Liberty Park Netball Club has returned to Sedgefield and hopes to bring together women of all ages to celebrate fitness, teamwork, and community spirit.

The club was founded in 2019 by a group of enthusiastic women with a shared love for the game. Over the years, it has grown significantly and now boasts three adult teams, playing across divisions 1-3 of the Durham Netball League. After a short stint on Sedgefield’s outdoor courts during the Covid-19 restrictions, Liberty Park has finally returned to Sedgefield to make its home at Sedgefield Community College.

The netball season runs from September to August and the last one was particularly exciting for Liberty Park. The first team won division 1 of the Durham League in both winter and spring, while the second and third teams cemented their positions in divisions 2 and 3 respectively.

Liberty Park Netball Club welcomes new members, whether you’re an experienced player or a complete beginner. The club offers a weekly training session and members can also join one of the teams and compete in matches. The club meets for training every Wednesday from 7:15-8:45pm at the college. Matches are held on Thursday evenings at venues across County Durham.

As the 2024-25 season gets underway, Liberty Park Netball Club looks forward to more exciting matches and welcoming more members.

The start of a new season is a perfect time to join.Visit the club’s Facebook page at www.facebook.com/Libertyparknetballteam, or contact the team directly via email on LibertyParkNetballClub@gmail.com.

As always, plenty of runners from Sedgefield made the pilgrimage from Newcastle to South Shields for the Great North Run. Among them were 15 members of Sedgefield Harriers, led home by the youngster Rory Letts, who finished in a great time of 1:26:35 (a huge personal best after his debut last year).

First lady from the club was Harriet Morris in 2:08:26 and once again, John Tomlinson completed the world’s biggest half marathon. He is one of the small number of athletes who have finished every single Great North Run. Ean Parsons was also there – he’s run all but one. There were loads of other runners there from hereabouts who aren’t members of the Harriers, taking part for a variety of reasons, from tackling personal challenges to raising money for good causes. Well done to everyone who ran, was a volunteer, or turned out to cheer on the runners, on what was a pretty damp day!

A week after the Great North Run, Sedgefield Harriers hosted the annual Sedgefield Serpentine race, held in memory of former club member Gail Bell. Starting and finishing in Hardwick Park, the event took 129 runners on a multiterrain route of around 10k between Sedgefield and Bishop Middleham.

The race was won by Andy Love of Billingham Running Club in 36:13, with John Surtees of Aycliffe Running Club second (37:34) and Paul Weir of Washington Running Club third (38:48). First Sedgefield Harrier, and fourth overall, was Ben Potter in 40:16. The women’s race was won by Harrier Sadie Abel in 41:38, followed by Carol Moss (42:30) and Kate Storey of Crook & District AC (42:44).

Various local individuals and organisations supplied items for the goody bags and the usual army of volunteers made it possible to host the event. Sedgefield Harriers is grateful to everyone who supported the Serpentine.

Sedgefield District Rugby Club began the new season with an opening fixture against Gateshead. Despite a promising first half performance, the game ended in a 7- 39 defeat, with the Sedgefield try scored by Jack Wiffen.

Over the summer, the club started running touch rugby sessions every Monday at 7pm. These are free of charge and open to all ages and genders above 14 years. It's a fun way to get involved in rugby and get a bit of exercise.

This season marks the club's 40th anniversary, having been formed in 1984 at Winterton Hospital. A programme of events is being planned to mark the occasion. Keep an eye on the club's social media accounts for further information.

The nights are drawing in, the summer is well and truly over, and Sedgefield Squash Club is once again gearing up for the new season.

Over the summer months, the squash ladder has kept the courts ticking over with probably the busiest out of season period in the club’s recent history. Racket ball is also proving very popular, with a group of players in action at least three times a week.

Congratulations go to Colin Langley for finishing top of the ladder and Craig Muller for most matches played at 28. It was also great to have former world number one James Willstrop down at the club for a morning’s training session with a few of the members.

Those of you who walk through the grounds of Ceddesfeld Hall may have noticed a new floral addition. The squash club recycled the old door off court two and transformed it into a planter box, enhancing the entrance to the club.

Durham and Cleveland County leagues have just started, so look out for updates on the teams’ progress in future issues of Sedgefield News.

The club is proud to once again field five senior teams (with some juniors included) and our current county champion ladies’ team. Junior coaching packages are again on offer this season, with no price increases, and work out at a very competitive rate for each session.

I’ve reported on the progress of Sedgefield para cyclist Ben Hetherington before, and he continues to make good progress in the sport. After a poor performance in the British Para Track Championships in February, it was a time for Ben to refocus and get back to some hard training, ready for the road season.

So far, this has paid off, as he won the season’s first para road race in Nottingham at the end of April, followed up by a win at the time trial. This set him up for a trip to the World Cup races in Ostend, Belgium and Maniago, Italy, in May. The races were highly competitive, with riders and countries trying to stake their claim for Paralympic selection. Ben did well, finishing in the middle of the pack in both road races and in the top 20 in both time trials.

While on the continent, he also took part in a para race in De Panne, Belgium, which he won. More recently, Ben won a bronze medal in both a road race and time trial.

The rest of the British Para Series will be held around England, including at Middlesbrough Sports Village on Saturday 20 July. The event will be part of a day of paracycling, organised by British Cycling in conjunction with Limitless. Starting at 12 noon and aimed at people with disabilities, there will be 90 minutes of free opportunities to try out trikes, tandems, handcycles and pedal carts.

Then, from 2pm, there will be para cycle racing in a variety of categories, and Ben will be in action as he continues to try and improve his times and bike handling skills, in order to ensure a place in the development team for the 2028 Olympic Games in Los Angeles.

The event on 20 July will also raise money for the Great North Air Ambulance Service (GNAAS), which Ben and his family have been supporting since his accident in 2019. GNAAS came to Ben’s aid then and at Middlesbrough Sports Village, there will be fundraising to help the service run its two helicopters, The Guardian of the North II and the Pride of Cumbria II. The event will be a great chance for anyone to learn more about para cycling and see some great racing.

To find out more about it, contact Gary Hetherington on 07484 673796 or 01740 621214.