Field: Shorts Sports Club

Sliders v Brawlers Recap

Sliders welcomed the newly crowned league champions to Newforge last night. The Brawlers were aiming to go a second season in a row undefeated whilst a win for Sliders would have all but guaranteed 3rd in the league. Unfortunately, the home team were very much in end of season mode putting in a pretty hapless performance and were punished by some big hitting. Sliders took to the field with a new combination at short stop and 3rd of Dave and James (playing his first game back this season). Unfortunately, a series of simple mistakes from both the infield and outfield let the Brawlers score 21 in the first 2 innings.

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IOST Recap

At the weekend 5 Sliders and a baby joined with 6 members of Belfast Cubs Softball Team to venture down to Carlow and take part in the Irish Open Softball Tournament as the Sliding Cubs. First up was a 9am game against one of the tournament favourites, Dodder. After a decent start (3-1 at the 1st) it all fell apart as simple catches were dropped and too many overthrows made as the Sliding Cubs lost 19-2. Next up were the Wicklow Wolves. A slow start cost the Northerners with too many people getting stranded on base. A rally of 4 in the final innings made the score respectable but Sliding Cubs were disappointed to lose 8-6. Things improved in the next game against the Suspects. The infield tightened up as Chris dived around to stop anything coming his way and Jenny made an outstanding catch on one knee. It was 5-5 going into the last and getting tense when Chris smashed a homerun to get the win by a point.

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Sliders v Cubs Recap

Sliders welcomed the Cubs to Newforge last night hoping to avoid a repeat of the 28-5 hammering they received in the reverse fixture. It didn't bode well that the home team were once again playing short handed whilst the visitors had turned up with a full roster (so much purple!). Sliders' mood didn't improve much once play began. The Cubs have batting quality throughout their line-up and it showed as they relentlessly got on base scoring 7 in the first. Sliders' response improved the mood somewhat. Patient batting got players on base, finding gaps in the Cubs defence as they scored 4 including a homerun from Dave that saw him chase Kirsty around the bases in the process. Then the Sliders defence got to work with the infield pulling out all the stops stranding Cubs runners on base time after time. Kirsty pulled off a fantastic clean stop from a line drive for an easy out at first, John seemed to be everywhere making catches and plays at shortstop and Jay got in the act with a long throw to 1st from 3rd. Despite the outfield seeming huge with only three out there little got past and Paul took a great catch on the run calling off his captain at the last minute. Jonny was enjoying one of his best games pitching in green picking up nimerous of high profile strikes. Suddenly there was hope of an upset.

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Sliders v Aces Recap

On Monday night Sliders welcomed the Smokin' Aces to Newforge. It was the second meeting between the two in as many weeks and the fixture was much anticipated after last week's tight game. The Aces made a good start getting 4 in the first innings. Sliders defence had a more familiar feel to it this week and it showed with some sharp plays. Sliders first innings, as in the previous two games, was a big one, taking advantage of some wayward pitching by demonstating patience atthe plate and dispatching anything hittable into the outfield as they ran in 11. Aces scored 2 in the second innings which proved to be their last until the sixth but the numbers don't tell the whole story. In each of the following three innings Sliders found themselves facing multiple runners on bases with outs to get but each time shut them out including one by John with a streching over the shoulder pressure catch. Meanwhile at bat, the scores kept coming in with everyone who batted getting round at least once. In the fourth Sliders ended any hope of a come back with an innings of 9 with Kirsty smashing a triple on her last at bat to take the score to 29-6. Dan's last innings 3rd base batting woes against the Aces continued this week when he got to see how good Emma's hitting was up close. Showing phenomenal bat speed she lined one to left field but the Sliders captain was slow to respond taking the full force on the wrist. To add insult to injury, in an attempt to get out of the way he left the base and was called out! All in all, it was a return to form for Sliders with a very polished performance. Final score: Sliders 34 – 8. Next up the Buccs at the end of July Highs: Home runs for Dave, Jonny and Dan. Emma making her return in green. A whole team performance with everyone contributing to an out and scoring a point.  Edit: Andrew did not score any runs!

Aces v Sliders Recap

Sliders travelled to Henry Jones last night to face an in form Smokin' Aces and came away defeated in an epic match. Despite playing short handed and with a number of players out of position, Sliders raced out of the blocks scoring 12 in the first two innings with Dave scoring his now customary home run. The Aces fought back in the 2nd with 7 of their own as Sliders struggled to get the last out before Paul took a running catch off of his laces. From then on the Aces took the initiative scoring 6 in the 4th to level the game and the Sliders defence looked to be in trouble. Sliders Captain, Dan, made a tactical switch moving Marian to 3rd and himself to left field. The move immediately paid off as all 3 Aces batters found his glove including one plucked out of the air over his shoulder. Sliders scored 2 in the 6th to retake the lead and 2 more catches by Dan held the Aces to one. Unfortunately the Captain had a rush of blood to the head in the 7th with 2 outs and the strongest part of the batting line up to come getting tagged out on a risky run to 3rd by Pat Joe. Just to rub salt into the wounds Pat Joe then smashed a homer into right field to tie the game. The Aces got runners on base and Sliders just couldn't keep them out to lose 18-17. In the end the auto out every innings proved costly. Highs: Home run for Dave. 5 catches in a row for Dan. John throwing a double play (we think the first of the season!) Paul taking a running catch inches off of the ground. Doubles and triples galore in the first two innings. Next up is the rematch against the Aces on 19th June. Should be a cracker!

