W/C 17/02/25
DIV ONE:
With Shopfitting by SWS A (Mark Weymouth, Martin Parnell and Mike Briggs) whitewashing their C club mates they secured top spot in the league without losing a match in this phase.
Molynuex Associates came out 6-4 winners against Shopfitting by SWS B. The evening was competitive but played in great spirit. Unfortunately, Sam Bruty came away empty handed as he suffered a foot injury in his opening game against SWS’s Colin Mitchell and after battling through against Dan Kayes had to concede against Jan Walaszkowski.
Molyneux Associates C upset the balance by beating their B club mates 6-4 in a great match with some outstanding play. Steve Hill of the B team was the man of the match taking a maximum. Whilst playing Paul Haigh in the fourth end, Haigh slipped and fell badly and the rubber came off his bat. Haigh played on with replacement bat but with the combination of the injury and a different bat lost in the fifth end 12-10, 11-6, 8-11, 11-13, 6-11.
DIV TWO:
Molyneux Associates D lost 3-7 to visitors Lee Mill in a match where there where very few closely contested games. Richard Smaridge (Lee Mill) gained a maximum and only lost one game all evening which also included the doubles with Mark Chapman. With this win and with Woodland Fort B losing, the Millers secure their Div Two status.
Abel Hernadez and Jon Goodfield were on maximum form for Woodland Fort in a 7-3 defeat of their B team clubmates. Fort B players all took games off Norman Hall but crucial 5th game losses for Graham Cooksley and Glen Delaney to Hernadez and a five game doubles defeat for Cooksley and Delaney to Hall and Goodfield demotes them to Div Three.
Two player Crafthole A had to thank Iain Oxenham for a magnificent hard-hitting maximum which the Astor A players could not cope with. However, with only two players, Crafthole could only manage a draw.
DIV THREE:
With Horrabridge only managing a draw against Shopfitting by SWS E they have been relegated despite a brave effort and a maximum from David Martin. At the same time SWS E have been promoted in second place.
A brace each from Steve Harvey and Andy Watmore for Astor D was enough for their team to just avoid relegation. A fine maximum from Anthony Shapland without dropping a game was the backbone of Crafthole's 6-4 win.
Two player Marjon finish bottom of this division after being whitewashed by divisional winners Astor B (Chris Tucker, Tony Powlesland and Les Cole).
DIV FOUR:
Astor E could only manage to field two players (John Cobbledick and Ken Chambers 3) against Shopfitting by SWS D but where still promoted as divisional winners after their 3-7 defeat by the youngsters from SWS.
Toby Spencer guested for Astor F with the permission of Life Centre All Stars and took both of his teams points beating Kevin Proctor and Mike Kodicek. This still leaves Astor rooted bottom of all the divisions.
Lucas Deves of Woodland Fort C took a maximum in Woodland Fort’s 7-3 win over Molyneux Associates C. Deves started the evening losing the first two ends to Toby Spencer 2-11, 10-12 but recovered well to eventually win the next three ends 13-11, 11-5, 11-6.
W/C 10/02/25
DIV ONE:
Shopfitting by SWS A extended their lead at the top of the table with a hard-fought 6-4 victory over close rivals Molyneux Associates A. The standout player of the match was Mike Briggs from SWS, who secured a crucial hat-trick of wins. However, he was pushed to his limits by Sam Bruty, who battled through a thrilling five-set match (9-11, 11-3, 11-9, 9-11, 11-8).
Rob Barnes and Steve Foster each won a point for Shopfitting by SWS C in their 2-8 defeat to Molyneux Associates B beating Steve Hill and John Steuart respectively.
Two player Molyneux Associates C hosted Shopfitting by SWS B. Despite Paul Haigh's impressive single victory against Jan Walaszkowski, Molyneux Associates C couldn’t overcome the superior skill and depth of the visiting SWS B team, who dominated the match overall.
DIV TWO:
Lee Mill are making a last-minute attempt to avoid relegation back to Div Three with a maximum each and the doubles for Richard Smaridge and Mark Chapman ending in a 7-3 win over Woodland Fort A.
Astor A guaranteed their promotion back to Div One with an 8-2 win over Woodland Fort B. Steve Garlick and Tony Maestri for Astor both secured their maximums and the doubles, with Garlick not losing a game all evening. Astor's John Sherlock was unlucky not to secure the win over Glenn Delaney, Sherlock had been 2-7 down in the 5th end, then recovered back to 7 all, but finally lost out 13-15 with Delaney's topspin forehand just proving too awkward to control.
