14-May-2007 - TVVA League Season end - The season has now officially ended and no further results will be recorded. The closing league points and positions have been confirmed at the TVVA AGM. Thanks to everyone who has taken part. Colin Gordon, Fixtures Secretary.
April
2007 - Marske Volleyball Club
has reason to celebrate after being placed third in the
country for the prestigious award of Club of the year. Four
members of the club travelled to the annual Awards evening
held by Volleyball England at Kettering. The Award
recognises the work of the club in developing the sport in a
safe environment for all ages. The club has recently
achieved Volley 1 the Volleyball England club accreditation
and has been working hard to bring on the many people in the
community who attend the club. The club has been playing
Volleyball at Bydales School Marske for 24 years, having
been started in 1982 by an ex teacher. The club is now
thriving with many junior members who attend Bydales and
other local schools. Lesley Shepherd accepted the award “
This award means so much to me and the club it is the
recognition of many years of hard work to ensure that
volleyball stays thriving at Marske “ “ The committee has
put in many hours to achieve this accolade”. See the press
release in the
Trophy Cabinet.
5-7 May 2007 - Inter-regional's, UEA - A great result for the U14 Girls from the North East who came first overall with the 'A' team also securing first position after only dropping one game 1-2 on the second day. Three of the girls were also voted as Super 6's. A fantastic effort by the U16 girls also resulted in a 4th position. See the Photo Gallery. Further details of these and the boys matches can be found in the Trophy Cabinet.
20-Apr-2007 - Div 3 - Haughton vs. Nunthorpe Juniors - The superior skills of the Nunthorpe team won through. The relatively inexperienced Haughton team improved and the game was competitive throughout. Jackson Sweeting
April 2007 - National League, Men's 3 North - Congratulations to the Middlesbrough Mavericks who secured third place this year. This is their best result ever and they narrowly missed out on a promotion play off position. See the EVA Website for more details - follow the links on the home page of this site.
30-Mar-2007 - Div 1 - Haughton vs Marske - what a cracking game. Haughton fielded 4 different nationalities for their first game together and took the 1st set convincingly. Marske rallied in the 2nd set eventually winning 26-24. The next 2 sets saw some tremendous volleyball for this level, with Haughton taking both sets to 23.
17th March 2007
- U16 Girls, National Knockout Final 8, Loughborough - What a fantastic
performance by Nunthorpe Under 16 Girls who secured a well
deserved
third place. The team (Amy R, Rachel P, Sarah N, Emma G,
Rachael M, Abbie O, Jess S, Vicky A, Polly S, Kirsty M, Kirsty
L, Becky B, Alex W & coach Dave M). First match Nunthorpe played Wiltshire Mavericks, the girls started
slowly and lost the first set
25-22. Next set they started to settle in but were just beaten
26-24, both sets being lost largely due to some
uncharacteristic poor serving. Not a good start, but gave the
girls a wake-up call. Second match was against Tameside 'B',
the girls were up for it from the start, taking the lead and
romping away to a 25-14 win. Next set went point for point to
11-11 then Nunthorpe established their superiority and took
the second set 25-14. Third match, first set against St
Edwards with the girls well in their stride was taken 25-16.
The second set was more-or-less point for point with a small
Nunthorpe lead until around 18-16 when some super serving took
Nunthorpe to a 25-18 victory. The final results for Pool
'A' were: 1: Wiltshire Mavericks; 2: Nunthorpe; 3: Tameside
'B'; 4: St Edwards. Pool 'B': 1: Tameside 'A'; 2: Ashcombe; 3:
Boswells; 4: Moorside. For the Pool play-offs, Nunthorpe
played Pool 'B' winners Tameside 'A'. The play-off
started well with Nunthorpe establishing a small lead which
was held to 20 points. With some strong serving Tameside
fought back and overtook Nunthorpe to lead 24-20. Nunthorpe
responded and pulled back to 24-23 but lost the final point
and the first set 25-23. After such a close call for the first
set, the team were a little deflated and allowed Tameside to
dictate the play in the second set. Tameside opened up a lead
and held on to it to take the second set and with it a place
in the final, 25-15. It has to be said that the team was
disappointed with third place as for a moment it looked like
they may have beaten Tameside 'A' and had the team been at
full strength - who knows? But at the end of the day, the
girls performance was brilliant, they gave it their all and
they can all walk away with their heads held high as the third
best U16 Girls in the country! Thanks must also go to
Ian & wife, Alyson, Colin & Linda who provided excellent and
very noisy support for the team. Colin Gordon.
3rd February 2007 - There's no stopping the Pink Girlies. The team from Redcar & Cleveland (Marske & Nunthorpe Volleyball Clubs) have qualified for the EVA U-15 Championship finals. The Pink Girlies won three of their four games convincingly at the qualifying tournament in Manchester. They only lost to Tameside 'A', who also reached the last eight. The national finals are in Worcester in March. The Pink Girlies are already in full training as the build up to their big test. The Squad: Emma Gordon, Jenny Little, Rachel McManus, Kirsty Martin, Clare Menzies, Sarah Whalley, Charlotte Whalley, Alex Worrall.
27th January 2007 - Birmingham
7th October 2006 - NEVA Ladies Round 1 - A good performance by both Nunthorpe teams but a disappointing outcome as neither team made it to the semi's. Nunthorpe 1 playing as a team for the first time had the usual problems a new team has of learning to work together but showed promise for future rounds. Nunthorpe 2, a younger team but experienced as a team performed better and narrowly missed qualifying for the semi's. Looking forward to Round 2.... See the photo gallery. Colin Gordon
09-Mar-07 - Div 3 - Haughton vs. Nunthorpe Allcomers - A closely fought match five set match with Haughton finally overcoming the Nunthorpe side. Haughton won the first set comfortably but the next two went to Nunthorpe by a similar margin. It was looking like the Allcomers might clinch it but a strategic substitution by Haughton appeared enough to tip the balance. An enjoyable match and probably the best effort to date for the Allcomers. Colin Gordon
03-Mar-2007 - Worcester - U14 Girls Final - Our local team, the Pink Ladies, consisted of Kirsty Martin, Alex Worrall, Emma Gordon, Rachael McManus, Amy Rout, Charlotte Whalley, Sarah Whalley, Jenny Little, Clare Menzies and Ria Wilkinson. The first match was against Tettenhall Tigers and the first set went brilliantly with a clear win, but in the second set Tettenhall fought back to end the match as a draw. The next two games were won against Ashcombe and ? which put the Pink Ladies through to the semi-finals. There, we played against Boswells and won the 1st set 25-23. The next two sets Boswells fought back resulting in them winning the match. The end result - Third place for the Pink Ladies. Emma Gordon
25-Feb-2007 - Div 2 & Div 3 - Nunthorpe & Nunthorpe Juniors - Two good matches against Marske teams with Nunthorpe winning both. The Div 2 match was closely fought but after dropping the first set, Nunthorpe managed to do enough to win the next three. Some good play and serving by both teams. The best pick-up must go to Dave Coates who ran well past the post into the Nunthorpe free zone to return the ball for a Marske attack - unfortunately, Coates junior missed! Div 3 match was not so close but was played enthusiastically by both young sides. Colin Gordon
07-Feb-2007 - D3 - Haughton vs. Acklam Y9/8 Girls - The Haughton team proved far too strong for the young Acklam girls but played the game in the right spirit
06-Feb-2007 - Div 3 - Hummersknott vs. Haughton - A good performance from Haughton's juniors gave them the double over Hummersknott. A good learning curve for some of hummersknott's younger players.
