The first North West Series tournament of 2023 was played in the beautiful Manchester sunshine this past weekend, kicking off the sixth year of competition!

Twelve teams walked onto the 'slightly damp' grass at Parrswood High School in Didsbury to play for the sought-after North West Series medals. Teams travelled from London, Leeds and Liverpool to play, with more than 150 people turning up!

The teams were split into two divisions and some of the highlights of the day included: Breaking Bats's dedication to travel roundtrip from London to Manchester to play; The Misfits’ Aaron Peters playing in his first tournament the day after his 14th birthday; and the Thunder came from behind in the Comp’s final to beat the Camels 14-13 in a stunner!

Final standings

Comp

  1. Thunder (Captain: Kris Hadwin)
  2. Camels (Captain: Adam Hugill)
  3. (T-3) Meerkats (Captain: Sonia Hines)
  4. (T-3) Misfits (Captain: Kat Peters)
  5. Bobcats (Captain: Matt Ng)
  6. Mayhem (Captain: Nathan Barratt)

Rec

  1. Bats (Captain: Arthur Hung)
  2. Tigers (Captain: Dave Wareham)
  3. (T-3) Camels 2 (Captain: Fliss Fagan)
  4. (T-3) Coyotes (Captain: Billy Adam)
  5. Breaking Bats (Captain: Dani Arashida)
  6. Stingers (Captain: Jack Rains)

Comment

Linni Mitchell was Tournament Control for the weekend and said," What a great way to start off the 2023 season! We had perfect softball conditions and not a spot of rain all day - rare in Manchester this time of the year! Thank you to all the teams who made the trip, and we're looking forward to a great season!"

BaseballSoftballUK North West Development Manager Luis Arrevillagas commented, "We love organising the first tournament of the year - People are itching to play, and the first North West Series is surely a sign that spring is here! Thank you to all the umpires and captains for making our event possible. See you all at the next two tournaments!"

The next North West Series tournament will take place on 24 June at Parrs Wood High School; details and registration can be found here.