News and Events
Introducing Rossendale's Level 2 coach, Yong Chen
A Rossendale player who is already making his mark in the Lancashire coaching world is newly qualified Yong Chen, a Level 2 coach working in Bolton, Swinton, Salford, Middleton, Heywood, Irlam and, of course, his hometown of Haslingden.
Mentored through his Level 1 and 2 awards by Sarah Howe, Yong is keen to keep learning and extending his coaching abilities. From the Sunday morning sessions with Rossendale Juniors at The Adrenaline, to the Lancashire junior county sessions at Bolton Arena with Alan Clarkson, to Eddie Poon’s class for beginners at the National Cycling Centre in Manchester, not to mention the Ladies’ Only and Junior sessions at Markland Hill, Bolton and assisting Coach Hin, a Hong Kong technique coach, at Swinton Leisure Centre, there are barely enough days in the week for Yong to share his passion for the sport.
“I used to play badminton after dinner with my mum, cousins and relatives in Canton China when I was 9 or 10 years old. We would just rally in the streets and public parks – no nets, no courts with lines – just swinging our wooden racquets as hard as we could. We emigrated to the UK when I was 12 and that was the first time I played badminton indoors on a court with nets at Stanborough High School in Welwyn Garden City where we initially settled.
Now, with a family of my own, I still love the sound the racquet makes when it swings and hits the shuttlecock.
Both of my daughters play badminton and, if I’m honest, they are my inspiration to go down the coaching route. I want to pass on my skills and knowledge about badminton to them in the hope that they, too, will find the passion I have in the sport.”
Currently, as well as coaching, Yong plays in both the Rossendale and Blackburn badminton leagues for Goodshaw Badminton Club and Westholme Club.
Rossendale Badminton League is very proud to have helped Yong Chen start his journey in to the world of coaching.
If anyone is interested in having either group or individual coaching sessions with Yong, he can be contacted on: 07763563851 or by email foon1225@gmail.com
Last weekend the Rossendale Badminton League’s annual handicap tournament took place at Accrington Academy.
All four courts were used to play ladies’ and men’s doubles followed by the mixed event. The tournament saw even more entries than last year, with players coming from every single one of the Rossendale clubs, which hasn’t happened for a number of years.
The ladies’ and men’s doubles were in two groups, with the top of each group playing in the final.
The back markers in Group A, Claire Edmundson and Jenny Wood from Blackburn Seniors A, eventually got through to top their group after playing off a whopping -8 handicap. With scores of 21, 20, 18 and 20, Alex Bullock and her partner, Alice Walker, a new player in the Accy Flyers’ squad, were very unlucky not get through. It was lovely to see one of the original Ladies’ Only players, Magda McManus, now a regular in the Edenfield team, compete in her first Rossendale league tournament. Playing with a Blackburn Seniors player, Magda won two of her four games, playing off a +10 handicap.
“I’ve really enjoyed my first taste of tournament badminton,” said Magda. “I have come across players I have not seen before who play in the First Division and partnered someone new which is always a learning experience.”
Unbeaten in Group B, Freya Davey from Independents and Joanna Holt, from Blackburn Seniors A, breezed through on their -4 handicap.
The final of the ladies’ doubles was won by Claire Edmundson and Jenny Wood, 21,18.
On the adjacent courts, the men’s doubles, similarly in two groups, was in action. With a generous handicap of +8, the Oakgate pairing of Mark Buji and Sandip Pindola were unbeaten in Group B and went through to the final.
In Group A, however, just six aces separated all four couples – and made the hours of handicapping almost worthwhile – with Super Stuart Davey and his step son, Ollie Sealby, playing in his first Rossendale tournament, just edging their way through to the top of the group. Another close final, this was won by the Oakgate pair, Mark and Sandip, 21,17.
The mixed doubles started at pace as the doubles events were finishing. Fourteen couples had entered and we knew we were going to severely pushed for time. In the end, the tournament organisers had to make the decision to focus on the mixed games that mattered in order to complete the matches, but not before every couple had played between three to six games, many of them back to back.
In Group A, the Goodshaw B couple, Andy Lee and Rachel Robertson, with a handicap of +8, went through as winners, losing just one game against the youngsters, Freya Davey and Jack Maris who plays for Blackburn Seniors.
In Group B, Sandip and his partner, Fiona Wells from Brunlea, went through to the final by just four points with Alex Hinton and Kath Owen chomping at the bit behind them in second place.
The mixed final was watched by many red faced, exhausted players who had stayed behind – and to those that had, they were in for a treat. The two generous handicaps cancelled each other out with Sandip and Fiona starting off on +2. It was nip and tuck all the way to the end – and, being a handicap, there was no setting when it got to 20 points a-piece. It was the Goodshaw pair whose nerve held out as they won it 21,20. Again, the handicap committee breathed a sigh of relief.
It was wonderful to see so many Rossendale badminton players supporting the tournament this year: 9 ladies’ doubles pairs; 8 men’s doubles; 14 mixed doubles. Some players from our neighbouring league of Blackburn had asked if they could enter the tournament, which meant we have a couple of new registrations to the league, such as Aiden Siu, Kaspar Schweiger and Rob Cussins.
