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World Championship Finals
SUPERGRID
1955: Glasgow: Eileen Logan {left} with team mates after beating Liverpool . Her goal in the Final won her the Golden Bat
1958: Cheshire captain, Jean Sloane held aloft by {L to R} Sabrina Kaye, Carol Watson, Rosemary Vaughan, Jenny Tresillian & Jean Dudley
Willesden 1959: Captain, Kathleen Bidmead held aloft by Jean Anstiss {centre}, Jean Don {right} & Kate Good {left}
Margaret Rees is mobbed by team mates {L to R} Beryl Lugg-Neville, Maureen Davis and Jean Anstiss after soring the sudden death winner for Willesden in Supergrid 1957 vs Portsmouth.
Supergrid is the pinnacle of Gridball. The official title is the Gridball World Championship for Clubs, with winning players being awarded the now hallowed Supergrid Brooch. Liverpool were the first team to get their hands on the trophy in 1951 and their defence of the title brought them back for the 1952 showpiece. However, they surrendered their crown to Cheshire, the first of a record four defeats the Liverbirds have now suffered in the big one.
Defending the crown, or even just winning it for a second time, proved a difficult task as seven different teams lifted the crown before Cheshire finally became the first team to win a second title in 1958. Like Liverpool before them, they too took their defence of the title to Supergrid but also ended up in defeat as Willesden clinched their second crown.
It was the Saxons who became the dominant force at the turn of the 1960s, winning three titles in four years and being the first to successfully defend the trophy in 1960.
World Championship Finals
Open Cup Finals
Nations Cup Finals
Gridballer of the Year
Young Gridballer of the Year
Netminder of the Year
Golden Bat
Record Score
Record Appearances
Record Scorers
Legends
Supergrid Miscellany
Open Cup Finals
Prior to 1959, every senior club in the World could potentially reach and win the Gridball World title. However, a reshaping of the tournament that year saw the creation of an Elite division. The consolation for the remaining clubs was the Open Cup. a seeded knock out competition, giving lower division clubs home advantage in the ties. Lanarkshire have become the cup specialists, reaching both the first two finals. However, the Scots have had to watch on as Cork and West Ham lifted the trophy.
Nations Cup Finals
International Gridball was an idea as early as 1953 when a British team travelled to the USA to play a Rest of the World side when Brooklyn became the first side from outside the UK & Ireland to join Gridball. Four years later came the first ever Nations Cup and unlike most other International sports competitions, it's played annually. Like the Open cup, Nations are ranked with the lowest teams given home advantage in the knock out ties. This allows competitions to be played out during the season.
England were the first winners in a battle of Britain against a Welsh team who quickly became the top side in International Gridball. After a surprise season where the amateurs of Puerto Rico reached the Final, Wales returned, only to lose for a second time to the USA before finally claiming the title at the third attempt.
Gridballer of the Year
The Gridballer of the Year award was offered by Jaguar in 1951 who presented Bessie Melia with very flashy XK120 sports car. Gertrude Keegan received an Allard K2 2 seater sprayed deliberately in Liverpool teal, thus continuing a tradition of presenting the Gridballer of the Year with a British sports car in club colours. Emma Kehoe received a Sunbeam Alpine, The Mercedes-Benz 180 presented to Gillian Preece in 1954 received criticism as not technically British or indeed sporty. Sally Jellicoe and June Kaye both received AC Aces. Beryl Lugg-Neville was awarded an elegant Coral coloured Morgan while Jean Sloane's reward in 1958 was an Aston Martin DB2. Jean Anstiss received a Peerless GT and her team mate, Elizabeth Meriwether picked up a lovely Austin Healy 3000.
Elizabeth Meriwether: The first American to be voted Gridballer of the Year. To date, no player has won the award twice
Young Gridballer of the Year
No such huge reward for the Young Gridballer of the Year, who, instead of being blessed with a sports car, have been given a series of different awards by various sponsors. The obvious exception in the list being Emma Kehoe, the only youngster to be named the full blooded Player of the Year.
Netminder of the Year
This award wasn't an official thing until 1960. Prior to that it was basically whichever goalie that was named in the team of the year who was retrospectively dubbed Goalie of the Year. Sharon Wallis, Catherine Fraser and Janet Horsbrough all share the honour of being named top goalie twice. Horsbrough is also the only goalie to win Young Player of the Year while a Goalie being named the best player of the season overall is long overdue.
