WW Worthington Cup 1998
Some of your readers may be wondering what has happened to the Worthington Cup, the ringing version, that is. The football version seems to have given plenty of publicity.
Firstly a word about the last competition. The 1998 WW Worthington Cup held on April 4th was a bit of a wash out! It had seemed at first that the 21st competition was going to be a good one. We had six entries very early on, and then two more bands wanted to join in. After some consideration it was decided that we could just accommodate eight. The test piece had been set and the method made known when the original notice appeared in The Ringing World – it would be Double Grandsire Caters. The idea was to add a bit of spice to the competition. The letters and full copies of the test piece went out to conductors with plenty of notice for them to get together and practice.
But as the day approached – as close as ten days or so before – something started to go wrong. First of all one band dropped out, which was not so bad since it would ease pressure on the timing. Then another band did the same. In the week we were down to five, then with two days to go, down to four. What was happening? Then on the actual day, one of the remaining four did not turn up. So on the actual day there were three bands only, and two of those from Derby!
On reflection what probably happened was that the bands left it to the last minute to practice, found the method tricky because unfamiliar, could not get replacement ringers easily, especially as the 12 bell eliminator was the week before, and so dropped out as the only option. It was unfortunate. If it had been known that there would be an exodus, even two weeks before, then the competition would have been cancelled. As it was, for the three bands, the judge, the caterers and helpers, it was a disappointment. Unfortunately the results have not so far been published and so for the record they are given at the end of this article.
One of the problems with the traditional arrangements of the Worthington Cup has been the proximity in time to the 12 bell eliminators. In addition to this the bells of St Paul’s, Burton upon Trent, do not go well and they are not rung regularly.
So in 2000 the Midland Counties Guild has decided to change the date and change the venue. Guilds and Associations are invited to enter bands to compete at St Editha’s, Tamworth, on Saturday 21st October. The bells of St Editha’s are an excellent 2lcwt ten and the recently installed sound control makes it possible to hold such a competition there on a Saturday afternoon. Before this new addition ringing at the church was very restricted because of the closeness of the market place. The crypt is an ideal place to congregate and hear the results and the town of Tamworth should be a pleasant attraction for waiting bands and non-ringers, with the Castle overlooking the river Anker, the attractively planted gardens and the leisure facilities. A fine Autumn day is all that is required!
Bands wishing to enter should consult the advertisement in this week’s issue of The Ringing World. The test piece will be a course of Cambridge Surprise Royal, which should be much easier than Double Grandsire Caters!
Although it is such a long time since the event, but because a report has not appeared before now, here, purely for the record, is a brief overview of the 1998 competition. The three bands competing were Derby Cathedral, The Rest of Derbyshire and the St Martin’s Guild, in that order. The judge, Brian Meads, made some comments along the following lines:
Band number one had an irregular rhythm and did not show great confidence. Position 7,8 and 9 in the change tended to be held up. Major faults occurred at handstroke. Bad error at the 13th lead end – one third of the faults occurred there.
Band number two were more confident. Tripier into changes. Slowed down as they went on. No serious errors. Liked general beat.
Band number three had quite a trippy start. The two practice pieces were too quick but the speed of the test piece was OK. No serious errors.
The winners were band number two. The Rest of Derbyshire with 129 faults, followed by St Martin’s Guild with 140 and Derby Cathedral with 198. In true Worthington tradition photographs of each band were duly taken and are now in the album (which, incidentally, dates back to 1978). |
Derby Diocesan Association (Rest of Derbyshire)
Clive W Longden, Gordon A Halls, Andrew J Burns, Peter Marriott, Simon Humphrey, C Frederick C Pearson, Robert J Marchbank, Timothy A Swift, Simon C Melen, David J Marshall. |
St Martin’s Guild
Matthew E J Lansberry, Dinah Reed, Cecilia E C Pipe, David J Pipe, Anthea S Edwards, David Ingram, Maurice F Edwards, Roderick W Pipe, Frances Dodds, Andrew M Keech. |