As always, our thanks go to the Rossendale committee for organising another successful tournament. The tickets for the Rossendale Presentation evening are selling very quickly, especially with the trophy winners keen to pick up their awards. You can get your ticket through your Club captain or by contacting one of the committee members.
Christine Bristow
It is with great sadness to report that the wife of our former League Secretary, died last Sunday on 23rd February. George has been a friend to many and our thoughts are with him at this time. Our deepest condolences.
The funeral is to be held on Thursday 20th March at Holcombe Church from 12:00 noon. The family has requested no flowers, but donations can be made to the Christie Hospital or Bury Hospice.
Thank you.
Rossendale Veterans' Tournament Report
Last Saturday was the annual veterans’ handicap tournament in the Rossendale Badminton League. Played at Accrington Academy, 9 couples battled it out for the prestigious Steve & Betty Bayes’ mixed doubles’ trophy.
Two groups played one game up to 15 with the final played best of three games.
In Group A, Oakgate’s Arif Mollah and Catherine Whiddon, with a handicap of +4, were unbeaten, although Nigel Holt and Joanne Schofield were just one point off beating them. In Group B, there were just two points separating the top three couples – so well done to the handicappers! Playing in his first tournament, a very smiley Val Tamse and Jean Mounsey, both from Brunlea, went through as group winners with their scratch handicap.
Chairman, Mick Crilly, scored the final, which was won by the Oakgate pairing, Arif and Catherine, in two games.
The committee decided to extend the day’s tournament this year by resurrecting the veterans’ men’s and ladies’ handicap competition, last played 28 years ago!
Despite some last-minute cancellations, a group of 5 ladies’ doubles pairs and 6 men’s doubles pairs battled it out on the courts for the remainder of the afternoon.
Last year’s level doubles’ winners, Karen Lamb and Alex Bullock from Accy Flyers were unbeaten, playing off -3, with Goodshaw’s Fee Tremlett and Rachel Robertson in runner up spot, with a handicap of +5. In the men’s doubles’ group, Nigel Holt and Alex Hinton from Goodshaw were unbeaten playing off a +4 handicap, with Accy Flyers’ Dean Bertenshaw and Chairman, Mick Crilly, off +7, coming in as runners up.
At the end of the tournament, a raffle was drawn to supplement any shortfall in the match/court fees. £70 was raised from the raffle which was won by a delighted Chairman (the Malteser hamper he is clutching in his photo!)
Many thanks to all those who gave up their Saturday afternoon to play three hours of badminton, also to our President, Peter Wood, who came down to make sure we were running the tournament properly.
As always, the committee work tirelessly to make events like this happen in the league so the biggest thank you must go to them.
The Rossendale Juniors 'film' goes live on Youtube, courtesy of Crowdfund Lancashire!
Players wanted (Alpha Badminton club)
Alpha BC play in the Oldham & Rochdale Badminton League. This is an 'Open' league where there are no set mixed pairings. Alpha BC have 4 teams across 2 divisions and play on a Monday evening at Oulder Hill Leisure Complex, OL11 5EF.
For more details, please contact Gary on 07973 579292
Trio of Teams Proudly Represent Rossendale - See Juniors & Safeguarding page
Ladies' Only Badminton play Oakgate Club
One of the Rossendale League’s initiatives, the Ladies’ Only badminton group at St Peter’s, Haslingden on Fridays 7-9pm, saw its first group of ladies travel to Unsworth Academy to play a friendly match against Oakgate Badminton Club kindly organised by Anne-Marie Saunders.
“We were all so excited,” enthused Lauren, one of the Ladies’ Only players, “and were really pleased at the way we played. I used to partner my brother but he doesn’t play anymore. I’m just loving the friendliness of the group and am so happy I found it.”
The Ladies’ Only players have already started to book courts of their own during the week, which is such a good sign for the sport and the Rossendale league.
More friendly matches are due to be arranged over the summer between the Ladies’ Only players and Blackburn Seniors, Accy Flyers and Westholme Badminton Clubs.
For details of how to get involved in the Ladies’ Only group on Fridays, please contact Claire Banfield: 07735566073
Last week saw the Rossendale Badminton League join together for their annual Presentation evening at Sunnybank Social Club, Helmshore to celebrate the season’s achievements.
Winners of Division 1, Blackburn Seniors A, and Division 2, Goodshaw B, received new trophies in wood and slate, handcrafted by the league. This year’s cup winners, Blackburn Seniors B, were presented with sports towels, embroidered with their team name and achievement. The league sourced both the slate and the embroidery locally, using Platters Slate and J&J Designs in Rawtenstall for this new venture of making their own awards in a bid to save money on their trophy bill.
The Chairman, Mick Crilly, began proceedings by surprising everyone with the first presentation of the evening which went to all of the team captains who were present. Without their commitment and weekly organisation of their teams, the league simply could not run. On behalf of the committee, Mick thanked the captains for their hard work throughout the season as he handed out highly sought after badminton pens for their scoresheets next year.
A new award, the Matty Ramsbottom shield, was presented by Steve Ramsbottom to the rising star of the league, Sam Bradshaw. Unfortunately, Sam was unable to be present at the evening, so his father, Brian, received it in his stead. A separate presentation will be shortly organised at one of the Rossendale Junior practices.
