Streets ahead

HIT for six... Oldham was second in the North-West StreetGames cricket contest

OLDHAM youngsters did the borough proud as they picked up honours in a regional sports competition.

Young people from across the region flocked to Manchester’s Sportcity to take part in the North-West StreetGames Festival.

They competed in an array of sports, with Oldham teams scooping first place in rugby and runners-up in angling and cricket.

Around 500 youngsters competed in 13 activities including traditional events such as athletics and basketball and more unusual offerings like dodgeball, skateboarding, ultimate frisbee and tri-golf.

Mayors from across the region also visited to support the event.

The event was organised by Sport 4 Life in partnership with StreetGames, a national youth sports development charity that aims to provide doorstep sport to young people living in disadvantaged communities.

The festival has proved itself a hit over the last five years, becoming so popular that the event has had to be split into two, with a second festival held in Liverpool last Friday.

Organiser John Dwan said: “The event was fantastic for young people to experience just how diverse the world of sport is.

“StreetGames’ ethos of offering a wide variety of sports to young people is fantastic, because everyone gets included.”