Cape Limited sponsored the Cape Swimming Gala for a handsome trophy, the winning team receiving medals. The honours went to Great Yarmouth by one point.

Cape Limited sponsored the Cape Swimming Gala for a handsome trophy, the winning team receiving medals. The honours went to Great Yarmouth by one point.

Result: Great Yarmouth 119, Dereham Otters 118, Diss Otters 86 and Beccles Kingfishers 81.

The teams were so closely matched tthe gala went down to the last race. The racing was close in every event with first place changing several times during the course of the

first half.

At halfway (20 races) Dereham were in the lead by just three points from Yarmouth with Diss and Beccles still in contention. The swimming was fast and furious in the second half with Dereham and Yarmouth slowly pulling away. Yarmouth closed the gap with Dereham, which left both the teams going into the last race, the cannon, with equal points. The cannon is a team event with 16 swimmers, two boys and two girls from each age group swimming one 25-metre length each.

There was plenty of support for the swimmers at each end of the pool. Some supporters were almost screaming at the swimmers to go faster in the last race.

Yarmouth opened a seven-metre

gap from Dereham with Diss

chasing hard and Beccles giving their all. Yarmouth kept the lead and finished first.

This evening was one of the closest held in a long time and thanks went to Beccles, Dereham and Diss for making the evening such a success and to Cape and Scott Gallacher for supporting it.

Garry Jarvis, the Yarmouth coach, said: “Extremely well done for a brilliant win.

“Team spirit was in abundance as a few swimmers were ill on the night and quick replacements had to be found,” he added.

The Yarmouth team, which gained some personal best times: Adelaide Loveland, Jack Utting, Paige Lovage (pb), Isaac Kirby (pb), Zoe Prettyman, Matt Hosier (pb), Olivia Smith, Connor Webster, Keelan Pywell, Grace Hubbard, Brandon Tennant (pb), Tom Smith, Charlie Smith (pb), James Applegate (pb), Amelia Hacking (pb), Jack Ollington, Chelcie Teasdale (pb), Andrew Moore, Jamie Childs, Emma Riches and Denise Webster.