Donnelly blasts way to stunning Commonwealth victory

Steven Donnelly won his opening Commonwealth Games contest inside half a minute.Steven Donnelly won his opening Commonwealth Games contest inside half a minute.
Steven Donnelly won his opening Commonwealth Games contest inside half a minute.
Steven Donnelly announced himself on the Commonwealth Games stage in sensational style on Friday night.

The Ballymena boxer produced a stunning display to win his welterweight contest with Pakistan’s Hasan Asif inside 37 seconds of the opening round.

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The 25-year-old All Saints fighter dumped Asif to the canvas within 15 seconds of the opening bell after a thunderous right hand shot.

And after wobbling his opponent with another big right, the Colombian referee stepped in to end the contest with just half a minute gone.

It was an impressive opening display from Donnelly, who was anxious not to repeat his own first round exit in Delhi four years ago.

His performance will certainly have made some of the favourites for the welterweight medals sit up and take notice.

Steven’s next fight, in the last 16, will take place on Monday night.