Following this, President of the league, Peter Wood, took his usual centre stage as he handed out the season’s awards to both the division and tournament winners and runners-up. The Tony Frost awards were presented by Maureen Frost, who was delighted to open the envelopes and announce this year’s recipients: Division 1 Sports team, Goodshaw A; Division 1 Sports lady, Claire Banfield; Division 1 Sports man, David Holt; Division 2 Sports team, Accy Flyers B; Division 2 Sports lady, Sophie Lambert; Division 2 Sports man, Joe Lambert – Sophie’s brother. The Tony Frost awards are based on the points scored by the opposition for sportsmanship and fair play.
The biggest cheer of the night, however, came for the final surprise award. This Brunlea player had entered all of the league’s tournaments this year, narrowly missing out on a place in the mixed final by one point, before getting through to the ladies’ final where she again, lost by just one point. The specially crafted One More Point Award was given to a delighted Lauren Wearing who was positively beaming, along with everyone in the room.
The committee would like to thank all of those who supported the Presentation this year. Special mention must go to Steve Ramsbottom and his team (TLC) for another memorable night at Sunnybank Social Club. The next date in the Rossendale Badminton League’s calendar is the A.G.M. on June 10th.
Rossendale Badminton League Singles' Tournament
This week saw the final tournament in the league - the handicap singles - played at Accrington Academy.
Despite two no-shows in the men's singles, we still had 10 gents battling it out in two groups, and 6 ladies
playing no fewer than 5 games a-piece!
Over-seeing the event as always, Peter Wood took great pride, not only in seeing his son, Andy, playing,
but also the number of ladies in Rossendale who had entered the competition.
"At a time when the Lancashire Restricted ladies' singles tournament has to be cancelled due to insufficient
entries, it is heartening to see our Rossendale ladies rushing to play the event. Well done!"
Kathryn Owen from Goodshaw A was unbeaten in her games, although Blackburn Seniors B's Rosie Fenwick,
ran her very close, just 3 points behind. In the men's singles, Javed Awan from Blackburn Seniors B was victorious
over young Jack Maris.
Congratulations to all those who entered!
Rossendale Juniors Badminton Tournament
The Rossendale Juniors ran their very own handicapped doubles tournament at The Adrenaline.
Running over 3 Sunday morning sessions, the winners are pictured below:
Preston and Bella won the tournament; Sam was presented with the new Rising Star Award (this will also be presented at the Rossendale Presentation Evening next week); and Ollie and Ava were runners up in the tournament. Eve, not pictured here, will also receive a trophy as she partnered Ollie in one of the earlier rounds.
The Rossendale Tournament and Super Stuart
Six ladies’ doubles pairings battled it out in two groups. Unfortunately, this meant that, unless you won the group, you only got two games; fortunately, though, the ladies used the spare court and had friendly matches between themselves, which was nice to see.
Rachel Robertson from Goodshaw and Lauren Wearing from Brunlea were winners of group 1 and went into the final against Accy Flyers’ couple, Karen Lamb and Alex Bullock, winners of group 2, with a +4 to -1 handicap.
The final was neck and neck all the way. Rachel and Lauren won the first game 21,16 before Karen and Alex fought back in the second to win it 21,18. All on the last game and it really couldn’t have gone any closer – 21,20 to Karen and Alex. All those hours handicapping by the committee (yes, that’s how long it takes to handicap a tournament of this size, folks) paid off!
On to the men’s doubles tournament where eight pairings played in two groups. In group one, the Transport big hitters, Nick Ingham and Jack Savin, playing off -8, battled long and hard, winning the group with scores of 21,19; 21,15; 21,17. Group two got off to a slower start when a misunderstanding meant that one player didn’t realise he had been entered in the draw. And, just when you’re panicking and not sure what to do, Stuart Davey from Independents steps in. Having played all of his games in group 1 with Michael Paterson, he agreed to partner Nyan Min in group 2.The handicap was adjusted slightly as Nyan Min and Super Stuart set off on their three games in a row bid to win group 2 with scores of: 21,9; 21,15; 21,15.
Unfortunately, due to the delay at the start of the men’s tournament, the final could only be one game – we still had all the mixed to play – with Nick and Jack off -8 and Nyan and Stuart off scratch. It was a good game of men’s but, as in the ladies’, there can only be one winner and that was Nyan and Super Stuart who ended up playing seven games of men’s doubles.
On to the mixed tournament where a bumper lot of 15 couples had entered. Split in to 4 groups, this meant the first three groups got at least three games; unfortunately, the fourth group just had two games, but, again, many players used the spare courts at the end to supplement their games.
The back markers in group 1, Joanna Holt and Super Stuart, played off -8 and won all three games to 21, 17; 21, 16; 21, 16. Likewise, in group 2, the unbeaten couple of Andy Wood and Alex Bullock, playing off +1, went through to the semi- final. In group 3, however, three of the four couples won two games each so aces had to be counted to see who would go through. By just one point, Lauren Wearing and Michael Ormerod, playing off +6, beat Claire Banfield and Gary Pollock, playing off +2, and went through to the semi-final, with their scores of 19,21; 21,18; 21,18. In the final group of three, Nyan and Goodshaw’s Karen Rogan, with a handicap of +3, were unbeaten and joined the other semi-finalists.
