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Round 4 |
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Round FOUR, 28-Nov
League Tables
Pontefract 2-3 Benz-Bavarian Duffield
Brian Hargrave reports
James Willstrop 1-3 Nick Matthew
5/9, 9/3, 8/10, 9/11 (52m)
Lee Beachill 3-1 Jon Kemp
4/9, 9/4, 9/1, 9/7 (34m)
Saurav Ghosal 3-1 Andy Whipp
2/9, 10/8, 9/6, 12/10 (41m)
Ryan Thompson 0-3 Laurence Delasaux 5/9, 4/9, 9/11
(29m)
Becky Botwright 0-3 Tania Bailey
3/9, 5/9, 2/9 (22m)
Esporta Oxford 2-3 Nottingham
Framboise and Jason Martin report
Cameron Pilley 1-3 Ong Beng Hee
6/9, 7/9, 11/9, 8/10
Scott Handley 1-3 Simon Parke
5/9, 11/9, 7/9, 4/9
Mark Cairns 2-3 Jethro Binns
7/9, 7/9, 9/5, 9/7, 5/9
Kristen Johnson 3-1 Arthur Gaskin
8/10, 14/12, 9/7, 9/4 (48m)
Madeline Perry 3-0 Sarah Kippax
9/2, 9/3, 9/1
Chichester 3-2 Bristol
Peter Crabtree reports
Alex Gough 3-2 Adrian Grant
6/9, 6/9, 9/5, 9/6, 9/5 (73m)
Peter Genever 1-3 Joseph Kneipp
3/9, 2/9, 9/2, 6/9 (41m)
Tim Vail 3-2 David Evans
4/9, 9/4, 9/7, 4/9, 9/5 (45m)
Tom Pashley 0-3 Hadrian Stiff
4/9, 3/9, 1/9
Line Hansen 3-0 Helen Gould
9/4, 9/3, 9/1
Surrey H&R 4-1 Unisport Guildford
Pete Smith, Ian Robinson and
David Sobo report
Anthony Ricketts 3-2 Stacey Ross
9/7, 9/6, 13/15, 6/9, 9/4
Davide Bianchetti 3-0 Jesse Engelbrecht 9/4,
9/5, 9/4
Bradley Ball 3-0 Phil Rushworth
9/1, 9/3, 9/4
Tim Garner 3-0 Alex Ingham
9/6, 9/5, 9/4
Stephanie Brind 0-3 Alison Waters
4/9, 2/9, 4/9 |
Champions Duffield Parry
Pontefract Power In PSL
Roundup from Howard Harding
After a match described by both managers as one of the best they'd ever
seen, champions Benz-Bavarian Duffield clinched a 3/2 win over a
near full-strength Pontefract in Tuesday's fourth round of the Premier
Squash League to take over leadership of the Group A table for the first
time this season.
The Group B table also has a new club in top position after Surrey
Health & Racquets Croydon fought out a 4/1 home win over home county
rivals UniSport Guildford.
The remaining ties also produced dramatic
encounters which went right to the wire as Esporta Oxford squandered a
2/0 lead to see visitors Nottingham prevail 3/2, and event
newcomers Redwood Probuild Bristol fell to their first loss of the
season when veteran Welshman Alex Gough fought back from 0/2 down in the
tie decider to give Tinos Homes Chichester a memorable maiden win
of the season.
Duffield go top ...
With Pontefract fielding its two home-grown stars James Willstrop and
Lee Beachill – ranked four and eight in the world, respectively – for
the first time this season, the Yorkshire club signalled its intention
to chalk up its first triumph. Beachill duly delivered, beating
Duffield's Jonathan Kemp 4-9, 9-4, 9-1, 9-1.
However, the hosts were already down after Duffield's Tania Bailey -
fresh from a quarter-final berth in the Women's World Open in Belfast -
and team-mate Laurence Delasaux recorded comfortable wins to put the
visitors ahead.
Beachill's win, plus that of Indian national champion Saurav Ghosal, put
the eagerly-awaited home victory in the hands of Willstrop – who was
lined up against Duffield's top string Nick Matthew, the reigning
British National and British Open champion.
Since beating his county compatriot in the Windy City Open in Chicago in
January, Willstrop had lost six times in a row to Matthew. And the
23-year-old was unable to stop the run being extended to seven as
Matthew claimed supremacy in a sensational match.
