Dodgeball - then and now

Back in 2005 Emily and I were part of a Dodgeball group known as Dodgeball UK, which had leagues and teams in Luton, Welwyn, Hatfield, Abingdon, Portsmouth and Ipswich, and players travelling from all over to play.

The first officially recorded match in Dodgeball UK’s history was played on the 8th August 2005 – a battle between the ‘New Lutonians’ and the ‘Ipswich Invaders’ held at ‘Monday Madness’. The ‘New Lutonians’ took the victory 3-2 but the ‘Ipswich Invaders’ swore revenge in the future!

As Co-Captain of the pioneering Abingdon Dodgeball Alliance (ADE) I helped lead the team to victory at the first ever DodgeDay event on the 21st August 2005 at the Vauxhall Leisure Centre in Luton, Beds, defeating the teams of The Belly Dancers (later the WDW) and Just Might Lose in the tournament.

Dodgeball UK formed its rulebook on the 1st June 2005. Regular competitions stopped in 2007 following eight official 'DodgeDay' events and a number of other mini-tournaments and Trios-format competitions, and the Dodgeballs have been dormant since.

That was until recently, as I have now taken up the sport again, this time playing to the rules of the United Kingdom Dodgeball Association (UKDBA), with a new group of players in Luton, Beds on the Team Beds & Luton 'Get Back Into...Dodgeball' programme. The sessions have now been running for eight weeks and over the coming months (and years) I'm looking to get back into the swing of Dodging, Ducking, Dipping, Diving and Dodging all over again!

Information from the 2005-2007 Dodgeball UK Archives:

Teams



Players



Roll Call of Champions
‘DodgeBowl’ Winners
Season 2005-2006
- Champions – The Welwyn Dowed Warriors (WDW)
- Runners-up – Abingdon Dodgeball Alliance (ADE)
Season 2006-2007- Champions – The Welwyn Dowed Warriors (WDW)
- Runners-up – Portsmouth Dodgeball Association (PDA)

Photos from the 2005-2007 Dodgeball UK Archives

DodgeDay 1

Players from DodgeDay 1 (from l-r - 'The Narcissist' Christopher Gottfried, 'Crushing' Caroline Constable, 'Mighty' Matt Kenrick, 'Jumping' Janice Nixon, 'Stunning' Steve Noble, Jon 'Or is it Jaba' Constable, 'Stentorian' Richard Gottfried, Emily '9 Lives' Gottfried, 'Big Jon Boy' Jon Gottfried, 'Super Excited' Helena Sundarajoo, Maney 'MVP' Ullah, 'Rowdy' Russell Fenner, Paul 'Barer' Harvey and Jumpin Jaba Flash(er).

No Ball Games - yeah right!



On your marks



DodgeDay 1 Champions - The Abingdon Dodgeball Alliance (ADE)


The 'new' ADE in their new kit


'Referee' Richard Gottfried


Team Deutschland at the 'World Cup' matches at 'DodgeDay 6 - When Worlds Collide'



Team England at the 'World Cup' matches at 'DodgeDay 6 - When Worlds Collide'



Team Turkey at the 'World Cup' matches at 'DodgeDay 6 - When Worlds Collide'


'Stentorian' Richard Gottfried's Dodgeball Win/Loss Record (as at 22nd November 2010)Original Dodgeball UK (2005-2007) - Played 99, Won 37, Tied 7, Lost 55
Get Back Into... (2010) - Played 85, Won 43, Tied 0, Lost 42
Other (2010) - Played - 3, Won 2, Tied 0, Lost 1
All-Time Dodgeball Career Record (2005-2010) - Played 187, Won 82, Tied 7, Lost 98



'Stentorian' Richard Gottfried back in Dodgeball Action in 2010


Note: Doing a bit of research I found out there is a new 'Dodgeball UK' organisation operating out of London, which was founded in August 2009 - we'll have to go along to one of their events in the future.