In the first semi-final, Stuart and Joanna beat Lauren and Michael – 21,20. This was the second time Lauren had lost to 21,20 and showed how accurate the handicappers had been. I have a funny feeling there might be a special ‘one point in it’ award at the presentation for a certain young lad. In the second semi-final, Andy and Alex beat Karen and Nyan 21,13 in another entertaining game to watch.
And as the finalists started their best of three final and the organisers totted up how many games Super Stuart had played (by the end of the final it was 13!) the spectators settled down to watch a humdinger of a match. It was brilliant to see how many players stayed behind to watch the final between Super Stuart and Joanna and Andy and Alex. Those that went early, missed a treat – from the ‘oh sh**’ tactical play and full length dives of Super Stuart (he later said he’d fallen over) to some amazing cross court reaches from Andy Wood – the match had it all and more, much more.
The first game went to Stuart and Joanna, 21,20; the second game to Andy and Alex, 21,19; and it really was all to play for in the final game. Andy and Alex set off in the third with steely determination, however, forcing their opponents to forever be playing catch-up. The Accy Flyers’ duo won the third 21,13 but after a positively epic battle by Joanna and, of course, our Super Stuart.
Many thanks to all those who entered the competition and who stayed to offer their support. A massive thanks to the committee without whom the tournament could not run; also to our President, Peter Wood, who came and presided (occasionally sighing) over the tournament and helped us finish off the wine gums and chocolates!
I know you all know about the Presentation on Friday 17th May – because I came round to talk to all of you individually about buying a ticket. I can’t emphasize enough how important it is to get your ticket early: once I reach 80, I am not selling any more tickets and I’m over halfway there already #justsaying
The tournament, which first started in 2018, has previously been won by teams from Oldham and Colne: now Rossendale will be inscribed on the cup. Seeing off opposition from Heywood, Craven, Colne, Forrest and Oldham, the Rossendale Junior Year 9 team fielded the same players as in all the previous rounds. From start to finish, the four boys were determined to not only do their very best, but play with courtesy and sportsmanship. The medals around their necks and the smiles upon their faces show they did exactly that.
Over the four rounds of the tournament, the players and their team managers have been voting for the most sporting player. In the Year 9 competition, our very own super star in the making, Sam Bradshaw, went up to receive the award, much to the delight of his team mates and manager, Nigel Holt.“We are getting kids playing badminton. Yes, it’s competitive,” said Nigel, “but they are here to have fun and to make friends. That’s what’s most important. I’m pleased they won, but I’m prouder of the way they behaved on and off the court.”
In the older, Year 11 and under age group, Rossendale Juniors fielded Eric and Amanda Shi, Will Clark and a very promising Blackburn player, Alice Mann. The Rossendale Juniors’ fifth player, Fred Hardwick, was sportingly loaned to the Forrest Year 11 team, who finished third in the overall competition. Like the Year 9 boys, the older players for Rossendale displayed the same enthusiasm and competitive sportsmanship. Amanda and Alice experienced first- hand the force of the opposition smashes, but bravely carried on with smiles on their faces. The indomitable Colne 1 team won the Year 11 competition, with Rossendale Juniors placed a very creditable fourth.
As the Year 9 team move up in to the older age group next year, Fred, Eric and Alice will still be eligible to play in that age group. Perhaps Rossendale will have to enter two Year 11 teams next season? The popular Junior club at The Adrenaline on Sunday mornings has many young players waiting in the wings to form a new Year 9 team next season and taste competitive junior badminton for the very first time.
The organiser of the M65 Junior Badminton League , Sharon de Maine, the senior coach at Colne Badminton Club for the Junior section, has decided to step down from running the junior league, leaving it in the steady hands of the M65 club managers and team captains. She knows they will continue to build on the success of the tournament, putting friendly, healthy competition as its primary focus. Flowers and thanks were presented to Sharon at the end of the event, by Tony Kelly, who runs Oldham and Heywood Juniors, and Ray Schofield from Forrest Badminton Juniors.
Many thanks to Emma Bailey, the Community Champion for the Tesco in Rawtenstall, for supplying the Rossendale Junior teams with goodies to keep them going: chocolate bars and fruit juice. They obviously did the trick!
The Rossendale Veterans’ Mixed Doubles tournament took place this week, under the watchful eyes of Steve and Betty Bayes and George Bristow, former Rossendale committee members and now lifelong members of the league. It was also lovely to see our President, Peter Wood, resplendent as always in his white Lancashire tracksuit, supporting, not only the league tournament, but also his son, Andy, who was back marker in the competition playing off minus 8 with Karen Lamb, captain of Accy Flyers. Also present at the tournament was Pauline Holt, Andy’s mum, who shared fond memories of playing at The Adrenaline when it used to be a six court hall.
