CITY of Worcester junior swimmers put in a terrific performance in the second round of the Nuneaton & District Junior League.

This is the premier team competition for 12 & under swimmers in the West Midlands and Worcester hosted three of the top teams in the country: Phoenix, Coventry & Perry Beaches.

The standard of swimming was exceptional - and the Worcester team rose to the occasion, with almost everyone putting in personal best performances.

A great team effort saw the club finish a hugely creditable fourth behind the big three teams - but well ahead of Leamington Spa & local rivals Wyre Forest.

Star of the show for Worcester was 10-year-old Greg Everest who won both his individual events. He won comfortably in the butterfly and backstroke to confirm his enormous potential.

The club's only other winner on the night was national qualifier Samantha Payne. In a closely fought 12-year-old backstroke, she showed the touch of class that marks a champion.

However, there were many other memorable performances - especially from the nine-year-old swimmers.

Emma Thompson & Hannah Watts were second in their respective breaststroke and freestyle races while in the boys' freestyle team, Thomas Lane, Jonathon Edwards, Jak Jenkins and William Elt proved how much competition there is for places in this team with splits of 20.34, 20.35, 20.31 & 20.32!

In the 10-year-old freestyle, Chris Hallam, with the benefit of an outstanding turn, he managed to snatch second place, while in the 11-year-old backstroke Isaac Page-Long produced the swim of the night, only being denied top spot in a finger-tip finish.

The relays proved fertile ground for points with Worcester regularly getting the better of one of the top three.

Most impressive were the 11-year-old boys medley relay & 12-year-old girls freestyle relay teams with Page-Long joined by Enrico Maglifiore, Rupert Monkhouse and Matthew Turner and Payne joined by Rebecca Cox, Laura Maguire and Lydia Williams for strong second place finishes.

The junior squad still needs some strengthening but with this nucleus of swimmers and a firm plan to develop the club now evolving, confidence is rising.