The Gloucestershire U18 team travelled to Nottingham University with seven of the ten members of the team veterans of previous ICT campaigns.  It was hoped that the experience in team would give them the edge in close games and this was indeed the case.

Day 1
The team was drawn in a first round group with Yorkshire, Devon and the Isle of Man.The first match (vs Devon) saw an 8-2 defeat, but the scoreline doesn’t really reflect the closeness of the games.  Some notable performances from Vivi Jennings-Trace (15-12, 15-12 singles win) and Scott McKenzie (8-15, 15-9, 14-15 singles defeat) gave the team hope that we were going to be tough opposition for virtually all of the teams we were still to face in the tournament.  The second match (vs Yorkshire) was always going to be tough against one of the tournament favourites, and so the 10-0 defeat was not unexpected.  The final match of the group (vs Isle of Man) was the group 3rd/4th place decider and coach Sol put out his strongest side to get the team a favourable draw for the next round, the following day.  The decision paid off with a 6-4 win, with the Reece Watts / Sian Evans mixed doubles partnership getting the team off to a winning start with a 15-9, 15-10 victory.
This victory wasn’t just notable for the scoreline, but also for the fantastic team spirit and vocal support (both from the players and supporters on the balcony).  The team certainly ended the first day on a big high, with the prospect of playing Cumbria, Northumberland and Cornwall in the second round the following day.

Day 2
A later start on the second day saw the team face Cumbria, the team that had beaten Gloucestershire on the final day of the 2018 tournament.  Revenge was sweet with a 9-1 victory, and many dominant performances across the team.  Coach Sol kept a similar team for the next match (vs Northumberland) which saw some nail-biting games, none more so than the boys doubles 1 rubber involving Raiph Ackroyd / Alfie Hancock.  The rubber went down to 14-14 in the deciding 3rd game, with the Glos boys just missing out on the victory.  The girls doubles pair of Sian Evans / Amy Oakley however sealed the important rubber (14-15, 15-5, 15-7) for a 6-4 victory to Gloucestershire.
The final match of the group was the decider to see who would be top, against Cornwall.  Cornwall have strength across both boys and girls so the match was always going to be a tough one.  The Glos performance however was fantastic, ending in the narrowest of defeats (5-5, losing on games count-back).  Glos started strongly, taking both mixed doubles rubbers, however the strength of the Cornwall girls was always going to be a problem with defeats in both girls singles and doubles rubbers.  The boys hit back, winning both boys doubles rubbers, with an amazing 15-13, 12-15, 13-15 win for Scott McKenzie/Reece Watts against a very strong Cornwall pair.  Ear-splitting support from both around the court and up on the balcony was another memorable point to note about this match.
The team, just missing out on the top spot, moved into the 21st-24th place group for the final round of the tournament.  The group consisted of Oxfordshire, Staffordshire and Worcestershire.

Day 3
The third day of the tournament saw the team arrive early in the badminton hall for a hard warm-up session, attempting to hit the ground running in the first match against Oxfordshire.  The warm-up appeared to pay dividends with the mixed pairs of Raiph Ackroyd / Amy Oakley and Reece Watts / Kajal Patel getting the team off to a 2-0 lead. The following four singles matches saw Oxfordshire take both boys rubbers, but Gloucestershire hitting back with both girls rubbers.  The same pattern of dominant Oxfordshire boys and Gloucestershire girls saw the doubles pair of Sian Evans / Chinmayi Kirani (15-8, 15-11) seal a 6-4 Glos win in the final rubber.
The second (and final) match of the third day was predicted to be the toughest against Staffordshire, and that proved to be the case when the team ended the mixed and boys singles rubbers 4-0 down.  This scoreline, however doesn’t reflect the closeness of the defeats in the boys singles, with Scott McKenzie and Reece Watts losing their nail-biting rubbers against two incredibly tough opponents.  The match continued to ebb and flow culminating in a tense 15-9, 11-15, 15-13 defeat for Vivi-Jennings-Trace / Amy Oakley in the final rubber of the match, seeing Gloucestershire lose 6-4 in the end.

