a few words of advice from Elite Heavyweight Champion Darren O’Neill and one of his High Performance Coaches, Jimmy Halpin.

“Former multiple Irish Senior Elite Champion and now professional boxer Eric Donovan (next bout in September in the National Boxing Stadium) also came in to visit the boxers on a number of days during their Camp and offered words of advice to them.”

Team Ireland depart for Croatia on Friday. Please scroll down for Irish squad.

The 2016 European Schoolboy Championships begin on Sunday at the Lucko Sports Center in Zagreb.