One day in the summer of 2012, I was making my way to the Olympic boxing venue in London to watch Katie Taylor fight. The train was packed and a young girl of about 12 asked me if I was going to the boxing. She was a big Katie Taylor fan and had just started to box.

Her name was Emma Dolan and on Saturday in Birmingham, she won the inaugural British super-flyweight title with a close but deserved points victory over Shannon Ryan. Dolan is 26 now, she also holds the Commonwealth title and is now unbeaten in seven fights. She is typical of the women boxers that are emerging; she has grace, international amateur experience and the added ring intelligence that comes from being in old-fashioned boxing gyms and not keep-fit gyms – with a ring buried somewhere over near the judo mats.

The fight with Ryan was hard, a real scrap, and Ryan was dropped in the second round; the knockdown was the decisive moment in the fight. The split decision went to Dolan and a rematch at some point makes sense. The ringside was divided, but Dolan’s jab and movement was just a bit better.

Ryan, who is with Anthony Joshua's management company, turned to boxing after kickboxing and a spell with GB Taekwondo; it has been a successful transition, and it was her first professional loss in eight fights. Dolan became only the third woman to win a British title and has a lot of options at or near her weight; the introduction of the British title by the Board last year was an essential addition to the busin.