Golden Bat
The Golden Bat is awarded each year to the top scorer in Gridball. Originally just for Supergrid matches, goals in Cup ties and Nations Cup ties are now also included in the tally. Only the great Dorothy Kirton has managed to win the accolade more than once.
Record Scores
West Ham were the first side to score more than ten goals in a game when defeating Leicester 13-1 in 1952. Liverpool matched it without a Dublin reply two years later. However, the Hammers recaptured the record victory in 1960 against a hapless Philadelphia side. Just three months later, Lancashire set the biggest win at any level, putting sixteen past Kent on their way to promotion to the Elite division.
Most Appearances
Emma Kehoe-Sim's appearance at Supergrid 1960 marked her as the first player to play 200 elite Gridball games in the Elite Championship, Open Cup and Nations Cup.
Emma Kehoe-Sim. Played her 200th game in Supergrid 1960, the first player to hit that milestone.
Emma Kehoe-Sim: Born 1934, Messina, Italy. 1951 World Champion, 1957 Nations Champion, Four time Supergrid Runner Up [Record Five Supergrid Appearances}, Twice placed in Team of the Year.
Ann Hanslip: Born 1934, Edmonton, London, England. 1957, 1959 & 1960 World Champion. Two time Team of the Year.
Priscilla Hale-Kilburn: Born 1930, Woodford, Essex, England. 1956 World Champion. 1957 Nations Champion. 1953 Goalie of the Year. 1956 Team of the Year.
Brenda Marshall: Born 1928, Romford, Essex, England. 1956 World Champion, 1960 Cup Winner, 1953 Supergrid Runner Up, 1956 3rd Player of the Year.
Eileen Logan {Ure}: Born Hillhead, Glasgow, Scotland. 1955 World Champion, Golden Bat, 3rd Player of the Year, 1958 Supergrid and Nations Cup 3rd place, 1959 Supergrid 4th place, 1960 Cup Winner.
Sabrina Kaye: Born 1935, Birkenhead, England. 1952 & 1958 World Champion, 1957 Nations Champion, 1952 Young Player of the Year, 1959 Supergrid Runner Up, 1956 Supergrid 3rd Place, 1955 Supergrid 4th place, 2 time Team of the Year.
Magda Miller: Born 1935, Clydebank, Scotland. 1955 World Champion, 1959 Supergrid 3rd Place & Cup Runner Up, 1960 Supergrid 4th Place & Cup Runner Up.
Jean Sloane: Born 1933, Cheadle Hulme, England. 1952 & 1958 World Champion, 1958 Gridballer of the Year, 1954 & 1959 World Runner Up, 1956 World 3rd Place, 1955 World 4th Place & Runner Up Player of the Year.
Jean Anstiss: Born 1934, Newport, Wales. 1957 & 1959 World Champion, 1959 Golden Bat & Gridballer of the Year, 1960 Nations Champion, Legend & Bronze Bat, 1957 & 1959 Nations Cup Runner Up.
Rosalie Williams: Born 1919, Liverpool, England. 1951, 1959 & 1960 World Champion, 1958 Golden Bat, 1960 Team of the Year
Record Scorers
Sally Jellicoe,the fourth greatest goalscorer in Gridball history but has yet to win a Supergrid or Golden Bat.
Dorothy Kirton: Born 1925 West Ham, England. 1956 World Champion, 1957 Nations Champion, 1953 World Runner Up, 1953 & 1956 Golden Bat, 1955 Bronze Bat, 1953 & 1956 Team of the Year
Sally Jellicoe: Born 1936, Kingston-Upon-Hull, England. 1957 Nations Champion, 1955, 1958 & 1960 World Runner Up, 1955 & 1957 Silver Bat, 1955 Gridballer of the Year, 1958 Team of the Year
Lyn Cox: Born 1934, Dublin, Ireland. 1953 World Champion, 1959 Nations Bronze
Elizabeth Courtenay-Stringer: Born 1927, Swansea, Wales. 1960 Nations Champion, 1957 & 1959 Nations Runner Up, 1952 Silver Bat
Pauline Dobby {Yates}: Born 1929 Tranmere, England. 1951 World Champion, 1960 Cup Winner, 1952 & 1955 Runner Up, 1960 Golden Bat, 1953 & 1954 Team of the Year
Barbara Hoffman {Graham}: Born 1936, Houston, Texas, United States. 1958 Silver Bat
Carol Watson: Born 1934, Newport, Isle of Wight, Great Britain. 1958 World Champions, 1957 & 1959 World Runner Up, 1957 & 1959 Bronze Bat, 1959 Team of the Year. Only player to play in 3 consecutive Supergrid Finals.
