A BOLTON mental health group has come up with a novel way to knock depression for six by playing rounders.

Befriending group Mhist has formed its own team to play in the Bolton Ladies' Rounders League including women with problems from schizophrenia and bi-polar disorder to anxiety and low self-esteem.

And already many of them are seeing a real improvement in their conditions.

The idea for the team came from befriending project team leader Heather Crook, a rounders player for 17 years. "Talking to women using the service, several said they would like to be more active and perhaps get involved in a sport," explained Heather, at the group's base in Chorley New Road.

"I suggested putting a Mhist team in the league, made up of some of the women, volunteers and friends, and they were pretty keen. Some were worried, though, that they wouldn't be fit enough because they hadn't played the game since school or had never played."

But their fitness and skills soon started to improve when they began practising for the summer sport last October.

"We practised on Sunday mornings, in all kinds of weather including snow", added Heather.

Now, the team has 30 players signed on with 19 keen to play regularly in the 11-a-side fixtures. They range in age from the 12 year-old daughter of a volunteer to a 60-year-old, and Heather rotates players each week to give everyone a game.

With the help of a grant from Health For Bolton, the team invested in light blue polo shirts, navy waterproofs and navy skirts all bearing the Mhist logo and paid for equipment and referees' fees.

They play in Section O of the league, which has more than 3,000 local females registered for 149 teams, and uses playing fields at Egerton Primary School.

Now, they look forward to every match, and are so keen one player even suggested changing her holidays to avoid missing a game!

"We won our first match the other day and it was great. But the best thing is seeing how some of the women have grown in confidence and improved," said Heather.

"We make all our decisions together and, in the pub after a match, hearing people suggest ideas to help the team is brilliant." Other teams have proved friendly, and when we explain that Mhist is a mental health support group they are really interested," she said.

Bolton league secretary Dave Jolly said the league "actively recruited" new teams from right across the community. "Sport is valuable in so many ways. In helping individuals and integrating everyone so we are very pleased to have a team from Mhist playing rounders and really enjoying it."

As for Heather Crook's fellow professionals' view of this unusual form of "therapy" - "I think some had reservations at first, she stated.

"But now everyone can see how well it works."