Corby Cobras lift the cup

Corby Cobras came out on top in an all Corby final, against newcomers Nails, in the Christmas 2006 Open Tournament. The 2 favourites, SideSteps (newly crowned Kettering League champions) and Northampton Cobras (reigning Northampton League champions) were both runners-up in the group stages.

Group One had Northampton Cobras start off with a commanding 7-0 victory over The Usual Suspects. Corby Cobras then got the better of The Usual Suspects with a 5-2 win. The Corby team then came out on top in the battle of the Cobras, over the Northampton side, by 4-3 in the closest match of the night. It was a very heated affair that seesawed throughout the match. Northampton took the first with an emphatic 6-0 win. This was replied to, by Corby, with a 4-0 win followed by 2-0. Northampton fired back with 2 wins of their own, 3-0 and 2-0, to take a 3-2 lead. Corby then went all out in the final 2 games and came out on top by 4-0 and 3-0. Corby Cobras’ top guns were David Stobbart (8 hits), Daniel Elson (7 hits and 1 catch) and Emma Stobbart (6 hits), helped by captain John Stobbart with 6 hits and 2 catches.

Group Two started with SideSteps overpowering Retail Assassins 7-0. They then came up against newcomers, from Corby, Nails, who proved to be a surprise package. Nails defeated the newly crowned league champions by 4-2. Jordan Ware, Daniel Sharkey, Rhys Holmes and Scott Raine all made 7 hits in the match. Nails then went on to win their second match by 5-1 over Retail Assassins, thanks to some excellent throwing by Ben Lynes (8 hits), Ashley Wilson (7 hits) and Arron McBlaine (7 hits).

The more experienced performers dominated the all Corby final, between Corby Cobras and Nails. The Cobras moved into a 2-0 lead with 5-0 and 2-0 wins before Nails replied with a 2-0 win. The Cobras then fired off two convincing games, 4-0 and 5-0 to win the best of seven final by 4-1 and lift the cup. John Sobbart made 6 hits, while David Stobbart and Andrew Fox made 5 hits each and Clare Stobbart showed her survival skills when she was in to the end in all 4 winning games and last player in for the Cobras in their one losing game.

6th December 2006 - Season Two Week 8

100% SideSteps

SideSteps finished Season Two of Kettering DodgeBall League with 2 victories, to give them a 100% record, winning all 16 matches. The final week of the season kicked off with SideSteps up against second placed Corby Cobras. SideSteps ran out 7-0 winners, with some strong throwing from Jake Cucciniello and Daniel Cox with 8 hits each and Jamie Walden and Rick Fraterrigo with 7 hits each. The Cobras pushed the champions close in four of the seven games, David Stobbart and Daniel Elson fighting a rearguard action with 5 hits apiece, helped by Clare Stobbart, who was last player in for the Cobras in 5 of the games.

Later in the evening, SideSteps took on Retail Assassins. SideSteps looked to be in control once again after taking the first two games by, 6-0 and 2-0, but the Assassins fired back with a 4-0 win in the 3^rd game only to see SideSteps regain a 2 game advantage. The Assassins were not finished and they took the 5^th game 3-0, with 2 catches from Alex Shorthouse (5 hits) making a vital difference. SideSteps then wrapped up the victory with two close wins, 3-0 & 2-0 that saw the advantage seesaw throughout. SideSteps’ James Canavan (2catches and 6 hits) and Jordan Cross (6hits) putting in a great display of throwing.

Earlier, in the evening’s play, Retail Assassins overpowered The Usual Suspects 7-0. Some hard hitting from Paul Marriott (7 hits and 2 catches) and Owen Toseland (7 hits and 1 catch) supported leading marksman Alex Shorthouse, who made 9 hits and 2 catches in the match.

Corby Cobras and The Usual Suspects played the final match of the season. Corby Cobras needed to win to secure second place in the league. The Corby team went into top gear and ran out 7-0 winners. Captain John Stobbart led from the front with 9 hits and 2 catches, supported well by David Stobbart (7 hits) and Michelle Carmichael (6 hits).

29th November 2006 - Season Two Week 7

Not the Usual Result

The Usual Suspects chalked up only their second win of the season in the evening’s first match in Week 7. They showed their full potential with a 5-2 victory over, the second placed, Corby Cobras. After the Suspects won the first game 5-0, the Cobras’ Daniel Elson (6 hits & 1 catch) won the second game for his team by 1-0, when he was last man standing. The Suspect’s Andrew Bates (7 hits) did the same for his team in the 4th game that put them 3-1 up. The Cobras turned it on in the 5th game and came up with a 4-0 win, thanks to top marksman David Stobbart (6 hits). The Usual Suspects wrapped up the match with two 4-0 games, Colin Bates making 8 hits in the match.