Sliders v Bucs Recap

The Bangor Buccaneers pretty much sailed straight up to Newforge to face Sliders in conditions that can only be described as very wet! But the Sliders always seem to play well in the rain and last night was no exception. After conceding just 1 in the first innings Sliders bats turned up in dramatic style. Dave opened as he always does with a homerun. Not to be outdone, Tim launched one for a grandslam a few minutes later. The Buccs seemed to have no answer to the Sliders big hitting and at the end of the inning the score was 11-1. A shutout in the 2nd was followed by more excellent hitting and 7 runs. The weather got worse and bodies got colder but the Sliders infield continued to deliver (the outfield stood and watched getting cold!). As the game wore on the Buccs gradually found their rythym and put in some scores of their own whilst the Sliders concentration dropped. Jonny pitched a blinder in the last 3 after a mid game wobble and a couple of walks and then got his first homerun in green. Final score 24-14 to Sliders. Next up are the Aces next Monday. Hopefully we'll have dried out! Highs: Grandslam homerun for Tim, homeruns for Dave and Jonny, the entire batting lineup getting on base at least once, solid defence from the infield in tricky conditions including several diving saves from Dave on 1st.

Brawlers v Sliders Recap

Sliders travelled up to Henry Jones Playing Fields to play the Brawlers last night and fell to a disappointing 16-6 defeat. It was always going to be difficult playing shorthanded against the big hitting league champions but despite a couple of errors the defence was generally solid. It was with the bat that Sliders disappointed, failing to convert base hits into scores often enough. Big hits seemed to hold in the wind and find blue gloves asSliders struggled to gain any momentum. Meanwhile the Brawlers kept the scoreboard ticking to take the win. Special mention to Will, who was playing in his last game before heading off to Canada for a year. High points: Jonny's reflex catch as his pitch was lined back at him, Suze refinding her mojo with a big triple, John doing most of the work in the outfield and a double play off of a catch.

Sliders v Angels Recap

The Sliders responded in the best possible way to last week's defeat with a solid 15-7 win over a short handed Angels last night at Newforge Lane. A rejigged infield dealt comfortably with everything that came their way in the first inning with Jonny pitching well on debut (and one leg) against his old side. Last time out it was Sliders' batting that let them down but this time round they rediscovered the old form with a more patient approach. It was a sign of things to come when Dave cleared the fence first up, a trick he repeated at his next bat. A combination of big hitting and aggressive base running kept the scoreboard ticking and although the Angels landed a couple of big blows of their own (another lost ball) the Sliders fielding didn't let them down this time. Will and Marian back playing at shortstop and second, repeatedly picked off the lead runners and Kirsty, on third for the first time, also got in on the act late in the game. Tim came off of the bench to bag a homerun of his own before taking the winning catch. High points: Homeruns for Dave (x3) and Tim. Jonny making his Sliders debut. The sun bringing out the spectators! Next up: A trip to league champions and old rivals the Brawlers on 22nd May.

Cubs v Sliders Recap

A new look Sliders made a slow start to the season on Sunday as they were well beaten by an impressive Cubs performance. After getting of the mark with a couple of points in the first innings the Sliders' bats dried up completely. Meanwhile a combination of uncharacteristic fielding errors and good batting let the Cubs race into an early and ultimately unassailable lead. Despite a couple of solid innings in the middle the Sliders never really got going. Final score 28-5. High points: Jay and Tina making their league debuts in green, a home run for Dave, Paul taking a catch over his shoulder and birthday cupcakes. Next up: Sliders welcome the Angels to Newforge on Bank Holiday Monday.

2017 Fixtures

The fixtures for the 2017 SU League are in, and these are the dates and locations where the Belfast Sliders will be playing this season: Cubs v Sliders, 23rd April, Strandtown Primary School Sliders v Angels, 5th May, Newforge Country Club Brawlers v Sliders, 22nd May, Henry Jones Playing Fields Sliders v Bucs, 5th June, Newforge Country Club Aces v Sliders, 12th June, Henry Jones Playing Fields Sliders v Aces, 19th June, Newforge Country Club Bucs v Sliders, 30th July, Donaghadee Rugby Club Angels v Sliders, 6th August, Hydebank Playing Fields Sliders v Cubs, 14th August, Newforge Country Club Sliders v Brawlers, 28th August, Newforge Country Club Please come along to support us at our home and away games, and feel free to play along with us.  Training takes place at 6.30pm on Thursday evenings at the Queens University PEC playing fields.