Category Archives: Most Imporved Player

Club Review of the Year Part 12. The End of one Year, Start of Another.

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So we’ve come to the final part of our journey through 2015. Over the last 22 days and 11 parts we’ve tried to convey the highs and lows of the year. So as 2015 draws to an end and we look forward to 2016, we can take one last look at the fond memories of this year. My personal favourites moments both came against London Flames at the Diamond Series, sorry London Flames. Our two encounters in 2015 Diamond series were both epic. The only regret about them was that so few people actually got to see them, especially the Diamond 2 final.

Winners-2015-2The Winners

But enough from me, let’s celebrate the winners ones last time before we look ahead to 2016. Congratulations to the players, Giannah, Julia, Natalie, Alex, Evan, Grant and John “Eddy”, the 2015 Club MVPs and MIPs. To the teams, the Royals team that came top of the tree in the Diamond Series, the Rebels team who won at BA, the development team that came so close at the Raiders tournament. The Marlovians for their best league finish. To be honest, everyone was a winner in 2015, it was that kind of year, everyone played a part in all the successes.

Let’s not forget the other events.

The past 11 posts focused on the main events of 2015, but the club did enter other events and did well in those too. The first outing outdoor was a trip down to the south coast to the Chichester Charity event and out outdoor year started as Plate Winners. That was soon followed up with a Runners-up slot in the Plate at GB Open. We played at MLB and Leicester Labour day, without success this year. The last honour of the year can in the last main tournament where we reached the Cup final of the Windsor Last Ball event. Sadly that ended in defeat, but was the gauge for what will come next year.

History on Display

All those events have helped fill the trophy cabinet we finally got installed Cabinetthis year. 38 different honours spanning 15 years. The club history on permanent display in the club house at our own ground. To get this point we needed to collect the spoils from all those years. Without a home before, the trophies have spend many years hidden away awaiting the cabinet. So we reached out to past members who helped build the foundation of this club, they helped us fill in a number of gaps we had in our history and the gaps on the shelves too. It was not just trophies they provided, but cuttings and photos. So it was interesting to see that the earliest photos we have show the club playing in white, we spent a long time playing in blue before switching to white a couple of years back, a decision that now harks back to those early days.

What is next?

The indoor season is nearly upon us and a time when we try and blood as many new players as we can in preparation for the outdoor season. The club plans to make the step up in grade this year. The tournament Royals team will play in B-grade and the Rebels team will be the primary C-Grade team. It will be tough, especially for the Royals, but a step that is needed to keep developing the club forward. The ladies team will be invested in, both in training time and tournament entry. The club plans to hold an all-female event in May 2016, something we’ve been planning for a couple of years in conjunction with Hit and Run, which will be back for a 4th year. The Newlands satellite will continue and be the corner stone of the development program for all ages. We also hope to start of improvements to our home ground, that will be a long process but worth the journey.

Goodbye 2015, Hello 2016.

It will be sad to say goodbye to 2015, we had a such a great year and will be fondly remembered. Now we look ahead to making 2016 even better.

The review of the year in full.

What is Softball?

Co-ed slowpitch softball is a social and enjoyable game that’s easy to learn and play, even for people who are not “athletes” or don’t have much experience of team sports.

Softball is a lot like baseball in terms of the rules, but because the ball is pitched slowly to each batter (as the name implies!), it’s easy to hit the ball and succeed at the sport’s central skill. The fact that men and women play together in the same team and on an equal level gives the sport a social buzz, and most softball games are followed by sessions at the local pub!

Come and Get Involved

Maidenhead Softball Club runs weekly sessions every Friday at Newlands Girls School in Maidenhead. Sessions from 6pm until 7:30pm and are open to anyone 11 and up.

All sessions are free, no experience needed and all equipment to get you going is supplied.

For all under-18’s attending, a parent must be in attendance at the beginning of the first session to sign permission paperwork.

For more information, email maidenheadsoftballclub@outlook.com or visit www.maidenheadsoftballclub.co.uk

Awards Round up: MIPs 2013

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You know the summer is over when the parties begin. Over the last weekend, there were a number of clubs and leagues posting about their awards parties. Where did the summer go?

To add to the mix, the Maidenhead party was Saturday. This year annual event was held at Prezzo’s in Maidenhead, with two thirds of the club able to make it.

This year, for the first time, we had a number of the youth players attend. They all received a medal to commemorate their participation  in the youth program for 2013.

The first awards of the evening recognised the improvements of players in the development program. This awards goes to a male and female player, is awarded by the coaches and takes into account where those players started the year, the enthusiasm to learn and put that into practice.

This year the winners where Joe White and Kayleigh Chamberlain. Both players have just completed their first seasons with the club.

IMG_2216Joe came to us in June having participated in one event at school, he took to Softball like a duck to water. He comes to every training session and works hard at the game. He got on so well we had him playing in the Rebels team before the month was out and went on to play the remained of the season for the Rebels. He also joined the squad that went to the BA Tournament. In August, he was one of the 2 junior players we selected to represent us at the BSF Nationals. After a few substitute appearances in the first group games, he played all the games up to the Semi-final where a slight injury kept him out the final. He rounded the season off by being part of the Rebels team who were runners up in both the Solent RecBal Cup competition and the Hit and Run Competition. He is also looking to attend the 2013/14 BSUK Academy program.

Kayleigh joined at the end of last season, too late to IMG_2215play any games but was keen to train, attending the last couple of sessions we ran. As with all new players catching and hitting were very new to her and she missed more than she played at. That didn’t deter her. She played a full part in the Rebels league season and travelled with the MSC squads to Leeds, Leicester and Solent. Come the Hit and Run tournament on September 29th she was a different player. In her own words, “Sunday was the first time this season I didn’t strike out in any game”. With her first season down, she has the foundation for a really fun 2014.

Congratulations to both players and now looking forward to them building on this foundation next season.