SAMURAI member Darcie Hancocks proved her pedigree when she won a second bronze medal at the well-respected Venray International Open.

The event in Holland is the biggest and toughest club open judo tournament in Europe, with this year around 34 different countries fielding over 1,500 competitors.

There were 30 players in the girls under-48 kilogram kilos group, so for once Hancocks, Leah Grosvenor and Sian Bobrowska were less likely to end up against each other.

Grosvenor faced one of the favourites in her category first and demolished her with incredible ease and then won her next in equal style to reach the quarter-finals, while Hancox Darcie also won her first two by maximum points comfortably to also reach the quarter-finals.

Bobrowski won her first but was unlucky to lose her second contest and then lost the repêchage.

In the quarter-finals, Grosvenor tasted defeat and was then edged out in the repêchage.

Hancocks won her quarter-final again comfortably and looked favourite to win her semi-final but in the last four, she was caught for a low score early on.

Having reached the semi-final for the third consecutive year, she was now once again fighting for bronze. Last year she just managed to win for the bronze, but this year she absolutely thrashed her Polish opponent, gaining an early low score and then a high score and then a maximum score from three different throws to take the bronze in style.

Meanwhile, Matt Hemer had nearly 70 players from all over Europe and beyond in his weight group.

After losing his first match, he stormed through the repechage and won the next five contests in a row.

He eventually tasted defeated against an eventual bronze medallist but finished seventh in his category.

bronze medallist, he had reached the last seven players in the category, an excellent result.

Laura Dangerfield's run of six gold medals came to an end when she lost in the quarter-finals of the senior women’s section, but she then fought her way through the repechage to the bronze contest before coming fifth.

Elswhere, Rob Alloway travelled to the High Wycombe Masters Tournament and returned with a bronze medal.