Bridgeview Judo Club- Sussex Trials triumph

With an entry of 14 junior and seven senior players, the Lewes club coaches were delighted with so many spirited fights and so much high-quality judo.

Competing at this event gives players the opportunity for a place on the Sussex Squad and a chance to compete in the upcoming Southern Area Intercounties event.

In the junior competition, the medal haul comprised two gold, seven silver and four bronze medals.

Gold medals were secured by George Armstrong and Elsie Riggs. Armstrong was so dominant in his group that he made his wins look simple, whilst Riggs, being the only player in her group, fought girls from the weight category above her own to gain competition experience.

Silver medals were brought home by Jocelyn Kearley-Light, Marlon Afzali, Grace Chatfield, Amelija Andruse, Oran McGowan, Oliver Prokopy and Emmet Prokopy.

Kearley was winning her decisive bout, against a player she has never beaten, up until the final seconds, when she was cruelly caught by an opportune counter-attack. Afzali dominated his weight group and secured some fine wins. His one loss cost him first place, when he was punished for being too casual. Chatfield and Andruse were denied first places by very strong and experienced opponents but fought with their usual determination.

McGowan displayed some delightful techniques but was let down by his loose grips. The Prokopy brothers, associate members from Brighton Judo Club, both displayed a variety of attacks and were really only hindered by a few mistakes made through inexperience.

Bronze medals were claimed by Louie Hanna, Jason Tsavaras, Reece Loughlin and Holly Bellamy.

Hanna’s fights were all top-level and he worked extremely hard to secure a succession of very good wins. He was eliminated far too easily by a dubious refereeing decision. Tsavaras fought with his usual determination and a not-insignificant amount of skill. His lack of experience and unfamiliarity are what cost him two of his fights but he is making steady progress and will develop into a force to be reckoned with.

Loughlin and Bellamy both looked good on the mat and had their share of wins, but they were both punished for not initiating attacks and allowing their opponents those opportunities.

Willow Martin failed to finish among the medallists on this occasion, though she put in a very good performance against her fellow player Reece Loughlin.

In the senior competition, the medal haul comprised two gold, one silver and one bronze medal, yet this could so easily have been much more. In a very strong field, there were some extremely exciting bouts that provided the spectators with excellent value for money.

Gold medals were secured by George Armstrong, who fought in both the senior and junior competitions on the day, and Zak Beard, who chose this event to return to competitive judo after some time out from judo. Armstrong’s superiority gave him his second gold medal of the day, whilst Beard looked unstoppable until he ran out of steam in his fifth fight.

A silver medal was added to the tally by Ruby Smith, who gave away far too much experience in her three bouts. Her courage ensured that she thoroughly deserved her place on the winners’ rostrum.

A bronze medal was claimed by Andrew Barnes after a succession of very quick fights where he spent very little time on the mat but gained a great deal of competition experience.

Runners-up on the day were Lee Frostick, Daffyd Smith and Tim Durrant. Smith was ultimately punished with counter-attacks for not making use of his chosen grips but Frostick was desperately unlikely to be eliminated from the finals when winning a marathon bout right up until the final two seconds.

Durrant showed a lot of promise with his good grips and relaxed stance but was placed in a group that proved much too strong for him on this occasion.

All in all this was a great day for Bridgeview Judo Club, with plenty more to come during the course of the year.