28-Jan-2007 - Div 3 - Nunthorpe Juniors vs. Hummersknott Jnrs - A very close five set match with only a few points dividing the teams. Colin Gordon
28-Jan-2007 - Div 2 - Nunthorpe vs. Acklam Staff - A very close four set match with Nunthorpe showing a little more consistency to win through. Some good attacking play by both sides. Colin Gordon
14-Jan-2007 - Div 3 - Nunthorpe Allcomers vs. Haughton - An enjoyable match with spirited play from both teams. The Haughton team established themselves in the first set but the Allcomers surprised the young Haughton team with some tenacity to take the second set. However, with the total age of the Haughton team about equal to the combined age of two of the Allcomers, youth took the upper hand and the Haughton team secured the next two sets to take them to a 3-1 win. Colin Gordon.
18th December 2006-Three cheers for Volleyball at Bydales Technology College
Marske
Volleyball Club has reason
to celebrate after three pieces of good news this month.
The club are celebrating the fact that they now have use of the
brand new sports hall at Bydales Technology College, which has
been achieved through active school/club links. The club has
been playing Volleyball at Bydales for 24 years, having been
started in 1982 by an ex teacher. The club is now thriving with
many junior members who attend Bydales.
As well as the use of the brand new facilities, which will give
the opportunity to expand its membership, the club has recently
been awarded Volley 1 accreditation, which is Volleyball
England’s Club Mark. The national Volley 1-2-3 Club Mark scheme
recognises good practice and is a mark of a quality club that is
equitable, inclusive, friendly, well-run and most importantly
safe.
At the end of the month the club also heard that it had been
successful in gaining an Awards For All Grant from The Big
Lottery Fund for £3090 .
Head Coach Lesley Shepherd said “This is a long awaited
injection of cash. For many years the club has used fund raising
events to help fund equipment and activities. This will allow us
to develop the club even further and it gives a huge boost for
our junior section.”
The grant has been awarded to help fund competition standard
posts and net as well as new equipment for training, as well as
assistance towards junior development activities.
28-Nov-2006 - Div 3 - Hummersknott Juniors vs. Nunthorpe Allcomers - A very open and competitive game with a pleasing standard of 3 touch volleyball from both teams. Hummersknott established an early 2 set lead but were over powered in sets 3 and 4 by some strong serving and hitting from the Allcomers. Set 5 was a tight game with Hummersknott narrowly winning through. Alasdair Tatham.
26-Nov-2006 - Div 1 - Nunthorpe Seniors vs. Kings Manor - A very close match with only 2 points between the two sides over four games but with KM winning the last crucial points to take the match 3-1. Colin Gordon
01-Nov-2006 - Div 3 - Haughton vs. Hummersknott Jnrs - Closely fought game with the Haughton boys' height and power winning through. Hummersknott were always in with a shout passing the ball well at times. Jackson Sweeting
29-Oct-2006 - Div 2 - Nunthorpe vs. Acklam Girls - A convincing win by the Nunthorpe side who played a straight six as Sarah Naylor & Rachel Powson added strength to their school side for the match. The first two sets were won comfortably 25-16, 25-13 with some good hitting and collecting. The third set and final set was closer at 25-21, Acklam having opened up an initial lead but the Nunthorpe girls kept their cool and closed the gap with some steady serving and hitting. Colin Gordon
20-Oct-2006 - Div 1 - Haughton 'B' vs. Nunthorpe Juniors - The Juniors definately had an age advantage and took the 1st set which was very close. Haughton had 2 players drafted in from school due to unvailable players. With the older Haughton players taking rather too long to warm up, the game was very evenly balanced, until a little experience eventually told. Excellent friendly spirit with a few laughs along the way! Jackson Sweeting
18-Oct-2006- Div 1 - Acklam Staff vs. Grangefield 2 - A very experienced Grangefield side outplayed the Acklam Staff team, some of whom are on a steep learning curve still learning the game. Dave Cook on the Acklam side made some very powerful attacks. Martin Wain
10-Oct-06 - Division 3 - Acklam Y9/8 Girls vs. Haughton B - The young Acklam Grange girls battled well in the first set, against some older bigger girls, and took the first set 27-25, but the introduction of the older stronger boys with powerful serves and strong hits proved far too much. The Acklam girls lost their impetus and their confidence over the next 3 sets, and finally lost 1 set to 3. Martin Wain
05-Oct-2006 - Div 1 - Middlesbrough College 3 vs. Grangefield 2 - A very good game and extremely close third set the Middlesbrough college power won them the game with some good hitting from Victoria Swindell. Simon Harsley.
National League update
- Hi. The season got off to a flying
start on Sunday October the 8th with Middlesbrough College Mavericks winning
both matches against 2 teams who were previously unbeaten.
Middlesbrough College v Telford Ladies - The first game of the season
confirmed my thoughts on this team as they totally outplayed the opposition in
every department. Middlesbrough's dedication to training and attitude to
succeed on court was apparent throughout this game and all of the work during
the summer and the pre-season trip to Latvia paid off. Exceptional
performances from Hannah Conroy (18) and Kirsty Lang (15) ensured the victory.
Superb setting from Amanda Mclean allowed Tor Swindells and Heather Reid to
show off their hitting skills. The girls were very well organised and really
enjoyed this victory. Result Set 1 - 25 15, Set 2 - 25 - 14, Set 3 - 25 16.
Telfords Nomination for MVP = Victoria Swindells.
Middlesbrough College v Chester - After analysing the Chester v Telford match in detail I knew the next match was going to be much harder and this team had won their 2 previous fixtures in this league. Chester had some big powerful hitters and it was a huge boost when Rowena Carter turned up after playing National League Netball. The girls were very nervous and I knew that this was there biggest test as a squad. They made some mistakes which even they could not believe. Chester won the first 2 sets 25 - 19 and 25 - 17. At this point I was still confident of winning and made a few tactical changes to try and get us into an early lead. The service power of Kirsty Lamb, Victoria Swindells and Amanda Mclean ensured we lead for the first time in a set. This was the changing point and you could see the confidence flow. The girls started blocking and hitting much better. Rowena Carter who was later giving MVP (most valuable player) was blocking all of their attacks and clever play by Tor, Mandi And Heather ensure the set. 25 - 20. Much of the same followed in the next and the girls now looked fearless and attacked with a real presence. Hannah Conroy was totally outstanding covering every inch of the court and is becoming one of the best players I have coached. Middlesbrough won this set 25 - 18. The momentum was with us now and I continued going in all guns blazing and we led in the final set 6-0. Complacency however set in and they pulled the score back 12-12. Three of the next four points - unbelievable. Hannah Conroy produced one of the most amazing pick ups I have ever seen. She produced a full length dive into the corner of the court not only to pick it up but hit the ball as she dived and it went over the net to win the point. The next 2 points were won by Rowena Carter and Amanda Mclean. Both of these players produced superb blocks from very powerful hitters Middlesbrough 17-15 Chester, Middlesbrough winning 3-2 overall. MVP - Rowena Carter - nominated by Chester.
