Division 2 Roundup - Week 9

Published 18/12/2021 at 00:30:35 by Martin Johnson.

In the last scheduled week before the Christmas / New Year break, the positions in Division 2 got even closer than before, with one team grabbing their first win of the season, another falling to their first loss, whilst the positions in mid-table grew ever closer.

Neither of the bottom two teams, Little Horwood Wooden Tops and Milton Keynes Shambles, had previously managed a win, but that seemed destined to change as they faced each other, twice, in as many days, thereby catching up the only postponed match in the Division.  Shambles started four points adrift of Wooden Tops, but levelled the situation with a 7-3 win, their first of the season, on their visit to Little Horwood.  Steve Jordan bagged a treble, backed up by two wins each from Paddy Patel and Nick Markham, whilst the Wooden Tops wins came one each by Andy Hooper and John Sharp, as well as John Cripps teaming up with Andy to take the double in straight games against Steve and Nick.  In the return encounter, it ended closer, finishing in a 5-5 draw, with again Steve Jordan starring, as he collected a maximum, including the doubles with Jim Robinson, at 15-13 in the decider, against John Cripps and Andy Hooper, but on this occasion, Wooden Tops grabbed five of the other six singles clashes, as Andy & John Sharp won twice, and John Cripps won one against Nick Markham.  The results see the two teams locked together, but still some way behind the other five teams.

Top of the table, Milton Keynes Sharks surprisingly lost their 100% record, going down to a 7-3 defeat at the hands of mid-table Mursley Hawks.  Hawks took advantage of a changed Sharks lineup, with no Rupert Greyling or Pedro Anastacio, replaced by Jakin Greyling and top of the Division 3 Averages, Chris Paddon.  All seemed ok for Sharks early on as they moved 2-1 ahead, but Ian Spanswick and Martin Johnson combined well to take the doubles against Derick Rodrigues and Chris, Sharks first doubles loss of the season.  Ian then beat an out of practice Jakin, Derick suffered just his second loss of the season against Martin, to bring a 13 in a row winning sequence to an end, and David Bartlett came from 2-0 down to defeat Chris in five games, and suddenly the Sharks 100% record had gone.  Derick refound his form against Ian to pull it back to 5-3, but Hawks snatched the final two sets, both in close five gamers, to take the match.  Sharks maintain a comfortable lead at the top, whilst Hawks edge up to 3rd spot in a crowded mid-table.

The final match saw Woburn Sands Mosquitoes battle out a 5-5 draw with Newport Pagnell Lagondas.  Individual honours went to Chris Horn, who won his three singles, though it took five games against both Glenn Barcham, and 11-9 in the fifth against Andy Jenkins, plus he also won the doubles with Glen Davison against Glenn and Andy.  The wins for Mosquitoes came from Andy & reserve, David McGarragh, with two each, plus one win for Glenn against Roy Read.  Lagondas thus retain 2nd place, some seven points behind the leaders, whilst Mosquitoes are up to 4th spot, with a game in hand on the teams above them.

Players of the Week : Steve Jordan and Martin Johnson.