Day 4
After the fun (!!) of the 3rd day evening disco, coach Sol wanted the team to finish the tournament on a high with a victory against our close neighbours Worcestershire.  The pattern of the team and supporters witnessing close boys singles rubbers continued with Raiph Ackroyd narrowly losing 15-13, 9-15, 13-15 to a strong Worcestershire boy.  Reece Watts hit back with the second boys singles rubber.  Both our mixed pairs won their points, with a memorable performance by Alfie Hancock / Amy Oakley (15-14, 15-7).  The boys and girls doubles pairs then cleaned up for a 7-3 victory for Gloucestershire.  A special mention must go to Jamie Monteith, who had battled hard throughout the tournament, but up to that point had not secured a victory.  Jamie and Reece Watts joined in the points-fest with a 15-11, 15-7 victory.

Summary
The Gloucestershire team ended the tournament in 22nd place (out of 32 counties), which is our best placed finish in many, many years.  Some incredible badminton was witnessed, with all but one of the matches being close and competitive.  The statistics (below) for the tournament prove the closeness of the Gloucestershire matches with us playing a total of 90 rubbers (best of 3 games), winning 45 and losing 45 rubbers. In total, we won 99 games and lost 98 🙂  The team scored 2341 points and conceded 2338.

Thanks must go to Sol Griffiths (head coach), ably assisted by Dom Jones and Andy Woolway. Some inspired team selections and Churchillian team-talks gave the team the edge in those close matches!  A special thanks to Frances Ackroyd who accompanied the team for the tournament.  Finally, the team was joined by their supporter-in-chief, Jasper Preston, who sadly was injured just before the tournament but was able to accompany the team for all four days.  Hopefully this went some way to ease the disappointment of not being able to play.

Congratulations to Scott Mckenzie, who won the vote for Players’ Player of the Tournament.

Gloucestershire U21`s headed to York in search of redemption after a tough 2018 tournament saw the young team struggle against high quality opposition. Hopefully the tough times of previous years would server them well and they could bounce back with another year’s experience playing in tournaments.

The draw saw the team in Group C alongside Essex, Yorkshire and Isle of Man, a tough group with some well ranked players. Day 1 started against the hosts Yorkshire who are well known for strength in depth so this was always going to be a tough start. Both singles went the way of Yorkshire but the men’s doubles pairing of Jamie Pearcy and Sam Gibson got Glos on the scoreboard. Jamie doubled up to partner Matilda Tierney to a mixed win but couldn’t prevent the team from going down 4-2. Not the worst start and the team looked to be very competitive in this group.

Onto the toughest game of the weekend against group favourites Essex lead by Rosemary Allen ranked 7 in England in women’s singles at senior level. The team were under no illusions we would have to pick our matches and try to scrape a result. Henry Jones found some great form in his men’s singles but unfortunately lost out in a tough 3 set match against Mannah Rahman who went unbeaten in singles over the weekend. Ceri Evans played some good rallies in her singles and deserved a lot of credit for volunteering to play singles. Both the doubles also went the way of Essex meaning an unassaibable 4-0 lead going into the mixed. Pearcy/Tierney paired up and lost a very tight match 21-19 in the third whilst the perfroamance of the match came from Henry Jones and Chloe Haywood combing to prevent the whitewash. The 5-1 scoreline a bit harsh on the team and if the 3 setters had gone our way a draw would not have been an unfair result.

Onto the crunch match against Isle of Man, time to step up. The team got off to a bad start in the singles which saw the team 2-0 down, potentially expected with Jessica Li turning up for the opponents. The doubles saw Joanna Gresty and Matilda Tierney with a crucial 2 set victory and the mens doubles pair of Gibson/Pearcy winning but in 3 sets, would that dropped set prove crucial come the end of the match. Pearcy/Tierney continued their good form with a 2 set win so it all came down to final mixed match. Henry Jones/Chloe Haywood competing in a very intense game sadly losing out in 2 sets meaning a 3-3 draw but Isle of Man securing 3^rd place in the group on sets won.

This meant on Day 2 Gloucestershire would be competing for 13^th-16^th places. A bit harsh considering some fantastic performances throughout Saturday and being very competitive even against the top teams. Glos would go into day 2 buoyed by form and not disheartened by the final scores.

