DANNY O’Reilly believes his debut defeat will help him become a better boxer in the long run.

The Swindon youngster suffered a points loss against “spoiler” Liam Griffiths and admits it was a rude awakening to his professional career.

“It was a bit of an eye opener,” said O’Reilly. “He had 19 fights on his record and was experienced enough to know what to do.

“He was a spoiler and just held onto me all the time.

“I’d never experienced something like that before in the amateurs and it took a lot of energy out of me.

“I was fit enough but wasn’t prepared for him to just hold me all the time and spoil the fight.

“I prefer someone who comes to fight but I’ve learnt from that now and worked on how to deal with a similar situation if it happens again.”

Beginning his career with a defeat was disappointing for O’Reilly and he is determined to taste victory when he returns to the ring on March 9.

The 20-year-old will fight on the undercard to Kelvin Young’s super middleweight Southern Area title defence and added: “I’m looking forward to getting back in the ring.

“I’ve obviously had some good time off with Christmas and everything. I’ve been on holiday too but now the hard work starts.

“I’m dieting properly and training hard.

“The plan this year is to stay busy and chalk up some good wins.

“Losing my debut was disappointing but lots of good boxers have lost before and it will only help my career in the long run.

“I want to improve each fight I have and fulfil my potential.”

Tickets for the March 9 show hosted by KM Promotions cost £35/£65VIP ringside and can be obtained by calling 07807272069 or visiting www.kmpromotions.co.uk.