Stefan started his day off well with an excellent Ippon scoring Sumi-Gaeshi and then promptly scored again with the same throw for Waza-ari in his second bout. He then tried to finish of his second opponent with Sumi-Gaeshi again but on this occasion he ended being pinned for his effort. However, he did extremely well to get himself out of a difficult situation and when the referee called them back to their feet he quickly finished it off with a well timed leg sweep. Unfortunately his opponent in his third match was another member of the club Jack Fletcher, who has medalled at the Scottish Schools in the past few years, and Jack started well when he countered Stefan with Ouchi-Gari to throw for Yuko. Stefan responded quickly picking up a Koka score before throwing Jack for Ippon with Tani-Otoshi. This win took Stefan into the semi-final which barely lasted any time at all before he threw his opponent for Ippon with a crushing sweep and he was into the final. His opponent in the final was a 1st Dan, yet you would never had the known the gulf between the grades as it was a keenly fought and close contest before Stefan threw for Yuko and finished off his day and taking the gold by pinning him with Kesa-gatame.

In contrast to Stefan, Cameron Sneddon’s day didn’t start at all well when he weighed-in just over the limit and had to move up a weight category. It did not get any better when he lost his first fight, even though he had thrown his opponent earlier in the bout and appeared to have him in a solid hold before the referee penalised Cameron for effectively having his opponent in a strangle hold, which is not permitted in this event. Nevertheless, this certainly fired him up for his next bout, which he quickly won with Osoto-Gari. However, luck seemed to be against him again when he found himself in a three-way fight off to see who would qualify from the pool stages to go into the latter rounds. He lost the first of these fights to a drop-knee Seionage, but bounced back against his next opponent throwing with Tai-Otoshi and pinning him with Kesa-Gatame to eventually gain a place in the latter stages. Although he lost in the next round and was out of contention for a gold or silver medal, he moved into the repechage and got a second chance at getting a bronze medal. However, to do so would mean winning all his remaining fights, and this he did, finally winning the bronze with an Ippon scoring Harai-Goshi. Of all our boys at the club Cameron had the most contests on the day, and he certainly took the hardest route to a medal.

As highlighted above Jack Fletcher, who has been a medallist in this competition for the past three years was competing in the same category as Stefan, but even before they were paired against each other he had encountered some difficulties. In his first fight he threw his opponent for Ippon, but unfortunately the referee had called matte just moments before his throw. By this time he was also a Yuko and Waza-ari score down and he had to work extremely hard to get back into the contest, and although he picked up a couple of Yuko scores towards the end it was just too late. In his second bout he did not hang around and he totally dominated his opponent, picking up numerous Kokas, Yukos and a Waza-ari score with Ouch-Gari and Osoto-Gari throws to win. Although losing to Stefan in his third contest also put him out of contention for the Gold or Silver, he still had a place in the repechage and a chance of bronze. However, it was not to be his day at all and Jack lost his next bout.

In addition to Stefan, Cameron and Jack, there were five other boys from the club competing too, and although none of them came home with a medal on the day they all put in a very good effort, and will undoubtedly benefit from the experience.

Dylan Forbes 1st Mon was also fighting in the same category as Cameron, and in only his second competition he successfully qualified from his pool, after an Ippon scoring Osoto-Gari in his second fight, having lost his first contest to a 6th Mon. However, he unfortunately lost in the second round and then again in the repechage against opponents who were clearly more experienced.

Mark Douglas 3rd Mon and Jamie Fraser 1st Mon were competing in the Primary 5 to 7 Under 30Kg. This was the largest of all the categories on the day and only had three red-belt graded competitors, and two of these were Mark and Jamie. Mark was successful in the early stages and qualified from his pool for the latter rounds, but lost in the quarterfinals to the eventual winner, before being eliminated in the repechage.

As for Jamie he has only just started judo and he was competing in his first ever competition, so he was certainly starting right at the top. Unfortunately his lack of competitive experience was a major factor and he was unable to qualify from his pool for the latter rounds. Nevertheless, the experience will stand him in good stead and he should find the regional red-belt graded competitions a much easier proposition next year.

