Berkswell's 1st XI - picked up from where they left off
Doug Macklam reports on the weekend’s matches:
Mens 1st XI: Nuneaton 1 – BBCHC 0
Berkswell entered this hotly anticipated top of the table clash at Nuneaton knowing a victory would put the fate of the East Midlands Division 2 title in their own hands, with anything less leaving them relying on Nuneaton slipping up somewhere else in the final run-in.
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Steve Wake reports on Berkswell’s Midlands West Division 2 (South) encounter with Cheltenham North on Saturday 12th February:
Berkswell & Balsall – 15 Cheltenham North – 17
Once again the game just wasn’t long enough for Berkswell, as they tried to overcome a nine point halftime deficit and, for the second week running, came-up just short. Once again the home side’s kicking in front of goal let them down; their failure to convert any of their three tries, in the end, the difference between victory and defeat. Cheltenham certainly knew they had been in a game by the final whistle, but their victory was nowhere near as clear-cut as they probably thought it would be, after they had raced into a 14-0 lead after 26 minutes.
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Paddy Doyle took his extraordinary career on to the next level as he set his 200th career strength, fitness and endurance record on Valentine’s Day, having set out on his way with his first record back in May 1987. This time it was a gruelling 26 mile backpack walk across the Warwickshire countryside and along the Grand Union Canal – all laden down with 60 lbs of weights – with a rousing ‘stop-the-traffic’ conclusion coming after 7 hours 51 minutes at the offices of the Leamington Courier in Royal Leamington Spa’s town centre.
As always Paddy’s challenge was not without difficulties – heavy rain the previous day made for boggy, treacherous and energy sapping conditions on the early sections of the course – with Paddy going over on his ankle on a difficult slope and injuring his knee in the process. The mental and physical drain on Paddy, exacerbated by injury, slowed him to a crawl at the final checkpoint at Hatton Locks by the Waterman Arms. At this stage Paddy was taking regualr stops and relying heavily on his support team, whilst they dragged him back from exhaustion with a constant stream of energy bars, liquids and those all important words of encouragement to keep going.
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The new Tipperary landlords Mick and Linda Jones just outside Balsall Common in Honiley are getting ready for their grand opening party this Friday (18th February 2011). The traditional country pub house, famed for its’ historical link with the writer of the famous song ‘It’s a long way to Tipperary’, will be in party mood from early evening onwards, with live music from The Delaneys from 9pm.
“Harry Williams, who wrote the song, lived here with his father, when the pub was called The Plough. It was later renamed as tribute to the writer and song” says Mick, who hopes to bring back some of the busy times the pub was once well known for. “It would be nice if we could bring lots of people back here again.”
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The Balsallcom forums are a fascinating part of Balsall Common’s recent history and worth a browse. We have fixed the registration issues that were preventing new users from having their accounts activated – we were receiving hundreds of requests per day from hackers and spammers so genuine people -that’s you – we hope – were lost in the spam.
Activation should now be instant. If you tried to register and heard nothing, then please try again.
Serial world record breaking athlete Paddy Doyle is aiming to notch up his 200th career record since getting his record breaking career underway way back in 1985. Balsall Common’s fitness, martial arts, boxing and outdoor pursuits trainer takes on a gruelling 26 mile cross-country back-pack challenge in the Warwickshire countryside on Monday (14th February 2011). And the challenge which requires him to carry a 60 lbs backpack, will take in sections of the Grand Union Canal before finishing in Royal Leamington Spa, where he will be well supported by members of his old paratroop regiment, a number of whom will be completing the course with him.
“I never knew I would achieve it , but I really do hope to clinch my 200th strength speed stamina record on Monday and I’m going to have some fantastic support on the day from my sponsors and members of my old regiment” said Paddy.
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Balsall Common Parish Councillor Patrick Nash has been suspended from the Council for failing to treat others with respect, according to stories published by the Solihull News and Birmingham Mail websites.
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Steve Wake reports on Berkswell & Balsall’s Midlands West Division 2 (South) defeat at home to visitors Droitwich on Saturday 5th February 2011:
Berkswell & Balsall – 22 Droitwich – 27
In a classic ‘game of two halves’, Berkswell left themselves just too much to do in the second period to overcome Droitwich. Playing against both the elements and the slope in the first forty minutes, the B’s were 20-7 down at halftime. Although they had closed to within a point of their opponents by the 65th minute mark, a try by the visitors with ten minutes left proved decisive. A huge amount of home pressure in the last few minutes just failed to produce the converted try which would have secured a victory.
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