On Sunday 13th March 2011 8 fighters and 10 spectators from the Grimsby Strike Team headed to Birmingham for the WKA England Team qualifiers.
First up to fight was young Ethan Noton in the -25 kg semi-contact. Ethan soon found himself in the final after some very impressive preliminary rounds using his timing to perfection and connecting with strong reverse punches. At the end of the 1st round Ethan was on top form with his movement and was winning 3-1. The clock started for the second round and Ethan started to use his fast blitz technique which earned him a well deserved gold medal winning 5-4. Ethan also fought in the –25kg light continuous. Ethan took a fight in the heavier category as there was no one available in his own and started with good hand and kicking techniques. His heavier opponent was throwing in powerful round kicks as Ethan threw fast straight shots. Narrowly missing out on the win but gaining valuable experience Ethan won the gold in both categories and an invitation to the WKA World Championships 2011.
Evan Balch was fighting in the -30kg and -35kg semi-contact categories. Evan started out well winning 5-2. In the semi-final Evan used his legs well making sure that his sidekicks counted! At the end of time it was a 3-3 draw. At the end of extra time the score was 4-4. Pressure was on young Evan, he needed to be the first to score! Unfortunately Evan lost but came away with a bronze medal and an invite to the WKA World Championships 2011.
In the –35kg category it was 4-4 at the end of extra time and Evan lost in sudden death. In the first 10 seconds Evan scored an amazing head kick. Evan used his cannon kicking so his opponent couldn’t get near him. This annoyed his opponent who then started to grab Evans’ leg and push him to the ground, sit on him and throw a barrage of punches to the back of his head and score! Evans’ coach John Tomlinson contested this on several occasions, but for some reason the referees kept saying that they never saw this! Evan didn’t let this intimidate him; he just brushed himself down and carried on!
Joe Axcell took to the mat in the –40kg semi-contact. Joe fought really well off the back of winning a tough competition in Nottingham a few weeks ago using his blitz and sidekicks along with some very nice footwork to get him into position which he has been working on a lot in the gym. Joe found himself stepping onto the mat in the final. At the end of the 1st round Joe was winning 4-3 after a barrage of fast and furious punches and kicks. Joe scored a cracking head-kick to his opponent scoring him 2 points and sending the supporters into a frenzy Unfortunately this wasn’t enough to secure the gold as his opponent managed to score an illegal point after some very inconsistent calls by the judges on the day. Joe still managed to win a very respectable silver and a place at the WKA World Championships 2011.
Daniel Balch was on fire in the –45kg semi-contact. He managed to win the 1st round 7-5; the semi-final was a walk in the park for him winning 7-0. Daniel kept things simple using sidekicks and reverse punches. During the final Daniel scored a hook kick to his opponents head winning the final 9-5. Daniel also took to the mat in the -45kg light continuous category. Daniel was amazed to find himself in the final! The fight stared and John Tomlinson had told Daniel to take it easy and use technique, as it was two, one and half minute rounds. The first round started and Daniel followed the advice he had been given. Keeping his shots clean and on target. The fight ended after 67 seconds when Daniels’ opponent had to retire. Daniel had thrown a long jab and then a front kick and landed them both on his opponents nose. Daniel won two gold medals and a place at the WKA World Championships 2011.
Luke Tomlinson fought in the +8yrs semi-contact novice category or that is what it was suppose to be! Watching some of his opponents it was obvious that they had been training for more than a year and was in a category unfairly. Luke fought well under the circumstances, using the techniques he had learnt in the gym over the last few months very well. He held his own on the mat and delivered some accurate shots but due to his opponents greater experience he missed out on a medal and came 4th.
Leo Collins was the last of the juniors to fight. Leo fought in the –8yrs novice section for both semi-contact and light continuous. Again the question was raised about whether some of his opponents were actually novices or not! Leo set out to win his fight and started off extremely well using his timing to execute side kicks and back fists to score. The points were racking up for both fighters after an array of attacks from them which took them to a draw after time had been called. An extra 30 seconds were added and Leo scored the last point of the match which gave him the win in the the semi- final 8-7. The final was a tough fight for young Leo but he gave it his all against his opponent who was obviously not a novice what so ever. When contested by coach Tomlinson nothing was done and Leo had to settle for a very respectable silver medal and some vital experience too.
Leo fought very well in continuous too, pushing forward all the time and using good combinations of kicks and punches. He never let up on his opponent and just kept putting the pressure on. All the training and hard work paid off as time was called and Leo took the gold along with his Worlds invitation.
John Tomlinson stepped up to fight in the –70kg men’s semi-contact. The standard of fighters in this category was very high! John landed a nice sidekick to his opponents’ stomach, throwing him across the mat. Unfortunately John then took a nasty spinning hook kick to the mouth and this threw him a little as he did actually see double for a few seconds! John soon came back with some nice blitz techniques but unfortunately he lost the fight 4-2.
Ben Collins was the last of the Grimsby Strike Team to fight. Ben’s first fight in the men’s +80kg novice category of semi contact was against a taller opponent who used his long legs to score points but Ben gave as good as he got with good movement and footwork around the mat. After time was called in the semi final Ben had lost it 6-2 but came bouncing back back in the 3rd place fight off with some great reverse punches and powerful round kicks winning 4-0 and the bronze medal.
Ben also fought in the men’s +80kg men’s novice light continuous category. Ben had control of his fights very early on. He kept pushing forward with the jab, cross front-kick technique and moving out of his opponents reach straight away. This carried on for the duration as the opposition started to tire and Ben seemed to get stronger. Ben finished the competition for the Grimsby Strike Team on a high winning the gold!
To some up, it was a very long day but worth every minute of it. All of the fighters fought extremely well bringing home 6 Gold, 2 Silver and 2 Bronze medals. Thank you to all the supporters who made the trip and endured the long day to give that valuable team spirit!