Week 4 Abingdon A remain two points clear at the top of Division One after narrowly defeating RAL A 6-4. Paul Garner’s perfect maximum helped the visitors stay ahead of the chasing pack, whilst Chris Smith added a valuable brace late on to secure a third win in four games for Abingdon. Chris Lansley (2) did his best to snatch a draw for hosts RAL, but couldn’t prevent his side slip to their first loss of the season as they drop to fourth. Meanwhile Drayton A retained their impressive 100% record with an easy 8-2 home victory over Marlborough B. Triples from duo Karl Bushell and Matthew Davies secured five points for the high-flying hosts, sealing their third successive win as they knock Marlborough into the bottom three. However Marlborough A fared much better after similarly beating RAL B 8-2 to venture into mid-table. Greg Donovan’s spectacular maximum was reinforced with decent doubles from Adrian Noke and Christopher Weir to put the game beyond all reach for strugglers RAL. Their fourth consecutive loss sees RAL B stay rock-bottom in the top-flight, with Marlborough sitting pretty in fifth. Moreton B continued to pile the pressure on league leaders Abingdon A as their nail-biting 6-4 win over Letcombe A kept them within chasing distance of the frontrunners. Man of the match Charlie Lane’s (3) brilliant effort was combined with Niall Harris’ brace to snatch a late win for the home side, leaving winless Letcombe second-bottom in the standings. And lastly Marlborough C edged past Moreton A 6-4 to make it two wins from two for the division’s late off setters. Ray Powell inspired his side to victory with a credible treble, as Nathaniel Richardson’s double late on sent Moreton on their way to their third defeat in four league games, as Marlborough climb to sixth with two games in-hand. Drayton B knocked Sutton A off the perch of Division Two despite a contrasting week for the table tennis outfit. Firstly, they lost to rivals Drayton D 6-4 after Kavan Warrender’s maximum stunned the in-form club, condemning Drayton B to taste defeat for the first time this campaign. But the new league leaders set the record straight as they later marched onto victory over RAL D with a comfortable 7-3 win. Trebles from David Hudson and Geoff Cherrill secured the impeccable comeback Drayton were aiming for, sending the visitor’s top by a single point ahead of runners-up Upton A. So it was Sutton A’s fall from grace that was the surprise clash in Division Two this week after suffering a shock 6-4 loss to the hands of RAL C. RAL’s Brian Wyborn’s treble couldn’t be cancelled out despite the best attempts from Sutton’s Jeff Lin and Christopher Noys (2), rewarding RAL with their second victory of the season, leaving them seventh. Upton A made the most of playing two fixtures this week as they took control of the second promotion place. Their week started superbly with a close 6-4 win at home to Marlborough D, duly obliged to Stuart Walker’s captivating maximum, helping keep grasp of their delightful 100% start to the campaign. But come Friday, those smiles turned upside down as Upton collapsed in front of Moreton C 7-3 to surrender their perfect run of form. James Goldsby-West’s fantastic treble was heavily contributed thanks to braces from Tim Raby and Bill Stamatiou, blowing this season’s title race wide open. Opponents Marlborough D and Moreton C sit sixth and third respectively after their results against second-placed Upton. Yet there was more exciting drama coming from Drayton as a second local derby saw Drayton D nab the bragging over rivals Drayton C with an easy 7-3 victory. Kavan Warrender’s second treble in a week was matched by Alex Rodman to leave hosts Drayton C just a point adrift of the relegation zone, on the other hand; successive wins for Drayton D see them storm up to fourth place in the table. A jam-packed fixture list in Division two ended in Abingdon where David Smart’s brave maximum scuppered a 5-5 draw for the home side against Moreton C. Smart’s heroics equalled Moreton’s tally consisting of doubles from Ian Wu and James Goldsby-West, settling a stalemate between the tier’s ninth and third-placed sides. Onto Division Three and Moreton D soared to their fourth win on the trot after taking Letcombe C apart 7-3. Captain Daniel Artene (3) and Roger Templeman (2) starred for the host’s, maintaining