Crafthole A had to call on two players from their B team but still managed to defeat Molyneux Associates D 8-2 and relegate them to Div Three. Mike Cookson and Antony Shapland both secured maximums.
DIV THREE:
Astor B’s won 7-3 but Chris Tucker unfortunately had a medical problem during the evening and could only play his first 2 opponents so didn't start his game against Andy Watmore. Astor D’ s Steve Harvey won 2 beating Les Cole 14-12, 14-12, 11-9 and Tony Powlesland 11-4, 7-11, 10-12, 11-9, 12-10.
Trevor Mole of Shopfitting by SWS E gained a perfect maximum in his team’s 8-2 win over Marjon. Marjon’s points both came from Toby Spencer who was standing in for unavailable players.
DIV FOUR:
Richard Searle and Lucas Deves secured braces for Woodland Fort C as they just beat Shopfitting by SWS D 6-4, however braces were also accomplished by SWS’s Jack Heinemann and Jacopo Corino. The tightest match saw Heinemann just defeat Searle 4-11, 5-11, 13-11, 10-0, 12-10.
Shaun Hughes of Life Centre All Stars gained a maximum with some brilliant rallies against Alan and Toby Spencer of Molyneux Associates E. Molyneux’s Chris Dodd (stepping into the team) has greatly improved he had some great games. it was exciting to watch a draw.
Astor E played host to clubmates Astor F with top versus bottom and true to form the' E ' team came out 10-0 winners. Despite the one-sided nature of the contest, it was still a very pleasant evening enjoyed by all with some long rallies.
W/C 04/02/25
DIV ONE:
Shopfitting by SWS A ran into an 8-nil lead with Martin Parnell and Mark Weymouth securing maximums against Molyneux Associates B but Molyneux’s John Steuart just managed to overcome Mike Briggs 6-11, 11-13, 11-7, 11-6, 11-9. The doubles match then proved to be a brilliant battle with SWS gaining the all deciding point 11-9, 9-11, 9-11, 14-12, 12-10 to win 9-1.
All of Molyneux Associates C team (Paul Haigh, Mitch Nash and Jake Neilson) manage to take a point in their 3-7 defeat at the hand of the leaders and club mates from the A team but Glyn Price came away with a perfect maximum by not losing a game.
Shopfitting by SWS B and C played out a competitive but friendly match. Maximums from SWS A’s Dan Kayes & Jan Walaszkowski and a brace from stand-in Mitch Nash secured a comfortable 9-1 win. Steve Foster taking the point for the C team and avoided the whitewash.
DIV TWO:
There was a tough match for Lee Mill who quickly went 5 nil down before rallying a little to win three of the next four games but were well beaten 3-7 by Astor A in the end. Astor A’s Tony Maestri secured a maximum despite a strong challenge from Richard Smaridge (2) 11-6, 7-11, 11-4, 10-12, 11-8.
The leaders Crafthole A proved too strong for Woodland Fort C and came away with a 10-0 win, Fort came closest with both Glenn Delaney and Graham Cooksley losing in fifth end deciders to Iain Oxenham but most games were won in in straight sets.
Molyneux Associates D are proving the old adage that playing better players improves your own game. Molyneux's results have greatly improved in the return matches of the second phase. Although losing 6- 4 to visitors Woodland Fort A, Alan Davis took Fort’s Abel Hernandez to 5 ends losing 8-11 in the fifth. John Goodfield gained a maximum for the visitors.
DIV THREE:
Steve Harvey of Astor D was the outstanding player in Astor’s 7-3 win over Marjon and he was backed up with a brace from Andy Watmore. There were more than the usual number of nets and edges with most of the luck on the night going Astor's way.
Second placed Shopfitting by SWS E lost to third placed Crafthole B with Rui Barreto taking a maximum despite SWS’s Trevor Mole pushing him all the way 9-11, 9-11, 11-7, 11-8, 11-7. SWS still hold on to the second spot, but their lead is reduced to just two points, with only two matches remaining.
Top of the league Astor B had an easy night playing Horrabridge, with Tony Powlesland dropping only the one game to David Wilson in a long tense game 11-4, 10-12, 10-12, 11-9, 14-16.
