Fighting crime might come easy for those in blue on the beat, but stepping into a boxing ring is a completely different story.

On May 16 Police across the Bay of Plenty will take a short break from their daily routines to pull on a pair of boxing gloves in the Station of Origin fight night.

Mount Maunganui Police Senior Sergeant Deirdre Lack and Constable Andrew Smart will glove up for the Station of Origin fight night. Photo by Tracy Hardy.

Held at Rotorua Girls' High School, the inaugural concept pits police stations against one another with all funds going towards the cost of training 40 local children at the boxing gym.

The fight card will include 13 bouts, with 12 featuring policemen and policewomen plus one professional fight.

In the blue corner are fighters from the Tauranga, Te Puke, Whakatane and Opotiki stations, while the red corner includes representatives from the Rotorua and Tokoroa police stations.

Among those donning the protective gear of a different sort are Mount Maunganui Police Senior Sergeant Deirdre Lack and Constable Andrew Smart.

For Deirdre, the self-appointed Blue team captain, it marks a shift in thought after vowing not to step back into the ring following her first bout two years ago.

It also means swapping from her more favoured triathlons and endurance-based training to explosive strength work.

'I did a corporate fight [DARE Fight for Youth] against a freak from one of the gyms, Laura Ecclestone, and got beaten in the ring. And I said when I got out of the ring I wasn't going in again.”

'It's hard, three two-minute rounds. You get in there and feel like you're drowning because of the lack of oxygen.”

But for the last 12 weeks, Deirdre and the other 11 Western Bay competitors have been mixing hard graft with fast feet and hands in efforts to reign supreme at the end of the night, under the watchful eye of TKO Boxing Academy head trainer Hemi Niha.

'I love the training and it's different to triathlons. But getting into the ring it's totally different in that it doesn't matter how much training you do it doesn't prepare you for it, and people don't realise that.

'Its character building, you find out a lot about yourself. Which is a going thing because you are never too old to learn something about yourself.”

Giving up four kilograms to her opponent, Tracy Amai from Opotiki, the 44-year-old nicknamed ‘The Dee-stroyer' isn't worried, believing her previous bout has her better prepared this time around.

Joining Deirdre is Andrew ‘The Sledghammer' Smart, full of confidence heading into his maiden bout.

The 35-year-old Constable jumped at the chance to test himself physically and mentally in the ring in, backed by four trainings a week.

'It's going to be challenge for sure. I think anyone that has done it will tell you it's hard work regardless of how fit you are.

'It's just yourself out there and you find out a little bit about yourself.”

Both admit it is a great opportunity for police across the Bay of Plenty to get to know each other.

The Station of Origin fight night is on May 16 at Rotorua Girls' High School.

Fight card (blue team listed first):

Men Jonny Shaw v Shaun Plant Cameron McKay v Lee Stringer Craig Thorne v Dustin Buckley Paul Bailey v Stu Rodway Andrew Smart v Lafaele Filipo Peter Atkinson v Zane Smith Rameka Poihipi v Brendon Fuller

Women Tawhai Schuster v Kaci James Sharleen Irwin v Vernei Mullen Deidre Lack v Tracy Amai Jade Snare v Karin Isaacson Dianne Lewis v Baylie de Ruyter