This year’s tournament entry went one better than the previous year, with 12 couples competing from 6 of the league clubs. Due to court availability, the tournament had to be played on just two courts so we knew timing would be crucial. Fortunately, the housewife’s favourite, Dean Bertenshaw, was behind the results’ desk, meaning the tournament could run smoothly.
In group 1, Karen Lamb and Andy Wood, faced Oakgate’s Anne-Marie Saunders and Nyan Min and the experienced pairing of Karen Rogan and Clive Benson from Goodshaw. The Division 2 Sports Personality winner, Rachel Robertson, partnered our very own Nigel Holt in group 2, facing Accy Flyers’ Kath Keir and our Chairman, Mick Crilly, along with last year’s tournament winners, Jean Mounsey and Anser Yaseen. Group 3 was made up of Claire Banfield and Alex Hinton from Goodshaw, Alex Bullock and Rob Brocklehurst from Accy Flyers, and Fiona Wells and Salim Islam from Brunlea. Finally, in group 4, Fee Tremlett and Icky Khan competed against the husband and wife duo, Laura and Damon Webster from Transport, along with the Blackburn Seniors pairing of Rosie Fenwick and Javed Awan.
Once the groups had been played, we settled back to watch the semi-finals. In the first semi, the handicap of scratch between the Oakgate pairing, Anne-Marie and Nyan, and Goodshaw’s Rachel and Nigel, made for a very evenly matched and entertaining game, finally won by the Oakgate couple. In the other semi-final, Rosie and Javed started off with a +3 advantage over Claire and Alex. With some careful serving and the repeated tactics of ‘let’s take it steady’, the Goodshaw couple made it through to the final against Anne-Marie and Nyan.
I said it last year and I’ll say it again this year, the sign of a good tournament is the number of players who stay right to the end to watch the final. Starting off with a +1 advantage to the Oakgate pairing, the match was neck and neck throughout with some spectacular rallies and court coverage by all of the players but particularly the Oakgate gent. Nyan will undoubtedly by entering the singles’ tournament in the new year and we must remember this in his handicapping! The Goodshaw couple of Claire and Alex remained ‘steady’ to the end, however, winning the match 21,19.
Thank you to all those who came and played, and to those who gave their support. And as Anser Yaseen wonders if it would have all been different if he’d worn his special shirt and we realise that perhaps the best place for Dean Bertenshaw is on court rather than behind the results desk, the Rossendale committee of Nigel and David Holt, Claire Banfield and Michael Crilly, would like to wish you all a very merry Christmas and a peaceful New Year.
A Proud Lancastrian, Peter has never forgotten his roots in Haslingden
President of Rossendale Badminton hosts birthday with England players
President of Rossendale Badminton League, Peter Wood, celebrated 50 years in the role, and a special book was made in his honour - 'Not Bad For A Lad From Haslingden'. Famous badminton players from all over the country attended an 80th birthday party for the President of the Rossendale Badminton League.
Peter Wood celebrated his birthday and marked 50 years in the role of league president by receiving a special book entitled 'Not Bad For A Lad From Haslingden' as a present. It compiled special thoughts, memories and good wishes, and, as Peter's way of saying thanks, he organised a party at Ramsbottom Cricket Club.
Days before his 80th birthday, the ex-England player, who started his career in Haslingden, invited friends and family, where they were treated by a free bar, pie and peas.
Peter also invited everyone, young and old, who had written in his book.
In 1976, Lancashire became the champions of Great Britain. It was the first time since 1938 that the county had won the Inter County Championships. That team then went on to win the Championships for the next eight years and many of the ex-county who were in that team with Peter Wood were at the party. Some of the ex-England stars at the party were Sue Whittaker, Sara Sankey (who now runs the Sankey Academy, Milton Keynes) and Brian and Jill Wallworth, whose daughter, Jenny, is in the England team. There were also many ex-Lancashire players, including Kathy Cashmere, Steve Denner, Steve Ramsbottom, Neil Long, Helen and Mark Palletts, Debbie Rigby, John Cocker, Lindsay Bracken and many more.
In 1968, Peter made a promise to give something back to badminton, the sport which has been 'his life'; he has given his time on committees, as a coach, as a badminton captain, and has never asked anything in return.
A proud Lancastrian, Peter represented his county and his country but has never forgotten his roots in Haslingden.
Team update
Unfortunately, Broadway has had to disband for the 2023/24 season. This has reduced the total teams in the League to 14 which will be split into two divisions. Edenfield will continue to play in Division 1 with Goodshaw A replacing the Broadway team.
Oh What A Night (x two)
The new venue for both the Rossendale Presentation and the A.G.M. proved a big hit, with standing room only at the Presentation (next year we will find more chairs don't worry!) Steve's Sunnybank Social Club was really buzzing and, as you can see from the photos attached, a lot of fun was had by all 85 attendees. Well, £6 for pie & peas, CAKE, amazing disco, Dean on the raffle (who made £220 and is definitely doing it again) and Sunnybank's awesome bar prices, we knew we were in for a great night. Thank you to all those who came and, if you weren't there, why not??
And then, at the A.G.M. - 'Oh What A Night 2'. This was the evening I had waited a long time for. Being able to present our President, P.J. Wood with his very own book, 'Not Bad For A Lad From Haslingden', was an honour that will stay with me forever.