DIV FOUR:
From Zero to Hero. In the last encounter Astor E inflicted a whitewash on then struggling Molyneux Associates E, but the return Leg was a different kettle of fish. Molyneux’s Toby Spencer led the way with a very tactical maximum, hitting the right shots, and pushing to provide a steady middle game helping his team to a 6-4 win.
Richard Searle secured a maximum for Woodland Fort C along with braces from Mike Willis and Lucas Deves in their 8-2 win over Life Centre All Stars.
W/C 27/01/25
DIV ONE:
Tony Bray from Shopfitting by SWS E played up for the C team stepping in for the injured Rob Barnes. Tony paired up with Steve Foster in the doubles to secure their only point. Molyneux Associates C with Jake Neilson, Paul Haigh, and Mitch Nash were far too consistent with their play.
Molyneux Associates A and B met with the A team coming out 6-4 winnings in a thrilling set of games. Unfortunately, Sam Bruty could not find his bat and had to borrow his team-mates but managed to win a point for the A team.
Mike Griffiths of Shopfitting by SWS B lost his first match of the season to Mike Briggs (SWS A) 10-12, 811, 11-7, 9-11 as the teams played out a draw with no individual player taking a maximum. Briggs lost to Dan Kays in straights games.
DIV TWO:
Woodland Fort and Molyneux Associates D saw the home side win 7-3. With Graham Cooksley on maximum form with teammate Glenn Delaney almost joining him but narrowly lost out to Mohammad Arsal 10-12, 11-9, 12-10, 6-11, 6-11. League newcomer Francis Daley (Fort), picked up his second league point with a straight sets win over Pete Andrews.
Abel Hernandez of Woodland Fort A secured his maximum as third placed Fort visited second placed Astor A. Against Astor's Tony Maestri (2), Hernandez was 6-10 down in the fifth end, but came back strongly to take the win 12-10, and then against Steve Garlick (2) went 2-6 down in the 5th end, only to close out the game 11-8. Despite this, Astor still took the win 6-4.
The longest travelling match in the whole League (25 miles one way) didn’t upset Richard Smaridge of Lee Mill who took a maximum whilst only losing two games throughout the visit to Crafthole A. The same couldn’t be said the same of his team mates as Crafthole won the match 7-3.
DIV THREE:
Shopfitting by SWS E (John Palmer, Trevor Mole) were too strong for Astor D winning 9-1 with consistent, accurate play and only Steve Harvey with a point against Mel Birwe saving a whitewash. Nevertheless, it was a very enjoyable match played in good spirits and humour.
A good friendly match with Astor B’s saw Chris Tucker and Keith James winning maximums. Points for Crafthole B were won by Anthony Shapland and Martin Wilcox both in the singles and doubles.
DIV FOUR:
After a long day playing in a School’s Championship, the youngsters from Shopfitting by SWS D played Molyneux Associates E in the league and with a maximum from Jack Heinemann won 6-4. Heinemann’s toughest game saw him just defeat young Toby Spencer after coming from 0-2 down to win 9-10, 10-12, 11-8, 11-9, 11-9.
Astor E defeated Life Centre All Stars 7-3 in a match which made for an enjoyable evening. Nigel Aston and Barrie Oliver both got their maximums without dropping a game. However, when playing together in the doubles they were pushed all the way being 2 games down before rallying to win 6-11, 9-11, 11-4, 11-8, 11-6 to take the points against Glyn Oldfield and Kevin Proctor.
Astor F lost again 0-10, this time to Woodland Fort C with only Keiran McGarry taking a game off Mike Willis.
W/C 20/01/25
DIV ONE:
Molyneaux Associates A beat Shopfitting by SWS C 8–2. SWS took the lead when Steve Foster beat Garry Reed 11-9 in the 5th but SWS didn’t win another match until the doubles when Foster partnered Rob Barnes to secure a 11-8 5th game victory over Reed and Sam Bruty.
Molyneux Associates B called on Iain Oxenham to help out and duly he managed to defeat Darbz Allen and Jan Walaszkowski of Shopfitting by SWS B. Mike Griffiths of SWS claimed a perfect maximum and helped his team to a 7-3 victory in an evening of great table tennis and banter.
