Black Country Youth Games 2007
Walsall triumph at the Youth Games!
Walsall school children were victorious over their Black Country rivals as 150 young athletes from across Walsall emerged as winners of the Black Country Youth Games 2007.
The event held on Friday at Aldersley Leisure Village in Wolverhampton saw 600 children from across the Black Country competing in 12 sports in the rain and sunshine in an exciting day of sporting excellence.
After a day of harsh weather and equally tough sporting challenges from Dudley, Sandwell and Wolverhampton teams, Walsall emerged with some excellent results. Out of the twelve titles on offer, Walsall took an impressive 5, emerging as winners of basketball; inter cricket, judo, netball and hi-5 netball competitions and claiming the runners up spots in athletics, girls football and tag rugby. Walsall finished with 40 points, four points clear of their next nearest rivals Wolverhampton with 36.
Walsall were also crowned joint winners of the Fair Play Trophy for the second year running.
Richard Bradford, Club Development Officer at Sport and Leisure Development Services, who co-ordinated the Walsall team entry said, “We are very pleased that Walsall has won the Games for the first time in a number of years. At Sport and Leisure Development Services, we are immensely proud of this achievement and all of the hard work put in to make this possible by our own development officers and external partners working with us, and of course, the athletes themselves”.
“The Walsall team did themselves proud as their effort and commitment was unrivalled. Their excellent attitude towards the competition was emphasised by once again winning the Fair Play Trophy”.
The Mayor of Walsall Councillor Melvin Pitt, who was in attendance at the Games to show his support said, “The talent and enthusiasm of Walsall’s youngsters has given the borough something to be very proud of. Not only did the children give maximum effort to come out on top, but they also showed a high degree of sportsmanship which was epitomised by emerging as joint winners of the Fair Play Trophy for the second year running”.
Members of the Walsall team will be invited to the Mayors Parlour, later in the month to celebrate the win.
The Black Country Youth Games is organised by a task group comprising of the Black Country Sports Partnership, part of Black Country Consortium and members of each Local Authority Sports Development departments. The event is aimed at promoting participation and inclusion in sport. It provides youngsters with some of their first experiences of competitive sport and encourages development through sport by providing routes for children to continue participating in the long term.
Team Reports:
Athletics - mixed years 5 and 6
(2nd place)
Walsall’s Black Country Youth Games Athletics team was created from a combination of athletes drawn from highly successful borough wide UK Athletics, Sports Hall competitions held in the Streetly and Brownhills school clusters together with the developing weekly “Satellite” Junior Saturday Athletics club based at Walsall Campus of Wolverhampton University.
Pupils from the winning Lindens Primary School (Streetly Partnership) andBrownhills West together with three talented youngsters from the “Satellite” club acquitted themselves so well that they finished in 2nd place (Walsall`s highest position in the history of this competition) behind a strong yr 6 Sandwell team. It should be pointed out that five of the Walsall team were year 5`s competing in what was labelled a year 5/6 competition. This augurs well for next year.
Team spirit was superb and special thanks go to the staff , parents and athletes from Lindens Primary, Brownhills West Primary, St. Peter`s Catholic Primary and St Giles CE Primary Schools for their excellent contributions to a very successful day which , more importantly, was enjoyed by all.
Team Manager Steve Walton said “What a great performance from all the team. Watch out for us next year! Special thanks for all who helped on the day-including fellow team managerNick Wignall who added “There were some brilliant performances and it is now hoped that some of these athletes will join local club; in fact one has already done so”.
Badminton Boys and Girls - years 7 and 8
(3rd place both teams)
Six children from St Francis of Assisi made up both the Girls and Boys Badminton teams for the Black Country Youth Games. They qualified to represent Walsall by winning a tournament organised by the Black Country Badminton Development Officer Rachel Bayley specially to select the Youth Games team, back in May of this year.
On the day of the event, both teams found themselves up against some tough competition from the other three Black Country borough squads and battled away to finish third.
Basketball Boys - years 7 and 8
(1st place)
The Walsall basketball team did themselves proud at the youth games, winning all three of their fixtures to win the competition. With a team made up of children from schools across the Walsall borough including Pool Hayes,
Willenhall and Sneyd, Walsall comfortably beat all three of their local rivals. The team was selected from participants at the Willenhall Sports College based Saturday Club, where some of the team have been playing for a few years. Although they were not the biggest or most athletic side on display, Walsall demonstrated great teamwork and a high work rate to overcome anything the opposition could threw at them. The high standard of basketball from the Walsall camp is epitomized by the fact that almost every child that took part will be representing the Black Country Wolves national league side next season. “It is not only exciting, but also very rewarding to see such a hard working and talented group of lads developing through our system.” Said Team Manager and Walsall Basketball development officer Anthony Wood; “This is truly a great achievement for all involved”.
