PGL League Final - 8 June 2014
08 Jun 2014
Pershore Swimming Club managed to beat local rivals, Evesham,
in the PGL Final held at Gloucester this weekend but their late challenge was
not enough to land them the trophy. Pershore had qualified in strong form going into the final, and found
themselves up against seven other clubs including Worcester, Redditch,
Cheltenham, Stourbridge, Oldbury, Wyre Forest and Evesham.
After a steady start, Pershore had to wait until the eighth event to score maximum points, with the girls 10/u medley relay team taking victory in 1.22.91. Georgia Winkley secured second place in the girls 9 year old 25m free in 18.60 and Callum Sanderson took maximum points in the boys 13/14 50m back with victory in 36.36 and also produced a 30.84 in the 50m free.
Charlotte Downey produced a massive pb in the girls 13/14 50m back with a time of 38.20. Pershore didn’t have to wait long for victory number two when the girls 13/14 medley team delivered maximum points with Daisy Tolley, Hannah Simister, Jasmine Taite and Helena Leach winning in 1.07.96.
Jasmine Franks swam well to take third in the girls 12/u 50m breast in 47.09 and both Ronan Williams and Holly Winkley took fourth places in the 11/u 25m fly in 19.61 and 19.97 respectively. William Mullen produced a massive pb to take second place in the boys 9 year 25m back in 24.51 and Chris Vizard secured victory for Pershore with a 42.69 in the boys 13/14 50m breast. Melissa Radley produced a 36.40 in the 50m free to help Pershore, while the girls 11/u medley relay grabbed third place in 1.18.97 to keep up Pershore’s challenge.
After 20 events, Pershore found themselves back in sixth place behind both Worcester and Evesham.
Daisy Tolley grabbed third place in the 13/14 50m free in 33.93 and Jamie Saunders produced a huge personal best in the boys 12/u 50m fly to claim silver in the 40.07. Hamish Cross and Holly Winkley both produced good swims in the 11/u 25m back to claim third places in 20.99 and 20.27 respectively. Tamara Marsden snatched bronze in the girls 9 year 25m fly in 23.79.
The boys and girls 13/14 freestyle relays both put in superb performances to claim third places, with the boys touching in 58.62 and the girls in 1.01.56 to ensure much needed points for Pershore.
After 40 events, Pershore still found themselves behind Evesham. Pershore were on 152 points and Evesham on 168 points, while Worcester had surged ahead on 187 points with just the relays to go.
The boys 13/14 freestyle relay took third place in 58.62 while the girls 13/14 went one better to grab silver in 1.01.56. The girls 11/u 4 x 25m free team were unlucky not to claim victory with an excellent time of 1.07.21, while the boys 10/u 4 x 25m free went on to win in a time of 1.10.57. The girls cannon team also produced a time of 2.44.04 to claim a much need third place for Pershore.
There were also good performances and a staggering 42 personal bests for Josh Sharrott, Alexandra Barry, Ronan Williams, Luke and Jack Betteridge, Isobel Cumming, James Thomas, Owen Kirby, Caitlin Yates, Imogen Harper, Robert Thorner, Sam Thomas, Cameron and Helena Leach, Daisy Tolley, Melissa Radley and Oliver Smith.
The final positions were Worcester 301, Cheltenham 284, Redditch 281, Pershore 259, Stourbridge 248, Evesham 244, Wyre Forest 231 and Oldbury 206.
Commenting on the team’s performance, Pershore’s head coach, Tom Naughton, said: "This proved to be a very exciting final and Worcester were deserved winners. I thought our team showed their character by moving from sixth place to fourth with a set of strong results at the end, and always nice to get one over local rivals such as Evesham and Stourbridge. There were some excellent individual performances and our relay teams were very strong too.
"We are always looking for new talent and keen to hear from new members. We would welcome trials, particularly from boys, who are interested in joining our successful club and help us expand and develop the success the club is having!”
Anyone interested in a trial with Pershore SC should contact [email protected] or telephone 01386 792400.