"It was one of the best games I've ever seen in the PSL, absolutely
unbelievable," said Duffield team manager Brian Hargrave after his
player's 9-5, 3-9, 10-8, 11-9 win. "An absolute classic, the quality was
right up there," agreed the home side's manager Malcolm Willstrop. "It
was fantastic attacking squash, a match right up there with the best
I've ever seen!"
Nottingham notch a win
After a dismal last season in which they failed to win a single tie,
Nottingham celebrated their second win of the new season at newcomers
Esporta Oxford. With a capacity crowd cheering on their star local
players, the home team established a healthy 2/0 lead – with Irish
champion Madeline Perry, fresh from her starring role in last week's
world championships in her home city of Belfast, and adopted Oxfordshire
player Kristen Johnson securing popular wins.
Oxfordshire stalwart Mark Cairns, a former British champion now well
into 'retirement' from the pro circuit, fought bravely to come back from
0/2 down to level the match against Nottingham's Jethro Binns. But
Welshman Binns clinched victory in the fifth, and Nottingham stalwart
Simon Parke then levelled the tie with an impressive 9-5, 9-11, 9-7, 9-4
win over Oxfordshire regular Scott Handley.
In the decider, Malaysian Ong Beng Hee extended his unbeaten run for
Nottingham with a 9-6, 9-7, 9-11, 10-8 win over Esporta's Cameron Pilley
– described by Oxford manager Jason Martin as "a great game to finish
off a great night of squash – but a disappointment that we couldn't
capitalise on our great start and give our huge home crowd a win!"
Gough grabs win for Chi
Alex Gough was the Chichester hero who gave the south coast club their
first win of the season – against visitors Redwood Probuild Bristol in
Group B. But Line Hansen and club stalwart Tim Vail provided the two
earlier successes for the Sussex side – Vail toppling former British
Open champion David Evans 4-9, 9-4, 9-7, 4-9, 9-5 in an impressive
45-minute display.
Bristol's Adrian Grant, the Londoner ranked 13 in the world, took the
opening two games against Gough, the reigning British Open Over-35
champion. But the plucky Welshman refused to give up – outplaying his
left-handed opponent to record a sensational 6-9, 6-9, 9-5, 9-6, 9-5 win
in 73 minutes.
Surrey sail on
Despite losing 1/4 to Surrey county neighbours Surrey H&RC Croydon,
UniSport Guildford manager Ian Robinson was upbeat about his team's
performance. "I was impressed with the squad's effort – they really
fought got every point!"
Londoner Alison Waters gave the Guildford visitors an early lead with
her straight games win over former top four player Stephanie Brind.
However, the home team's fire-power was too strong – though in the final
rubber Guildford's Stacey Ross, just inside the world top 50, saved a
match-ball in the third game against the hosts' Anthony Ricketts and
went on to eliminate the world number six's two-game lead.
But the Australian star recovered his form in the decider to beat Ross
9-7, 9-6, 13-15, 6-9, 9-4 to maintain the Croydon club's unbeaten PSL
record this season.
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Round 4, 28-Nov:
Group A:
Pontefract 2-3 Duffield
Oxford 2-3 Nottingham
Group B:
Chichester 3-2 Bristol
Surrey 4-1 Guildford |
Framboise at Oxford
Brian Hargrave
at Pontefract ...
Surrey Health & Racquets Club v Unisport
Guildford
Pete Smith reports
We had another packed crowd looking forward to another exciting Premier
league match and hoping that we could strengthen our position in the
league with a good win. The crowd were not disappointed and this is how
the evening unfolded.
Stephanie Brind v Alison Waters
This was always going to be a tough match for Stephanie playing a top 10
player but she fought hard in the 1st with points very tight until Alison
pushed away to win 9-4. In the next 2 games Alison really upped the pace
with powerful drives and volleys which Stephanie couldn't keep up with and
Alison went on to win 9-4, 9-2, 9-4.
Surrey H & RC 0 Unisport Guildford 1
Tim Garner v Alex Ingham
Youth against experience and Tim was giving Alex 20 years! Alex is only 16
years old and to compete with these guys is a great credit and there were
some very long rallies but Tim played very simple tight squash which
ground Alex down. Tim went on to win 9-6 9-5 9-4. Alex is definitely one
for the future!!