Inter Cricket Boys years 7 and 8
(1st place)
The Walsall Year 7 & 8 Black Country Youth Games cricket team was selected following open trials at Walsall Cricket Club. Eight players were selected in the initial squad, all of whom participate for school teams and cricket clubs in the borough. In what was a six-a-side competition played on astro turf, each member of the squad played in a minimum of two games with Bronze Cricket Club’s Robin Badger captaining the side.
Walsall were tested to the full in their first game against a strong Sandwell outfit which contained a number of impressive bowlers and strong hitters. However, after a stuttering start the Walsall batsman showed their quality to post a total of 263 (teams began on 200) which proved beyond Sandwell. Wolverhampton were Walsall’s next scalp, as accurate bowling and good fielding ensured the side made it two wins out of two.
Walsall required a victory over Dudley to be crowned as champions and despite their poorest performance of the competition they held their nerve to secure a narrow victory on a day of sporting success for Walsall.
Kwik Cricket
(3rd Place)
Children from Jane Lane Special School in Walsall were selected to represent Walsall in the Kwik Cricket competition at the Youth Games this year. With heavy rain disrupting play at Aldersley Stadium, the team did their utmost to battle on and finish third in the tournament, picking up some valuable points for the overall Walsall cause.
John Cox from Jane Lane School and Team Manager for the Kwik Cricket team said “Our pupils were great and the weather didn’t dampen the Cricketer’s spirits or enthusiasm. It was a fantastic tournament which was enjoyed by all and played in the true spirit of the Games”.
Boys Football - under 13
(3rd Place)
Pupils from Daw End and Castle Special Schools joined forces to represent Walsall in the inclusive Boys Football tournament at the Black Country Youth Games held at Aldersley Stadium in Wolverhampton.
The competition began in extremely heavy rain making conditions very awkward. Nonetheless, the children weren’t deterred and began the event in style by winning their first game in convincing style.
Due to the weather conditions, the tournament was moved indoors in to the Wolverhampton Wanderers Academy onto the astro turf pitch where the Walsall team continued to perform well finishing in third place overall.
Girls Football - year 5 and 6
(2nd Place)
Pupils from Linden’s Primary represented Walsall in the Girls Football after an exciting qualification tournament held in conjunction with Goals Soccer Centre in Darlaston in May. Linden’s overcame twelve other schools to beat Blakenhall Heath Primary in the final to earn the right to prove their worth against the best of the three other Black Country boroughs at the Youth Games.
The Black Country Youth Games competition began in heavy rain making playing conditions difficult. But the girls were undeterred by the weather and went on to claim the runners up spot behind a talented Sandwell team and earn the overall Walsall Team three valuable points
Boys Hockey - year 7 and 8 (4th Place) and Girls Hockey - year 7 and 8 (3rd Place)
Year 7 and 8 pupils from Secondary schools from across Walsall were invited to attend trials at Willenhall School Sports College in early June. Pupils went through a vigorous training session which ended in a game to assess their talents. As a result, both teams were made up from players from Streetly Sports College and Willenhall Sports College.
On the day of the Black Country Youth Games itself, the teams played extremely well throughout the day, improving their performances game by game. The Girls team finished in third place and the Boys team in fourth, nevertheless they gave their all and contributed some important points to the overall standings. Hayley Worgan, Community Hockey Coach and Hockey Team Manager for Walsall said “Both of our teams played their games in high spirit, had an enjoyable day and gained some valuable experience which will aid their progression in hockey in the future”.
Judo - mixed ages 8 - 15
(1st place)
Walsall’s Judo team comprised of 25 participants from 15 different Walsall schools and put on a performance to come out on top against some tough competitors to win the tournament.
Competitors competing in weight categories, aged between 8 and 15 years old and all novices at the sport were selected through the development work of Dave Elmore (Judo Development Officer) and his team who are based in the National Centre of Excellence for Judo at the Walsall Campus of the University of Wolverhampton.
The event proved to be one of the most spectacular at the Youth Games this year after its inception last year.
