WHEN the Lockerbie Tornadoes head coach first started junior basketball sessions in February he was pleasantly surprised with the turnout of enthusiastic youngsters who were interested in playing the sport.
The majority of children returned the following week, fast forward to the middle of June and over 30 budding basketballers regularly attend Lockerbie Academy games hall for training each Tuesday evening.
Head coach Robin Laidlaw began the sessions after receiving some interest in a junior section at the club.
Sessions will soon stop for the summer holidays and will restart in August. Following their success, Robin hopes to join a league in the future and give young basketballers in the region a chance to play competitively.
The senior Tornadoes team are the only adult competitive outfit in Dumfries and Galloway, and during the season they play matches in the Strathclyde League.
He said: “I had lots of parents getting in touch about their children coming to basketball, so, after a bit of deliberation and mulling over with some of the seniors, we decided to start a junior session on a Tuesday night between 6 and 7 pm.
“We were very surprised in the first week when we had 30 children turn up, both boys and girls, with quite a bit of mixed ability.
“Most of them have come back every week and are having fun and learning the basics of basketball.
“We are stopping for the summer at the end of June but then we’ll be back the Tuesday after the schools go back in August and officially the basketball season starts again in September for the seniors.”
The club always welcomes new members at both junior and senior level, get in touch with The Lockerbie Tornadoes on Facebook for more information.
