A thirty-two strong team of Plymouth divers spent four days of their half term competing in the Pilkington Estates Armada Cup held at the Plymouth Life Centre. In its 25th year it was a chance for the nineteen contending teams to showcase the talent each club has on offer. Jon Pilkington and Wollens solicitors made it possible for Plymouth Diving to host an event of this size. Their generous sponsorship is invaluable for which we are truly grateful for. The event attracted teams from throughout the UK and as far flung as Dubai. The competition was split into two sections – Junior Elite and Age Group with South West Regional medals also up for grabs for the Age Group divers.
With six group D divers representing the club this year, the young talent was evident – a great sign for the future of the club. Bobby Cole and Theo Wills took to all three boards. Bobby was centre of the mix on 3m, making it to the final to finish with a gold SW medal. The same was true of Theo Wills on platform who also won a gold SW medal. A fifty percent increase in entries from last year meant the D girls found themselves amongst a large pack. With all of the SW medals shared amongst them Myia Lilley won three, Lyra Johnson with one, Ivy-May Davey and Phoebe-Mae Evans both winning two.
Moving from skills into his first age group competition Daniel Robinson won the SW gold medal for 1m and platform in group C. The girls in the same group all performed well to win AG medals. A silver on 3m for Libby Edelson who also qualified on two boards for nationals. Teagan Mousley won a 1m bronze and followed it up with another bronze with teammate Alice Jones in the 1m synchro event.
In their first elite C section, Harry Westbury and Seth Greentree nestled into the more difficult category with ease. Harry bagged the gold on 1m plus a 1m silver synchro with Seth, who also got the bronze for 3m. Isla Applin with more competitors to contend with in the elite C girls delivered two sterling rounds of dives to finish 6th on 1m and just missed out on a medal in 4th on 3m.
Poppy Jones in age group B was flying the flag solo for Plymouth Diving. Not at all daunted by the prospect Poppy finished 5th on 1m, 4th on platform with an outstanding gold on 3m beating twenty-seven other girls to stand at the top of the podium. With less experience than the other age group B boys Charlie Clinick put in a valiant effort across all three boards, showing resilience and maturity to carry on after an incorrect dive on 5m. Oscar Westbury, Lincoln Stephens and Will Heath soaked up all of the SW medals. Oscar and Lincoln never dropped below 8th position on any board. Lincoln was beaten into 4th position on 1m by Will who took the AG bronze, with a matching bronze for platform. The 3m AG gold for Will was undoubtedly the highpoint with over 20 points clear of his nearest rival.
Age group A boy Louie McCue had a very fruitful competition across all boards. A 7th position on 1m, solid silver on 3m and the best prize of all a gold on platform. It was a mixed bag for the age group A girls. Taluya Verwoolde trained hard in the runup to the competition but was unable to final which does not reflect her true capability. Evie Royal and Rose McCabe qualified for the 1m final. Rose dropped a position from the preliminary round to just miss out on a medal in 4th. Evie on the other hand was jubilant with her gold win. Erin Healey and Eva Lang left only one spot vacant on the platform podium. Eva was determined to medal and stepped up her performance from 5th in the preliminary round to win the silver in the final alongside Erin who won the bronze. Erin went on to make the 3m final finishing in 6th position, which given the number of entries was an excellent result.
The group A elite divers are always inspirational to watch. Noah Underwood looked at home on platform trialling new dives ahead of the remaining season. With a place in the final, he finished 6th. Ollie Heath made both springboard finals to finish 4th on 1m with a bronze on 3m. Archie Waines buddied up for the 3m synchro with Ollie and they were unbeatable demonstrating how to win gold.
Forced to rest for two months due to injury Amelie Underwood has only just returned to diving to compete at the Armada Cup. Winning a silver medal on 1m and 3m the lack of training did not impact on a great performance. With a lower required score carried over to the springboard finals Scarlett Colbourne clawed back some points to finish 5th on 1m and remained at 5th on 3m. Lexi Davies delivered a strong set of dives on every board and with a vast improvement on last year she has qualified for national elites in April.
Senior girls Katie Martin and Maia Pearson have had to prioritise the demands of university over diving. None the less each walked away with one gold and one silver medal in the springboard events. The seasoned pairing came 4th in synchro.
The Team Trophy went to Plymouth Diving as a result of every one of our divers contributing to the overall score – truly a fantastic team.
Plymouth Diving would like to thank the Co-Op and Fruity Roots who contributed towards the refreshments for the volunteers and officials. Plymouth Active Leisure for the use of the Life Centre facilities and Plymouth City Council for their continued support. The divers and parents would also like to show their appreciation to the dedicated coaching staff, judges and volunteers.