Wayne McDonald, Walsall Schools Judo Development Officer and Walsall Team Manager on the day said “Walsall’s three School Sports Partnerships have invested in coaching in Judo which takes place in the school curriculum and at after school clubs across the borough. The Youth Games result proves that this has had a very positive effect on Judo within Walsall and this bodes well for the future”.
Hi 5 Netball -mixed year 5 and 6
(1st place)
After 8 weeks of training working with coaches from Yendys Netball Club and Walsall Council Sports and Leisure Development Services, the children could not have been better prepared for a day exciting competition.
Due to the weather the Hi 5 Netball competition, was reduced to one round robin round instead of two. The squad had convincing wins against Wolverhampton and Sandwell, but Dudley proved to be tougher opposition in the second match of the day. In a nail-biter finish Walsall came from 5-7 behind to take the match 10-8 in their favour.
The High Five game, adapted from the full Netball game, is designed to give playing opportunities in three areas of the court (attack, centre court and defence) and off court roles such as timekeeper, scorer and centre pass marker. Whilst each of the nine-strong squad played their part in Walsall’s victory, Taryn Lawrence and Hannah Wood were outstanding in their efforts for the triumphant Walsall squad.
Hi-Five Team Manager and Walsall Netball Development Officer Sandie de Bechi praised both Netball squads for their commitment to training and for their outstanding performances on the day of the games. Undoubtedly these successes helped Walsall become overall winners and the girls very proud of their efforts.
Year 5 & 6 Squad: Kathryn Stephenson (Manor Primary), Taryn Lawrence, Hannah Wood, Emily Ward, Madeleine Turner, Bethan Parker, Harriet Green, Ella Cormack and Molly Ballard (Cooper & Jordan).
Girls Netball - year 7 and 8
(1st place)
A new squad of 12 girls represented Walsall at the Black Country Youth Games, held at Aldersley Village on Friday. Their opponents were girls of a similar age from Dudley, Sandwell and Wolverhampton. Despite the wet weather, the girls were determined that the show must go on.
The first game was against the hosts, Wolverhampton. Although the Walsall girls had trained for a few weeks, this was the first time they had played a competitive match together.
At the start, both teams were a little disjointed and players on both sides had difficulty in putting their passes together. The Walsall girls settled first at with good feeding from Lisa Standen and good shooting from Vanessa Lyne, they went into a 4 – 2 lead at halftime. In the second half they eased further in front and ran clear winners.
Changes were made to the team for the second match against Dudley. This proved a very close match at the start. It was a game where defences ruled and Verity Roberts showed good control and distribution from the Goal Defence position. Then the Walsall Goal Shooter came into her own, and put the matter beyond doubt as Walsall finally went clear to win their second match.
Walsall made further changes to their starting line up for their final match against Sandwell. The Walsall Coach ensuring that all twelve Players had contributed. Sandwell put up a good fight in the first half as Walsall led 2 – 0.
In the second half, thanks to some excellent shooting by Laura Clarkson, Walsall went on to an easy victory.
Thus, by virtue of 3 wins, the Walsall team were champions at this event.
Syd Smailes, the Walsall Coach said he was “proud of the performances shown by all the girls and for the way they had taken to the training sessions and to the matches at the Youth Games. They deserved their wins and showed class in all of their performances”.
Year 7 & 8 Squad: Verity Roberts (QM), Laura Clarkson, Maria Clarkson, Lisa Standen and Hollyann Davaren (Barr Beacon), Paige Hathaway and Charissa Burnett (Willenhall SSC), Ashleigh Lewis and Vanessa Lyne (Aldridge) and Christine Bate, Lauren Gibbons and Shannon Hubbard (Pool Hayes).
Tag Rugby - mixed year 5 and 6
(2nd place)
Brownhills West Primary represented Walsall in the Black Country Youth Games Tag Rugby tournament after winning a primary schools tournament to earn the privilege back in April.
A very talented Brownhills line up put on a determined show at the Youth Games against some tough competition from Wolverhampton and Sandwell and a strong Dudley team, despite heavy rain showers and were very unlucky to finish runners up.
Brownhills West PE Co-ordinator and Team Manager for Rugby team Mel Freeth, said “I am extremely proud of our children; we have some very sporty pupils at our school. This team was made up of year 6 pupils, most of whom have been playing Tag Rugby since year 5 and thoroughly enjoy it. The children had a wonderful time at the Youth Games and I think it has inspired them to continue their participation in Rugby. One of the children even said it was the best day of his life so far!”.