BRIDGEWATER High School’s year nine basketball team have made a strong start to their campaign in a national competition.

The team’s record stands at two wins from two games in the north pool’s Premier Division of the Dynamik National Schools Competition run by Basketball England.

A 61-51 victory over Helsby High, following a previous 73-49 success against Cheadle Hulme, leaves the Bridgewater boys top of the table going into the first term of 2017.

The school has history in this event, being home to a national champions team in 2013, and would dearly love to repeat the achievement.

Plenty of support is at hand to give the team its best chance of progressing in this prestigious competition.

Delme Herriman, a former professional in the British top flight and one of English basketball’s biggest stars, is the team’s training coach.

His involvement on the training programme this season has attracted more than 30 participants at the school’s training sessions.

And game coach Joe Ball, a former Cheshire Wire Basketball Club player and National League champion in 2015, works in partnership with Andy Roberts, the school’s head of physical education, to assist in getting the best out of the players during matches.

The team will be looking to build on the solid foundations laid in their next match away to St Peter’s High School in Manchester on Tuesday, January 24.

Most of the division’s matches take place the following day, when Bridgewater will complete their opening schedule against Liverpool sides Blue Coat School and St Margaret’s C of E Academy.