Squad - Victoria Swindells (Tor), Heather Reid, Amanda McLean, Hannah Conroy, Kirsty Lang, Kirsty Lamb, Sarah Burnett, Nicola Milburn and Rowena Carter. Many Thanks, David Goodchild.
08-Oct-2006 - Div 1 - Nunthorpe Seniors vs. Marske 1 - A new Nunthorpe team that improved set by set. If they had clinched the third set...then maybe? A good performance from Marske. Colin Gordon
08-Oct-2006 - Div 2 Prior vs. Acklam Staff - A not unusual match for Prior here - we started fabulously and after a few points successfully substituted our new Swiss student ( who has never player real 6 aside volleyball ) into the squad taking off our borrowed Y9 Girl ( Jenny Little). We took the first two sets very easily then .... Acklam started to play much more settled volleyball and took the next two sets 25-20, 25-21. A tense 5th setter was played with the home team switching back on and winning 15 - 8 . A good game and a great chance to get our new player into English Volleyball. well done and thanks to all. Caroline Little
05-Oct-2006 - Div 2 - Marske 2 vs. Prior - A good game all round for the young Marske team against a strong Prior side. All the young players stood their ground and went for all the balls, which is really pleasing considering the spped of some of those serves and spikes. Prior played well and supported the much younger opposition. A great game - well done to all. Caroline Little.
04-Oct-2006 - Div 3 - Haughton vs. Conyers Y10 - The first ever game for some of the girls for both teams. Haughton juniors won 1st set but quite close with Conyers coming back strongly in the 2nd. Haughton fielded a complete change by playing some boys and winning the 3rd set comfortably. Set 4 also went the home sides way with a mixed 6 on court all the time. Jackson Sweeting.
03-Oct-2006 - Div 2 - Acklam Y9 vs. Nunthorpe - The Nunthorpe girls were far too strong and a lot more experienced than the Acklam lads, although the lads battled hard and improved considerably throughout the game. Martin Wain
03-Oct-2006 - The leagues are now well under way. Please ensure that you record and submit all the information required to record the results. It is important that we know the sets won and scores as these all contribute to determining the league positions. Without this information we have to assume the minimum margins to a win.
16-Sept-2006 - Fixtures Version 3 (dated 16/09/06) issued. Premier League - Haughton OB withdrawn, Haughton YB renamed Haughton 'A'. Division 1 - Haughton now Haughton 'B'.
09-Sept-2006 - TVVA League Fixtures - first draft issued and available via the downloads section of this web site. First matches due to start on 24th September 2006.
TVVA 2006/7 League Season
The new season will start around the end of September 2006. The draft fixtures will be published and emailed around the 10th September. This is later than intended due to the late registration of teams.
9-Jul-2006 - Redcar Beach Volleyball Tournament
What a blustery day! Winnie the Pooh would have loved it. We were sand blasted all day, but fortunately the black storms seemed to pass us by. Not the best conditions for volleyball, but once started, the players got stuck in. There was a change in emphasis this year, and a lot more adults played than ever before. The 2 a’side competitions are here to stay, and were the main feature – both women and men. Junior teams came from Acklam, Conyers, Kader, Marske, Newcastle Nunthorpe, and Tynedale.
The U13,s played some great volleyball considering the conditions, and well
done to Kader primary school (Last weeks winners of Pontin’s U11’s) who
finished top. They have had a great start to the game. Tynedale took second
place. Acklam came first in the U13 girls, with Marske 2 runners up.
The U15 boys was dominated by Tynedale who came 1st and 2nd. They were new to
the game a short time ago, and have learnt fast.
The U15 girls was a hard fought out pool, with a lot of drawn matches. The
Acklam 1 team went hysterical when, for the first time ever, they beat
Nunthorpe 1. The pool finished: 1st Nunthorpe 1, 2nd Nunthorpe 2, Joint
3rd Acklam 1 and Conyers.
The 2 a’side women’s tournament was new this year, and played very competitively throughout the day.
Final placings were 1st Tor and Snow, 2nd Les and Emma
The 2 a’side men was an excellent competition with 16 teams competing. At the end of the group stages 2 of the pairs (Paul and Mike Anderson, and Steve Hall/ Dave Black) were totally identical on points and had to play a final decider for top place. Paul & Mike just managed to squeeze the win after another very tight game at 15-13. The final top pool (Simon and Dan, Paul and Mick, Paul and Mike, and Bob and Keith) was also a really close affair. At the end of the games, all but Si and Dan were level on points. 1 point for separated Bob and Keith from the other two, and 1 point against separated Paul and Mick from the winners Paul and Mike Anderson. Paul and Mike had managed to defeat the winners of the last two tournaments, by the slimmest of margins.
Well done to all who took
part, and thanks to all who helped set up and take down the nets. It is always
a huge task, but is made a lot easier when people volunteer their support.
Next years tournament will be on Sunday 8th July.
Martin Wain.
12-May-2006 - TVVA Leagues 2005/6 - Across the leagues, of 230 fixtures, 169 were physically played and 201 were scored. This equates to 73% played and 87% that scored in the League Tables - this is a great result. The difference is those fixtures that were claimed due to the opposition failing to meet their fixture obligations - only 28 fixtures were unreported and therefore cancelled. Well done to all. Colin Gordon, Fixtures Secretary.
3-May-2006 - Nunthorpe Eagles Volleyball Club gain Volley 1 and Clubmark accreditation, making it the eighth club in the country to do so.
29/30-Apr-2006 - Sheffield Interregional - Well done to all the girls and coaches who took part this weekend. Dave McManus, Caroline Little, Amanda McLean, Rachael Bringloe and myself. And thanks to Jessica Smith and Abbey Oxley for their help on the 2 days. A lot of effort and time went in before this weekend and it really showed. These are the best results we have had for the girls in a number of years. The standard as ever was remarkable in both age groups. To see the best juniors from all over England playing with ability, enthusiasm and commitment is amazing and so to achieve these results is excellent, especially as most of our girls were very young for their groups. Most will be there again next year. U16 girls - 4th place out of 9 Regions. Against Yorkshire we won 2 sets to 0; Against West Midlands, won 2 sets to 0. Against South West narrowly lost in a very tense game 1 set to 2. Semi finals - against a very strong North West side we lost narrowly 0 sets to 2. 3rd/4th Play Off against South West, lost 0 sets to 2. The final set being extremely close. The squad consisted of girls from across the region: Vicky Archard - Conyers School, Sarah Bell - Acklam Grange School, Rebecca Brown - Nunthorpe Volleyball Club, Sarah Heptinstall - Conyers School, Kirsty Lang (capt) - Nunthorpe School/Nunthorpe Volleyball Club, Alex Laws - Consett, Sarah Naylor - Acklam Grange/ Nunthorpe VB Club, Rachel Powson - Acklam Grange/ Nunthorpe VB club, Polly Sewell - Conyers School, Rachael Walker - Acklam Grange School, Vicky Worrall - Nunthorpe School/ Nunthorpe VB club.
