The 2009 softball season commences this weekend with 16 teams taking to the diamonds across 3 divisions.

The Men’s fast pitch division is absent this season but has been replaced by a men’s slow pitch division and this has attracted an additional team entry compared to the fast pitch option. Rangers and Plough Inn Titans remain from the fast pitch division and are joined by Centrals, Norman Piette Blue Sox and Ship and Crown. Many of these players already play co-ed slow pitch and have chosen to play the single sex format together with encouraging new players into the sport. This division being brand new

Tornados will be looking to regain the Co-ed slow Pitch division 1 title although last season’s Norman Piette Blue Sox will hope to go one place higher and relinquish Tornados from the title. Rangers who lost a few games last season by a very slim margin will hope to turn those narrow defeats into victories. To complete the league Artech Panthers (formerly Bourse) and Pirates have been promoted from Division 2. Both these teams are more than capable of beating their opposition but may need a settling in period to gain in confidence in the higher division.

Co-ed slow pitch division 2 has six teams competing for the title Mercator, Core Focus Rookies and Specsavers remain from last season and are joined by three new teams Bulldogs, Richmond Rogues and Generali Black Cats. Having three new teams is excellent news for the association and credit must go to their organisers Peter Le Page, Sally Le Noury and Jamil Kushall respectively. The Bulldogs are a team of schoolboys and it would great to see their softball skills develop throughout the season.

Another boost for the association and softball this year is the introduction of Development Officer – Sam Stables. He will be running softball sessions on Monday evenings throughout the summer for school years 7-12 starting at the beginning of May. Information about these sessions should have already been circulated around the schools.