BEFORE: Frankie Bridge tries to make the most out of The Saturdays' hiatus and returns to BBU action against fellow struggler Tisha Merry here in Cardiff tonight. The 27 year old singer simply can't catch a break in her career so far even though the upset win over Jade Thirlwall back in 2013 seemed to finally turn her fortunes around. Instead, she lost to both Perrie Edwards and Sandy Moelling in the follow up and Thirlwall has gone over to America to make her FCBA debut since then.

BBU TV's Kate Abdo thinks that Frankie lacks that evil spark and doesn't have what it takes to survive a proper punching barrage but Tisha hasn't set the world on fire herself. She knocked Sammy Winward out last year which was mildly impressive however a broken jaw on her debut versus Ashley Mulheron and a sex slave duty at Nikki Sanderson's expense indicate the Lancashire actress is by no means a solid contender in the 110 lbs division.

Pre-fight introductions are marked by a ferocious staredown from both girls yet Kate Abdo reckons there's not much confidence around. But this is a winnable fight for both of them and whoever shows more aggression should salvage a much-needed victory. Frankie's flanked by bandmates Mollie King and Vanessa White in her corner while Tisha has turned to former Coronation Street co-star Georgia May Foote who acts as her one-off trainer on the night.

Frankie Bridge wears a red bikini top, black knickers and red gloves. New look medium lenght dark brown hair in loose waves. Tisha Merry wears a white bikini set and golden gloves. Long dark brown hair tied in a thick bun at the back of her head. The fight is scheduled for ten rounds in the flyweight division.

Round 1:
Both girls show a lot of fighting spirit early on but it's creampuff boxing at best and Kate Abdo thinks it might take a while before one of these perennial underachievers actually scores that rare victory. The pressure's on Frankie though as she's suffered through a nightmare BBU career to date however the changing fortunes of Nadine Coyle or Vanessa White indicate there's a light at the end of every jobber's tunnel. That's if Frankie doesn't become the exception from the rule but perhaps fighting under her married name for the first time will finally lift her off the rock bottom of the flyweight division. She outworks the Corrie girl for most of the opening round but single striking hardly affects Merry on the long haul and the younger actress actually lands the biggest punch of the lot when she scythes the singer across the mouth late leading to a lenghty squeal from Frankie who's clearly upset she didn't have that one covered.

Round 2:
More creampuff boxing in the opening minute, one can see how much these girls want to win here but unless a solid combo rattles either of them off their gung-ho approach, we could go on like this for the whole ten rounds since Kate Abdo is sceptical about the KO punching power at their disposal. Tisha gets outworked in close range one more time down the stretch but comes away with the more accurate assault and hoovers around Bridge's temples before sticking one in from the left. Frankie groans in pain; she really doesn't like getting punched on target but she leaps into a jabbing response only to find a left hook from the Corrie girl smashing her on the eye and staggering back on the spot. Tisha looks a little surprised she landed that hook and fails to hassle the backpedaling singer down which allows Bridge to catch some breath but the round is lost and she knows it best.

Round 3:
Frankie gets a little annoyed here ahead of the third, she's landed most punches than her opponent but Tisha earns the judges' call through quality of her otherwise scattered assault. No holding back whatsoever as the close range war of the atomweights disguised at fly continues but one should remind them that punching to the body is actually allowed in BBU! The head hunting chase becomes a farce when both girls nearly topple over each other in a fruitless attempt to land that haymaker bomb... not at this weight and not with this fighting record either... both girls wear each other out as the fast tempo footwork is admireable but leaves the actress gassing out first... all those music video dancing routines AND the Strictly Come Dancing hours finally aid Frankie's cause who lands a proper combo over the top and sinks Merry in the dying seconds.. a late follow up bounces off the breasts and prompts the actress to scream out: "You bytch!" just as the clock expires.

Round 4:
Tisha's in pursuit mode from the bell; she really didn't like that shot to the boobs to close out the third but that was purely accidental effort from the singer who takes control of the footwork battle and lets the Corrie girl wear herself out even further. That's smart going from Bridge who really should have learned how to win one of these fights by now considering her supreme experience compared to Merry. Well, the Corrie chase is on but it's woefully fruitless as Tisha just can't land anything significant with the singer lagging back in mid range and looping methodical response over the top to keep the younger girl in checkdown mode. It's Merry's time to groan in frustration at the bell with Frankie hopping back to her corner after a surprisingly veteran showing. Even Kate Abdo is impressed!

Round 5:
Tisha keeps going forward but that only fuels Frankie's counterpunching plan and the Corrie actress gets exposed badly through inexperience. She gets caught up in a double jabbing combo that split her mitts before the singer lands her biggest punch of the night yet and smacks the lips into a swollen reality; poor Tisha wobbles back on her heels with a loud grunt but her arms are not fast enough to react when Frankie loops a hooking follow up on the temple. Merry almost tumbles down on her backside but just spins out of trouble at the very last second however a seemingly errant Bridge hook finds the liver area AND FOLDS THE ACTRESS DOWN ONTO HER KNEES... What a lucky shot that was! Frankie herself is just shocked and doesn't know what to do in wake of delivering a knockdown... the ref shoves her back to neutral corner while Tisha desperately tries to catch her breath at all cost... she scampers back to her feet at eight but is visibly shaken up and bends awkwardly to the right side... the ref shows her little sympathy though and orders Frankie to finish her off now! Well, on comes The Saturday's most adorable member just trying to thump the aching Merry out of the ring... the actress keeps her guard down by her aching liver and she gets NAILED on both eyes as Frankie flies with with a double jabbing nightmare before stuffing another hook to the guts... oh dear, Tisha's gone into meltdown mode as she sinks along the ropes and starts to cry.... "F### you, bytch!", Bridge keeps blowing past her cumbersome guard and connects with several jabs on target... Tisha's head snaps back & forth and the girl's moans are getting louder and louder while she gives nothing back anymore... Bridge is soooo determined to finish this off now but she just doesn't have that killer punch in her so has to rely on the ref bailing her out... AND HE DOES... Merry hasn't landed a single punch since the knockdown and with eight seconds left on the clock, the stoppage is long overdue... TKO5 Frankie Bridge as the Corrie babe collapses in a heap at her feet with the ref calling for the medics already.

AFTER: Someone has a controversial sense of humor in Cardiff as Justin Timberlake's 'Cry Me a River' starts to pump through the speakers above the ring; well, poor Tisha just can't control herself anymore and folds like a jack-knife into embrional position before sobbing out all her pain. She never recovered from that ill-timed hook to the liver which even Frankie didn't know much about! Without that one-hit wonder, the fight could have ended in a stalemate and Kate Abdo admits The Saturdays drew a lucky ball here tonight with that result. It's telling that Bridge couldn't really finish her ailing opponent off and had to use a referee wildcard stoppage... there was eight seconds left on the clock when Tisha's demise was declared official, if she could have just hang on a little more and survive the next round, Frankie's victory wouldn't be assured by any means. However the sexiest BBU flyweight jobber could use a lucky break in her career just this once... she needed this victory more than Merry and delivered the goods even though the artistic impression remains way below par. The only other problem? Georgia May Foote wants to have a piece of her next to avenge her questionable Tisha coaching tips tonight.

Final result: Frankie Bridge def. Tisha Merry TKO5.