Molyneux Associates C hosted Shopfitting by SWS A, with a 9-1 win for the visitors. Paul Haigh took the only Molyneux point beating Martin Parnell 11-8, 9-11, 9-11, 11-4, 11-6. Parnell needed two tie-breaks to defeat Mitch Nash 11-9, 13-11, 14-12 but ultimately the skills of SWS were too much for Molyneux to handle.
DIV TWO:
Graham Cooksley of Woodland Fort B reversed the first half loss against Lee Mill’s Richard Smaridge by beating him 11-9, 4-11, 11-5, 11-7 and then going on to claim a maximum as Fort won 6-4 after being 3-4 down. Despite some of the scores, it was a competitive match played in good spirit.
As expected, Crafthole A secured the win over Woodland Fort A. It started well for Fort with Abel Hernandez beating Iain Oxenham 8-11, 11-8, 11-8, 11-9 but it then went downhill fast with Crafthole winning the remaining sets.
Astor A were too strong for Molyneux Associates D, coming away with a 7-3 victory with Steve Garlick and Tony Maestri both gained maximums. The match between Molyneux’s Pete Andrew and John Sherlock of Astor was a very see-saw affair. Andrews lost the first 9-11, won the second 11-8, was whitewashed in the third, but then won the next two 11-6, 11-8.
DIV THREE:
Shopfitting by SWS E and Astor B played out a draw after Astor led 5-3. Astor’s Chris Tucker claimed the only maximum of the evening but was pushed all the way by Trevor Mole 4-11, 12-10, 14-12, 8-11, 11-9.
With a 7-3 win, Crafthole B currently secure second place in the league and this was helped by consecutive maximums for Rui Barretto despite being pushed to a fifth end by Marjon’s John Dodd (1).
Horrabridge managed to turn the tables on Astor D after losing to them in the first half of the second Phase. Dave Wilson was the only unbeaten player in what was a very closely contested and enjoyable evening as Horrabridge managed to win 6-4 despite being 3-4 down.
DIV FOUR:
Life Centre All Stars played the young players from Shopfitting by SWS and managed a 7-3 victory however SWS’s Ayaan Chatterjee and Neel Shivane just lost out in the fifth games against Sean Hughes and Shane jones respectively. Shivane also lost out in three tie-breaks to Glyn Oldfield 11-13, 12-14, 11-13.
Molyneux Associates E whitewashed the bottom team Astor F but credit goes to Astor’s Paul Eaton who lost to Jeremy Willcox in straight games but unfortunately all were lost in tie-breaks 10-12, 14-16, 11-13.
Woodland Fort D’s young Lucas Deves upset undefeated Astor E’s Nigel Aston beating him 6-11, 12-10, 11-9, 8-11, 11-4 in a thrilling encounter but Fort lost the match 4-6.
W/C 13/01/25
DIV ONE:
Shopfitting by SWS A and Leaders Molyneux Associates A played out a draw with a maximum from SWS’s Mike Griffiths secured the draw, with Tony Sweet and Glyn Price bringing home braces along with the doubles grabbing the points for Molyneux. The epic match of the evening saw Griffiths beat Sweet 11-6, 14-12, 1-11, 9-11, 1-7.
Molyneux Associates B and C met and the C team threw up some surprises claiming four points, but as usual it was Travis Foster who came away unscathed winning a perfect maximum. The style of play from different players was a struggle for the opposition all evening.
Shopfitting by SWS C (Steve Foster, Rob Barnes, Steve Tyler) were out played against there A team (Martin Parnell, Mike Briggs, Mark Weymouth). On a few occasions there was some close games but SWS A always had the upper hand winning 10-0.
DIV TWO:
Woodland Fort A played their club mates from the B team and Jon Goodfield of the A team won his first maximum of the phase. Graham Cooksley and Glenn Delaney (both of the B team) beat Abel Hernandez and Norman Hall respectively for Fort B's only 2 points of the match.
There were no maximums from any player when the top two teams in Division 2, who had both come down from Division 1 after the first round, played out a draw as Astor A met Crafthole A. This is the third time the teams have played this season, and their third draw, with the teams closely matched throughout the evening. At the halfway point it looks likely that both these teams will return to Division 1 at the end of this round.
A bottom of the table clash between the two clubs promoted to Div. 2 ended in honours even at 5 all. The highlight for Lee Mill was another maximum from Richard Smaridge which looked in doubt after being 2-0 down to Molyneux Associates D’s Pete Andrews before coming through to win 3-2.
