A talented teen-age boxer who beat up a school bully has walked free from court.

Commonwealth Youth Games silver medallist Grant Quig-ley's hopes of a career in the ring hung in the balance as judges considered an appeal.

A jury cleared Quig-ley, 18, of Port Glasgow of attempted murder – but found him guilty of a serious assault. He was put on probation for three years and ordered to carry out 200 hours unpaid community work.

Prosecutors brought Quigley back to court, complaining that the sentence was too soft.

But at the Court of Criminal Appeal in Edinburgh, Lady Paton, sitting with Lords Mackay of Drumadoon and Bracadale backed the decision of trial judge Lord Glennie and allowed the original sentence to stand.

Their ruling allows Quigley to ask for his boxing licence to be restored and to return to training with the Scotland team.

Also before appeal judges was his pal Michael Murray, 18, also of Port Glasgow, who had been put on probation for two years and ordered to carry out 150 hours of unpaid work for his part in the attack in November 2010. Again a claim that his sentence was too lenient was rejected.

The court heard the attack came after abuse so severe that Quigley had to be escorted between classes and Murray had attempted suicide at 13.