BOXER Sam Smith admits he was glad to maintain his unbeaten record despite breaking his hand halfway through his eight-round bout at the Oasis Leisure Centre.

‘Sniper’ Smith went the distance with Josef Obeslo before being awarded the win via a 78-75 points decision.

An x-ray revealed the 24-year-old broke the metacarpal in his left hand during the fourth round of his contest which made hard work of the bout.

But after a shaky start, Smith was able to steady himself and claim a hard-fought win at the Oasis Leisure Centre.

Going into the fight Smith knew exactly what to expect from the 28-year-old, who proved to be a frustrating competitor.

“It feels good but I am a bit sore. It was on his record that he doesn’t get stopped, he was tough and durable so it was exactly what I was expecting,” said Smith.

“Full credit to him though because he came here and put up a good fight. I felt good. I did have a few nerves because it was my first eight round fight but I dealt with that well.

“It’s nice to get back in the ring. My last fight was in July which is far too long so I had a bit of ring rust but I’m one of those where the more fights I have, the happier I am.

“I had an injury to my left hand in the fourth round so I had to deal with that too. But I came through and got the win which is the main thing.”

Smith’s trainer Paddy Fitzpatrick believes a packed Oasis Leisure Centre saw a different side to his fighter during Trifecta Sports Entertainment’s ‘Risky Business’ show.

“He came back after the fourth round and told me his left hand had gone and it was broken,” said Fitzpatrick.

“I said to him I can tell you how to win it but you have to show me if you’ve got it and he said he wasn’t quitting.

“I told him the only shots I wanted to see to his head were with his right-hand so to deal with that for four rounds was exceptional.

“He deserves a lot of respect for that and I definitely saw more of Sam.

“Usually he is stubborn when he has an injury but he went straight to the hospital in the morning.”

Smith wasn’t the only fighter to come away with a win. Harry Webb claimed a debut victory while Luke Watkins and David Bailey maintained their perfect records with two stoppages.