by Stan Doney
It's the midway point of the season for the Great Britain Fastpitch League (GBFL), and this year has seen a number of changes compared to 2011.
Two new junior leagues have been added to the GBFL in 2012, at Under-17 and Under-14 age levels. Last weekend (June 16) was the most successful yet, with teams of young players coming from Nottingham and Horsham to play against Richings Park and Chalfont.
Praise must go to GB Under-13 Head Coach Caroline Champion, who has spent a lot of time recruiting for the Under-14 league around London and in surrounding counties. Over 50 kids were playing fastpitch softball last weekend, which has not been seen for a while – and long may it continue.
Adult competition
With European Championships and World Championship Qualifiers coming up for the GB Men and World Championships for the GB Women, playing time is a must and we have seen four Division 2 teams and six Division 1 teams competing regularly in the GBFL over its first three dates.
Once again, London Angels are dominating the women's section, but the surprise of the year has been the Nottingham Men's Team, who won all their games on Match Day 1 to move into a early lead.
Changes
There have also been some withdrawals this year, with Norfolk Fastpitch not playing as the six-hour round trip took its toll on them in 2011. Hove Tuesday from Sussex have also stepped down temporarily, as they have now restarted their baseball team. But we still have players who make the journey up from Brighton, which is great to see.
Wolverines have also gone back to their original name, the Heyford Diamonds, and have teams entered in both Division 1 and Division 2, with the Division 2 team securing the better results to date.
Success
The biggest success story, though, remains the new youth leagues, which for me is what the GBFL is all about – to bring new players into the fastpitch game.
Here are a couple of comments that we've already had from parents and players:
"Thanks, Stan -- we had a great time on Saturday. My daughter absolutely loved it as well. The moment she woke up on Sunday she was asking for me to go outside with her so she could have some batting practice. I definitely want to get a youth club going on the South Coast."
"I have been here for five weeks in the UK and I just want to thank you for inviting me as Saturday at the GBFL has been by far the best day of my stay here."
And we do it all again this weekend, on Saturday, June 23, at Richings Park Sports Club in Iver.
Whatever your age, ability or softball background, it's not too late to join the GBFL in 2012. So if you would like to be picked up by a team please contact .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address).