their two-point deficit at the top, leaving winless Letcombe in the drop zone. Wallingford kept hot on Moreton’s trails after defeating fellow counterparts Letcombe B 7-3 away from home. The terrifying trio of Dave Quinn, Kieran Bowen and Jason Turner all earned valuable doubles for the visiting side, despite the games man of the match coming courtesy of Letcombe’s Gerald Batt-Rawden with what was a fine consolation maximum. Drayton E completed the third-tiers hat-trick of 7-3 victories this week after fending off Abingdon C. Andrew Cuddon’s treble handed the home side an unassailable lead, something Yinli Wang strengthened with a well-executed brace. The win sees Drayton leapfrog their opponents into fourth, with Abingdon two places below them having not won a fixture so far this term. There was a close encounter at Sutton B where Grove A escaped with a deserved draw after an enthralling 5-5 stalemate. Steven Osborne was the game’s top-scorer, netting a maximum for the visitors Grove, but doubles from Gavin Bosse and Alastair Nicholson pinned back his marvellous tally to rescue three points for the hosts. That gave Sutton enough firepower to crawl off the basement of Division Three, with Grove now holding tight an unbeaten start to the season after losing their perfect record. Letcombe D are Division Four’s top dogs after playing two mid-week fixtures to leave their opponents in their wake after conjuring up a huge seven-point lead at the summit. John Croft and Mike Emanuel’s trebles away to Moreton E wrapped up a convincing 9-1 victory; just a day after stalling to a 5-5 home draw to the hands of Drayton F. Finlay Greenfield sparkled for the visitor’s with a fantastic treble, helping Drayton jump one place to third in the standings. However Moreton E bounced back from their thrashing to hand a beating off their own to Upton B with a thrilling 8-2 victory. An amazing performance from Henry Wardle (3) had Moreton on the front foot, with Aaron Harris and Raoul Gopall soon joining in on the action to present Moreton with their first win of the new campaign in tremendous style. Triumph meant Moreton and Upton switched places in the league table, with Upton now plunged to the bottom having lost three of their opening four matches. And lastly into the fifth-tier where Marcham snatched Division Five’s top-spot after demolishing Moreton F 8-2 at home. Robin Butt, Harry and Robert O’Higgins all sealed identical braces for Marcham, with Ben Parfitt also joining the doubles celebrations but for the oppositions contribution. Marcham roar to the peak of Division Five above second-placed Hanney on point’s difference, looking down on Moreton who drastically slump four places to sixth. Hanney however still hang onto their unbeaten streak despite slipping up at home to Drayton H after their 5-5 encounter. Arthur Anstis and Tracey Crockett supplied braces for the home side, as did Gareth and Barry Cox for Drayton, meaning the tie ended all square. Last but not least; Drayton G hailed their first win of the season after defeating Grove B on their travels. Graham and William Stephenson (3) were largely to thank for the visitor’s sipping their first taste of success this term, pulling them just three points outside the promotion places in third position. Results: Div 1: Marlborough C 6 (R Powell 3), Moreton A 4; Marlborough A 8 (G Donovan 3), RAL B 2; Drayton A 8 (K Bushell 3, M Davies 3), Marlborough B 2; Moreton B 6 (C Lane 3), Letcombe A 4; RAL A 4, Abingdon A 6 (P Garner 3). Div 2: Moreton C 7 (J Goldsby-West 3), Upton A 3; Drayton D 6 (K Warrender 3), Drayton B 4; RAL D 3, Drayton B 7 (D Hudson 3, G Cherrill 3); Sutton A 4, RAL C 6 (B Wyborn 3); Drayton C 3, Drayton D 7 (K Warrender 3, A Rodman 3); Abingdon B 5 (D Smart 3), Moreton C 5; Upton A 6 (S Walker 3), Marlborough D 4. Div 3: Sutton B 5, Grove A 5 (S Osborne 3); Letcombe B 3 (G Batt-Rawden 3), Wallingford 7; Moreton D 7 (D Artene 3), Letcombe C 3; Drayton E 7 (A Cuddon 3), Abingdon C 3. Div 4: Moreton E 1, Letcombe D 9 (J Croft 3, M Emanuel 3); Letcombe D 5, Drayton F 5 (F Greenfield 3); Moreton E 8 (H Wardle 3), Upton B 2. Div 5: Grove B 3, Drayton G 7 (G Stephenson 3, W Stephenson 3); Hanney 5, Drayton H 5; Marcham 8 (H O`Higgins 3), Moreton F 2.
Posted on: Sat, 02 Nov 2013 16:38:02 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015