Division 2 Roundup - Week 20

The battle at the top of Division 2 will go into the final week, with a four point gap separating the top two teams, although the top team have to play third (who held them to a draw, last time), whilst the second placed team play the bottom team, so .. it's not necessarily over quite yet!

This week's matches saw predictable wins for the top three teams.  Leaders, Woburn Sands Mosquitoes played last placed Milton Keynes Shambles, and duly won 8-2, to extend their lead at the top of the table to four points.  Shambles started strongly, with Steve Jordan snatching a deuce in the fifth win over Rob McPheat, whilst Nick Markham pushed Andy Jenkins all the way, before just losing out 11-9 in the decider.  Glenn Barcham put Mosquitoes ahead with his straight games win over Jim Saunders, although it took a deuce and 11--9 in legs two and three, but Shambles drew level again at 2-2, as Steve/Nick took the doubles in four games against Andy/Glenn.  From there, results returned to the script, as Mosquitoes collected the final six singles, although Rob again went to a very close fifth leg, against Nick, but this time winning it 11-9, to make it two wins on the night, to add to the trebles from Andy and Glenn, and so extend the Mosquitoes unbeaten run to nine matches, compared with an opposite record of nine matches without a win for Shambles.

Keeping themselves in the title race, Milton Keynes Sharks overcame mid table Newport Pagnell Lagondas, but not without some early difficulties, as Lagondas were 3-2 up at the halfway stage, courtesy of two wins by Glen Davison, plus a doubles win with Roy Read over the previously unbeaten pairing of Rupert Greyling/Derick Rodrigues - the Sharks pair's first loss in eleven attempts!  As with the Mosquitoes match, Sharks battled back strongly, taking the remaining five sets, winning 7-3, with the usual treble for Derek, backed up by two wins apiece for Pedro Anastacio and Rupert, although Pedro was pushed to five games by Chris Horn.  This result made it six matches unbeaten for Sharks, as opposed to five without a win for Lagondas, and Sharks are now four points adrift of Mosquitoes at the top[ of the table, with just one match remaining.

Third placed Leighton Buzzard Spitfires battled their way to a fifth win in seven matches, but were pushed all the way by fifth placed Mursley Hawks.  Martin Johnson put Hawks into an early lead, with a close five games victory over Graham Silversides, the first of six five gamers on the night!  Andy King levelled things with a win in four close games against Ian Spanswick, but David Bartlett edged Hawks back ahead by defeating Dwight Edwards in another close four games.  The second five gamer saw the Hawks pair of Ian/Martin go 2-0 up against Graham/Andy, but the Spitfires pair batlled back and took it in the decider.  Graham went 2-0 up against Ian, only for Ian to hit back and take it in five (the win that technically ensured Hawks would stay up), and it was yet another five gamer as Martin again went 2-0 up, this time against Dwight, got caught at 2-2, but won the decider, to put Hawks 4-2 up.  Spitfires finished the stronger, though, with Andy winning his final two sets, including an 11-9 in the fifth against Martin (Martin's 4th five gamer of the evening), to complete a maximum, whilst Dwight also won in five against Ian, plus Graham won the only straight games set of the night against David, to make the final result 6-4 to Spitfires.  Spitfires stay third, but cannot now win the Division, and at eight points behind second place and still to play the top team, would need a miracle to move up.  Meanwhile, their four points ensured that Hawks would finish fifth, and thus out of the relegation zone.

So, with one week left, the title is there for the taking for Mosquitoes, with the title theirs if they can win 7-3 or better, and/or score within three points of whatever Sharks can manage.

Player of the Week : Andy King.
 

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