The Usual Suspects found the going much tougher in their second match of the night. Despite some excellent survival skills from captain Hayley Ronald and Sarah Polwin, that saw them as the last 2 players for their team in all 7 games, the Suspects were overpowered by SideSteps 7-0. SideSteps captain Rick Fraterrigo led from the front with 9 hits, supported by James Canavan and Jordan Cross with 8 hits each. SideSteps won their other match by 6-1, over Retail Assassins. They took the first 3 games before the Assassins fired off a 4-0 win, thanks to a crucial catch from Andrew Fox (5 hits & 2 catches). The 4th game was just a glitch for SideSteps as they got back on track by winning the last three games. Jake Cucciniello was the top shooter with 9 hits, supported by Jamie Walden (8 hits) and Daniel Cox (8 hits).

The evening’s final match was a battle for second place in the league between Corby Cobras and Retail Assassins. The Cobras’ showed their true form and took the first game 3-0, only to see the Assassins square the match with a 5-0 game. The Corby team won the next 2, thanks to last man standing David Stobbart (8 hits), in the 4th game. The Assassins replied with a 6-0 game, to keep the match score to 3-2, thanks to Alex Shorthouse (7 hits and 1 catch) and Andrew Fox (6 hits and 2 catches). The last 2 games were shared, with the Assassins’ last man standing, in the last game, Owen Toseland (6 hits) keeping the match close, but the Cobras came out on top by 4-3, thanks some accurate throwing from Daniel Elson (7 hits) and Emma Stobbart (6 hits).

22nd November 2006 - Season Two Week Six

SideSteps Wrap Up the Title

Week 6 of the Kettering DodgeBall League saw SideSteps seal the championship, with 2 weeks still to go. The top team have won all 12 matches, so far, to put them beyond the reach of Corby Cobras, who are second in the table.

First match of the evening had SideSteps in action against Retail Assassins. After SideSteps took the first 3 games in the match, the Assassins fired back with a 6-0 win, thanks to some outstanding play from Andrew Fox (5 hits and 3 catches) and Ben Keen (5 hits and 1 catch). SideSteps then went back into top gear and took game 5 by 2-0 to take a wining lead, before taking both the last 2 games by 5-0. Jake Cucciniello (7 hits and 1 catch) and Ashley Bernett (7 hits) were the champion’s top marksmen in this 6-1 victory.

SideSteps second match was against second placed Corby Cobras. After the top team took the first game by 5-0, the Cobras fired back with 2 winning games, by 2-0 and 4-0. The Cobras David Stobbart and Daniel Elson led the way with 6 hits each, supported by guest player Saul McCabe (6 hits) and team captain, for the night, Clare Stobbart, who was on court to the end for the Corby side in all 7 games. SideSteps moved into a 3-2 lead with two 2-0 games that were very closely contested, Jamie Walden (7 hits) and Jordan Cross (7 hits) making the difference for SideSteps. They then overpowered their opponents in the last 2 games, by 5-0 and 6-0, to wrap up the victory.

In an earlier match, Corby Cobras handed The Usual Suspects a 7-0 whitewash. Daniel Elson made 8 hits and 2 catches, guest player Chris Cox made 7 hits and 2 catches, Michelle Carmichael made 5 hits and 2 catches and Emma Stobbart made 6 hits. The Usual Suspects also lost to Retail Assassins, but in a close 5-2 match. The Suspects’ captain Hayley Ronald, led from the front, with 3 hits and was last one in for her team in 5 games. After taking the lead, the Suspects could not cope with the Assassins and lost 3 in a row, all by 6-0. The Assassins Andrew Fox put in an outstanding catching display, making 9 catches and 6 hits in the match, Alex Shorthouse made 7 hits and 1 catch and Owen Toseland added 6 hits to the team’s tally. The Usual Suspects stayed in the match by taking the 5^th by 2-0, before Retail Assassins fired off two more 6-0 games.

15th November 2006 - Season Two Week 5

Cobras Hold on to Second Place

Corby Cobras played in two of the closest matches of the season, in week five of the Kettering DodgeBall League. In the evening’s first match, they faced Retail Assassins. Both teams had won 4 and lost 4 before this match. The Assassins came out of the blocks really fast, taking the opening game 5-0. However, the Corby side came back with a vengeance to take games 2 and 3 by 6-0 and 5-0, thanks to some accurate throwing from Daniel Elson (8 match hits), Mark Stobbart (7 hits) and Emma Stobbart (6 hits). The 4th game went the full 2 minutes, as the Assassins replied with a 2-1 win thanks to Andrew Fox (6 hits and 1catch) and Christina Pinnock (2 hits and last one in for the team in 3 of the other games). Retail Assassins made it 3-2 with the 5^th game, before the Cobras took the last 2 games by 5-0 & 3-0 to recover for a 4-3 victory.

