THE highly successful Clan Netball Club started 2001 as they had finished the old year, with a win.

The Wycombe based club claimed top spot in their first tournament of the year at the Abbey NC Invitation Tournament in Oxford last Sunday.

They saw off Southampton side Applemore 19-9 in the final to lift the silverware.

Applemore held the height advantage over Clan in the circle, but the Bucks side managed to cut out many of the Applemore attacks before they even reached the area.

The first half proved a tight affair but Clan managed to put the game beyond doubt early in the second half when their open style of play completely cut up their opponents.

Earlier, in the pool rounds, Clan had their toughest match of the section with their opening game against West Midlands outfit Yenkis.

The physical Yenkis team put Clan, who had raced to an early lead, under tremendous pressure as the game wore on.

It finished 10-all, but that was the toughest it got for Clan in the group matches.

From then on they had relatively straightforward wins over their other opponents to set up a sem-final clash with Portsmouth side Home James.

Against their old rivals, Clan built up an early lead but Home came back in the second half reducing the deficit to 14-10, but Clan held on for the win to move into the final.

It was a good result for the Clan side who are on their way again to claiming another title in the High Wycombe Winter League.

The side has dominated both the summer and winter leagues in Bucks for the best part of two decades.