Surrey H & RC 1 Unisport Guildford 1
Bradley Ball v Phil Rushworth
It was great to see Bradley back in the team for the 1st time
since his long injury lay off and he didn't disappoint. He was in no mood
to hang around and was determined to hit the nick as often as possible.
This was tough for Phil who tried to hang in there but the pace was so
quick it was difficult for him to gain any control. Bradley went on to win
9-1 9-3 9-4.
Surrey H & RC 2 Unisport Guildford 1
Davide Bianchetti v Jesse Engelbrecht
The home supporters love watching Davide play and he didn't disappoint
again and was in devastating form. Jesse played very well but Davide
seemed to always be in control with his excellent length and tight drops.
Davide went onto win 9-4 9-5 9-4
Surrey H & RC 3 Unisport Guildford 1
Anthony Ricketts v Stacey Ross
There was quite a difference in rankings here but it turned out to be a
very exciting match with some fantastic squash. Anthony started very
strong and taking the ball very early but Stacey hung in there and also
played some very tight length and width but couldn't prevent Anthony
taking the first 2 games 9-7 9-6. The third game turned into an epic with
Stacey saving a match ball, there was some top class squash with long
rallies with both players fighting for the initiative. All credit to
Stacey who fought so hard to get back into the match and take the 3rd
15-13 then the 4th 9-6. Game on 2 all and which way was it going to go?
The 5th game Anthony came out firing and with Stacey working so hard to
fight his way back into the match he was tired but Anthony upped the pace
and took the game 9-4 and the match 3-2. This was a match appreciated by
the spectators and was very enjoyable to watch with both players playing
very well.
Surrey H & RC 4 Unisport Guildford 1
Well this was a great win for Surrey and another great evening of squash
and thank you to Ian Robinson and all the Unisport Guildford players. Now
it's onto Bristol next Tuesday where we are fielding Nicol David for the
first time and Pete Nicol comes back into the team so we look forward to
another good match.
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Surrey H&R 4
UniSport Guildford 1
The manager's view, from Ian Robinson
 Surrey
beat Surrey 4 - 1 in a local clash between the Surrey Health and Rackets
Club and the University of Surrey, also known as UniSport Guildford.
The university were heavily outgunned in terms of world ranking fire
power, providing opportunities in their ranks for their promising young
players. Nonetheless, there was still plenty to recommend in all the
matches despite the scoreline.
Alison Waters was making a welcome return to the team after her recent
absence and was a valuable inclusion. This was by way of a big contrast to
the recent performance against Bristol on our home courts and was capped
by a world class performance by Stacey Ross against his world top 5
opponent, Anthony Ricketts of Australia, and also Alison Waters.
Waters too strong for Steph
Alison Waters demonstrated clearly how her game is developing as she took
on Stephanie Brind, who, in fairness, has now retired from the World tour
in order to join the police force. The Guildford player was the enforcer
on this occasion as she showed a sharpness and clinical finishing to the
front of the court that left the spectators in no doubt as to who was in
charge.
Waters moved efficiently to put winning points on the board for UniSport
allowing her opponent a mere 10 points on the way. A good start and it was
to be the only success of the night for UniSport. Waters is now a world
class player and when she is unable to appear for UniSport she is badly
missed.
Garner in the Groove
Tim Garner is multi-tasking these days so it was a pleasure to see him
turn his attention to his originally duties as a professional squash
player. While his attention is turning to other things and his playing
days are winding down, tonight he looked up to find that his opponent was
a 16 year old Alex Ingham. Perhaps a little disconcerted but making every
effort to hide the fact, Garner looked calm and relaxed as he built an
early lead in the first.
As the young Ingham settled to the task, what was evident was that he
looked very comfortable in this environment and even asked some
interesting questions of his vastly experienced opponent and raised an
eyebrow or two on the way. Although the result was never really in doubt
there was a nagging feeling that Ingham is progressing nicely and before
too long may be capable of springing a surprise at this level of the game.
Despite taking a 3 - 0 loss, the youngster scored good points and was
always competitive. We shall watch his progress with interest now that he
is playing full time.
Ball beats the new Breed
The tall, rangy, inform Bradley Ball bounded onto the court relishing his
opposition for the night in Phil Rushworth. The UniSport player is another
of the new breed at Guildford. Ball has sprung back to form after a long
and debilitating back injury. He is always a handful, brutally spanking
the ball into the back corners before finding his opportunity to finish
low with power into the front.
