Boxing: Hosts in five finals

Five English boxers won their semi-final contests but two lost during a day and night that drained both spectators and competitors at the MEN Arena.

England will have a boxer in both the lowest, light-flyweight, category, where Darren Langley out-pointed Malaysia's Zamzai Mohamad, and at super-heavyweight, where David Dolan beat the Welshman Kevin Evans.

Liverpool's Steven Birch, at middleweight, and Paul Smith, at light-middleweight, both overcame difficult opponents to end a hard week with places in the finals. Birch out-pointed India's Jitender Kumar by 32-23; Smith narrowly beat Scotland's Craig McEwan 20-19.

There was a walkover for the light-welterweight Darren Barker, whose opponent, Davidson Emenogu of Nigeria, broke his foot and could not take part. There was also success for Wales' Jamie Arthur in the lightweight class against Botswana's Gilbert Khunwane, but he needed treatment for a cut on his nose and eye. According to his team manager, Roy Chambers, Arthur will be fit for tomorrow night's final.

The local teenager Andy Morris fought bravely but was narrowly out-pointed by Zambia's Dennis Zimba in the other lightweight semi-final. There was defeat also for the bantamweight Mark Moran, of Liverpool, whose lack of fight fitness saw him lose 26-24 to Australia's Justin Kane.