The U14 girls played in the A and B competitions and the overall positions were taken into account for the final placings. We feel quite aggrieved here as the girls came 2nd in the A group and 3rd in the B group - coming level with a region that came 4th and 1st. On a very irregular count back we were put in overall 3rd position. I do not have the individual game results. The girls were Stephanie Dawson - Acklam Grange/ Nunthorpe VB club, Emma Gordon - Nunthorpe School/Nunthorpe VB club, Heather Grant - Acklam Grange School, Hannah Kent - Nunthorpe School/Nunthorpe VB club, Raychel Laws - Consett, Jenny Little - Marske Volleyball Club, Kirsty Martin - Nunthorpe School/Nunthorpe VB, Rachael McManus - Nunthorpe School/Nunthorpe VB, Clare Menzies - Marske Volleyball Club Amy Rout - Nunthorpe VB club, Alex Worrall - Nunthorpe School/Nunthorpe VB. It was also fantastic to see so many family/ friends travelling down to support us. Everyone, especially the players appreciated the support. I think we were louder than North West which made a pleasant change. The boys results will come in today. Martin Wain.
29/30-Apr-2006 - Sheffield Interregional - This weekend 6 of our local girls ( Hannah, Jenny, Clare, Heather, Super Server Steph and Amy) played in the inter regional finals in Sheffield U 14 team B section. They played fabulously well - blocking, spiking, serving and playing excellent 3 touch volleyball. On Saturday beating North West (Tameside ), London and the South East to get through the top 3 competition on Sunday. On Sunday the competition stepped up and our girls played really good 3 touch volleyball again, pushing the team that eventually won ( West Midlands) to a 20 - 18 climax in the second set - nail biting exciting stuff all the way. Our girls played us proud and were fabulous on and off court all weekend - proud of you all. Caroline and Mandi.
26-Apr-2006 - Div 2 - Middlesbrough College vs. Marske - A good close game up to the third set which was crucial and decided the overall winner of the match. Simon Harsley
26-Apr-2006 - Div 2 - Acklam Y11 Girls vs. Grangefield New - Y10 girls took over this game, and played their first ever Div 2 match. They were a little off the pace to begin with, but soon started to cope with the pace of the game, keeping up with each set, until the pressure began to take effect. The best game the girls have played this season, but the experience of Grangefield was a key factor in the end. Sarah Naylor had an excellent game for Acklam. Martin Wain
09-Apr-2006 - Premier - Yarm vs. Grangefield - Yarm started the stronger of the teams in the first set and managed to hold the advantage until the end. The second set was point for point throughout and at 20-20 Grangefield scored 4 vital points. Yarm pulled back to 23-24 but a good rotation for Grangefield saw them take the next point and the set. The third set followed the same pattern as the first with some excellent attacking from both teams, but again Yarm came out on top. The fourth set was a one-sided affair as Grangefield seemed to lose their way and Yarm took full advantage to take the set quite comfortably. With the result from Nunthorpe , Yarm still have a slight chance of catching the Young Guns at the top of the league. Mick Welsh
09-Apr-2006 - Premier - Nunthorpe vs. Haughton YG - This was Haughton Young Guns last game of the season, they have probably won the league, and have certainly won the men's National Division 3 North this year, so the tension was quite high in the Nunthorpe team. The teams were quite evenly matched, with both playing 3 young players. The first set was point for point to 12 all but suddenly Haughton raced away with the set as Nunthorpe found it very difficult to play a good shot. The second set saw a much better Nunthorpe side, but despite getting to 24 - 20 ahead, they managed to loose the next six points by not finishing off the rally. The next set saw a more determined and controlled Nunthorpe side. Great jump serving by Tom Atkinson saw Nunthorpe build up an unassailable lead, and power hitting by Dave Black, Steve Hall, and a cracking hit by Michael Grainger finished off the set. Thomas Gordon, playing in only his second Premier game, started to latch onto the pace of the game, and the fourth set saw him making some good first passes and clever choice hits. Dan Mercurio passed him a lovely ball for Tom to finish off the fourth set for Nunthorpe. The Haughton lads were quite disheartened by now and Nunthorpe took the fifth set quite convincingly. An enjoyable game to finish the season on. Martin Wain
2-Apr-2006 - Loughborough University BASICS finals - both the Prior girls, and the Middlesbrough College boys won the British Colleges National finals. The girls won convincingly not dropping a set throughout the tournament, and winning the final 25 - 7, 25 - 9. The six that played in the final were Danielle Coulthard, Nicola Milburn, Amanda McLean(capt), Laura Wain, Emma White, Lauren Worrall: with Nicola James, Caitlin Pearson, Anne McTiernon, Catherine Walker and Claire and on the bench. The team was coached by Brian McLean. The boys game was a much closer affair. Playing in front of a packed hall (about 2000 people watching) they were a very nervous team, especially as sky sports were recording the game. They won the first set relatively easily, but were 7 - 0 down in the second set before they won a point. They gradually clawed their way back, and the set swung one way and then the other. The team finally took the set 25-22. The very relieved coaches Paul Watt and Craig Alderson were interviewed by Sky Sports at the end. Look for the report on the telly! The team consisted of Simon Harsley (capt), Andrew Yates, Alex McGill, Shaun Richardson, Anthony Duffy, James Fenwick and ANO (sorry, please let us know your name). The best thing about this team is that they will all (apart from Duffy) be back next year. The next thing for most of these players is a tour of Holland over Easter, playing for British Colleges. Well done to all - two great days of volleyball, and gold medals for Tees Valley volleyballers. Martin Wain
2-Apr-2006 - Div 1 - Nunthorpe BE vs. Haughton - A disappointing outcome for the Nunthorpe side, going down 1-3 to a Haughton side that appeared a little lacking in Division 1 players. Colin Gordon
31-Mar-2006 - Premier - Haughton OB vs. Grangefield - This was the last volleyball match to be played ever at Haughton School, after over 30 years of volleyball. It was fitting that the scheduled game was against Grangefield, who have been playing for as long as we have! Yet again this was a close encounter, played in a friendly, but competitive spirit as we have done for a number of years. There were 4 from Grangefield, and 5 from Haughton who are all still turning out after 30 years!! Although it was good to win the match, it was fitting that we shared the celebrations with Grangefield. Both sets of players and Haughton members retired to a local restaurant for some well deserved drinks and a meal. Lets see what the future holds? Jackson Sweeting
26-Mar-2006 - Div 1 - Nunthorpe BE vs. Acklam Boys - The boys opened up a early 0-7 lead in the first set before BE settled in. The set then went down to the wire before being clinched by the boys 23-25. The second & third sets BE took comfortably with some good serving and drop shots 25-14, 25-18. Forth set, the boys again opened up a lead and it was looking likely to be a five set match. However, BE dug in, closed the gap and clinched the match with a 25-23 forth set. A good win for the Bald Eagles. Colin Gordon
26-Mar-2006 - Premier - Nunthorpe vs. Haughton OB - The young lads from Nunthorpe finaly came good. David Black, Stephen Hall, Will Milburn and Lyndell St Ville playing their best volleyball in the Premiership this season. Martin Wain
24-Mar-2006 - Premier - Haughton YG vs. Yarm - The Young Guns started the match at an electric pace and caught the Yarm team cold, taking the first set comfortably 25-15. Yarm recoverd well in the 2nd set to take it 25-16. Haughton gradually took control but there were some great rallies and really powerful volleyball. Good game to watch. Jackson Sweeting
20-Mar-2006 - Div 2 - Marske vs. Acklam Staff - A really good match with all sets very closely fought for - the juniors from Marske playing really well. Another tiring 5 setter - great :O). Caroline Little.