DIV THREE:
A Despite Crafthole B defeating Astor D 9-1 this contest was much closer than the scoreline suggests, with many games going to the wire. Crafthole’s Rui Barretto was in good form, dropping just the one game in his singles matches and winning the doubles in 3 straight games with Anthony Shapland.
DIV FOUR:
Even though the score was 10 nil to Life Centre All Stars, Keiren McGarry and Jewel Vittle of Astor F played really well with fantastic rallies and McGarry got the only game for Astor but still lost 7-11, 11-6, 11-7, 11-8.
Astor E entertained the schoolboys of Shopfitting by SWS D and came out on top 8-2 with Nigel Aston (Astor) getting his maximum. It was a match where the steadier play of the more experienced Astor team prevailed against the harder hitting youngsters who with some brilliant winners were more erratic. SWS’s Jack Heinemann was particularly impressive with his backhand smashes. It shows a lot of confidence to go for their shots and they continue to improve.
Woodland Fort C could only field two players but despite this managed a draw against Molyneux Associates E with Nigel Aston securing a maximum and Lucas Deves a brace. The closest set saw Deves just beat Jeremy Willcox 6-11, 15-13, 11-5, 6-11, 12-10.
W/C 06/01/25
DIV ONE:
The top of the table clash between Molyneux Associates A and Shopfitting by SWS A saw the visitors prevailing 6–4 in a highly competitive encounter that was played in a great spirit. Martin Parnell, Mike Briggs and Mark Weymouth each secured a brace for the visitors 6 points with Tony Sweet getting a straight sets maximum and combining with Glyn Price in the doubles for the home sides 4 points.
Molyneux Associates B played Shopfitting by SWS C and there was an epic smashing and counter smashing set between Molyneux’s John Steuart and SWS’s Steve Foster with Steuart eventually winning the battle 11-3, 9-11, 12-10, 6-11, 13-11. SWS’s Bryn Ford took the solitary point preventing the white wash.
A great evening of Table Tennis was played out in a competitive but friendly atmosphere when Shopfitting by SWS B defeated Molyneux Associates C 9-1. Maximums from SWS’s Mike Griffiths and Dan Kayes and a brace from Jan Walaszkowski along with the doubles secured what looks like a comfortable win, but was anything but, with 5 matches going to 5 sets and 4 going to 4.
DIV TWO:
Steve Garlick was in maximum form for Astor A against Woodland Fort B. Fort, with Jon Goodfield stepping up, pushed Astor all the way with both Goodfield and Glenn Delaney losing in fifth end deciders to Garlick. Graham Cooksley (2) narrowly defeated Tony Maestri 11-9 in a deciding fifth end before Garlick and Maestri combined for the doubles and took the 6-4 win.
Lee Mill (Richard Smaridge 3) claimed their first win of this phase in a close fought match which could have gone either way ended with the Millers winning 6-4.
There was a clear gulf in class when previously promoted Molyneux Associates D entertained previously relegated Crafthole A in this division. The 10-0 win for Crafthole was totally reflective of their dominance. Only Pete Andrews for Molyneux came close to winning, taking Shirley Luckhurst to 5 games, being 2-0 up in the match before eventually losing the fifth game 7-11.
DIV THREE:
A very entertaining match between Astor D and Astor B club mates saw some close games and some very heavy hitting, particularly by Andy Watmore of Astor D. He got his money's worth playing a total of 19 games from a possible 20 (including the doubles). Overall, Astor B were too strong for the D team whose 3 points came from Nick May, Andy Watmore and the same pair in the doubles. There were maximums from Les Cole and Chris Tucker in their 7-3 win.
Shopfitting by SWS E, Tony Bray, John Palmer and Trevor Mole inflicted a heavy defeat and white washed Marjon but despite each player being unbeaten, no player won their matches without losing a game.
DIV FOUR:
Woodland Fort C and Shopfitting by SWS D played out a draw with Fort’s veteran Richard Searle claiming the only maximum. Fort’s young Lucas Deves continues to improve in his inaugural year defeating Jacapo Corino in straight games and only just losing to Neel Shivane (2) 6-11, 11-3, 12-14, 11-8, 6-11.
W/C 16/12/24
DIV ONE:
Shopfitting by SWS C welcomed the B side and both teams played some brilliant Table Tennis throughout the evening with the B team winning 8-2. Man of the match must go to Dan Kayes (SWS B) who took a maximum with some outstanding hitting with his backhand only losing one end.
