Northampton flyball team achieve 'biggest dream' after qualifying for Crufts championships

A Northampton flyball team is bursting with pride after qualifying for the championships of the world's biggest dog show, Crufts.

Flyball is a sport in which teams of dogs race against each other from the start to the finish line - over hurdles - to a box that releases a tennis ball to be caught when the dog presses a spring-loaded pad, then back to their handlers with the ball in their mouth.

The Molten Magnets - based in Moulton - took part in the Crufts flyball championship qualifier in the Cambridgeshire town of Chatteris in June 2021.

The team is now set to compete against 13 others in the Crufts flyball championships at the National Exhibition Centre in Birmingham next month.

Captain of the Molten Magnets, Bhav Patel, 34, from Kingsthorpe, said: "We found out straight away and we all burst into tears, we could not believe it.

"There were teams running two seconds faster than us. They had the fastest dogs in the world and we were nowhere near those speeds and we could not believe it.

"It was incredible that our team pulled this together. I can't put it into words, it was a super emotional day."

Northampton's canine champions and handlers consist of Inka with Bhav Patel, Jackson with Isabelle Cadd, Fletcher with Olivia Harris, Dexter with Faith Camwell, Mason with Rik Perry and Bailey with Laura Perry.

All dogs on the team are Border Collies with the exception of Dexter, who is a Cocker Spaniel, and Mason, who is a German Shepherd that picked up an award for being the fastest in his breed division during the flyball qualifiers last year.

Crufts' rules state that the team captain cannot also be a dog handler in the competition so - in Bhav's place - the team will be led through the flyball championships by their nominated captain, Jo Cadd.

Bhav continued: "We are quite the underdogs of this tournament. It has been a dream to go to Crufts for the last three years but Covid got in the way and set us back.

"There were nine other teams entered and miraculously - we still don't know how - we qualified for Crufts."

The Molten Magnets flyball team was first established by a woman called Jean Meeking in 2004. The flyball team has since grown to a grand total of 32 handlers and 41 dogs, who are all split into smaller teams under the Molten Magnets banner - including the Molten Monarchs, Molten Metals and Molten Marvels to name a few.

This is not the first time the team have graced the internationally televised arena. The Molten Magpies - named after a running joke of 'stealing the shiny trophy' - qualified for the Crufts flyball championships 10 years ago and won the competition.

Jean has since passed and Bhav took over the running of the flyball team six years ago.

Looking ahead to the flyball championships next month, Bhav said: "It's super nerve wracking, it has just been a dream for us for so long. Historically, Molten have gone to Crufts and won Crufts under Jean's leadership.

"It will be our first time back on the green carpet since then so we are super nervous. We have trained and put the work in. The members are dedicated and made sure their dogs are prepped, had their physio and hydro.

"They're better cared for than we are," Bhav added jokingly.

The Molten Magnets will compete in the Crufts flyball championships at the National Exhibition Centre in Birmingham on Thursday, March 10.

If they are successful, they will go on to compete in the semi-final on Saturday, March 12.

The Molten Magnets are sponsored by Vets4Pets.

Keep up with the Molten Magnets' Crufts journey by following their Facebook page.