On Friday 16^th January there was a mass exodus of the Irish vets contingent as they travelled to Largs to play in the 10^th Scottish International Veterans Championships. 33 players from all over Ireland made the short trip across the water, either flying from Belfast or Dublin.

As part of Badminton Scotland's celebration of this event a match between Ireland and Scotland was arranged for the Friday afternoon. The match was played in age groups from 40+ to 60+ and covered the five disciplines. The standard of play was high and although we did not win the match there were some excellent victories with Imelda Carroll & Heather Harron wining the 45+ Women's Doubles and Alan Braitwaite and Catherine Dunne winning the 55+ Mixed Doubles.

Play for the Championships was over three days with Singles starting on Friday 16^th followed by Level Doubles on Saturday and the Mixed Doubles on Sunday. There were nearly 200 players attending the competition from England, Ireland, Denmark, Sweden, Norway, Czech Republic and Poland.

As always the standard of competition was high and the main highlights of the weekend's play for our players was in: -

45+ Women's Doubles, Imelda Carroll and Heather Harron were Runners-Up

50+ Mixed Doubles, Christine Graham teaming up with Scotland's Douglas McBrair finished Runners-Up

60+ Mixed Doubles, Jim Morgan playing with Val O'Neill from England lost in the Semi-Finals.

The weekend was enjoyed by all the players and not just for the badminton but also for the social side as we meet with old acquaintances and also made new friends. The players are now all gearing up for this weekend, as the highlight of the Vets Circuit is the National Championships being played in Lisburn.

Further details on National Championships at http://www.badminton.ie/index.php/events/134-irish-veterans-and-u-23-championships.html