Molyneux Associated C hosted their A team club mates, but were whitewashed. There were some close games throughout the night, but ultimately the skill of the away team players was too much to handle.
Shopfitting by SWS A won 6-4 against Molyneux Associates B but none of their players managed to defeat Travis Foster who managed to return some shots with ridiculous accuracy. Foster also partnered Steve Hill to secure the doubles 5-11, 11-7, 11-7, 11-8.
DIV TWO:
Richard Smaridge was the inform player for Lee Mill in their 3-7 loss to Astor A, taking two of his team's points and the doubles with Mark Chapman. Astor's Tony Maestri continued his unbeaten run with another maximum. John Sherlock just managed to beat Mark Chapman, having come from behind in several games to win the set 11-9 in the 5th end.
The final score didn't reflect the events of the evening with Muhammad Arsal taking both of Molyneux Associates D’s 2 points, but four of the other matches all going to 5 sets. Woodland Fort A’s Abel Hernandez took the only maximum of the evening, including beating Arsal 11-6, 10-12, 5-11, 11-6, 11-5.
Crafthole A (relegated after phase one) look certain to bounce straight back to Div One after a 9-1 victory over Woodland Fort B. However, there were some close games but mainly experience won it for them in the end. Surprisingly, Crafthole’s Shirley Luckhurst lost to Ralph Stone 9-11, 10-12, 11-7, 11-9, 6-11.
DIV THREE:
Despite the 10-0 scoreline for Astor B, there were some closely contested matches particularly Tony Powlesland and Les Cole (both of Astor) beating Dave Vanstone 11-5 and Dave Martin 13-11 in the 5th respectively.
Steve Harvey and Andy Watmore secured maximums for Astor D in their 7-3 victory over Marjon where only one game was won in straight games, and no less than7 sets were went to the fifth end meaning the overall match was a very close encounter.
Trevor Mole was in form and unbeaten in Shopfitting by SWS E’s visit to Crafthole B despite a 3-7 lose. With some close scores, Astor’s John Palmer was unlucky to come away with nothing.
DIV FOUR:
The youngsters from Shopfitting by SWS D, Neel Shivane, Ayeen Chatterjee and Jack Heinemann secured their first win of the season with a whitewash over bottom club Astor F. The double match was their toughest as they lost the first two ends but fortunately came back well to eventually win 7-11, 10-12, 11-4, 11-9, 11-3.
Shane Jones (Life Centre All Stars) secured a max score while Richard Searle and Nigel Aston of Woodland Fort C both won braces and helped Fort win 6-4, Jones just managed to beat Aston in an epic just winning the fifth game in a tie-break 11-5, 11-5, 6-11, 9-11, 12-10.
W/C 09/12/24
DIV ONE:
Club mates from Molyneux Associates A and B went the way of the A team winning 7-3 with Travis Foster taking all of the B team points in a great evening with some great table tennis.
Also club mates from Shopfitting by SWS A and B went head-to-head with the A team winning 7-3. Braces from the A teams Gary West, Martin Parnell & Mike Briggs along with the doubles secured what looks like a comfortable win, but with the ever-consistent Mike Griffiths (SWS B) took his customary maximum and but for a few fortunate bounces going the opposite way, the final score could have been a closer affair.
The two promoted teams played against each other and there was little to separate them both with Molyneux Associates winning 6-4 thanks to winning the doubles match. Shopfitting by SWS C’s Rob Barnes (2) played at his best against Paul Haigh (2), not missing the table. Jake Neilson was great on his feet to beat SWS’s Steve Tyler in straight sets.
DIV TWO:
A great evening ensued in a drawn match between Woodland Fort A and Astor A (with no less than nine games going to tie-breaks) with some fierce games with neither team pulling ahead by more than one point at any time during the evening and the only maximum going to Astor's Tony Maestri.
Richard Smaridge of Lee Mill played brilliantly to win two hard fought sets but it could so easily have been three but for some tenacious and skilful play by Shirley Luckhurst of Crafthole A. Although a demoted Div One team versus a promoted Div Three was always going to show a difference in class, but all players enjoyed the opportunity to play against different player styles.