One of the home crowd remarked that playing against Ball must be like
trying to play with a tree in front of you and judging by the startled
look on Rushworth's face that is exactly how it felt. Nonetheless
Rushworth has been educated in the tough Yorkshire school of squash and
scrambled effectively in defence using his speed around the court to good
effect making a good fist of the challenge. The UniSport player will have
learnt much from this match if only not to leave Ball any loose balls
around, but as was stated later on off court what is loose to Ball is not
necessarily so loose to other players and winner after winner was
dispatched accumulating points.
It is to Rushworth's credit that he battled hard to gain his 8 points, all
of which he well and truly earned. He will benefit from this Premier
League experience and will no doubt become stronger for it. Match score
was moving away from UniSport, now behind 2 - 1.
Davide douses Jesse's fire
Jesse Engelbrecht has moved house since his last outing for UniSport and
appeared more settled for it. His ranking is lower than it necessarily
should be, whereas Davide Bianchetti, the Italian number 1 adding a touch
of continental colour to the evening's entertainment is right up there
with the best of them.
Once again a typically fighting display from Engelbrecht saw some close
rallies fought tooth and nail. Sadly Engelbrecht's recent loss of
confidence meant that, after putting some quality squash together and
moving on a par points wise towards the end of each game, he lapsed into
error at just the wrong time trying to go for more and more accuracy - a
fatal mistake.
This was a much improved performance by the Guildford player and will help
him restore some of that much needed confidence to believe that he can
compete at this higher level of the game but patience is going to be the
key to that success. The match was now effectively over as a contest with
Surrey Health and Rackets Club taking an unassailable 3 - 1 lead.
Ross rises to the occasion ...
There was little optimism for the match between Ross and Ricketts. Once
again the rankings suggested that Ross was going to be totally outgunned
with his world ranking of 46 against the world number 5.
There were some pleasing rallies in the first two games as Ricketts
allowed Ross some scope to play his entertaining brand of squash before
ruthlessly claiming the games with power and penetration at just the right
time.
There was little to suggest that the third would develop into the struggle
that it became. Ross managed to find himself at game ball almost without
Ricketts realising , but the Aussie then mounted a strong recovery but now
there appeared a more steely resolve in Ross's play and as the game went
into the tie breaker it could have gone either way. Ross was boosted by
one truly outrageous shot from the deep backhand when after a rally of
much court-sprinting he found himself with no backswing from which he
somehow managed to steer the ball across court into the front corner nick,
which rolled flat along the boards to a huge cheer from the crowd.
Not only was it an outrageous shot but it was played with his back to the
direction in which he was aiming it - he probably had his eyes closed at
the same time! It was more than a little fortuitous but was all he needed
to re-double his efforts and nick the game.
There was a feeling that it would only be a matter of time before good
order was restored and the higher world ranked Surrey H & R Club player
would close out the match, so it was a shock when it was Ross who was
first out of the blocks warming to the task of playing his squash and
testing it against such a quality player. With clinical finishing,
variations of pace and great placements he went out to a 7 - 1 lead but
then there was a slight lessening and it was all that Ricketts needed to
sow the seeds of doubt in the mind of Ross. As the lead was slowly
reduced, Ross was trying to compose himself to make a final push to force
the game into a decider and when he did there was a huge roar from the
crowd who were thoroughly enjoying a highly entertaining game of squash.
In the decider, tiredness set in with Ross, who had raised his game
magnificently, and given the visitors something to cheer. Ricketts was
totally professional and took an early fifth game lead and no matter how
much the UniSport player tried he was paying the price for falling too far
behind early on against a player of Ricketts' calibre.
It was an excellent game of squash for which both players take credit,
especially as it was a clean and open which, effectively, made it a
referee-free zone. As a parting shot Ross commented that he so rarely gets
on court with opponents of this quality that it takes him 2 games to work
out what is going on, he further stated that he therefore needed to try
and make the match last as long as he could so that he could enjoy the
experience.
I am not sure if that makes much sense but it is outrageous to think of
giving the world number 5 a 2 game start and then trying to beat
him....perhaps it is a lesson well learnt.
Bring on St George's ...
This 4 - 1 defeat was no disgrace and had some good moments of quality,
competitive squash from which the visitors can take some positives. It is
not sufficient against such powerful opposition as Surrey Health and
Rackets Club, but with a team of this quality it is hard to see who can
stop them, unless of course international duties or injuries make a claim
on a handful of their players during the course of the season. All being
well, this will be a fixture to look forward to at home in the second
half.
