Happy Christmas all and welcome to a new season in the Inter-town “Friendly” League, for our Squad members.

So far Scorpions have contested 3 galas; away at Romiley and home to Hyde Seals and Saracens.

            The first gala was away at Romiley which is always going to be tough. This is a team similar to ourselves, with a smattering of Metro swimmers. Our Juniors battled well, considering we had a lot of new inexperienced 10 yr olds and things were very tight. We should have won. Our 10 yr Boys relay team were disqualified in a race which they won by ½ a length. This lost us 4 points and gained Romiley 2 points. But, all things considered, it was an encouraging start. Final score Wilmslow 32 Romiley 34.  Despite battling hard, with many close finishes, the Seniors only managed 4 individual wins and no relays. Final score Wilmslow 28 Romiley 44.

            The next opponents were a little more gentle. Hyde Seals finally made the trip to Wilmslow, having missed the previous 2 years. Our Juniors were great, winning all the relays and all but 5 individual races. This was fantastic for morale, especially in front of a home crowd.  Final score Wilmslow 41 ½  Hyde 29 ½.  The Seniors had a more serious battle and only won 7 individual races. This meant they had to win 3 relays, which fortunately they did!

Final score Wilmslow 36 Hyde 35

            Our last opposition were the infamous Saracens -  not who you want just before Christmas! However the Juniors managed 4 wins and a draw which is possibly the best result ever. More encouragingly, 4 or 5 races were lost only in the last 5 metres, due to poor finishing. Certainly room for improvement.

Final score Wilmslow 29 ½ Saracens 41 ½

            Unlike some of the Juniors, the Seniors know what they are up against with Saracens. To their great credit  they didn’t give up but battled in every race and made Saracens work for their points, which is terrific. The highlight of the gala for most people was the Boys 15/over Relay team beating Saracens. It is some 6 yrs since we beat them regularly in that race, much to their disgust. Long may it continue!

Final score Wilmslow 27 ½ Saracens 43 ½

            So what are my feelings so far? Well the Juniors could still be the second best in the League, but losing galas on mistakes can’t be allowed to happen. Our Seniors will continue to improve but in some age groups we are just short of numbers of quality swimmers. I am hopeful that we can do some damage in the New Year - we always start slowly after the long summer break anyway.

Have a good Christmas                            Simon.

There is, no doubt, a great feeling of pride for children when they are invited to join the Scorpions Squad. It marks the start of a more committed, but still fun, training schedule. It shows that the coaches have confidence in the ability of the child to eventually represent the club at gala level. Accepting a place in the squad means loyalty, respect and commitment must be shown not only to the coaches but to other squad members too. Simon, the Team Manager, spends considerable time selecting the children for each gala – some 40 events, including all strokes, 8 relays, across 4 age groups, boys and girls and 3 teams. You get the picture!

It has therefore been extremely frustrating, disappointing and dis-respectful when, having signed up for the gala, the squad member is a ‘no show’ on the night. Simon’s running order is cast to the wind and the other team members, who have made the effort to take part, are severely let down. Morale takes a hit before anyone even gets in the pool.

SO – AN APPEAL…………..

PLEASE let Simon know as early as possible if you will NOT be available for a particular gala (see the dates below) well before the team selection is made

PLEASE make sure that you check the noticeboard regularly to see when the team sheet is posted.

PLEASE make every effort to sign the sheet as soon as possible WHETHER YOU CAN ATTEND OR NOT. If you say ‘yes’ that means YOU WILL ATTEND

PLEASE give plenty of notice to Simon if, for whatever reason, you are unable to keep your commitment (we understand to expect the unexpected!). Thank You!     

Simon: (h) 0161 484 0242

As you see from Simon’s report, the Inter-Town Friendly League Galas are well under way. PLEASE NOTE (*) THAT THE ROMILEY HOME GALA HAS HAD TO BE RE-SCHEDULED AS IT CLASHED WITH OUR OWN CLUB GALA - THE CHRISTMAS SPRINTS.

This year Glossop have again dropped out of the league meaning fewer fixtures and one team less in the Celebration Gala at the end of the season.

The remaining dates for this season’s galas are:

Congratulations to all who took part in the Tadpoles Galas held at the Grand Central Pool in Stockport in September. The swimmers should be particularly proud that EVERY SINGLE SCORPION who took part performed at least one Personal Best (PB) – a fantastic achievement for our less experienced swimmers.

