The Lothian U-13 (2005+) team took part in the annual Celtic Challenge at the Terenure Badminton Centre. Hosted by Leinster Badminton, Lothian joined Alpha Club of Ulster and the Welsh national team in the quadrangular competition. Lothian were quick off the mark on the Saturday morning, with the first match against Wales resulting in a sound 12-3 victory. The afternoon tie against Leinster was in effect Lothian’s “cup final”-against the four times running holders. Lothian came out strongly based on the running order of the games, achieving some great clutch wins, and reaching the winning target of 8 with 4 games still to play. Credit to Leinster for closing out the remaining games for an 8-7 final score.
Lothian returned on the Sunday morning for the final match v Alpha Club. A hugely competitive match, the teams were tied 4-4 before a strong momentum in the later games, resulted in a 10-5 Lothian victory and the Celtic Cup and many happy memories coming home on the plane to Edinburgh.
The management team of Douglas Walker, Mahlen Fox and Arlene Bryen could not be more proud of the team throughout the weekend, with some really exceptional performances across the board. The scale of the achievement is reflected in the fact that Lothian last won the event in 2005! We look forward to defending the cup in Wales in 2019, with half of the team still eligible.
Many thanks to our wonderful hosts at Leinster Badminton, Terenure Badminton Centre, our fellow competitors and Karen Riddle and Clare Taylor for their support in Dublin.
Arlene Bryen
Team (L to R)
Vibha Raman; Katie Taylor; Niamh Taylor; Hannah Carlyle; Ellie Bent; Finlay Jack; Ishbel McCallister; Ben Riddle; Harry Bent; James Miller; Ross McCartney; Theo Johnston