First JFT defeat for Longwood in 7 years

Veterans 6-Man League Julie Fuller Trophy Semi-Finals

The 2001 Julie Fuller Trophy Final will be staged between Marsh United and Slaithwaite to be played at Kirkheaton C&BC on Friday 3 September.

The Semi-Finals completed this week saw Marsh United edge it past Honley Con by 61-58 with the handicap not playing a part as both started with a +12 handicap. A different story in the other Semi-Final as Slaithwaite overwhelmed their Longwood opponents 81-37 without the need to revert to their 12-point handicap advantage.

That second scoreline means that Longwood have lost a Julie Fuller Trophy match for the first time since 2013, some achievement. The only occasion that they haven't won the trophy in the last 7 years was the one year they dropped out of the League (2018) with of course no competition in 2020 because of the pandemic.

The Final line-up means that a new team name will be added to the trophy as neither of the two finalists have won this competition before.