HALESOWEN Swimming Club booked their place in the West Midlands National League final with a second-placed finish in Leamington Spa last weekend.

The club backed up their first place in round one with a second-placed finish in round two's gala last Saturday.

The evening started well with Halesowen swimmers in second place to Boldmere after the first 10 races. Determined swims meant that the two clubs maintained these positions throughout the gala. Halesowen pulled out all the stops with a spectacularly display on the final race, winning the open means freestyle relay by almost one full length. The team achieved their required second place and qualified for the Final for the first time since 2008.

Double event winners were Richard Spoor, Robert Jennings and Niamh Larkin. First places also went to Jacob Bailey, Olivia Jay, Jack Simpson and Katherine Morrice.

The means open relay team were unbeatable winning both the medley and freestyle events and included Mark Laing, Josh Bradley and Callum Tinsdale. The boys 15 years medley relay team were also winners and included Ryan Larkin, Jakob Baker and James Cuthbert.

Final point scores were Boldmere A 243, Halesowen 212, Leicester Sharks A 178, City of Hereford 168, Wolverhampton 133, Blythe Barracudas 111.