Home Nations

LIONS ROAR TO HOME NATIONS VICTORY AGAIN

England Lions won the second Home Nations Dodgeball Tournament, to retain the trophy and remain the only unbeaten national team in Europe.

The Lions savaged all their opposition in the Group stage with two maximum 7-0 wins but they were given a sterner test by Scotland Highlanders who took two games off England, delaying the Lions victory until Game 5. The host nation, Wales Dragons also took one game off England.

It was the Round One opener which provided the best contest of the first round. Wales Dragons started off the day’s play with a thrilling match against Scotland Highlanders. The Dragons started well with a 4-1 win for Game One but Highlanders fired back with a convincing five player victory in the second. Wales then raced ahead with two convincing scores in Games 3 & 4, by 6-0 and 6-1, but Scotland replied with a 5-1 score in Game 5 and just had the edge in the sixth by a single player (3-2) to take the match into the deciding 7th game. Dragons took an early lead in the decider and then took advantage of Scotland trying to get back on level turns to run out winners by five players to one and claim a victory by four games to three.

Scotland and Wales went head to head again, in the Play-offs, but this time Wales Dragons asserted their dominance in less time, in the best-of-9 encounter. The first game was drawn, 2-2, but then Wales won the next five games to win the match 5-0 and meet England Lions in the Final. The Celtic battle between Ireland Celts and N. Ireland Knights was close. N. I. Knights started well, winning Game One but the Celts replied with a Game Two win to level the match, and this was repeated in Games Three and Four to leave the score at 2-2 after four games. The Knights then turned up the pressure and won the remaining three games to run out as 5-2 victors.

The Final started off close, with the score at one game each after the first two but then England won the next four to finish off as 5-1 winners and take the Home Nations title.

Second team champions were England Lions 2 and runner-up was Dreigiau Cynru (Wales Dragons 2); Under-19 best team were England Lions Under-19. Last Player Standing was Sam Maycock (England Lions 2).