Leonard C. Bibby “The Professor” versus Deamon Donna “Donna”
Bibby and Deamon Donna completed eight rounds at the Alder Assembly Room without a winner being entered. The Professor worked behind his long lead hand, while Donna remained patient about closing the distance. The result stands as the only draw in Bibby’s record.
Bibby was billed as “The Professor” for this contest. He worked from the outside behind his long lead hand, using his reach to make an opponent cross the distance.
A long timber room adapted for evening sporting meetings.
Contest date: . Entry numbers identify records rather than dates.
Round by round.
Round 1
Bibby began by measuring the gap with his lead hand, while Donna waited without offering a hurried response. The Professor found the more comfortable distance in the first passages. Donna nevertheless made him reset often enough to keep the opening from becoming a settled pattern.
Round 2
Donna moved just before Bibby’s lead arrived and answered during the taller boxer’s recovery. The adjustment made Bibby more cautious about extending the first exchange. Neither was willing to give away a second clean opportunity, and the round favoured patient replies over sustained pressure.
Round 3
Bibby used the lead twice in succession, making the first movement a question and the second more definite. He recovered a useful share of the longer range. Donna continued to find answers near the end of exchanges, ensuring that Bibby’s better passages did not remain unanswered.
Round 4
Donna began stepping towards the space Bibby was preparing to leave rather than following him out of it. The change produced cleaner counters and made the centre less secure. Bibby still had the reach to interrupt an approach, but Donna was reading the interruption more accurately.
Round 5
Bibby held the middle more firmly and reduced the movement that had given Donna time to make those readings. His lead became straighter and his exits shorter. Donna had to work harder for a clear return, though the occasional answer continued to discourage a careless advance.
Round 6
Donna recovered ground through timing rather than an attempt to match reach. A small change of line left room for an answer as Bibby brought his lead back. Bibby’s better work came later in the round, restoring an exchange that had briefly seemed to favour the other direction.
Round 7
The two settled into a closer argument over the first movement. Bibby could reach sooner, but Donna was increasingly difficult to find in the expected position. Their cleanest passages alternated, each requiring a fresh adjustment. Neither found a lasting hold over the pace before the interval.
Round 8
Bibby kept his long lead working and Donna continued to answer from the changing angles that had made the contest difficult to separate. Both retained their shape through the final exchanges. The result was entered as a draw, leaving Donna as the sole drawn contest in Bibby’s record.