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TWO months after landing the national junior 48kg title, Milli Woods is preparing for her first international fight.
The 15-year-old from Bendigo will make her overseas debut at the North Island New Zealand Golden Gloves tournament in Great Lake, Taupo.
Her Hit Factory coach Danniel Burton said with opponents in Australia thinned it was time to cross the ditch and look abroad.
“Winning the Australian title in Perth earlier in the year makes it hard to match her up,” Burton said.
“I thought we might have been able to find someone closer to home because Milli has still had fewer than five fights, but we couldn't.
“I tried moving her up and down weights - she can easily come in under 48kg and we would go up to 52kg.
“Four kilograms does not sound like much, but when you're talking lean muscle and power it's a massive jump.”
Burton, who coached the Victorian team at the nationals in Perth, said the decision to take Woods to New Zealand followed an offer to take a team of six junior to elite boxers from the Gippsland region across the Tasman.
The Golden Square-based boxing coach’s schedule is set to become even more crowded following the recent formation of a Regional Victorian Boxing Association.
Burton will be one of a number of coaches, who will accompany Victorian boxers around the country and overseas for camps and tournaments.
“We have a good group of coaches and athletes in the country areas, but it's hard for coaches to get away on every trip and you don't want athletes to miss out,” he said.
“This (association) enables us to keep the fighters active when a coach can't always make it - we can send them with a regional team and coach.
“When you make national level, you don't always have your home coach in your corner, so it also helps to experience this without them if you plan to make it to the top.
“Milli will have me this time, but I can't always be there.
“She wants to make it as a fighter after watching the Commonwealth games and seeing the success the Aussie girls had there.
“She has been training with a totally different mindset, and been sparring with elite women and is not afraid to go after them.
“I believe we have to go up to 50kg over there so Milli will have her hands full, but we don't expect anything less from our Kiwi neighbours.
“Whatever the outcome it's all about experience.
“She is just 15 years old and achieved so much in a short time - Australian champ, first female boxing champ from Bendigo and now adding an international trip to her resume.”
Woods captured her national title in march with a win over Queenslander Cori Byrnes at the 2018 Australian Boxing Championships.