18-Mar-2006 - National U16's - On Saturday the Teesvalley U16 Boys travelled to Nottingham to play in 'the Last 8's'. We all met in Darlington at 7.30am for the drive to Nottingham University, 9 players along with myself, Steve Talbot and Keith Sowden to provide, help, advice and the occasional 'encouragement' whilst on court. We managed to be drawn in the strongest group and played last year's runners up, Boswells in the first match, going down with a fight 2 sets to 1. The lads all working hard and just losing out with some poor service reception in the 3rd set. Next up was Kings who were unceremoniously thumped 2 sets to 0! Some excellent work here and a fine display of some powerful volleyball. Our final match was against last years champions, Madeley. Although losing in straight sets, the lads were so close to causing an upset. All the boys showed tremendous dedication and hard work and are a credit to their parents and coaches. Squad; Kieran Sowden, Adam Kendray, Tom Gordon, Will Milburn, Michael Grainger, Jonny McManus, Simon Robinson, Andrew Roberts and Andrew Railton. Boswells and Madeley made it to the final again. Jackson Sweeting
16-Mar-2006 - Div 3 - Acklam Y8 vs. Nunthorpe Juniors - A very good effort by the Year 7 boys who took over this fixture for the unavailable Year 8,s. Their first ever match, and they tried really hard, but the hard consistent serving of the girls proved far too difficult for them to cope with. Martin Wain
17-Mar-2006 - Premier - Haughton YG vs. Haughton OB - The match was played on Wednesday instead of Friday due to a club function. The Old Boys suffered another crushing defeat against our National League team. They struggled to cope with some dynamic serving and powerful hitting from the Young Guns, but definitely won on 'years'. Jackson Sweeting.
12-Mar-2006 - National U15 Girls Finals, Worcester - Nunthorpe U15 Girls Team - Kirsty Lang (Capt), Sarah Naylor, Rachael Powson, Becky Brown, Kirsty Martin, Rachael McManus, Emma Gordon & Amy Rout - Third place after losing to Tameside in the Semi Finals. A great achievement for the young side. Colin Gordon
10-Mar-2006 - Premier - Haughton YG vs. Grangefield - The Young Guns had a full squad available and 'ran the bench', with all the young boys getting some court time. The game was competitive with Haughton having the 'edge' throughout. Jackson Sweeting.
08-Mar-2006 - Premier - Middlesbrough College 2 vs. Haughton YG - Close game but Young Guns took the match. Jackson Sweeting
08-Mar-2006- Div 1 - Acklam Staff vs. Nunthorpe Juniors - Excellent serving by the Nunthorpe juniors caused big problems for the staff team, but fortunately for the staff the juniors found it difficult to keep their serves in court. An enjoyable game. Martin wain
03-Mar-2006 - Div 1 - Haughton vs. Nunthorpe Juniors - The Nunthorpe Juniors held out for a close victory against the Haughton Girls. The high net seemed to hamper the girls more than the Juniors which was disappointing from the home side. back to the drawing board! Jackson Sweeting
27-Feb-2006 - Premier - Middlesbrough College vs. Nunthorpe - Excellent game of volleyball played at an extremely high standard. The young lads of Middlesbrough showed their vast improvement during the year and turned over an experienced Nunthorpe side. Alex McGill and Simon Harsley combining very well throughout the match. Dave Goodchild
26-Feb-2006 - Div 2 - Grangefield Newcomers vs. Nunthorpe Girls - What a great match to watch! Two very evenly matched teams slogging it out in a five set match with the Nunthorpe Girls victorious 2-3 and 12-15 in the final set. It was good to see a team of juniors girls (all <16) battle it out and hold their own against an adult Grangefield team. In the end it was sheer tenacity that won the match. Well done! Colin Gordon
18-Feb-2006 - National College Squad - Seven women and five men from TVVA make the National College Squad (see Evening Gazette Grass Roots 18-Feb-06). Congratulations to Alex McGill, Simon Harsley, Luke Heggarty, Andrew Yates, James Fenwick, Laura Wain, Emma White, Sarah Burnett, Amanda McLean, Hannah Conroy, Lauren Worrall and Nicola Milburn. National coach Dave Goodchild. All the players attend either Middlesbrough College or Prior Pursglove and many still play for their local clubs such as Marske and Nunthorpe. Colin Gordon
17-Feb-2006 - Div 1 - Haughton vs. Nunthorpe BE - Consistent play by the Haughton team with some accurate ball placement against an under strength Nunthorpe BE led to a straight three set win by Haughton. Nunthorpe BE never really looked like winning a set although they managed to close the gap in the second set but then let it slip away with a few poor returns of serve. Haughton seemed able to pick up most shots that Nunthorpe played and just proved too good on the night. Colin Gordon
The Haughton Ladies were once again against a much bigger team with 4 men playing but managed to cover the court very well making some excellent passing shots. They also managed to introduce David Barker, a 14 yr old schoolboy for his first ever league game in the 3rd set. He managed to kill a couple of good shots to boost his confidence. Great setting by Debbie Laing and Lauren Sweeting ensured the girls kept ahead in each set. Jackson Sweeting
16-Feb-2006 - Premier - Marske vs. Nunthorpe - A great game to play in, that rocked from one side to another. Big hits from both teams all the way through, with Nunthorpe just managing to claw back the 4th set from 21 - 15 down with consistent serving from Dan Mercurio, and then Luke Hegerty. Nunthorpe finally took the fifth set quite easily. Well done to both sides for such a competitive game. Martin Wain
12-Feb-2006 - Prem - Grangefield vs. Yarm - Yarm started very strongly with big hitting from all hitters and took the first set 25-14. The second set was very close, with excellent back court play from Grangefield ,they came really close to taking the set however fantastic setting from Shaun Welsh and strong hitting Yarm won the set 26-24. Grangefield battled on with great tactical play but Yarm came out on top again and took the third set 25-18 to win the match. Mick Welsh.
