Bebington badminton club discover they are one of the oldest in England

Jul 30 2008 by Carrie Catterall, Bromborough and Bebington News

A TREASURE trove of historical documents has revealed that Bebington has one of the oldest badminton clubs in the country.

The club, started by five times Wimbledon Ladies’ Singles Champion Lottie Dod, has been around for over 100 years.

This was a fact unknown to the club until boxes of dusty documents were recovered from a club member’s attic and given to their new secretary Vicky Evans.

Vicky, 51, of Heswall, followed in the footsteps of her grandmother and mother by joining the all ladies' club as a young adult.

She said: “My mother is still a member however she stopped playing when she was 85.

“We have 40 members at the moment with our oldest aged 91.

“Our club is made up of non-working ladies who are proposed for membership through a friend.

“We've been meeting up every Tuesday morning at Barnstondale since 1983 - although we only play friendly matches now.”

The club always thought this year was their centenary year because one of their winning trophies - The Lyndsay Cup - is dated 1908.

A lunch to celebrate this is being prepared and will gather all members and former members together later this year.

Vicky, a full-time mother three, said: “When I was given all these boxes I couldn't believe what I found.

“There were old records of games dating back to 1905 - it was only at this time that I realised we'd actually missed our centenary.

“Then I thought we must be one of the oldest clubs in the country.”

Bebington Badminton Club is actually the second oldest, beaten by Newcastle Badminton Club which formed in 1900.

Vicky added: “Being so old makes us feel rather special .”

If you are a former member of Bebington Badminton Club email andybunta@aol.com