For now we must immediately turn out attention to St George's Hill, which
is the last fixture pre-Christmas at home next Tuesday the 5th December.
This is yet another tough fixture for us but one that will offer some
terrific entertainment to kick start the festive season - don't forget to
be there or miss Christmas.
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And so the scene was set
The fan's view, from David Sobo
The Unisport Guildford gang had been on the end of a hammering by the
Bristol 'insurgents' three weeks ago; a quick perusal of their manager's
comments shortly after that game would suggest that the Unisport supporting
crew were somewhat disappointed with that performance ... the message was
delivered loud and clear.
No Steve Meads for the visitors to the "posh part of Surrey", so the lineup
was Ross, Engelbrecht, Rushworth, Ingham and Alison Waters. Surrey decided
to rest a certain Peter Nicol. That left Ricketts, Bianchetti, Ball, Captain
Garner and Stephanie Brind.
As one might expect, there was much traffic around the Croydon area thanks
to this particular squash match ... the players were on time but no police
escort available for the refs so proceedings started slightly later than
scheduled. Even I turned up on time!
First up - Stephanie vs. Alison.
Must admit, I was quite looking forward to this one; the home girl now in
the fire service I believe but ex-world no 5 so no mug then. Alison, current
world no 10. After all the hype, a reasonably easy three-love victory for
the away team. In my humble opinion, Stephanie wasn't fit enough to live
with Alison. She did ok at the beginning of the first but even then seemed a
bit off the pace allowing Alison to exert pressure and take a few too many
liberties for this particular home supporter's liking!
Final Score 3 - 0
On the adjacent court (String 4) - Tim vs Alex.
This one was pretty straightforward. Alex Ingham, just 16 years old took a
while to find any rhythm; mostly due to Sr Statesman Garner pushing the ball
about to all corners with wild abandon. Alex did a lot of work in those
first two games but got no shekels of silver for his efforts. Two love down
he started to exert a bit more pressure on a possibly tiring Surrey captain
but if truth be told.... just not enough to cause any real damage.
Final Score 3 - 0
And now to the main event (String 2) -
Davide vs Jesse.
This was a good game. Jesse's a very good player and held his own in the
midst of a flurry of deft drops, flicks and boasts from our Italian brother.
Davide still managed to control this game with some clever play and was good
value for a two love lead.
Game three saw Jesse still strong to 4 -4 but perhaps getting a tad
frustrated now at his inability to pull away. Jesse visibly started to tire
at the halfway stage of this third game hitting a number of jaded shots.
Davide capitalised on this, winning the final game 9-4. A good solid
performance most notable due to the absence of the Italian "wailing" we have
grown accustomed to:) That alone is evidence that he enjoyed this one and
stayed in control throughout.
Final Score 3 - 0
On the adjacent court (String 3) - Bradley vs Phil.
Not that much to report on the first two games other than.... the best Phil
could do was weather the Bradley Ball storm. He didn't and got caned in a
barrage of hard hitting, precise and clinical squash. It truly was "nick
city" in those first two; quite impressive to watch. Bradley, recently
returned from "kickin derriere" in Alberta, Canada, looked really hungry to
get on court and then get off as soon as possible.
Game three though started with the home boy looking a little tired. Phil
made four amendments on the marker's scoresheet but after a brief rest,
Bradley was back, normal service resumed and game over shortly after 9-4.
Final Score 3 - 0.
And so on to the "other" main event (String 1) - Anthony vs Stacey.
Few things are certain in life but one such certainty is that Mista Ross is
a class act. Yes, granted ... occasionally he does turn up and might as well
not have bothered.... but in the main, still very much a class act.
Knowledgeable folk in the crowd suggested a relatively straightforward win
for our Australian "ringer", but I'm proud to say I thought otherwise.....
and almost got that part completely wrong!
Game one saw Ricketts get bored of playing the first point and decided to
hit an overhead nick! A sign of things to come perhaps? Not quite. Stacey
played well to take a 4 - 3 lead and continued in the same vein to go 7 - 5
up. Anthony then exerted some necessary pressure to take the first 9-7.
