	Week Beginning 21/07/2008

Delayed flight of the Phoenix as promotion is sealed in the playoffs…

Lothian Phoenix travelled to the English Institute of Sport in Sheffield for the GBWBA Play Offs on 18 & 19 May.

The team had a clear task – to win two games and gain promotion to the second division.

Having finished second in the GBWBA Division Three North, Phoenix did not gain automatic promotion, but rather had to face off in a play off against the second placed teams from the South and Central Divisions.

Their opponents were the West Coast Tornadoes and the Stratford Players.

First up was the Tornadoes. The Phoenix got off to a blistering start and finished the 1st quarter leading 24-9. By halftime the lead had been extended to 36-19, but it was the third quarter that sealed the fate of the Tornadoes as the Phoenix created a tempest of their own, led by a whirlwind 12 points of scoring from Rab O’Rorke. Simon Ramsay contributed a further 6 points, getting on the end of and finishing the Phoenix fast break.

By the end of the quarter the lead had been further extended to 60-29 and Coach Stevie Duff took the opportunity to rest his starting five and closed out the game with the bench players, who ensured a Phoenix victory with their tough defence and good execution on offence.

The final score was 68-48 and part one of the task was complete.

Three hours later the Phoenix faced the Stratford Players, knowing victory would ensure their place in the second division in 2008-2009. The evenly matched teams slugged it out in the first half and Phoenix took an eight point lead into the intermission, leading 27-19. A third quarter comeback by the Stratford team cut the Phoenix lead to 6, but the Phoenix once again dug deep and re-established their lead going into the final period leading 42-31.

With an evenly contested final quarter, Phoenix completed part two of the task and won promotion to the second division north with a 52-39 victory.

Stevie Duff commented, “We had an excellent team performance this weekend and it is a great end to a great season for the club. The team deserve their promotion as the gains we have made in individual and team performance over the course of the season has been incredible. We will need to continue to work hard over the summer if we are to be ready for the step up to the second division next year.

“Although it was a great team performance overall, the individual performance of Rab O’Rorke was amazing. 28 and 23 points respectively for the two games is a fantastic offensive shift by our top scorer for the season.”

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Lothian Special Olympics Round Up

Boccia

The Lothian Special Olympics (LSO), Regional Senior Boccia Championships for participants with a Learning Disability took place recently at Danderhall Community Centre. It was a great day with 57 entries from all over the Lothian’s competing. The Winner was Mohammed Amin and runner up was Ellen Davidson - both athletes attend Cherry Road Resource Centre.

In addition, the LSO Junior Boccia Championships was held at Beeslack Community High School in April. The event was of an excellent standard and it was good to see so many young players coming through the ranks and enjoying the sport. Congratulations goes out to all who entered in both the Senior and junior competitions and it is clear to see how much the sport has developed over the past few years within the area. A team made up from players that competed in both of these events will make up the Lothian entry into the Scottish Disability Sport (SDS) National Competition to be held in August this year.

Swimming

The Lothian Special Olympics Regional Swimming Gala was held at Musselburgh Swimming Pool on 27th March. Although the entry was low, the standard was of a very high quality and the event was thoroughly enjoyed by everyone who participated. A team from this event were selected to represent Lothian at the SDS National Championships for Swimmers with a Learning Disability at Tollcross, Glasgow on 10th May. The team performed extremely well and finished 4th overall in the competition. It is envisaged that next year we will enter a larger team and aim to bring home the coveted Kintore trophy for overall team performance.

Bowls

The Lothian Special Olympic Regional Lawn Bowls Championship was held on Tuesday 17th June at Musselburgh Bowling Club. The standard of bowls was excellent and Midlothian’s Moira Wright once again took the ladies crown. Alan Gordon eventually won the Gents section with 17-year-old Scott Quinn pushing him all the way. Many of the bowlers that participated will represent Lothian at the SDS National Bowls Championship being held in Aberdeen in September.

For more information on Lothian Special Olympics and the SOGB National Games 2009 please contact Yvonne Anderson, LSO Chairperson, telephone: 01968 664083 or email: yvonne.anderson@midlothian.gov.uk or phone.