THERE has been no love lost between Mike McGoldrick and Liam Conroy in sparring, but it is all in the name of the Barrow light-heavweights helping each other improve.

The pair are preparing for their respective returns to the ring on Friday, November 9 at the Victoria Warehouse in Manchester, in Conroy’s case being his first bout since surgery on a hernia which has kept him out of action since successfully defending the English title at the end of March.

He has been working closely with his fellow Barrow ABC graduate at trainer Johnney Roye’s gym in Preston ahead of his slated comeback in a four-rounder against Richard Harrison.

McGoldrick, who faces Zac Thompson over four rounds in his third professional contest, admits neither have not been holding back when sparring, but is in no doubt it has proven useful for both boxers.

“He definitely doesn’t go easy on me - I can tell you that first hand!” said McGoldrick. “Liam hits really hard and he’s just come back from surgery, so he’s not quite at the weight and he’s quite big at the moment.

“When you’re taking punches off him two or three times a week, it gives you confidence you can take punches off people your own weight or less. He’s skilful as well, so he’s helped me a lot.

“You want to bring each other on as well, and I’m sure if I can help Liam improve for his next fight and he can help me improve for mine then that’s what we want to get out of it. We’re not looking to hurt each other, we’re looking to give each other enough problems to be able to develop and improve.”

McGoldrick has been sparring with up-and-coming super-middleweight Mickey Ellison recently too in an effort to improve when faced with the challenge of boxing a taller opponent.

Although he scored a shut-out points victory over Callum Ide in July to make it two wins from two pro outings, the 33-year-old felt he struggled to counter Ide’s height advantage at times.

But he believes going up against the 6’2” Ellison has helped and he is confident of being able to nullify that threat next time.

“I’ve been doing a lot of sparring with him and just working on getting into range, using the jab to get into range and work on the inside a little bit better,” said McGoldrick.

“That’s an advantage when you’re fighting someone who is tall.

“I feel I’m better against a taller opponent. I feel that sparring with Mickey has helped bring me on, so hopefully when I meet another tall opponent in the future at a higher level, hopefully I’ll have an answer this time.”