Racquets news from the courts and the tables

TROPHYMAN PLYMOUTH & DISTRICT TABLE TENNIS LEAGUE by David Williams

DESPITE a superb maximum from junior player Jordan Bone, Woolwell G were beaten 6-3 by Woolwell E in the semi-finals of the Division One Cup.

Bone's best win was from two games down, beating Lisa Radford 10-12, 13-15, 11-9, 11-8, 11-9.

Mark Weymouth of Woodland Fort B was another player to score a maximum and finish on the losing side as Railway C upset the Division Two form book to win 6-5.

Fort led 4-3 and were caught at 5-5. In the final doubles set, Jan Walaszkowski and Bryn Ford prevailed with a 11-7, 11-13, 11-5, 12-10 win over Weymouth and Dan Kayes.

Astor C took two sets to five games in the other semi-final, but lost 6-0 to top team Railway A (two each from Chris May, Colin Mitchell and Gary West).

Woolwell J (Henry Tam 3) had an easier Division Three Cup win than expected when they knocked out Siblyback 6-1.

Woowell J will meet Lee Mill in the final after the Millers caused an upset with a comprehensive 6-1 defeat of Woolwell I, who are 50 points ahead of them in the league.

Lee Mill scored two vital wins early in the match, with Mark Chapman beating Laurie Harrison 6-11, 9-11, 11-5, 11-5, 11-4 and Ann Warren defeating Damien Wyett 7-11, 11-8, 5-11, 11-6, 15-13.

A third player to lack support in a losing team was Connor McHale of Crafthole D in the Division Four Cup.

McHale scored a straight game maximum at Molyneux Associates, who won 6-3.

The other finalists are Woodland Fort G, 6-0 winners over Astor G.

Matt King turned in a maximum performance for University B in a 6-5 Division Five Cup win against Astor H.

Uni were never behind and led 5-4 after the singles sets. Astor levelled when Dave Green and Bob Steele beat King and Alex Pearson 8-11, 11-8, 11-9, 11-7, but then King and Dan Mucklow won the second doubles 11-4, 11-0, 11-8 against Green and Ted Morrish.

In the Handicap Cup team event, Woodland Fort G and Astor F started on level terms. Fort (Ralph Stone 3) led 5-2 but then Astor won the next three sets for 5-5.

In a tense deciding second doubles, Stone and Rob Batten won by a single point against Steve Harvey and Nick May 23-25, 25-22 (48-47) for a 6-5 win for the Fort.

Astor A just failed to concede 18 points to Ivybridge and Ivybridge won 6-5. Astor must still be wondering how they lost from being 5-2 ahead.

A massive 30 points concession by Woolwell E to Woolwell K was just too much, with the K team winning 6-4.

The handicapping was again spot-on as Woolwell A, who gave an even bigger concession (35) to Woodland Fort E, only lost 6-5. Almost as close, were the 6-4 wins by Woolwell L (+20) over Crafthole C and by Astor H (+19) over Inter City C.

BREWIN DOLPHIN MANNAMEAD WINTER TENNIS LEAGUE

TWO unbeaten pairs met in the top match in Division C of the men's doubles.

The experience of Peter Bradley and Matt Smith was too good for promising juniors Matt Adams and Matt Harris, and they won in straight sets 6-5, 6-2, 6-3.

Bradley and Smith went on to make it maximum points from 13 matches by beating John Mulley and John Stewart 6-0, 6-0, 6-1.

Adams and Harris were surprisingly beaten 2-6, 6-5, 6-2, by Lester Ellicott and Dave Graham, who won for only the third time.

Gary Eato and Mike Foote consolidated their mid-table position with two wins. After overcoming Darren Nock and Chris Janes fairly comfortably 6-4, 6-1, 5-6, the pair needed a third set tie-break to defeat Alan and Sam Donaldson 6-2, 1-6, 6-5.

The Donaldsons then won a marathon third set tie-break themselves to beat Nock and Janes 6-1, 3-6, 6-5 (13-11).

Phil Harbottle and Phil Ruse look assured of third place in Division A after a 6-0, 6-3, 6-3 win over Andrew Leigh and Phil Whitby.

Simon Prout and Matt Green were on top in the first and third sets beating Chris Williams and Paul Wardle 6-1, 4-6, 6-1.

There will be plenty of work for the racquet re-stringer when three players broke strings as Steve Kingston and Adam Mudford had few other problems in accounting for Ollie Fletcher and Zack Bowen 6-2, 6-3, 6-1.

The battle for top place in Division B is close.

Ron Cole and Rob Thomas are in pole position at present, and in a great match enhanced their chances of staying there with a 6-5, 6-4, 4-6 victory over Simon Dusting and Paul Matthews. Patrick Poon and John Jacobs are still in the running for a top three finish after wins over John Shackel and Peter Ireland 6-0, 5-6 (2-7), 6-5 (7-5), and Chris Shorter and Phil Ticehurst 6-1, 4-6, 6-4.

Although the leading pair of Michelle Cook and Liz Morley made more mistakes than usual, the pair beat Joy Pellow and sub Lisa Light 6-1, 6-2, 5-6 in Division A of the women's doubles.

Still not at their best, but too good for the opposition, Cooke and Morley defeated Ann Short and Liz Parks 6-2, 6-2, 6-3.

Two pairs challenging for second spot kept up the pressure on each other. Alison Diver and Linda Trebilcock scored maximum points with wins over Viv Sargeant and Nancy O'Connor 6-2, 6-2, 6-4 and over Short and Parks 6-2, 6-4, 6-1.

Luisa Warring and Sandra O'Sullivan, however, dropped two points, after a 4-6, 6-4, 6-3 win against Pat Hexter and Nikki Aitken.

There was success for Hexter and Aitken when Esther Pettit and Anna Tickle were beaten 6-4, 5-6, 6-2.

With Jean Smith still injured, Jenny Penny was with another sub – Liz Gill – and they have a massive lead at the top of Division B after beating Jean Humphries and Julia Whetton 6-2, 6-4, 5-6 (6-8).

Other results: Men's doubles: J Stewart/J Mulley beat M Whitmill /T Wakeham 5-6, 6-2, 6-5.

Women's doubles: L Galpin/L Allman beat D Wilson/N/ Northfield 6-2, 6-2, 6-0; J Cansfield/C Bunney beat C Smith/F Murphy 6-4, 6-3, 6-3

Mixed doubles: R Palmer/N Aitken beat D Tolkien/Janet Butler 6-3, 6-1, 6-2; A Leigh/E Pettit beat M Ewens/H Odam 6-3, 6-2, 6-1; R Avent/J Pellow beat M Wolstoncroft/M Smith 6-0, 6-0, 6-0