Graham Logan 3rd Mon was competing in the Primary 5 to 7 Under 28kg category, and as there was a small entry for this event he only had a couple of fights on the day, which he unfortunately lost. However, both contests were very close affairs and he picked up Waza-ari scores in each with Ippon Seionage and Tai-otoshi before losing to Ippon throws.

The last to compete on the day was Ros Haughton 4th Mon who was in the Secondary 3 to 4 Under 70kg, and he found himself up against considerably more experienced opponents who provided him with very tough competition. He lost his first two fight against 1st Kyu graded opponents, but bounced back in his third bout, throwing for a Koka and then a Yuko score before following up with a winning Kesa-Gatame pin. Due to it being a small pool this did give him an opportunity to fight for a Bronze medal, but luck was against him and Ros lost his final bout.

Success came very early when Mark Douglas was in the first pool to take to the mat. His first contest was certainly a keenly fought affair, and he produced a few Yuko and Koka scoring throws before finishing the contest with an Ippon scoring Sumi-Gaeshi. His final two contests were finished off much more quickly, both with a leg-grab variation of Ouchi-Gari to take Gold in his pool.

Stephen Kingsley was next into competition and finished his first two contests quite rapidly with Osoto-Gari for Ippon in the first, and then in the second contest throwing his opponent for Waza-ari with Morote-Gari and pinning him with Mune-Gatame. His third and final fight saw him paired against the other undefeated competitor in his pool setting up a true final, and this was a contest that Stephen dominated from the start, with multiple Yuko and Koka scoring throws. Eventually a Waza-ari score seemed to be enough to get him the Gold, but his opponent struck late with an excellent Harai-Goshi to throw Stephen for Ippon and snatch it from under his nose. Although very disappointing for Stephen he accepted it with a philosophical shrug and a smile.

In between Stephen's contests, Euan Macer Law also got his day off to a winning start when he threw his opponent for Ippon. However, despite a valiant effort in his remaining contests Euan was unable to finish off his opponents as he had the first. Nevertheless, his win was sufficient to gain him a third-place spot in his pool and a well deserved Bronze.

Next into competition was Tarun Rana, who had the misfortune of facing opponents of the same weight, but who were taller, which Tarun found difficult to contend with. Nevertheless, in judo you cannot pick your opponents and you need to be able to adapt to the circumstances, and to this end Tarun put in a very good effort although he was unsuccessful in his contests. Despite this he picked up a Bronze for his efforts.

Joe Fletcher started his competition off in a rapid and dramatic style, dispatching his opponent with an Ippon scoring Taiotoshi in a matter of seconds. However, his second contest was a much tougher and closer affair, which he repeatedly attempted to finish off with Morote-Gari. Unfortunately his opponent was quick to avoid the leg-grabs and eventually came out the winner. Joe's winning throw in the first contest was certainly a moment to savour for him, and it got him a Silver medal.

Our final competitor on the day was Dylan Forbes, who has only been at the club for a very short time and has only just recently received his red belt and 1st Mon grade. Nevertheless, although relatively inexperienced he was very keen to participate and went into the competition with a relaxed outlook and an expectation of learning from and enjoying the day. His first fight pitted him against a taller and more experienced opponent and he ultimately lost. However, he was by no means disheartened, and when he returned to the mat in his next contest he quickly threw his opponent with Taiotoshi for Ippon. With only three people in his pool that was the end of his day, and a Silver medal.

In the men's event John Rodger picked a Silver medal. Well done to John.

On Mark's return to the club he demonstrated to his club mates the techniques that he favoured in this competition. His favorite competition throws were the double-leg grab throw Morote-Gari, where he grabs both of his opponent's legs and pulls them out from under them, and a single-leg grab variation of Ouchi-Gari where he grabs one leg before completing the leg sweep. These techniques resulted in high-scoring throws, but on two occasions the fights proceeded into Ne-Waza, and Mark finished the bouts with Kesa-Gatame and a very effective Tate-Shiho-Gatame against the 8th Mon to win the competition. Mark's Ne-Waza display certainly stood out compared to most of the competitors in all weight divisions on the day, in that he was prepared to continue the fight on the mat, whereas most got back to their feet immediately. Other club coaches complimented Mark on his Ne-Waza, and the difference in his approach to Ne-Waza compared to others reflects very well on the benefit of coaching it at the club.

A Fantastic effort from young Mark - we wish him every success in the future.