Barbara Box: Born 1925, Dartford, Kent, England. Never beyond a Gridball Quarter Final
Each year every registered senior Gridballer is asked to nominate their Gridballer of the Year. They can't vote for any National team mate or current or former team mate. Any player who accumulates 200 votes in total, is inducted onto the Gridball Hall of Fame. Click the title to get profiles of the inductees.
Shirley Pithers of West Ham chats with former Willesden team mates, Sharon Wallis and Ann Hanslip. The newly inducted Legend rejoined Willesden in 1961
Supergrid Records
Supergrid is the pinnacle of the Gridball game, with every Gridballer wanting to earn Supergrid Brooch, given to each player of a Championship winning team.
Most Wins
Ann Hanslip, Margaret Rees & Rosalie Williams are the only players ever to win Three Supergrid Brooches. Hanslip and Rees were the only member of the Willesden team that won three titles in four years, 1957, 1959 and 1960 to have played in all three victories. Williams was their team mate in the latter two games but missed the 1957 final with injury. Her last ever game was Supergrid 1960 where she claimed her third Brooch against the team she won her first with in 1951, Liverpool.
Sabrina Kaye & Jean Sloane {Cheshire 1952 & 1958}, Sharon Wallis, Jean Don & Kathleen Bidmead {Willesden 1959 & 1960} and Jean Anstiss {1957 & 1959} have all won two Brooches. Wallis, Bidmead and Anstiss all missed out on a treble with the Saxons through either of Maternity or injury.
Most Supergrids
Liverpool trio, Janet Horsbrough, Emma Kehoe-Sim and Katherine Molloy played in all five of Liverpool's Supergrid appearances from 1951 to 1960. The disappointment of losing four times only tempered by having won the first appearance in 1951.
The Unluckiest Supergridder of all time is probably Sally Jellicoe, the only player to have lost all three Supergrids she's played in. The Forward has also twice won the Silver Bat but never the Golden Bat. Despite this, she was inducted into the Hall of Legends in 1960.
Oldest and Youngest
Willesden's Rosalie Williams was 41 when she won her third Supergrid Brooch in 1960, having announced her intention to retire after the victorious semi final.
At 15 Years, 9 Months and 4 Days, Houston's Charlotte Gilpin is the youngest of a trio of school girls to have played in the showpiece, when she came in for the injured Barbara Hoffman in attack in 1956. However, Gilpin was lying about her age at the time so Pam Wallis, niece of regular Willesden goalie, Sharon was regarded as the youngest when she deputised for her unavailable aunt in 1957 until Giplpin owned up. However, Wallis remains the youngest person ever to claim a Brooch as Gilpin's Stars were crushed 0-5 in their final while Wallis was on the winning side with Willesden. Janet Horsbrough {Liverpool 1951} is the only other player to appear prior to her sixteenth birthday.
Fastest and latest
The tension of a Supergrid doesn't make for quick goals and the first five passed without a first quarter goal. That changed dramatically in 1956 when it took West Ham's Dorothy Kirton just 17 seconds to breach Houston on the way to a record 5-0 win. Kirton went on to score all five goals that day, also a record.
Cheshire have the whip hand on late winners, with both their Supergrid wins coming with less than two minutes on the clock, and both coming against Liverpool. Jean Sloane scored the winner with just seconds remaining in 1952.
Three Finals to date have required Sudden Death Extra Time to find the winner and none has gone on as long as the very first final in 1951. The game was in it's 76th minute when Pauline Yates {Now Dobby} hit Liverpool's winner against Sunderland.
Quirks
When Willesden's Sharon Wallis missed the 1957 season on Maternity her deputy in goal for the Saxons was her schoolgirl niece, Pam Wallis. The youngster was rewarded at the end of the season with a Supergrid Brooch.
West Ham fielded three sisters in their team in the very first season in 1951. The Chamberlain sisters made only twenty-one appearances for the Hammers in total between them.