BROMSGROVE Swimming Club's new batch of youngsters saw action for the first time at the weekend at the Dolphin Centre, in the Sport for All Rose Bowl Trophy.

And their third place on the night leaves them in good heart for next week's crucial first leg of the prestigious diddy league.

In swimming everyone gets a year older on the first of January, so there is a brand new batch of nine-year-olds, the youngest age allowed for competitive swimming, coming through to see if they have any early promise.

Victoria Law certainly has that promise, as she showed in the very first event, winning the breaststroke in a shade under 25 seconds. She then repeated the feat in backstroke when she won in 22.4.

That double winning feeling was also experienced by ten-year-old Alice Woodyatt as she won backstroke in 21.9 and butterfly in 21.4. Both girls are fast for their age and look as though they could serve the club well for years to come.

With stiff competition from eventual gala winners Worcester and Camp Hill, Bromsgrove also had some creditable performances from girls N Bannister, Rebeca Mullett, Liz Sydenham, N Barratt, Camilla Roome and Emilly McNally, and boys Richie Edmunds, Tom Mansell and Ryan Cooper, who all gained excellent seconds against top class opponents.

Bromsgrove's final win of the night came from Bannister, Sydenham, McNally and Olivia Alton as they came home first in the 11 years medley relay.