There will be coverage of this story in the local press so please watch out for that, and we are already trending on twitter (BDBadders...and I need more followers, Rossendale!) I know there has already been a lot of interest from those who kindly wrote pieces for Peter to own their own copy. Unfortunately, further printing would be inhibitive: I have, however, got the download which I am happy to email to anyone who would like it, in exchange for a donation which would go to the Junior Rossendale players. The league has a copy of the book which, of course, anyone is more than happy to borrow.
On the 25th April at Accrington Academy, under the watchful eye of our President, Peter Wood, 8 gentlemen and 4 ladies battled it out for the handicapped singles' titles this season. The latter tournament has not been played since 1995 so, although arms had to be twisted and a coupld of ladies withdrew prior to the event, it was fantastic to be able to hold this particular tournament again at long last. So keen were the ladies to play singles infact, when faced with a group of four they unanimously agreed to play the best of three games to 21...whilst Chairman Mick Crilly ran off to the front desk to book a fourth court!
We were entertained by two excellent groups of men's singles: in Group 1, Jason Loffman was the back marker on -5, with Tom James on scratch and Nigel Holt and Ben Maris both on +6; in Group 2, Mr. Peter Pan himself, Rick Smith, was well and truly at the back of the pack playing off a hefty -10, with Michael Paterson electing to play off scratch, whilst the housewife's favourite, Dean Bertenshaw, played off +2 and David Holt from Goodshaw played off +4.
The men battled long and hard and we were rewarded by some brilliant games. Tom James won his group, and then played Rick Smith who had come in second in his group in the first semi-final; whilst the father and son duo found themselves set against one another in the other semi-final as David Holt had won his group and Nigel come in second spot. Rick came out victorious against Tom (21,15) whilst David just about nicked the game from his Dad (21,20) - and all those who had handicapped the tournament breathed a sigh of relief.
As you can see from his beaming smile on the photograph, Rick Smith took the Peter Wood's singles title when he beat David Holt in the final.
Meanwhile, on courts 1 and 4, the ladies continued to battle fast and furious as they played the best of three games against one another. Back marker in the ladies' singles was Joanna Holt on -2, with Kath Owen close by on scratch; Lisa Archer played on +5 and the promising young junior county player, Freya Davey, was on +8. There were smiles, there were tears, as all four ladies played with great spirit, heart and tenacity. The closest match was between Freya and Joanna - Freya won the first 21, 16 before Joanna dug in and pulled the second game back, winning 21, 18. The final game did not disappoint and went right down to the wire with Freya winning by the narrowest of margins, 21, 20! Again, the beaming smile in the photograph says it all.
Many thanks to all the competitors (particularly the ladies - see you all next year!) and also to Mick Crilly for running here, there and everywhere with the match slips. I have to finally mention our President, Peter, and thank him for his tournament guidance and sweet eating ability!
Rossendale Badminton Tournament Day 2nd April, 2023
A healthy number of ladies' and men's doubles pairings arrived at The Adrenaline Centre at 10am on Sunday morning and, once the committee's new recruit, Karen Lamb, had realised she was to do the job of Betty, Steve AND George as she sat behind the organisers' desk in the store cupboard, play commenced.
Both men's and ladies' played one game up to 21, making for lots of competitive battles. An unbeaten sister duo, Kath Owen and Becky Foreman, from Goodshaw, won through in the ladies' tournament, with Jean Mounsey and Rachel Hillary coming in the runner up position. Jason Loffman and the people's favourite, Dean Bertenshaw, back markers in the men's competition, were victorious in the men's doubles, with Nigel Holt and Rob Brocklehurst a close second. Once Chris Peel emerged from his bed to play his back to back games, all of the matches went through without a hitch, thanks to the excellent organisation of Karen in the store cupboard.
The nine couples in the mixed doubles' tournament, meant that there were two groups of matches. The winners of Group 1, Jason Loffman from Accy Flyers and Joanne Schofield from Oakgate, faced the winners of Group 2, Rob Brocklehurst and Rachel Hillary from Accy Flyers in a well matched final. Arguably one of the luckiest players of the tournament was Joanne Schofield: she not only contacted the committee on the last day of entry to see if a partner could be found, but was fortunate enough to be paired up with an in-form Jason Loffman who, having already won the men's in the morning, did the double by winning the mixed with her in the afternoon! Just as there are winners, however, there are also unlucky runners up: Rob Brocklehurst, who lost in both the men's, the mixed and the veterans' mixed finals this season, can take comfort from the fact that there are medals awarded to the runners up in this year's Presentation in May and three of them have his name on them!
It was lovely to see the matches played in such friendly competitiveness throughout the day. It was also good to welcome some spectators to the tournament: firstly Andy Wood (who has promised to enter next season - and now we have that in writing!); and then Betty and Steve Bayes who popped down to keep an eye on us; and lastly our Chairman, Mick Crilly, and his daughter, Daisy, who came along to watch the final matches being played.
The last tournament of the season is the men's and ladies' singles which will be held at Accrington Academy on Tuesday 25th April. Entries are still able to be sent to either Nigel Holt or Claire Banfield for this event, but must be received by Sunday 23rd April for handicapping purposes.
