DORSET are celebrating a host of achievements for the county’s junior players.

Leading the way, under-11 national doubles champion Jack MacGregor attended a highly competitive under-13 gold tournament at the National Badminton Centre in Milton Keynes, where teams from Denmark, Scotland and England were all in attendance.

MacGregor and his Warwickshire doubles partner Joshlee Bong did extremely well to make it to the quarter-finals, losing narrowly to the Scottish number one pairing.

February has also been a good month for David Higbee, who won gold at the under-13 silver event in Exeter and followed on by taking silver in a fantastic final at the Bournemouth tournament last weekend.

The Bournemouth showpiece also saw Talbot Heath schoolgirl Charlotte Murray take the under-15 girls and mixed doubles titles with her partners Libby McMorrow from Hampshire and Andrew Jones from Wiltshire.

At the Somerset under-15 tournament, four Dorset girls – Chloe Wakely, Bernice Dore, Amy Cox and Melissa Hensleigh – reached the singles semi-finals.

Weymouth’s Wakely overcame Dore 21-9 in the final with both finalists teaming up to take gold in the girls’ doubles final, beating Cox and Gemma Curtis 21-10.

Westgate Badminton Centre in Winchester entertained a large field of girls in the Hampshire under-15 tournament with Wakely beating the number one seed Amy Polglase from Cornwall 21-19 and triumphing against fellow Dorset player Rebekah Blinman in the final, 21-4.

Sophie Males made the trip to Jersey for the 2012 Credit Suisse Jersey Open, coming away with the under-15 singles trophy, winning a tight final against Chloe Le Tissier from Guernsey.

The pair then joined forces to win both the under-15 and 17 doubles titles.

Congratulations also go to 13-year-old England junior Ciara Lindsay, who played in the under-15 Eight Nations Tournament in Germany, where the English team came second to Denmark, and 15-year-old Lynlette Aung, who has been selected to represent England in the under-19 Dutch International Tournament, which starts today.

Dorset Badminton Academy is held at Avonbourne School on a Saturday morning and is open to all players, aged five to 18, from beginners to county standard.

For more information on attending a free taster session contact coach Kirsty Wilcox on 07966 719616.

Anyone wishing to take part in the Dorset Junior County Championships on April 22 should visit dorsetbadminton.co.uk and download an entry form.