End Of An Era For Local Boxer

A boxer from Droylsden has decided to hang his gloves up following a 20-year association with the sport - 10 of those competing at professional level.

Charlie Schofield, who was nurtured at the Phoenix Camp in Denton, believes the time is right to call it a day and focus his energy elsewhere.

Having last fought at the Manchester Arena in February, the 29-year-old came to the realisation that the bout, on the biggest stage of his career, was to be his last.

Now, with a personal training business to look after, combined with a recent marriage to his longterm girlfriend, Charlie is hoping to pass his knowledge to younger fighters in the hope of giving something back to the sport he loves.

Speaking to Reporter Sport, Charlie said: "it's not a sudden thing, I thought about it after my last fight, and I don't need to do anymore. For me, personally, I've achieved everything I could have dreamed of. When I first turned professional, almost ten years ago, all I wanted to do was win my first fight and so, looking back, I'm really happy with what I accomplished.

"I've always trained and that's been my priority, just as much as my wife and personal training, and I've managed it will. However, you can only go so far in boxing and, for myself, now is the right time to step down."

Charlie, who has previously organised community events, including the Schofield 10k, held over summer, is now planning to hold similar things in the future.

"For now, I'm looking forward to passing my knowledge onto the younger lads as that will be a big part of my next chapter.

"I had such good feedback from the Schofield 10k, we raised a lot of money for charity, and I'm looking at hosting that at a similar time next year, when the weather's good, so I'm really looking forward to that. I've also got other events planned, which will be announced in due course via Schofield Fitness"