BOLTON boxer Jack Cullen will leave people in no doubt which football team he supports when he fights.

The middleweight is a big Bolton Wanderers supporter and from Saturday night will walk into the ring wearing his beloved team's shirt.

He is in action at Preston Guild Hall at the weekend in his fourth professional bout, his first since deciding to take a bit of Wanderers into battle with him.

"I go to Wanderers and am a big fan and someone just said why don't I wear the Wanderers shirt when I fight," he said.

"I thought it was a good idea so from now on I'm going to wear it going into the ring.

"It will be good to wear the shirt when I fight. I'm proud to be a Wanderers fan and I'll be proud walking into the ring wearing the shirt."

There is a history of boxers showing which football team they support when they fight.

Ricky Hatton used to wear the Manchester City badge on his shorts and got a big following from the club's fans as a result.

Cullen already has a decent following, mainly from people in Little Lever where he lives, and wearing the Wanderers shirt is likely to endear him to the club's supporters as well as a healthy core of supporters he already has.

"I'm lucky enough to have a lot of people follow me already," he said.

"I'm from Little Lever and everyone knows each other in Little Lever and they give me great support.

"I only turned pro in October and I'm loving it but I want to get up to a higher level.

"I want to be on a big stage after 20 fights, not fighting nobodies after 45 fights."

Cullen, who will have his boxing nickname 'Little Lever Meat Cleaver' printed on the back of his Wanderers shirt during his ring walks, had a long and successful amateur career in which he came up against another Bolton middleweight who is making his name in the professional ranks.

"I beat Jack Flatley as an amateur and I won the North West a few times and got to a British final," he said.

"Jack turned pro a year before me. He was a good amateur and he's doing well as a professional. Hopefully we can both keep winning and keep putting Bolton on the boxing map."

Both middleweights, there is a possibility the two could meet again in the ring as professionals.

Cullen, aged 23, is a year older than Farnworth's Flatley who got further than any Bolton boxer in history in the national ABAs when he reached the final, and has won his first seven pro bouts in impressive fashion.

Flatley fights out of Elite gym in Halliwell where he is coached by Alex Matvienko while Cullen is coached by Tommy Battel at Castle Hill Boxing Club at Tonge Moor, with some assistance from Matvienko on fight nights.

"I love being a pro," said Cullen. "But I want to fight better boxers.

"My manager told me he'll get me on a televised night in the next year and that's what I want.

"You've got to get noticed and the only way you can do that is by keep winning."