Steve Ramsbottom receives the English Badminton Award
Having already won the Rossendale Lifetime Achievement Award earlier in the season, I was delighted to hear that Rossendale Badminton’s nomination for Steve to receive the coveted English Badminton Award had also been successful. Not only that, Steve had been invited down to the All-England semi-finals at the I.C.C. in Birmingham to receive it!
Some of the All-England staff must have forgotten Steve’s past antics at the tournament, some not all; there were a few who still remembered, particularly Alan ‘give us a wave’ Crow and Yunus Suleman - one of whom greeted him with a ‘what are you doing here?’ and the other ‘how did you get in?’ Undeterred, Steve stood court side in the Yonex arena to receive his prestigious award, resplendent as always in his understated red suit and tie.
With his nephew beside him (that trusty friend, Gordon Mitchell) and his two carers in tow (yours truly and The Lovely Chris) Steve somehow got all four of us in to the heady heights of the V.I.P. lounge as only Steve Ramsbottom can. Not only did we find free food and a free bar up there, we also found a lot of familiar faces – Nathan Robertson, Sue Storey, Jack Shephard and Anthony Clark to name a few. The gold bands Steve had blagged for us were going to be very hard to hand back at the end of the night.
Steve, Gordon and TLC have had a lifetime attending the All-England, for me, however, this was a first. The atmosphere, the badminton, the arena were absolutely incredible. I may not ever get another gold band for that VIP lounge, but I will definitely be going back next year and the year after and the year after that to make more amazing memories and watch more outstanding badminton being played.
Badminton England describe the English Badminton Award as the highest domestic honour that it can give and one reserved for someone demonstrating long standing, exceptional service to badminton in England.
We have always been proud of Steve in Rossendale, in Lancashire; now we know our governing body is too. Well done, Rammy.
Roland sadly passed away in Royal Blackburn Hospital on Sunday 8th January at the age of 73.
Devoted husband of Pauline and loving father to Daniel, Andrew and Amanda. Treasured by his family and much admired and respected by all his friends.
Roland began his career at Howard and Bullough in Accrington. He went on to run his own electrical and building services company before returning to full time education and obtaining a degree in electronic engineering at the age of 40. This allowed him to pursue his dream of travelling the world working as a field engineer. Finally, from 2002 - 2007 he was landlord of the Old House at Home pub in Rawtenstall.
He was a talented badminton player and played competitively in the top divisions of the Accrington, Blackburn, Manchester and Rossendale leagues for approximately 30 years, winning many trophies along the way.
The funeral will be held at Goodshaw Baptist Church, Burnley Road Crawshawbooth, BB4 8BS at 1pm, Tuesday 24th January, followed by interment at Rawtenstall cemetery and a celebration of life at Rawtenstall Cricket Club.
Anybody wishing to attend that has not contacted the family, please email admin@rossendalebadmintonleague.co.uk.
Family flowers only - Donations gratefully received to Alzheimer's Research UK using the following justgiving.com web page.
https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/Roland-Holt94
Rossendale Badminton Veterans’ Mixed Doubles’ Handicap Tournament
‘They’re a friendly lot, these veterans’
On a cold winter’s night, 11 mixed doubles pairings from the Rossendale league, all over 40 (although there was some careful checking of birth certificates!) made their way to The Adrenaline Centre, Haslingden to battle for the prize of all prizes – yes, the Rossendale Veterans’ Mixed Doubles’ cup!
The clubs represented were: Accy Flyers, Blackburn Seniors, Goodshaw and Brunlea – and, in Rob Brocklehurst’s words, ‘You have to be in to win it!’
The entries were split in to two groups and, once the handicaps had been given out, the matches commenced – at a pace so fast and so furious, our jovial organiser, Nigel Holt, was hard pressed to keep up with the recording!
Group 1 had 6 couples: Anser Yaseen and Jean Mounsey (-2); Steve Roe and Helen Shanks (scr); Alex Hinton and Lisa Archer (scr); Dean Bertenshaw and Ailayah Ayub (+4); Salim Islam and Janet Sanderson (+5); Clive Benson and Kath Keir (+6)
This was undoubtedly the closest group, with three of the six couples winning 4 of their 5 games – Anser and Jean, Dean and Ailayah, Salim and Janet. There can, however, only be one winner through to the final, and that was Anser and Jean from Accy Flyers & Brunlea. The one game they lost was to Salim and Janet, and that by the narrowest of margins – 20,21.
Group 2 had 5 couples: Rob Brocklehurst and Alex Bullock (-5); Michael Crilly and Claire Banfield (+2); Zafar Ali and Carol Yates (+4); Karen Rogan and Stewart Holt (+5); and a late entry from Ben Maris and Rosie Fenwick (+2)
The winners of group 2, Rob and Alex, were unbeaten, although your Chairman and Secretary pushed them hard, losing 21,19! It was great to see a new face amidst all the other old ones, the enthusiastic Ben Maris in this his first tournament.
As the final beckoned and Dean resigned himself to being ‘close but not quite close enough’, we settled down to what promised to be an exciting match between Anser and Jean and Rob and Alex – apart from Nigel of course who had somehow offered to score the game.
