by Dan Armstrong
The 2011 season has seen a greater than usual number of rainouts for the Greater London Softball Mixed League (GLSML), so it was fitting that the GLSML’s last tournament of the summer, the Lastball held at Old Deer Park in Richmond on August 20, also suffered from inclement weather.
The morning dawned bright and blue, and 23 teams, nearly half of the GLSML’s membership, kicked off play across three grades at 9:00 am.
Other than the portaloos being delivered three hours late and two pitches being marked out for touch rugby rather than softball, all ran to plan for the first few hours. A light drizzle began at 1:00 pm but the competition continued undeterred, teams eagerly chasing the £225 in prizes on offer.
By 2:00 pm, however, what was supposed to be a passing shower had become steady rain, and when the drenching persisted for yet another hour, several teams called it quits and beat a belated and bedraggled retreat to the nearest pub. Those more accustomed to British summer conditions toughed it out though, and were well rewarded with the sun’s eventual re-emergence and some wonderful late afternoon softball.
Blue Grade
In the GLSML Blue Grade (teams from the two lowest GLSML divisions), top honours went to Pimlico Pirates, who went undefeated on the day and edged Raiders Green 14-8 in the Blue Trophy Final.
Voodoos, who hadn’t managed a win in the round-robin stage, rebounded to score two narrow playoff victories and take the Blue Cup from Basejumpers by a score of 9-5.
Special mention goes to the GLSML Development Squad, who have emerged from the GLSML’s Monday night development programme looking like a force to be reckoned with when they enter the league next year. Their performance at the Lastball included a 31-2 demolition of one unsuspecting opponent.
White Grade
The GLSML White Grade (consisting of teams from the league's middle two divisions) was the most decimated by rain-induced withdrawals and only some hasty on-the-spot rescheduling by tournament control Tina Franchi prevented the competition derailing.
During the morning, 2011 league newcomers Mezcalitos Ninos had scored an exciting walk-off victory against division rivals Comers Homers (the two will meet again in early September to determine the Division 3 league champion), but they too were halfway to the pub at 3:30 pm before a team vote (and the first ray of afternoon sunshine) brought them back.
It proved a good decision, as Ninos polished off Oblivion, 22-7, to take the White Trophy.
The White Cup Final saw Dazzlers hold off Thundercats by 12-4.
Red Grade
As 2011 Majors Division 1 champions and winners of the GLSML Firstball tournament, Mescalitos were arguably favourites to win the GLSML Red Grade. But any such thought was swiftly dispelled when Muppets, themselves heading for promotion back to Division 1 in 2012, thoroughly outplayed Mescalitos en route to a 16-2 shellacking in the morning’s first game.
Both teams progressed to the Red Trophy semi-finals, where they knocked out Oddsox and Beyond Bermuda Guns, setting the scene for a closely-contested final. Muppets jumped out to an early 7-1 lead, only to see Mescalitos chip away, nudge ahead after five innings then put up a nine-spot in the sixth inning that put the game beyond reach. The final score was 21-10.
In the Red Cup Final, Coyotes, who have benefited from a late-season resurgence in the league standings, outlasted SPAM 20-18.
Mescalitos and Mezcalitos Ninos - Red and White Grade Champions