Racketeers still facing the pressure (From The Bolton News)

Racketeers still facing the pressure

7:50am Thursday 26th November 2009

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BADMINTON: Racketeers have taken the top spot in the Bolton Badminton League as the season reaches halfway but the newcomers are not home yet.

The team with its sprinkling of County stars has lost only one match so far, but, reigning champions Hawkshaw A and former title-holders Markland Hill A are both breathing down their necks and there is little to choose between them at this stage.

Elsewhere in the league, competition is equally hot. In C Section, second-placed Forrest D wanted both points when they entertained DL Farnworth C.

The opposition, however, claimed the opening match to 13 via Irene Crompton and Steven Clegg and, despite Elaine Powers and Ian Winrow coming back to take the next game, it set the pace for the evening.

Only Farnworth’s top couple Kalumba Wisher and Mark Fernee kept a clean sheet in the mixed but at the halfway stage the score was 5-5. The visitors narrowly took both top ladies’ games before top men’s was shared and both second ladies’ went to Forrest, thanks to Gerry Carter and Pratiba Patel.

With honours still even, the final men’s was the decider and proved to be a real tussle. Steven Clegg and Al Babu eventually wrestled the first game from Dave Travis and Mark Rideout 25-23. But when Travis and Rideout snatched the final game to 17, the match was a draw.

Oakgate B, third-placed in D Section, started well in their home clash with second-placed Sharples C. Sandra Howarth and Paul Thompson won both their opening games, but Sharples’ own number one couple, Eileen Beeney and Steve Duckworth, kept up their success rate with their first two games.

The score was even by the end of the mixed and remained that way until the final men’s games, which both sides needed to take two points from the fixture. Andy Woods and Sam Artingstall took the first to 15 to give Sharples at least a draw, and then clinched the match with the final game to 11 for a 10-8 win.

Sharples D are top of E Section but it is all a bit soon for making space for the silverware just yet, so when mid-table Lads and Girls Club A visited them, they were hoping for a clear win.

They set off well with Marian Anderson and Nick Hitchen taking both opening games. But Abi Sewart and Rajan Patel hit back by taking the first of their set for the visitors before narrowly losing the second to Pauline Teasdale and Gareth Warburton.

Sharples showed their strength in the mixed, conceding only two games to give them a comfortable 8-2 lead in spite of some close scores.

Marian with Sheila Byrne then put the match out of BLGC’s way when they took both top ladies’ games to 12. The visitors continued their plucky fight and pulled back four more games but Sharples had done enough and the night was theirs with a useful 12-6 scoreline.

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