Glos vs Lancashire looked to be a tight match. Jamie and Matilda this time taking up the singles responsibilities and both coming through with 2 set wins, a great start. A reverse in fortune saw both doubles pairs edged out in 2 sets meaning it again would all come down to the mixed doubles. Team Glos used to this experience from day 1 and the experience would show. Pearcy/Tierney combining again to win in 2 sets meaning the set won by Jones/Gresty in their loss was enough to secure victory meaning Glos would avoid the playoff for last place and would instead fight for 13^th/14^th against Leinster.

Again the team got off to a flying start taking straight set wins in both singles, the perfect start. Nathan Mead would partner Jamie Pearcy with Ceri Evans and Joanna Gresty in the womens events. Both succumbing to some strong Leinster doubles pairs in straight sets. A familiar theme with the tie to be decided on the mixed games. Pearcy/Tierney winning the first set 21-19 with the reverse result in the other mixed with Gibson/Haywood losing a narrow first set. Countback meaning the tie was level on sets and Glos leading by 3 points. Pearcy/Tierney losing the second set and everyone feared the worst before Gibson/Haywood put in a great performance to win the second set and take the tie down to the final games with the team separated by a single point. Sadly both pairs eventually losing out meaning a 4-2 loss and a 14^th place finish for Gloucestershire.

All in all it was a very promising tournament from the whole team with every player contributing.  Sometimes unlucky with results but the team ran some very good teams close and should be proud of the way they represented their county.

Click here for full results

The final county weekend saw Gloucestershire teetering above the relegation zone after some tough fixtures in match week 2 with a depleted squad. The mission firstly to avoid relegation and then to climb the table as high as possible, but it wouldn’t be easy against promotion chasers Devon and Wiltshire on Saturday followed by table strugglers Devon 2.

The weekend started with a clash against table toppers Devon, it promised to be a close match and it did not disappoint. As always, singles first and after going 2-1 down in the mens singles here were notable performances by the womens singles contingent of Rebecca Pantaney and Vivi Jennings-Trace. Both winning in 3 sets to put Glos 3-2 up going into the doubles and with Devon having very strong mixed pairs Glos knew they would need to build a lead in the level doubles. Unfortunately the doubles was split 2-2 meaning Glos took a slender 5-4 lead, would it be enough? The first mixed pairing of Ian Woolway & Linda Pearcy were always going to find it hard against the Devon pair going down in 2 sets and sadly Jamie Pearcy & Kerry Mullen were unable to capitilse on winning the first set and went down fighting in 3. A very tough but respectable 6-5 to the league leaders and some encouraging performances going into the afternoon match against Wiltshire.

Again this promised to be a nail-biter. Glos got off to a flier going into a 4-1 lead with some very good singles performances. Chris Hotchen leading the line with a close win against Jonathon McDonals, Sol Griffiths breaking his hoodoo against Simon Woodhouse and again the trio of Rebecca Pantaney and Vivi Jennings-Trace showing superior fitness and determination to grind out 3 set wins. Wiltshire managed to peg Glos back in the doubles securing 3 of the 4 matches leaving it all down to the mixed again. It was a different story this time with Ian Woolway & Kerry Mullen winning in straight sets to secure victory despite Glos losing the other mixed. A very solid 6-5 win against a strong Wiltshire side who would end the season 3^rd in the table.

Some tired bodies took to the courts on Sunday in not ideal circumstances with the match being delayed by cricket nets hanging over the courts and battling the sun coming from the windows at the top of the sports hall. Eventually the match against Devon 2 got underway and Glos were looking for a strong finish to their season. A great start saw all the singles players winning their matches, again Rebecca Pantaney grinding out a result in 3 sets and a rare singles performance from Kerry Mullen also saw her secure another point for Glos. Onto the doubles and again some strong performances saw the team take 3 of the points putting them in a commanding 8-1 lead going into the mixed. A share of the spoils in the final two games of the season saw a convincing 9-2 win and a high note to end the season.

Well done to all of those players who helped out through the season and for those who stepped up into different events and from the second team.

