3:33pm Thursday 9th July 2009
By Bill Marshall
Heaton Primary School won the Zara Girls’ Basketball Tournament.
They defeated Westbourne Primary in a closely-fought final, having topped the round-robin group leading up to the decider.
Heaton Primary School’s learning mentor Sanjeb Kumar, who organised the tournament, said: “About 30 girls were involved from Heaton, Southmere, Westbourne and Miriam Lord primary schools and the standard got better as the event went on.
“Matches were ten minutes each half and baskets counted for three points, with an extra two points if there was a foul committed in the act of scoring.
“That meant that if a team started slowly they could still catch up later on with all the points that were on offer.”
Kumar added: “The primary school teams learnt to play at after-school clubs and in PE lessons and they picked up the rules very quickly.
“It isn’t like netball and they soon got used to bouncing the ball and playing as a team rather than individuals.”
This is the second school year that Zara Sports Centre at Belle Vue Girls’ School has been used as a venue for girls’ tournaments.
Kumar said: “We have a football tournament in October and the girls appreciate the opportunity to play against their own sex rather than watch the boys play or be involved in a mixed tournament, which some girls cannot take part in on religious rounds.”
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