Last year’s Great Britain Fastpitch League champions – the Stags and The Mix – are tied for the lead in the Men’s Division 1 and the Women’s Division respectively after the second weekend of GBFL play, but both divisions are clearly more competitive this season.
 

Men’s Division

The Stags, found themselves without their top pitchers when the GBFL convened for its second full weekend of play on 13-14 May at Farnham Park and faltered accordingly, losing both of their two Division 1 games.

This year, the six-team Men’s Division has been split into two sub-divisions to ensure more competitive games, though inter-division play ensures that teams still play all the others.

The Stags showed a spirited determination, even without their best pitching, in a 2-1 loss to the Heat, but a 10-0 shutout at the hands of the Meteors then followed.

The Meteors arrived for the weekend bolstered by premiere New Zealand pitcher Dylan Tonkin and returning GB pitcher Gareth Jooste, plus Joshua Tam, a catcher for the Singapore Under-23 Team.  As well as doing a great job behind the plate, Tam was unstoppable on the basepaths.

While the Stags felt the full weight of the Meteors’ talent, the Heat are not a team to give up without a fight and despite their eventual 4-2 loss to the Meteors, the game will be remembered not only for Dylan Tonkin’s impressive pitching, but also for the massive home run hit by Darren Mentjes with Javier Frost on base to score two runs and bring the Heat back into the game.

At end of play, all three Division 1 teams were level with two wins and two losses each and everything to play for when the GBFL resumes on 10-11 June.

In Division 2, the Strays are unbeaten and in a commanding position, while the two GB development teams, the Hawks and Eagles, are beginning to show what good work and organisation can do.
 

Scores and Standings

MEN’S DIVISION 1
Heat 2-1 Stags  
Meteors 10, Stags 0     
Meteors 4, Heat 2

TEAMS Won Lost Drawn Pct RF RA
Stags 2 2 0 .500 10 13
Heat 2 2 0 .500 24 16
Meteors 2 2 0 .500 25 30

 

MEN’S DIVISION 2
Strays 12, Hawks 2
Strays 15, Eagles 7        
Hawks 16, Eagles 13

TEAMS Won Lost Drawn Pct RF RA
Strays 4 0 0 1.000 51 13
Hawks 2 2 0 .500 36 40
Eagles 0 4 0 .000 27 61

 

INTER-DIVISION SCORES
Strays 14, Stags 10
Stahs 11, Eagles 5
Stags 9, Hawks 4
Heat 15, Eagles 1
Meteors 10, Eagles 0
Meteors 7, Hawks 6
Heat 15, Hawks 2
Meteors 9, Strays 1
Heat 15, Strays 6


Women’s Division

The Women’s Division continues to develop.

The Mix, who lost to the Barbarians when the GBFL got under way in April, evened up the score with a 10-5 win over their rivals, leaving the two teams sharing first place.

Meanwhile, the Heat continue to impress, battling and scoring runs against all opponents, and their contribution to the improved competitiveness of the league shouldn’t be underestimated.

The Angels are also playing well but suffered a couple of tough losses – particularly 10-9 to the Barbarians -- that, had things gone the other way, would have made the top of the standings even more interesting.

The Free Agents have been slow to start the year and, hampered on this weekend by national rail strikes, were not at full strength.  But this gave the chance for the Cardiff Celts to record their first win in the GBFL and the Celts will be encouraged by the idea that winning can be habit-forming!

Scores and Standings

WOMEN’S DIVISION
Heat 11, Free Agents 7
London Angels 23, Cardiff Celts 8       
The Mix 6, Heat 4
Barbarians 20, Cardiff Celts 2
The Mix 15, Free Agents 0      
Barbarians 10, London Angels 9
Heat 14, London Angels 4          
Cardiff Celts 14, Free Agents 11
The Mix 10, Barbarians 5
 

TEAMS Won Lost Drawn Pct RF RA
The Mix 5 1 0 .833 57 18
Barbarians 5 1 0 .833 67 36
Heat 4 2 0 ,667 55 36
London Angels 3 3 0 ,500 65 47
Cardiff Celts 1 5 0 .167 35 99
Free Agents 0 6 0 .000 18 61

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