10-Feb-2006 - Premier - Haughton OB vs. Yarm - The Old Boys struggled to cope with some powerful serving from Yarm and went behind early in each set, but came back strongly in the first 2 sets to shock the Yarm men. The 3rd set was still competitive with Yarm eventually wearing the Old Boys down. Jackson Sweeting
09-Feb-2006 - Div 3 - Conyers vs. Acklam Y8 Boys - The year 8 lads have learnt a lot from playing in the U15 tournament last Sat. Consistant overarm serving put the Conyers girls under constant pressure which they found impossible to contend with. Martin Wain
04-Feb-2006 - North Under 15 Boys - Darlington - What a good competition, played with commitment and fairness. 2 sets to 20 apart from the final (best of 3 sets 25/25/15), and the 5th/6th/7th (best of 3 sets 20/20/15) play offs. 7 teams: Acklam, Kings Manor, Hull, Haughton, Siddal Moor, Tynedale,Woodham. 1 pool of 4 and 1 of 3. Pool 'A': Hull v Haughton 20-9,20-13; Hull v Tynedale 20-5, 20-10; Hull v Acklam 20-19,20-10; Haughton v Tynedale 20-7, 19-20; Haughton v Acklam 20-15,20-19; Acklam v Tynedale 20-17,9-20. Pool 'B': Siddal Moor v Kings Manor 20-17, 18-20; Siddal Moor v Woodham 20-5,20-4; Kings Manor v Woodham 20-4,20-5. Cross over semi finals: Hull v Kings Manor 20-14,20-16; Siddal Moor v Haughton 20-9,20-8. Final: Kings Manor v Siddal Moor 25-8,19-25,15-10. 3rd/4th play off: Haughton v Hull 14-20,20-19. 5th/6th/7th play off: Woodham v Acklam 20-16,15-20,11-15; Woodham v Tynedale 15-20, 17-20; Acklam v Tynedale 20-15, 20-16. Results: 1st: Kings Manor; 2nd: Siddal Moor; 3rd: Hull; 4th: Haughton; 5th: Acklam; 6th: Tynedale; 7th: Woodham. The top two go through to the U15 finals. Thanks to all who attended, and all who helped. Hope the trip home went OK. Best wishes, Martin Wain
04-Feb-2006 - Two NEVA teams went to represent the NEVA at the NW U13 tournament - Marske (Clare, Sophie, Charlotte and Jenny) and Nunthorpe (Hannah, Rachael, Emma & Amy). It was an early start (07:00) to arrive for 10:00. Both teams did well in their respective pools, Marske winning two of the three rounds and Nunthorpe winning all three (25-7 against Bede 5, 25-11 against Bede 3 and 25-19 against Tameside 1). This put both teams through to the Cup play offs. Second round Marske unfortunately failed to qualify for the semi's but Nunthorpe extended their unbeaten record with a 25-12 win against Tameside 2 and a 25-6 win against Bede's. Semi finals saw Nunthorpe again winning two straight sets (best of three) 25-16, 25-11 against Tameside 3. The finals had Nunthorpe playing Tameside 1. The first set had both teams racking up points fairly equally but a brief loss of confidence caused Nunthorpe to slip and the first set went to Tameside 25-22. At the start of the second set Tameside built up a five point lead buoyed up by the first set win. Nunthorpe came back well and took a small lead around the 15 point mark but some interruption of play due to other teams players infringing the playing area helped upset the team enough to lose a couple of crucial points that gave Tameside a small lead. This boosted their confidence and Tameside managed to finish the second set 25-21 winning them the tournament. Disappointment for Nunthorpe, who played the better volleyball, but a very well deserved second place. Colin Gordon.
03-Feb-2006 - Div 1 - Haughton vs. Acklam Staff - The Haughton first six was all female against a male dominated Acklam team. The visitors had a height and power advantage but the girls made up for this with some sound positional play and tremendous pick-ups at the net. The 2nd set went to 31-29 with the scoreboard out of numbers. Great game to watch. Jackson Sweeting
31-Jan-2006 - Div 1 - Acklam Boys vs. Prior - A very close game, that swung from 1 side to the other. A nail biter .... Both teams played some very good volleyball, with the Prior team playing some clever points. A great game to ref. Well done to all. Martin Wain
25-Jan-2006 - Div 1 - Middlesbrough College vs Acklam Boys - A very strong Mbro side made this a very tough game. Yatesy and Alex produced some very powerful hitting, with Duffy playing his usual clever dinks, and Hannah, Sarah and Nicola producing some good back court play. Acklam took some time to adjust to the power, speed and deft touches, but took the second set with some excellent team play, and clever serving. They began to read the dinks, and pick up the power hits. This set swung from side to side with both teams having at least 2 attempts at winning the set. Consistant serving was the key feature from the Acklam lads. Set 4 was a disaster for the Mbro sides. All the Acklam lads - Lee Pink, Will Milburn, Sam Myford, Michael Grainger, Adam Loughran and Chris McDonough all continued with their best service game of the season, and blasted the Mbro side off court. Unfortunately they couldn't regain this consistancy in the final set, allowing the big hitters of the Mbro side to find their form, and take the fifth set. A great game to play and to watch. I think one of these teams will end up as league winners. We will see! Martin Wain.
22-Jan-2006 - Prem - Grangefield vs. Haughton OB - The game got off to a cracking start, played at a really fast pace with the Old Boys working hard to keep ahead of the Grangefield team to take the set. The next set saw Grangefield go to a 21-16 lead with some excellent pick-ups at the net. The Old Boys however dug in to overhaul them again taking the set. Set 3 was a very even contest and some slack play from the Old Boys saw them lose after being set point up. Some consistent passing, serving and attacks enabled the Old Boys to comfortably take the 4th set. Jackson Sweeting
20-Jan-2006 - Prem - Haughton YG vs. Marske - The Haughton team were short of some senior players and so had a young team playing. They got off to a flying start and looked as if they would take the first set easily, only for the Marske team to stick to their task and take the set after the Young Guns were on set point. The next 3 sets went to the Haughton team after they settled, with Marske being competitive throughout. Jackson Sweeting.
20-Jan-2006 - National U16 Boys - Dear All, Congratulations to you all for qualifying through to the Last 8s. The U16 boys will be held at Nottingham University at a brand new sports hall on their Jubilee Campus on Saturday 18th March. I have attached the draw and will later today put the results tables from round 2 on the website.With several of you also having teams involved in the girls and U18 tournaments I shall wait until the majority of those have completed their round 2 matches before I send out your last 8 details.Well done again. Gemma, Competitions and Events Officer
19-Jan-2006 - Div 2 - Acklam Grange Staff vs Marske - Acklam Staff - the team's first win of the season - what more can be said? Peter Swan
17-Jan-2006 - Div 1 - Acklam Boys vs. Nunthorpe Juniors. A good win for the Boys putting them at the top of the Division. Disappointing for the Juniors who played well but struggled with the usual problem of adapting to the low sports hall ceiling. A few less shots and digs lost through impact with the ceiling would have made the match much closer or the outcome different! Colin Gordon.
