Maybe it was the Olympic legacy, or maybe something more mystical, but Ealing girls handball team went from last to third at the London Youth Games in the Copper Box Arena this week.
A more likely source for the meteoric rise in one year was team manager Melanie Chowns.
After all, this was the woman returning to the same venue where she oversaw GB women at the 2012 Olympics.
The bonus of a prestigious manager saw the west Londoners produce impressive early form including a 7-0 win over Camden to book a place in the knockout stages.
Ealing saw off the challenge of Croydon 2-0 before edging past Barking & Dagenham 3-2 in the quarter-finals.
Kingston proved too strong for them in a losing semi-final, 4-2, which meant a second game against Haringey for the bronze medal. It finished 0-0 in the group stages, and they could not be separated again at the final whistle.
This time there had to be a winner, and a penalty shootout ended with Ealing elated.
Needless to say, Chowns was chuffed.
“I’m unbelievably proud of the team,” she said.
“We came here last year and were last. There was very little expectation on our girls, but we worked so hard over the last 10 weeks, and to really just give everything.
“For them to get a bronze medal, well, if you watched the game you saw what it meant to them at the end. I’ve been involved with handball for nearly 40 years and that’s one of my top days, I have to say.”
Meanwhile, Ealing Handball Club’s Oliver Bray has been selected for the England Under-19 team to play at the prestigious Cell Cup in Hungary in August.
The 17-year-old, who previously played for the England U16s, was selected following gruelling trials last weekend. He had been invited to the trial by new England coach Ricardo Vasconcelos, but faced stiff competition from players almost two years older.
“I am honoured to have been selected,” Bray added.