Corby Cobras second match was against the runaway league leaders SideSteps. The league leaders started with a 3-0 game, the Cobras replied with a 5-0. SideSteps took the 3^rd game 4-0 and the Corby team replied with the same score. The 5^th game ended 1-1, with the Cobra’s Michelle Carmichael (4 hits and 2 catches) and SideSteps’ Jamie Walden (6 hits) remaining on the court for the full 2 minutes. SideSteps then came out on top in the last 2 games to win the match 4-2. Jake Cucciniello and Ashley Bernett, with 7 hits each, leading SideSteps to the victory.

The evening finished with a friendly match. SideSteps overpowered Retail Assassins 6-1, in their second match. SideSteps took the first 4 games to wrap up the victory, with James Canavan and Daniel Cox making 9 hits each in the match. The Assassins won the 4th game 4-0 to prevent the whitewash, when captain Nick Pinnock (5 hits) took a catch, with his team outnumbered 6 players to 3, and with the help of Andrew Fox (5 hits), who came back on from the catch, blasted out the opposing 5 SideSteppers.

1st November 2006 - Season Two Week Four

The Cobras Strike

Corby Cobras struck back after losing both their matches last week, to move up to second place in the league table by winning both matches this week.

Their first match was a 6-1 win over The Usual Suspects. They took the first 5 games with ease, thanks to captain John Stobbart with 6 hits and 3 catches and Emma Stobbart with 7 hits. The Usual Suspects took the sixth game the full 2 minutes, but lost out 3-2, before taking the last game. The Suspects Hayley Ronald (4 hits) showed amazing survival skills and was last one in  for her team in 5 of the 7 games.

The Cobras second game was against their close rivals, Retail Assassins, who were in second place at the start of the evening’s play. The Cobras went up a gear and showed their full potential by beating the Assassins 7-0 to take their second place in the league. Emma Stobbart was again in fine form with 6 hits and Mark Stobbart came in with 8 hits in the match.

SideSteps showed their all-round power by beating Retail Assassins 7-0. James Canavan and Jamie Walden led the way with 8 hits each and Jake Cucciniello made 3 catches and 6 hits in the match.

The evening’s play was rounded off with 2 non-league matches. SideSteps were victorious against The Usual Suspects but found it much harder against a combined Corby Cobras & Retail Assassins team. The Cobras & Assassins had the 3 best players from each team, taking on SideSteps. The Combined team came out on top by 4-3 in a very close, hard fought contest. The match was poised at 2-2, before the combined team took 2 in a row to seal the win. The main damage to SideSteps was caused by Andy Fox, 6 hits & 1 catch and Alex Shorthouse 6 hits (Retail Assassins), along with John Stobbart, 6 hits & 1 catch (Corby Cobras).

25th October 2006 - Season Two Week Three

Damage Inc. Move on Up

Damage Inc. won both their matches to move up one place in the league table. Their first match, against Retail Assassins was a reverse of the score 2 weeks ago, with Damage Inc. coming out on top 5-2. Despite the Assassins Andrew Fox (8 hits and 2 catches) being last man in 3 times, and winning a 4-on-1 battle in the sixth game, the speed and power of Damage’s Saul McCabe (9 hits), Chris Cox (9 hits) and guest player Dale Moore (8 hits) were too much for their opponents. Unfortunately, Damage Inc.’s Captain, Pippa Montgomery sustained a serious ankle injury mid-way through the match, and will be out of action for about 10 weeks.

Their second match of the evening was against Corby Cobras, who were one position above them at the start of the evening’s matches. The Cobras gave it their all, especially Daniel Elsom (6 hits & 2 catches) and new recruit Emma Stobbart (6 hits and 1 catch) to take the first game 4-0. Damage Inc. replied with 2 games, before Cobras levelled the score. Damage Inc.’s big guns then saw them home by winning the final 3 games.

League leaders, SideSteps also won both their matches. They started the evening by overpowering The Usual Suspects 7-0. Jake Cucciniello led the way with 9 hits, supported by Tom Coomer and Daniel Cox with 7 hits each. Their next match saw them get the better of Corby Cobras 6-1, despite some outstanding play from Emma Stobbart with 5 hits and a catch, who was last one in for the Cobras in 4 of the games. SideSteps captain, Rick Fratterigo led his team from the front with 8 hits, helped by 5 hits and 4 catches from James Canavan.