In the match between Molyneux D v Woodland Fort B Ralph Stone gained a maximum. The match between Stone and Muhammed Arsal (2) was a tight battle with many great rallies and defensive plays (5-11, 11-7, 9-11, 11-9, 11-7) but Fort came away with a 7-3 win.
DIV THREE:
John Palmer dropped down a division to joined Shopfitting by SWS E and took a maximum in a 7-3 win over Astor D, who kindly agreed to lend Tony Bray to Astor for the evening. In all, there four matches went to the fifth game with the spoils shared.
Three early wins for Marjon looked ominous for Horrabridge, but Horrabridge rallied to win 7-3, with David Wilson the only player to win all their games even though John Dodd (1) took it to the fifth end.
DIV FOUR:
Dave Nash of bottom club got his team’s only point against Woodland Fort C (Richards Searle 3, Lucas Deves 3) by beating newcomer Travis Mason in a very close match 13-11, 8-11, 13-11, 11-7.
Shopfitting by SWS D had the serves, repertoire of shots, ability for mid-game defence, and movement all on their side and the youngest side in the league looked the favourites, however that ever elusive tactic of match-play worked against them as the seasoned experience of Molyneux Associates E did not cower at impressively fast hitting, grew to handle the serves, made less unforced errors thus emerging 9-1 victors.
W/C 02/12/24
DIV ONE:
Newly promoted SWS C were no match for a rampant Molyneux Ass A, only Bryn Ford of SWS took Glyn Price to 5 games. Plenty of good banter to make it an enjoyable evening.
Travis Foster of Molyneux Associates B despite feeling unwell still secured a maximum over Shopfitting by SWS B and then partnered Steve Hill to win the Doubles in 5 games to secure a draw.
Newly promoted Molyneux Associates C struggled against Shopfitting By SWS A losing 9-1 with almost all games being won in straight games but it was Jake Neilson, playing with new rubbers, who gained the solitary point defeating Mike Briggs 13-11, 8-11, 12-14, 11-8, 11-3.
DIV TWO:
Newly promoted Lee Mill put up stern resistance at Woodland Ford B but eventually went down to a 7 - 3 defeat. Lee Mill’s Mark Chapman came from 3 - 9 down to take the deciding fifth set 11 - 9 against Glenn Delaney, who in turn came from a set down to beat Ann Warren and win only his second game of the season for Fort.
With Astor A coming down from Div 1 and Molyneux Associates D promoted from Div 3, the result of this match reflected the previous league positions of the teams, Astor winning 9-1. Muhammed Arsal took Molyneux's sole point against Astor's John Sherlock. Alan Davis had a close set against Sherlock, with Sherlock being 7-1 up in one game and then just managing to close it out at 16-14, and then being 8-1 up in the fourth end, only for Davis to come back again, although with just too much to do, losing it 11-9.
Crafthole A won 8-2 against Woodland Fort A with Abel Hernandez and Jon Goodfield securing both of Fort’s team points by beating Iain Oxenham.
DIV THREE:
Following relegation, Astor B had a good start by beating Shopfitting By SWS E 9-1. There were close games with 3 games going to 5 sets. For Astor, Keith James beat Mel Birwe 12-10 in the 5th and for SWS, Trevor Mole beat Les Cole 11-9 in the 5th. After a poor start in the doubles, Cole and James for beat Mole and Birwe 5-11, 6-11, 11-4, 11-6, 11-6.
Maximums and the doubles by Steve Harvey and Andy Watmore gave Astor D the victory 7-3 over newly promoted Horrabridge all of whom proved too strong for Nick May. Horrabridge were worthy of their promotion with some fine play from all 3 and some great points.
Crafthole B could only field two players against Marjon but managed a 6-4 victory with Marjon’s Mike Chapple Defeating Martin Hynes.
DIV FOUR:
Relegated Shopfitting by SWS D played out a draw against Life Centre All Stars with SWS’s Jack Heinemann securing a maximum, but Shane Jones put up most resistance only losing the last game in a tie-break 11-8, 11-4, 711, 10-12, 15-13.
Astor E (Nigel Aston 3, Ken Chambers 3) beat Woodland Fort C 7-3. However, Fort C have some good young players who will only improve as the season progresses. None more so than 14yr old Lucas Deves who played well and defeated the very experienced John Cobbledick 11-6, 11-1, 9-11, 11-8.
Struggling Astor F suffered their first whitewash, in this phase, against Molyneux Associates E.
