Bassi's Dolphins in best ever finish (From Bournemouth Echo)

Bassi's Dolphins in best ever finish

7:00am Thursday 18th December 2008 in

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BOURNEMOUTH Dolphins could be heading for the National Swimming League’s A final for the first time after achieving a best-ever third place in the West final at Cardiff.

While national champions Plymouth Leander were predictably out of sight, Dolphins finished just three points behind second-placed Millfield, who were themselves runners-up in the national final in May.

But for a relay disqualification, Dolphins would have become only the second club to beat Millfield in the regional final since they returned to the Premier Division in 1997.

There could still be an adjustment of points in Bournemouth’s favour because of a dispute over the result of the penultimate relay.

Head coach Graham Bassi said Dolphins’ result was “the greatest team performance I have been involved in in my career”.

“I’m very proud of their efforts and the spirit of the team,” he said. “The camaraderie was excellent and the swimming performance was what we have been striving to achieve.

“If we have another 12 months like the last 12, I believe we could even challenge Plymouth.”

The times of the first six teams at Cardiff now go into a computer with those from the other five regional finals to determine the 20 teams for the national A and B finals at Sheffield on April 26.

Dolphins made the B final in the last two years but never the top section.

“I’m hopeful we could make the A final although the disqualification could cost us in the virtual gala,” Bassi added.

Dolphins’ result came against nine teams whose star-studded line-ups included world record holder and Olympic finalist Liam Tancock, who swam the maximum five events for Exeter, fellow Olympians Tom Haffield (Cardiff) and Ed Sinclair (Millfield) and many other internationals.

Dolphins’ 13 and under swimmers topped the scoresheet with wins from Joe Poynter in the 100m breaststroke, Jay Olenicz in the backstroke, Amelia Maughan in the girls’ freestyle and the relay teams of Olenicz, Poynter, Nathan Theodoris and Harry Thorpe (medley and freestyle) and Maughan, Lottie McRae, Courtney Rowan and Sam Bush (freestyle).

Poynter and McRae also came second in the boys’ and girls’ 100m butterfly, Theodoris in the boys’ freestyle and McRae in the girls’ breaststroke.

Martin Littlefair showed the form that has broken four Dorset records in three weeks to come joint first in the 15/u 100m freestyle in 54.54sec.

In the 10-11yrs age group, there were second places from Bethany Hebditch in the 50m breaststroke, Ryan McCormack in 50m butterfly and freestyle and Rachel Hawkins in the girls’ butterfly.

• Ferndown Otters head coach Tony Watson promised that they would bounce back after finishing ninth in both the final and the league table.

That’s their lowest league placing in 25 years, although they remain the Western League’s most consistent team after reaching 24 of the last 25 finals.

Ferndown were missing four of their best swimmers with several others firing on less than all cylinders, mostly due to illness.

“We got a kicking and part of that was due to illness but it was also our ‘down year’ again where many of our swimmers are out of age and really struggle,” Watson said.

“But I don’t want to make excuses.

“We have to give credit to all the opposition, who swam extremely well and were much better than us on the day.

“Ferndown will bounce back because we are like that.”

Wins eluded Otters but national youth champion Fran Hughes achieved second places in the open and 15/u 100m breaststroke.

There were third places from Victoria Joy in the 10-11yrs 50m freestyle, the 9-11yrs freestyle team of Joy, Harriet Higgins, Vicky Adams and Jaz Hepburn and the women’s medley team of Emily Freeman, Hughes, Nicole Scott and Zoe Watson.