The other match on the night was a 7-0 win for Retail Assassins over The Usual Suspects. The Assassins had too much firepower for their opponents, Andrew Fox, Alex Shorthouse and Ben Keen all made 8 hits in the match.

18th October 2006 - Season Two Week Two

Damage Inc. Knock Down the Opposition

Damage Inc. put in 2 great performances, that saw them record their first win of the season. The night’s first match had them playing The Usual Suspects. After losing the first game 3-0, Damage Inc. replied with 5 straight games, before losing the final game 6-0. Damage Inc. were inspired by captain Pippa Montgomery with 4 hits and 1 catch and the throwing power of Chris Cox (8 hits and 2 catches) and Saul McCabe (8 hits).

Damage Inc. later took on the reigning champions, SideSteps, and became the only team to take any games off them in the first 2 weeks. SideSteps came out on top by 5-2, thanks to some big hitting from Jake Cucciniello with 9 hits and Jamie Walden with 8 hits. SideSteps had earlier overpowered Retail Assassins 7-0. The first 4 games were closely fought contests, just 2-0 or 1-0 in each game, before SideSteps finished off the match with three 6-0 games.

In the other two matches, Corby Cobras came out on top against The Usual Suspects 5-2, but were beaten by Retail Assassins 4-2 in the evening’s final match. Their win over the Suspects saw them win the 3^rd game 6-2, as both teams put in a great display of catching that keep on reviving the struck out team mates. Daniel Elsom was the Cobras outstanding player with 8 hits and 4 catches and Clare Stobbart made 3 hits and 2 catches, as well as surviving to the end in most games. The Usual Suspects captain Andrew Bates led from the front with 6 hits.

The Cobras match against Retail Assassins saw the first game go to a 1-1 draw as Assassin’s captain Paul Marriott (8hits and 2 catches) and Cobra’s Mark Stobbart (6 hits and 1 catch) faced off for the final 25 seconds. With the match poised at 2-2, the Assassins came out on top thanks to Michelle Partridge (4 hits and 1 catch) making the winning hit on the Cobra’s last player in the last 2 games.

11th October 2006 - Season Two Week One

SideSteps Start In Style

SideSteps began their defence of their Kettering DodgeBall League title in the style of champions. In the first night’s matches of Season Two, they overpowered Corby Cobras 7-0 and followed up by beating The Usual Suspects by the same margin, in the evening’s final match.

Corby Cobras never got into the match, losing six of the seven games by 6-0. Some outstanding survival skills from the Cobra’s Clare Stobbart, who was the last player in for her team in five out of the seven games, was not enough. They were outgunned by SideSteps strong team performance, led by Jake Cucciniello and captain Rick Fraterrigo with 8 hits each.

The Usual Suspects made things a little harder for the reigning champs, hitting out a few SideSteps players, led by captain Andrew Bates with 5 hits and Phil England with 4 hits. SideSteps’ Jamie Walden made 6 hits in the match and Jake Cucciniello made 4 catches and 5 hits. Retail Assassins also won both their games. Their extra experience showed as they came out on top against Damage Inc. in the night’s opening match by 5-2. The Assassins took the first three games by 4-0 each time, before Damage Inc. replied with a 3-0 game. Damage’s recovery was short-lived as the Assassins took the next 2 games before losing the final game 4-0. Paul Marriott led the Assassins with 8 hits; Andrew Fox made 7 hits and 2 catches

The Usual Suspects also lost out to Retail Assassins by 5-2. The Suspect’s captain Andrew Bates led his team with 7 hits and Louise White’s excellent dodging kept her on court longer than any of her teammates in 5 of the 7 games. Retail Assassins were just too strong for them as they took the first 5 games, thanks to 8 hits from Alex Shorthouse and 6 hits & 3 catches from Paul Marriott and 4 hits each for Katie Fuller and Michelle Partridge.

Corby Cobras recovered from their earlier defeat to come out on top 5-2 against Damage Inc. The Cobras took the first two games, Damage replied with a 3-0 win only for Cobras to come back with a 4-0. Damage Inc. were still fighting and made it 3 games to 2, but the Cobra’s were too strong on the night as they took the final 2 games. The final game of the match was the only one to go the full 2 minutes all evening, Pippa Montgomery (4 hits) playing a captain’s role for Damage Inc. and surviving to the end against 2 opponents. Cobra’s Danny Elsom made 6 hits and 2 catches in the match, assisted by Michelle Carmichael with 3 hits and 2 catches.

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