Jean’s careful short serves and Anser’s focused determination quickly saw the Brunlea/Accy Flyers pairing gain a commanding lead in the first game. There were times during the long, exhausting rallies that Anser called for CPR to be on hand, but his controlled placement of the shuttle around the opposition’s court made for some beautiful play. Undeterred, however, the Accy Flyers couple dug deep, and came back in the opening game, finally succumbing 15,21. As the second game commenced and Nigel struggled to keep up, we knew we were in for a proper battle. Rob’s clever deceptive short serve returns and Alex’s brilliant cross court smashes made for a neck and neck second game. There was no one on the court, however, who wanted to win more than Anser, and he would just not give up with his scurrying retrieval of the shuttle and knowledgeable court awareness. The couple from Brunlea/Accy Flyers won the second game 21,17, much to Nigel’s relief as we only had the courts until 10pm.
In my book there are two signs of a good tournament: one is how well it is organised – and this one went like clockwork, thanks to the organisers, Nigel and yours truly; and the second one is how many players stay behind to watch the final. As you can see from the many photos attached to this roving report, the friendly lot which are the veterans (and some are still not convinced that 40 is old enough to be classed as a veteran…I mention no names!) all stayed, all watched, all cheered the two couples in the final.
Well done to both finalists and to all those who competed in the tournament!
News Page
NEWS FLASH!
We won! We won, we won, we won! We won! We won! Or rather - he won!
Tonight, at The Big Connect Club Awards, hosted at The Ashcroft, Whitworth, our very own Steve Ramsbottom was awarded the Jimmy Armfield Lifetime Achievement Award for his dedication to the sport of badminton. Presenting the award to a beaming Steve, was the Commonwealth Games Gold medallist gymnast, Craig Heap, and Rossendale councillor, Barbara Ashworth.
Date: 14th September, 2022
ROSSENDALE BADMINTON LEAGUE
Following guidance from the BA of E, the fixtures scheduled in the Rossendale Badminton League the week commencing 12th September 2022 have been postponed out of respect to the passing of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II
We extend our condolences to King Charles III and The Royal Family at this time of great sorrow for them and us.
Rest in peace your Majesty.
ROSSENDALE BADMINTON LEAGUE
Minutes for the Extraordinary General Meeting dated 11.08.2022
1 Apologies for absence
There were no apologies for absence and, at the roll call, all team representatives were present.
2 Lancashire Disaffiliation/public liability insurance
Following discussion at the AGM, Nigel Holt had investigated a like for like public liability cover in case the league decided to opt out of affiliation to Lancashire.
He had looked at other leagues in the area, such as Blackpool, and found the same level of cover for £360p.a. Individuals would still, however, need to affiliate to Badminton England.
Both the retiring and current management committee felt let down by Lancashire, particularly with regards to their handling of accounts, the proposed pay per club/team fee and the focus upon the elite at the expense of the grassroots.
There was much discussion from the floor prior to taking a vote. It was felt that Rossendale could be seen as very insular, that a couple of pounds was very little to pay and we should be supporting our county in their bid to promote our most able players.
There were three votes in favour of disaffiliation; the over-whelming majority, however, felt that the league should remain with Lancashire.
The secretary was asked to enquire what the fees were likely to be and to ask for more transparency from the county with regards to finances.
3 Proposals to rule changes
The rules proposed for change (3, 14 and 15) were no longer needed to be amended due to the meeting’s decision to remain affiliated with Lancashire.
4 Player registrations
Itching to start on their fixtures, teams were quickly reminded to return Form 1 to the secretary either at this meeting or as soon as possible. The player registration form would need to be returned and paid for by the end of August either by bank transfer/cheque/cash.
5 Fixtures meeting
The two divisions then made their home and away fixtures round separate tables before a master sheet was made by Claire Banfield for Division 1 and Nigel Holt for Division 2, under the watchful eye of our new Chairman, Mick Crilly.
Date: 11th August, 2022
Presentation Awards
Division 2: Sports Team - Goodshaw B; Sports Lady Kathy Kier (Accy Flyers B) and Sportsman David Holt (Goodshaw A)
League Honours
Division 2: Winners Edenfield and Runners up Oakgate B
<span style=">No cup competition held due to the restricted season but all results updated on Results & Winners page
p
Events
Tuesday 29th April 2025 - Ladies and Gents Handicapped Singles (Accrington Academy)
Friday 16th May 2025 - Annual Presentation Evening (Sunnybank Social Club - 8:00pm start)
Monday 9th June 2025 - AGM (Sunnybank Social Club - 8:00pm start)
Monday 11th August 2025 - Fixtures meeting (Sunnybank Social Club - 8:00pm start)
December 2025 - Mixed doubles Veterans Tournament (Over 40's) 1pm-2:30pm (Accrington Academy)
December 2025 - Level doubles Veterans Tournament (Over 40's) 2:30pm-4pm (Accrington Academy)
March 2026 - Individual Handicaps - Mixed and Level doubles (Accrington Academy - TBC)
Monday 9th March 2026 - Team Handicap Cup Final (Haslingden Sports Centre - 8:00pm start)