Game two sees Ricketts getting quicker. Ross still just about holding his
own with some varied pace and nice drops but starting to look a little
jaded. At one point, Stacey played a delayed straight drive down the
forehand side that totally wrong footed Anthony.... who, I kid you not, did
a pirouette mid-court before hot-footing it to the back corner to return
Stacey's quality drive with interest, ultimately winning the point and soon
after, the second game 9-6. Most impressive, that point.
One could therefore be forgiven for assuming it would be home time soon but
no.... a shed load of mistakes by Ricketts at the start of the third; a good
few unforced saw Stacey take an apparently unassailable 6-1 lead. Ricketts
gets his act together and starts to work his opponent very quickly
equalising 6-6.
Neck and Neck to 7-7
8-8
9-9
10-10
11-11
Quality squash in evidence
12-12
excellent retrieval by Ricketts
13-13
Now a mammoth point with Ross this time retrieving stuff that us mere
mortals would need a passport and appropriate visas in tow to get to! He
gets there many times though and gets just reward by winning the point
14-13
Missed drop by Ricketts. double ouch!
15-13 Ross. Phew!
The natural progression of things suggested Ross would be too tired to do
much in game four..... He was, but somehow,Ricketts went 2-8 down before
waking up! got it back to 6-8 before a tight drive by Stacey gave him the
game 9-6.
At this point in proceedings I put my bookmakers hat on and sought
predictions on game five from the watching massive. Most went with a 9-6 or
9-7 Ricketts win. Alison Waters went with a ... actually I won't tell you
what Alison's prediction was cos she'd never talk to me again (Mista Ross,
you have my phone number though:)
Anyways, Game five still had high quality squash in it to 2 - 2. After that
though, my scribbles tell me that each point was either won by quality
Ricketts play or lost by rubbish Ricketts play to 8-4 game ball to Ricketts.
Final point unfortunately won on a stroke to Ricketts. Excellent
entertainment though.
Final Score 3 - 2
And that's just about that. All roads lead to Bristol on Tues 5th Dec; the 2
Nicols should be in attendance....
Now I really must get back to sleeping at my desk at work:)
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Chichester 3-2 Bristol
Alex Gough 3-2 Adrian Grant
6/9, 6/9, 9/5, 9/6, 9/5 (73m)
Peter Genever 1-3 Joseph Kneipp
3/9, 2/9, 9/2, 6/9 (41m)
Tim Vail 3-2 David Evans
4/9, 9/4, 9/7, 4/9, 9/5 (45m)
Tom Pashley 0-3 Hadrian Stiff
4/9, 3/9, 1/9
Line Hansen 3-0 Helen Gould
9/4, 9/3, 9/1
Its
Glenn Mc-bloody-Grath with a squash racket
Peter Crabtree reports
 Welcome
welcome one and all – its more of that nonsensical drivel expounded so
eloquently by my esteemed colleague Maximus Black, and I have to say he
was on absolutely astounding form last night at the Theatre of Cream in
Oaklands Park. Having mentioned “Theatre” it is possibly a little
indiscreet to mention that maybe the Chichester Tournament with finals on
a glass court in the adjacent less salubrious Theatre may just be
revitalised, so perhaps I’d better not, just in case someone finds out.
But there we were, facing the upstarts from the West Country – league
leaders indeed, whatever next. They’ll think they are proper squashers at
this rate! As Maximus put it, they are a fine bunch of squash players who
are all not as good as they were before, so how could we possibly lose to
them? The abiding truth of PSL is that Chichester win with an underdog
team, and this night was to be no exception.
 We
started with Line Hansen, Azzy’s bird, who was gracing my presence
for the first time, and I’m most appreciative of the fine gesture. The
Peter Schmeichel of the squash world (Danish No.1 that is) took on the
youngster Helen Gould, a fan of running with the wind in her hair,
scented soap and candle-lit taxidermy it seems, must be the Welshness in
her. It was as expected, and a brave performance by the youngster was to
no avail as the Viking strode the court like a Goddess, dispensing winners
with aplomb, and probably various other fruits as well. 3-0 to the
massive, and away we went.
 Vole
took on David “Emu” Evans, in what looked to be potentially the
match decider. It was remarkably free of scintillating slaps from the Chi
Captain, but a few from the Jersey Development Officer (of what we know
not, but there you have it!). For a past British Open winner, Emu appeared
to have developed a sense of humour, much in the vein of Moriarty. It was
tip and nuck, and despite a round stuffing in the first, the rotund one
levelled by the same score in the second, eased the third 9-7 with some
more winners, and lost the fourth too easily for comfort. My prediction
after the first game was a Vole win, and I was proved right (naturally) in
the event with a fairly comfortable end to the match, although it had to
be said that as Emu was by then on crutches, Vole should have done better.
