NINE-YEAR-OLD Oliver Crabb is likely to need an extra-large trophy cabinet soon if he continues to collect gongs at his current rate.

The York City Baths Club youngster picked up seven trophies in his most recent meeting, following other major hauls in the two previous weeks.

Crabb, of Millfield Gardens, Nether Poppleton, competed at the Belper Marlin SC 'B' grade meet in Derby last weekend, at which about 200 swimmers in age categories from ten-years to 14-years-and-over took part.

And the St Olave's School year five pupil returned home with two top boy trophies - one to keep and one to hand back before next year's annual event - after some startling swims in the ten-years age group. These included victory in the 50-metre freestyle, 50m breaststroke and 100m individual medley and second places in the 50m butterfly and 50m backstroke.

The weekend before, at a meet on Tyneside, Crabb won both the 50m breaststroke and 50m backstroke and was third in the 200m individual medley, and at an event in Middlesbrough the week before that, he was first in the 50m freestyle and 100m IM, second in the 50m butterfly and 200m breaststroke and third in the 200m freestyle.

Crabb, who has been with YCBC for a year, was set to compete again at this weekend's YCBC championships in Tadcaster.

Updated: 12:52 Saturday, November 02, 2002