Gloucestershire 2 started the final weekend in fine fashion against bottom of the table Cornwall 2. Gloucestershire 2 got off to a rare 3-0 start taking a clean sweep in the men’s singles thanks to comfortable wins from Dom Jones and Joe Honeybone, Jon Horsfield had to work harder for his 22-20 3^rd set win. Amy Oakley made her senior county debut putting up good fights in singles against a higher graded opponent. The ship was steadied as the men’s and women’s doubles were split with the wins coming for Glos 2nds top pairings. Glos 2 continued their good form into the mixed winning both and easing to a 7-4 victory over Cornwall 2

The afternoon brought a tougher prospect as Avon 2 had drafted in several players to ensure promotion. Glos 2’s faced an uphill battle in the singles and ultimately went 5-0 down – a tough debut for Reece Watts who fought hard against a Bath University player. Andy Woolway and Joe Honeybone got the team off and running with a hard fought 3 set win. Glos 2 continued their strong run of form in the mixed recording 3 set wins in both. Particular note must go to Dom Jones and Isla Townley who battled to see off an experienced B grade and former England Junior Lady! Glos 2 went down 8-3 to Avon fourth team who would later be confirmed as one of the teams promoted.

Gloucestershire seconds came into the Sunday with their fair share of aches, pains and sore heads to play Somerset. Joe Honeybone brushed off the whiskey fireballs to record a 21-9 21-9 win over the Somerset number 2. Jon Horsfield had another hum dinger against the Somerset number 3 and came out on top. The ladies faced a tough task against arguably the best ladies in the division whereas the men recorded comfortable wins in the men’s doubles. Gloucestershire seconds eventually succumbed to Somerset and came out with a 7-4 loss which meant the second team finished 5^th in the division – one place higher and 4 points better off than last year, steady improvement.

The U17 Gloucestershire Bronze held on 17th March gave our home grown players a good chance to showcase their talent and test themselves against good quality players from across the country.

The day kicked off with the mixed doubles. The only player to make it through to the knockout stages was PC player Jacob Weekes with partner Susanna Ogden. The claimed the gold winning a tough final holding their nerve to win 22-20. A great start to the day.

Onto the singles and our sole representative in the Girls singles was Kajal Patel. Unfortunately she found herself in the same Group as the top seed and couldn’t progress through her group, but an invaluable experience.

The boys singles saw more players from Gloucestershire and the PC in action. Tom Kerley and Ansh Nair paired against some strong players and putting up good fights but were unable to progress. The knockout stages saw County player Scott McKenzie and PC player Jacob Weekes safely navigate through opposite sides of the draw to face each other in the final. And it didn`t disappoint with a very close game! Scott McKenzie winning in a high quality match 22-20, well done to both of you!

The day concluded with the Mens Doubles and some tired bodies on court meant only the double event specialist Raiph Ackroyd representing both the PC and County made it through to knockout stages. With partner Tyler Lee-Allen they cruised through the group and knockout stages winning the tournament with a comfortable 21-10 scoreline in the final.

Badminton Gloucestershire Community supported with funding from Badminton England is working alongside teachers in eight secondary schools within Gloucestershire to support the teaching and learning of badminton. This pilot initiative was established in response to a growth in numbers of pupils opting to take badminton as one of their GCSE PE sports. The scheme consists of a CPD workshop for participating schools followed by five in lesson support sessions with a coach working with students and PE staff.

The following schools are participating in the pilot:

Bournside

Chosen Hill

Cleeve

Dean Academy

Denmark Road

Newent

Pates

Stroud High

It is hoped if the initiative proves successful the scheme will be made available for more schools to apply for.

Gloucestershire Performance Centre are expanding and are now offering limited places to their club. This is seperate to the Performance Training and is aimed at 8-12 years olds looking to start playing badminton. The session will be delivered by a Level 2 Coach based around fun games and practices designed to help enhance the childrens badminton skills and to have fun!

If you are interested in joining please CLICK HERE and fill in the form on the club page to find out more. Spaces are limited.

