CHANNEL swimmer Mervyn Sharp has been in touch with memories of his time with Weymouth’s victorious junior water polo team.

In the summer of 1964, Merv and his team mates practised day-in, day-out ‘down at the pier’ and all their training paid off because they won the Dorset Junior Water Polo League.

Mervyn, who was the team’s goalkeeper, remembers that they scored 78 times and only conceded four goals.

He said: “We were down at the pier for most of our summer holidays, sometimes seven days a week, sliding down the water shute and diving or jumping off the boards, entertaining the crowds that used to arrive and, of course, throwing a water pop ball or two.

“More often than not we would play a friendly game on the Sunday morning with some of the senior squad members as part of our training and we usually played our Dorset Junior League games of an evening during the week.

“We played teams from Bridport at West Bay, Lyme Regis at the Cobb and Wareham in the river there. It was great at the Cobb because you would get some good swells and waves coming through and they were great fun to play in.”

Mervyn added: “Before our home games we had to ‘swim the pitch out’ and tie and anchor it to various buoys in the sea and to the pillars that formed part of the pier.

“On good summers there would probably be as many as 200 or more people watching, most of them holidaymakers.”

Each game consisted of four quarters of five minutes, with seven players from each team allowed in the water at one time.

“Even though it was only 20 minutes, it was worth travelling away for because we all loved it so much,” said Merv.

“The game was often fast and furious and sometimes the ref did not always see what went on under the water even though he was looking down from the pier.

“Let’s just say it was a good idea to wear two pairs of swimming trunks!”

During the team’s triumphant summer of 64, they also played against some of the best players from Devon, Cornwall, Wiltshire and Hampshire.

Mervyn, who has swum the Channel seven times, sent in two photographs to accompany those memories.

Pictured in the image of the team wearing their polo hats are, back from left, coach Maurice Halls, Stephen Skerman, Philip Gollop, Mervyn Sharp, Malcolm Squirrell, Vivien Schofield and Jimmy Halls. Front from left are Stephen halls, Brian Hunt, Brian Weir and Dennis Hanger.

The other photograph was taken at West bay before a match and shows, back from left, Philip Gollop, Brian Hunt, Mervyn Sharp, Stephen Skerman and Brian Weir.

In the front are Dennis Hanger, Vivien Schofield, Malcolm Squirrell and Stephen Halls.

Mervyn said: “I still see some of the team about, though Stephen Halls has moved to Australia. It was a great team and we had a lot of fun.

“We just gelled really well together when we played polo.”