10-Jan-2006 - Div 1 - Acklam Boys vs. Acklam Staff - There comes a time when a team learns to play volleyball, and today the lads were really keen to beat the staff. They played a very sensible game, and despite the unavailability of Will Milburn managed to keep focused throughout. Rachael Walker had stepped in for the unavailable Will and played an outstanding attacking game. Clever vision by the team found spaces without a big hit. This was a game they had waited 5 years for. They came of age tonight! Martin Wain
8-Jan-2006 - Mens Div 3 North - An excellent start to the New Year forMiddlesbrough Mavericks National League team. Playing away at Warwick Riga - a long drive and an early start, with a welcome back for round the Worlders Steven Hall and David Black, the team showed their best play all season and beat Warwick convincingly 3 sets to 0: 25-17, 25-16, 25-15. Excellent jump serving from Tom Atkinson put the pressure on the opposition straight away and outstanding blocking from Mick Welsh, Dave Black and Paul Welsh gave them little room to move in. The inclusion of David and Steven allowed for a variety of fast aggressive attacking, with the Capt. Paul Welsh making some excellent unstoppable power hits. Men of the match:Tom Atkinson and Dave Black. This could move us to 4th in the league, pushing for a top 3 slot with Haughton and Newcastle by the end of the season. Interesting times ahead! Team: Paul Welsh (Capt.) Tom Atkinson, Dave Black, Steven Hall, Simon Harsley, Luke Hegarty, Mick Welsh. Coach: Martin Wain. Reporter: Martin Wain
19-Dec-2005 - Div 2 - Acklam Y11 Girls vs. Acklam Staff - The Y11 team narrowly win their first match of the season, at the expense of the staff. Fortunately the staff don't hold any grudges and homework has not been extended because of the result. Some good hitting by Rachel Walker was a key feature in this match. Martin Wain
16-Dec-2005 - Prem - Haughton OB vs. Haughton YG - The Old Boys got off to a cracking start to shock the Young Guns taking the first set comfortably with some tremendous blocking from Graeme Metcalfe and consistent passing from the whole team. Then fitness and youth began to take their toll on the Old Boys in the next 3 sets as the passing let them down whilst struggling to cope with powerful hitting from Stuart Jeanes and Steve Talbot. An interesting and enjoyable end to 2005. Best wishes to all. Jackson Sweeting.
10/11-Dec-2005 - This weekend the England Colleges selection trials took place in Nottingham. Seven local girls got through to the England Colleges Girls Squad of 16: Amanda McLean, Emma White (Marske Volleyball Club and Prior Pursglove College); Laura Wain, Lauren Worrall and Nicola Milburn (Nunthorpe Volleyball Club/Prior Pursglove College) and Sarah Burnett ( Marske VB Club and Middlesbrough College), Hannah of the poorly hand (Middlesbrough College). Congratulations to all the girls that took part.The team hopes to play in Holland this year and will compete in the World Youth Games this summer. Caroline Little.
10-Dec-2005 - Results of National U16 boys Round 1 Group B 10th Dec at Haughton School, Darlington: 1st Tees Valley A 6 points; 2nd Tees Valley C 4 points; 3rd Tees Valley B 2 points; 4th Hull 0 points. Results: Tees Valley B v Tees Valley C 14 - 25, 22 - 25; Tees Valley C v Hull 25 - 17, 25 - 15; Tees Valley A v Tees Valley C 25 - 14, 25 - 11; Hull v Tees Valley B 16 - 25, 15 - 25; Tees Valley A v Hull 25 - 10, 25 - 8; Tees Valley A v Tees Valley B 25 - 21, 25 - 12. A very competitive day, with some excellent hard fought rallies. One of the main surprises was the Tees Valley C team convincingly beating the B team. Well done to them. The Hull side was a young quite inexperienced side, but they showed a lot of commitment and endeavour, and will be a good side in months to come. Well done to all Tees Valley teams, the hard work put in so far is showing. Thanks to Jackson Sweeting for his hard work behind the scenes, and to the guys who ref'd throughout the day. See the Gallery for some team photo's: The TV C team; the Hull side; the TV A and B squads. Martn Wain
11-Dec-2005 - Div 1 - Nunthorpe Juniors vs. Acklam Boys. The first win of the season for the Juniors. The team played well together and tonight they chased everything down. The Acklam side were perhaps a little off their best and lost confidence with their spiking. A good match to watch with many good rallies. Colin Gordon
04-Dec-2005 - Div 2 - Nunthorpe Girls vs. Middlesbrough College - What a great win for the Nunthorpe Girls! A convincing start where the girls took the first set 25-20 ruffled MC allowing the girls to repeat the result in the second set. However, MC composed themselves and in a fight back where the girls appeared to lose a little concentration, MC took the third and forth sets squaring the match. Final set saw the Nunthorpe Girls back on form opening up a five points to zero lead which enabled them to take the last set 15-10 to win the match. Colin Gordon
03-Dec-2005 - National U16 Girls Tournament
Hi all, here are the results of today's tournament.
1st Moorside 5 points, 2nd Wirral-Pensby 4 points, 3rd Tees Valley B 2 points,
4th Tees Valley A 1 point. Top 3 go onto Round 2 - 1st and 3rd - Sunday 29th Jan
at Tameside, 2nd - Sat 28th Jan - Tettenhall. Good luck to all. Results:
Tees Valley B v Moorside 7-25, 18-25, Wirral v Tees Valley A 25-14, 25-20, Tees
Valley A v Moorside 11-25, 15-25, Tees Valley B v Wirral 21-25, 24-25, Moorside
v Wirral 24-25, 25-17, Tees Valley B v Tees Valley A 25-10,25-24.
Some topsy turvey games, with a wide age range of girls, and nerves played a
part throughout. Most games went very close up to about 15 all, and some as you
can see went to the wire. A lovely competition played with great enthusiasm, and
hopefully enjoyed by all. I hope you had a safe journey back, without Alan
touring Durham again! Martin Wain
01-Dec-2005 - Div 3 - Acklam Y10 Girls vs. Conyers - The Acklam girls continue to make great improvements in their game play. Good serving by all, and three touch play allowed them to dominate this game. The Conyers girls are getting better, and will benefit greatly from match play. They are looking for any extra games - any teams interested? Martin Wain
27-Nov-2005 - Div 1 - Prior Pursglove vs. Acklam Staff - This Prior team is getting better, but unfortunately, their team comprises players of very varied ability, and as they want all players on court their consistency obviously suffers. In the second set when they had all their best players on court they ran away with the set. The Acklam staff were just a little more knowledgeable for them, in the final two sets. Martin Wain
27-Nov-2005 - Premier - Yarm vs. Haughton YG - An excellent match, with both teams hitting and blocking exceptionally well. Powerful hitting from Yarm gained the advantage as Haughton struggled with the low ceiling in the first set. However, Haughton came to terms with the conditions and took the second set. The 3rd and 4th set went to Yarm by excellent setting from both setters and powerful hitting from Mick and Paul Welsh, impressive blocking from Matthew Haycroft and tremendous back court play from Barry Vernon. Mick Welsh.