Sol Griffiths chalked up his 6th Gloucestershire Restricted Men’s Single title at this years championships holding off the young title contenders rising through the ranks. Sunday morning started with a bang as Henry Jones and Jamie Pearcy battled it out for a spot in the final. It took 3 sets to split them with Jones running out the eventual winner 21-16, his reward a final against Griffiths. The semi final potentially taking its toll Jones went down 21-13, 21-8 with Griffiths keeping his name on the Men’s Singles trophy for another year. 

In the Women’s singles it was two Junior players who would battle it out for the trophy in Sian Evans and Vivi Jennings-Trace. It was always going to be a  close match between two players who know each other very well and the match certainly didn’t disappoint. The winning score 13-21, 21-14, 21-16 with Evans grinding out the win to take her first senior title. There is no doubt we will be seeing a lot of these two players in senior finals in the years to come. 

The Women`s doubles took part over the one day on Saturday with a mixture of youth, experience and also a few scratch partnerships to enter the mix. After some very close and hard fought box games it was the two seeded pairs who prevailed through their groups to make the final which again promised to be close. The number 1 seeded Kerry Mullen/Abigail Jolliffe saw off the challenge of Emily Prankard/Isla Townley in 3 sets 21-13, 22-24, 21-13 to etch their names on the trophy. 

Onto the Men’s Doubles with top seeded Jon Horsfield and Mike Haywood beating off the challengers with strong pairs in depth across the event. All the way through the event there was some entertaining badminton and that continued into the semi`s and finals on sunday. First the title winners saw off the combination of Ian Woolway/Jamie Pearcy before beating Andy Woolway/Joe Honeybone in the final to claim another Restricted title. 

The final event of the senior restricted was the Mixed Doubles which saw multiple pairs at the start of the event in with a shot of taking the title. The Box rounds saw a lot of 3 set matches and very tight results which could have gone either way. In the end the semi final lineups were Kerry Mullen/Jamie Pearcy vs Henry Jones/ Matilda Tierney and Ian Woolway/Anna Marie Abdon vs Adam Watts/Emily Prankard. Mullen/Pearcy held off the challenge from Jones/Tierney in two close sets whilst Watts/Prankard put up a close fight before eventually going down to Woolway/Abdon. The final game of the tournament saw some tired bodies and minds on court after the two days of play but the players showed some great skills and determination to provide a high quality final for those that had stayed to watch. Mullen/Pearcy taking the win 21-11, 21-19 to beat the top two seeded pairs on their way to the trophy. 

For full results please click here.

Click Here for the Photo Gallery

Juniors from across the county descended on Cheltenham Ladies College to battle it out to be County Champions.  Here are the winners from the weekend:

There were some great games to watch across all the events in the age groups. Special mention goes to those players who were playing in age groups above their true age group. This is good match play experience for everyone involved and you will all learn a lot from playing players older than yourselves. 

Well done to all of our new county champions and please remember to look after the trophies. 

For full results please click here.

Click Here for the Photo Gallery

The 2018 European Senior Championships  saw each player from Gloucestershire pick up a medal of some colour over the weekend. The sole Gold medal came from Rebecca Panttaney partnering Yorkshire`s Alex Marritt in the Mixed Doubles Over 35 Category. They cam through their final on Sunday in straight games against the Number 1 seeds from Germany 21-17, 21-18 to take the gold. The other final with local interest on the last day of competition was the Mixed Doubles Over 45 category between Nick Ponting/Julie Bradbury and Carsten Loesch/Dorte Steenberg. In an extremely tight game the English pair had to settle for silver as they were just edged out 21-19 in the deciding set. 

Elsewhere the were plenty of Bronze Medals shared amongst the team. Linda Pearcy and Mandy Joiner lost out in the Semi Finals of the Over 50 Women’s Doubles narrowly being beaten 21-18, 24-22 to the number one seeds and eventual winners. Phil Richardson picked up a Bronze with partner Jackie Hurst in the Over 60 Mixed Doubles also losing out to the eventual winners this time from Scotland. 

Pantaney added a couple of Bronze Medals in singles and doubles to add to her Gold whilst Nick Ponting also picked up a Bronze medal in the Over 35 Mens Doubles playing two age groups below his true age. 

A big congratulations to all of the Gloucestershire players and their partners on yet another successful medal haul from a European Senior Championships.