THEY’VE picked themselves up from the canvas with community backing and now Dunfermline Boxing Club want to offer an artistic West Fifer some free training – if they can design a new club logo.

Coaches Dany Coll and Derek Stewart took over the running of the club in the New Year following former coach Tommy Cannon’s decision to retire after crippling costs forced them out of their Canmore Street home on Hogmanay.

After a fundraising campaign – aided by the donation of a glove signed by ring legend Manny Pacquiao – smashed through the £1,000 barrier in January, the club managed to secure temporary training facilities at Woodmill High School while they continue to search for a permanent base.

As they continue to bounce back off the ropes and become a heavyweight once more in the local boxing scene, the club now want a new logo to help them stand out and are seeking talented West Fifers to come up with ideas – with the winning designer offered a six-month beginners’ class as a reward.

Dany told Press Sport: “We’ve been thinking about having a logo that identifies the club; we see other clubs’ logos and immediately identify it with that club. We’ve never had a logo, just the name on things like tracksuits, so it seems like a good idea. We’ve talked about it for a while and we want it to look professional but we are not the most artistic people!

“We thought that by running a competition through the Press, it will get people talking about the club and, as an incentive, we are offering six months training in a beginners’ class as a prize. The logo would feature on all our tracksuits and fightwear and all we ask is that it represents Dunfermline. We’re totally open-minded; the obvious thing is to incorporate a boxing glove but something that represents Dunfermline is what we’re looking for.”

Engaging the town with their boxing club is important to Dany, who sees it as part of the rebuilding process to encourage more prospective youngsters to train with them.

He continued: “We have 15 registered boxers now and, on a Monday in the beginners’ and kids’ mixed class, we have had up to 28 people come along but on average have around 15. It goes through peaks and troughs as there have been a few nights where we’ve been absolutely packed.

“It is moving well and I’m not surprised because I know what the club means to people. I’m quite optimistic moving forward and the more that the club gets put out there, then we’ll see the domino effect from that.

“We’ve settled in well at Woodmill; we’ve got some new members and Scott Fenton (head of community use schools) has been really accommodating. We couldn’t ask for any more.”

Callum Susans will represent the club this weekend at the Boxing Scotland Elite and Youth Championships – a qualifying event for the Commonwealth Games – when he boxes in the elite male 69kg category.

Fellow West Fife fighter Fraser Gorn is among 19 men registered at that weight, and Dany added: “Callum has been training hard; he’s flying just now. He wants to win it and he is more than capable.

“We’ve got some really good youngsters at the moment, like JJ Arnott and his brother, Jude, and had Jack Colquhoun fighting at the Scottish Schools and Junior Championships. He lost in his semi-final (to Barrhead’s Harry Peacock in the Junior 2001 57kg category) but, given that were were closed for a time, he did himself proud.

“Things are good just now.”

If you would like to enter the competition to design a new club logo – which will run for four weeks – then you can submit your entry to Dunfermline Boxing Club by submitting an email via their website at www.dunfermlineboxingclub.org.uk or by finding them on Facebook and sending them a message.

Alternatively, you can contact the Press and we will pass designs on to the club.