YES I had doubts. Big ones, over whether Ian Champion would make a success of the Bels job.

Fair play to him, he has proved me and a few others wrong in not only guiding the Belgraves to the Division One championship but also staying the course, particularly when the going got hot in October after the club copped an island-wide pasting for fielding close to a full first-team in a Division Two mauling of Centrals.

At the time North were flying, Craig Young was a seemingly happy Northerner and St Martin’s looked strong.

Bels were tetchy, lost 7-5 in that game-of-the-season encounter at Northfield, and they even managed to lose to Sylvans in the Stranger Cup.

So what went right?

Well, Bels won the title for a number of reasons and make your own mind up as to whether you,

(a) agree with them; and (b) what order of importance you rank them.

* They had the season’s outstanding footballer, Dave Rihoy, leading the line, and he carried them when in trouble.

* Craig Young’s arrival gave the club the perfect boost going into the second half of the season. Collectively they were more focused on the biggest prize than Saints.

Bels fielded a more settled line-up than their rivals.

* Saints lost their best player, Ben Coulter, to injury.

Where did Champion come into all this?

Well, the players seem to love him and that’s always handy.

Of course, all the above went for him and, to his credit, he has not let himself down at any point with ridiculous criticism of officials.

At the same time he has gone a long way to ease the loss of the club’s most successful ever manager, Micky Ogier.

The question remains, can Champion’s Bels emulate Ogier in winning two titles and even outstrip ‘Budlo’ by steering his men to back-to-back titles?

As things stand, you’d have to fancy him to do just that and make Bels history as the first coach to retain a Priaulx title.

Five times previously they have failed to hold onto the old trophy and unless there is a major shake-up in personnel this summer, I can see Champion underlining he is just that.

But while Champion celebrates, spare a thought for the man who for four months of the campaign probably thought he would win a back-to-to-back championship – North’s Mick Le Prevost.

There have been times when this column has been critical of him, but more often it has been North and not him – the hugely enthusiastic, hard-working, devoted captain of a ship without lifeboats that hit an iceberg – that has been the target.

Mick can be proud of his role in North’s fantastic history, of course he can.

He did not drive North into the iceberg as his hand was not the strongest on the Northfield wheel.

From a media perspective, he was never less than helpful and honest to the GP team and we thank him for that.

Enjoy the fishing Mick, welcome to the fray Ross, if as seems very likely, there is internal promotion at what I expect to be a new-look North set-up from June onwards.

Knocked off many a Christmas card list after last week’s critique of the island netball scene, perhaps I should refrain from firing any more verbal bolts at traditionally our No. 1 women’s sport.

But, since last weekend, a set of stats relating to Guernsey’s netball ‘Upton’ record arrived on the sports desk.

They are worth sharing with readers as they show just how horrific our record is in the annual encounter between the champions of the two islands.

Of the 64 post-war ‘Uptons,’ Guernsey sides have won 12 with two others shared.

The record over the past two decades is particularly bad with just two outright wins since 1990.

Since 2000 Guernsey has posted one win and a share of the spoils in 2003.

For the record, Guernsey’s most successful club in the annual encounter are North with five wins  (53/54, 55, 72, 78 and 79), Rangers/Nerine with two outright wins and two draws, and the long-gone Delancey club, who won the first three matches after the Occupation.

Come on girls, shake things up.