But a win is not a loss, so 2-0 up and looking set fair for Jelly to
secure the match win shortly.
 Pash
the “Bishop Basher” (wouldn’t have got away with that in the old days,
what with Pete Senior being a Bishop Busser) took on “Pip” Stiff, a
veteran of many Chi battles, but normally against Jelly, so you can see
where his game has gone – Deeeeeeeeep South. But, as for Jelly later, he
was sharp, hit the ball beautifully, and played some of those trademark
winners and deception shots which had young TomTom in need of another
brand of SatNav. Close it wasn’t really, and although Tom was a bit
depressed after, he needn’t have been as it was really good stuff by
Devon’s Creamed Clot.
 So,
Jelly to rise to the challenge, although his claim of a victory
playing at 79% proved to be a little wide of the mark. For someone who has
developed such a morbid fear of flying that he faints at the sight of a
plunging neckline on an airborne customer service assistant, Jelly appears
to be managing the transition from enigmatic junior to enigmatic adult
with nary a sign of ageing. What we hadn’t prepared ourselves for was that
Glenn Mc-bloody-Grath had flown over for the match to heap further misery
on us. Niggling away, chucking down the odd beamer, it made Steve Harmison
look positively miserly the way the points accumulated, although not in
Jelly’s favour. Although the score-line suggests a bit of a slapping, the
games were close, and as mentioned previously, Jelly played some great
stuff, including a slapped roller for old times’ sake. Living in Amsterdam
does seem to have had some impact on Joey “Knippy” Kneipp, and he
complained bitterly at one point that he couldn’t swing – listen Baby, if
you can’t swing in Amsterdam, you aren’t trying hard enough! Maybe you
should try Brighton or Duffield – I hear things are easier there! It also
appears that his new career in Agronomy is going well, and the herb
cultivation is a great success – Smokin’! And he even looks a bit like
McGrath!!
 So,
here we are, honours even, well scores even, the honour was obviously
Chi’s of course. The final and deciding match of the evening, and our own
senior citizen fresh from Dancing Coming or whatever it was called and
calling time on his cricket career, our very own Vincent Van was about to
paint a canvas of spellbinding beauty in demolishing the much younger
Adrian Grant. Despite the quality of the World Top 20 players on
court, they would stand no chance against me under weight for age rules,
as running and winners are naturally penalty points against, so it would
be a serious mismatch. But against each other, they were quite close.
After the first game, Pete the Busser said he feared the worst, but I had
to share my Betfair prediction at 33-1 that it would go to 2-0, then our
very own Vince would cruise to a win. It is humbling to recognise my
profound reading of the game, but that is my lot in life.
There was a bit of a kerfuffle when Aders felt he was getting the rough
end of the decisions, but it wasn’t even Cooky, so trust me young man, it
could have been a lot worse. Even a fairly obvious touch of cramp in his
right wrist which was released by some shaking motions didn’t deter the
World No.15, but after 73 minutes, and some gruelling rallies, he had to
admit defeat against clearly the more deserving player. Some great shots,
long rallies, and overall a determination by both players to play the ball
if at all possible led to a superb match, and a standing ovation at the
end, although I think this was more in celebration of the result.
Robinson managed 8 defeats out of 9, but I don’t think the Chi massive are
that tolerant – don’t think you are out of the woods yet Vole!
 |
League Tables
after round four
|
Ties Matches
Games Pts
P W L W L
W L
Group A :
Benz-Bavarian Duffield
3 3
0 10 5
35 19
50
University of Birmingham
3 2
1 11 4
36 18
46
Nottingham
3 2
1 8
7 27
29 37
Esporta Oxford
3 1
2 7 8
26 29
31
Pontefract
4 0
4 4 16
23 52
23
Group B:
Surrey H&RC Croydon
3 3
0 11
4 35
20 50
Redwood Probuild Bristol
3 2
1 10 5
35 21
45
Tinos Homes Chichester
4 1
3 8 12
34 45
39
Luxfords St George's Hill
3 1
2 7 8
28 28
33
UniSport Guildford
3 1
2 4 11
17 35
22
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