Full results can be seen on our web-site (www.wilmslowscorpions.co.uk).

This gala is one of the highlights in the club’s calendar, spread over 2 Sundays (29^th November & 6^th December). Swimmers (Group 6 and above, who are competent to swim a minimum of 25m from a diving start off the blocks) can enter up to 5 events each, covering all 4 strokes plus an Individual Medley. Awards are presented in 5 age groups from under 10s to over 14’s, girls and boys.

At the time of going to press we have completed the first night successfully with several PBs being achieved. Watch out for the results on the notice board and web-site. 

At the time of going to press Badge Night is being held on Saturday 5^th December – good luck to all who will be trying to achieve their next level in the Learn to Swim scheme. Children will have been handed a slip indicating which badge they are ready to attempt and should sign up if they are able to attend – see the noticeboard.

Please make sure that you reserve 12^th June 2010 in your diary for the annual Celebration Gala.  This is a really exciting finale to the Inter-Town Friendly League meets, which take place until the end of April.  It operates on a handicap system determined by how well each team has performed in the Inter Town galas, giving everyone an equal chance to win. Well – that’s the theory anyway! Watch out for more details in 2010.

Thanks and congratulations to 6 more parents who are now qualified as ASA approved timekeepers, following a short training course held on 5^th November. Their new skills have already been tried out in the recent Christmas Sprints.

The Scorpions Swimming Club is run on a voluntary basis and could not exist without YOUR help. As each term passes we say goodbye to some Scorpions and welcome new members. With the turnover of children comes the departure of helper parents. We currently have a few vacancies on the committee and are looking to switch some roles around. We meet approx once every 2 months over a glass of wine.  

For further information contact a member of the committee  (see contact details later).

On sale on Thursdays throughout term time Scorpions swimsuits, hats, bags and drinks bottles (hoodies and T-shirts to order). If you are unable to attend on Thursdays, an order request form is available on the notice board.

Chairman: Tim Ramsay

tim.ramsay@virgin.net

Secretary: Stella Currie

stella.currie@sky.com

Membership Secretary:  Justine Riches 

Justine.riches@ntlworld.com

Swimwear Sales: Lisa Barker 

holliesend@btinternet.com

Web-site: Mike Russell

xxmcr@yahoo.co.uk

Chief Coach: Pauline Busby

paulinebusby@ntlworld.com

Treasurer: TBA

Thank you to all those who have already supplied us with their preferred email address. We are striving to improve communication and minimise costs, including circulating the newsletter via email. A few selected members will receive a test email including this newsletter – your feedback on this method of communication and any other improvements, would be very welcome.  

Please ensure that you keep us informed of your address, telephone and email. We need to be able to contact you should there be any queries with your membership. Please ensure you inform us as soon as possible of any changes by emailing Justine the Membership Secretary (see above) or by completing the attached form.

In line with many other ASA affiliated clubs it is our intention to reduce administration, ease the burden of banking and make life easier for you by introducing the Direct Debit method of payment of club fees, termly in advance. More information next newsletter but in the meantime, please tick the box on the fees slip if you would be interested in this method of payment in the future.

Happily, we have a waiting list of children eager to join Scorpions. Sadly each term we have another waiting list - of payments yet to be received!

PLEASE DON’T EMBARASS YOURSELF BY HAVING TO BE CHASED FOR PAYMENT OR WORSE STILL YOUR CHILD BEING TURNED AWAY FROM THEIR SWIMMING SESSION.

IT IS THEREFORE IMPERATIVE TO ENSURE YOU DON’T LOSE YOUR PLACE FOR SPRING 2010, PAYMENT MUST BE MADE BY

Friday 25^th december 2009

GRADED AND TRANSITION GROUPS: £55

SQUAD SWIMMERS (ALL LEVELS): £60

THERE WILL BE A REDUCTION OF £5 IF PAYMENT IS MADE BEFORE

Friday 25th DECEMBER 2009.

PLEASE COMPLETE THE ATTACHED PAYMENT SLIP AND POST TO:

MR NICK LONGSON, 5 THORNFIELD HEY, WILMSLOW, CHESHIRE SK9 2NF.