25-Nov-2005 - Premier - Haughton vs. Nunthorpe YG - The Young Guns were well prepared with 12 players available. They welcomed back Adam Peardon from university for the weekend for his first game for 2 years. The 1st set easily went to the Haughton team with a mixture of U16 boys an a couple of experienced players. In the 2nd set the 2nd six appeared and struggled to find some form. Again this was a mixture of u16's and experience. The team were set point down to 18 but pulled back to take the set 27-25! The 1st six came back on court to finish the game off. Jackson Sweeting.
24-Nov-2005 - Div 1 M'bro College vs. Nunthorpe Juniors and BE - A double whammy for the Nunthorpe teams who both lost against the M'bro side in sequential matches! Neither Nunthorpe team managed to win a set, the M'bro team proving the stronger and the low ceiling definitely a disadvantage to the away teams less experienced at avoiding numerous contacts with the ceiling when receiving some powerful M'bro serves. M'bro were the stronger team on the night (we didn't spot the odd National League player did we!) and deserved the wins. Colin Gordon
24-Nov-2005 - Div 1 The Grange vs. Acklam Boys - The young lads found it difficult to play in this gym, as all our teams do, but they battled hard, particularly in the 3rd set when we were 23-21 up! We just couldn't finish off the set. Congratulations must go to Tom Loughran (13) who played his first Div 1 game and produced some excellent serving. Martin Wain
23-Nov-2005 - NEVA Ladies Tournament on Saturday 10th Dec has been postponed to Saturday 28th January due to clash with college trials.
20-Nov-2005 - Premier, Nunthorpe vs. Grangefield - A young Nunthorpe team (apart from me) were too strong for the Grangefield team who were missing a couple of key players, taking the first two sets quite easily, although the more experienced Grangefield team managed to run the last set very close. Our first win of the season. Martin Wain.
18-Nov-2005 - Haughton OB vs. Middlesbrough College - The Old Boys faced another M'Bro College team on consecutive Fridays. Some of the faces seemed the same! The Old Boys got off to a cracking start before the young men from the College came back to take the 1st set. The more mature gentlemen got their act together to take the 2nd set before again slipping up in set 3! They struggled to cope with the speed and athleticism of the College team, before eventually 'warming up' to take command for the next 2 sets. The Old Boys welcomed back Dave Paton, Billy Park and Simon Hannaford who all missed last weeks excellent performance. Jackson Sweeting
17-Nov-2005 - At the very prestigious Northern sports personality awards tonight, we were delighted to be present to see Ian Berry be presented not only as his category winner, but overall winner of the evening. This presentation was in front of approx 500 people (with personalities like Steve Gibson) who have achieved incredible heights in sport. A fantastic night for Ian and of course for volleyball in the North.
Ian Berry, North East Volleyball's key ambassador won the overall Sporting
Local Hero Award hosted by the Northern Echo. Watched by over 700 people Ian
won the overall award as a recognition of what he has done for our sport for
over 25 years. Ian was also winner of the Leading Light award - given to "the
most inspiring Coach, Manager or Leader who embodies the spirit of sport and
participation and is a source of encouragement and inspiration to all
involved".
15-Nov-2005 - Div2 Acklam Y11 Girls vs. Conyers - A very close game between our Year 11 pupils who are quite technically good, and a very tall Conyers side who are learning the game fast. The difference in the two teams was the fast movement/ never say die attitude of the sixth formers. At 24- 21 down in the fourth set I thought the game was over, but a service into the net gave us a glimmer of hope, and some good serving from Rachel Walker putting them under pressure, allowed us to get back and move to 25 - 24. A tense few minutes, but we took the set 29-27. Unfortunately Conyers moved a few points ahead in the fifth set, and we could not bridge the gap. Well done to this new Conyers side. Martin Wain (Acklam)
13-Nov-2005 - Prior Pursglove vs. Acklam Boys - Acklam boys have finally realised they can play volleyball! This was there best game all season. A strong Prior boys squad held the game together up to 15 - 14 but at this point the boys gradually pulled ahead with some strong serving from Will Milburn. They then ran away with the second set. In the third set the Prior team managed to block the strong hitting Acklam side, but was not quite enough to stop them sneaking the final set by 2 points. Excellent consistency came from Adam Lougran, throughout the game, and improving setting from Chris McDonough paved the way for some power hitting by Will, Sam Myford, Lee Pink and Michael Granger. The Prior team are learning to play as a team, rather than a set of individuals. They will be a much harder team to beat as the season progresses. Martin Wain.
12-Nov-2005 - Local Sporting Heroes Awards, 17th November 2005 - Ian Berry is a nomination in the Local Heroes Awards this year. This is what has been written about him: Ian Berry - Ambassador for Volleyball in the North East for over 25 years, dedicated his life since the 1970’s to coaching, promoting, refereeing, administering and encouraging Volleyball. Represents Sport England and English Volleyball amongst other national bodies and effortlessly encourages young players to become more involved. Coached his own children in Volleyball with daughter Wendy becoming England Captain for numerous years in European competition. Ian led a successful bid (with Sport England) to host international volleyball here in the North East for the first time outside London and over the years has taken the game to a level once unheard of. Through his work with schools in the region, the North East now has a very strong junior set up, regularly competing nationally. This has been recognised by the English Volleyball Association who have singled the North East out for Sporting Excellence. It goes without saying that Ian is the tower for the entire Volleyball community in the North East, for his dedication and success Volleyball will be forever grateful. Follow this link for more details: This is The North East
11-Nov-2005 - Premier - Haughton OB vs. Middlesbrough College 2 - The Old Boys had a few players missing but put up a stirling performance against a much younger College team. Debbie Laing playing only her 2nd game of the season improved as the game went along, and being down in the first set 10-2, took the game to the College boys to take the set 25-23. The College came back in the 2nd set with the Old Boys failing to attack as in the 1st set, but coming back with interest for the next 2 sets. Keith Sowden made some tremendous attacks with the whole team playing well. Jackson Sweeting
06-Nov-2005 - Div 3 - Nunthorpe Juniors vs. Acklam Y10 Girls - The Nunthorpe team took the first set 25-20, the second and third sets went down to the wire with Acklam taking them both 26-24. Fighting back and helped by some powerful serving from Kirsty Martin, the Nunthorpe team took the forth set comfortably 25-15 and the final set 15-6. A great match to watch!
04-Nov-2005 - Div 1 Haughton YG vs. MC2 - Haughton are using this league for their younger players to gain experience in order to play National League Volleyball. With the College team also fielding at least 4 young players on the court it proved to be an athletic, quick and powerful game. All the sets were well contested with the younger players ably supported by those with more experience. Haughton took the first 2 sets just keeping in front until the last few points. The 3rd set went to the College when Haughton fielded all their young players at once. % of these boys are only 15yrs old! A more balanced team appeared in the 4th set to take the match. It was a pleasure to watch both teams
