GRANTED it is early in the season but it is shaping up to be tight in the top half of B Section of the Bolton Badminton League.

Deane B are top of the table after a convincing performance in beating Sharples B 12-6 at the former's new home of Horwich Leisure Centre.

Georgina Ryding and Robert Brocklehurst, playing number one couple, got the hosts off to a flying start when they won the opening games, 21-10, 21-16, against Anne-Marie Saunders and Tony Hollis.

Fifth-placed Sharples’ first couple, Alison Holt and Rob Trethewey, hit back taking the next two, 21-18, 21-11, against Patricia Beck and Pravin Pindolia.

The third couples then shared their games, Deane's Margaret Wong and Umer Azeem claiming the first, 21-10, before Amy Larcombe and Barry Hilton edged the second 22-20.

Deane then took control of the match, and, in the clash of the first couples, Ryding and Brocklehurst took both games fairly comfortably, 21-16, 21-17, against Holt and Trethewey.

Beck and Pindolia extended the lead by beating Saunders and Hollis 21-16, 21-11 to put Deane 7-2 ahead.

Sharples’ Larcombe and Holt put a halt to the sequence of Deane wins by taking the first game of the first pair of ladies’ games with a nail-biting 23-21 victory against Wong and Ryding before the latter won the second 21-11.

Azeem and Brocklehurst clinched the match for Deane, winning the first pair of men’s games 21-12, 21-12, against Hilton and Trethewey.

Sharples did not give up, however, and Larcombe and Saunders took the second pair of ladies’ games 27-25, 21-13 against Wong and Beck.

But Deane’s men, Azeem and Pindolia, rubber-stamped their dominance on the night as they confirmed a comfortable victory by winning the final two games 21-14, against Hilton and Hollis.

n If you want to take up badminton and learn the basic skills, or you already play and would like to work on your existing ones, you can take part an an eight-week course which is being staged at Horwich Leisure Centre from the end of this month.

The 'Essentials Badminton Course' runs every Sunday from 7pm to 8pm beginning on September 30 and is open to anyone interested from beginners upwards.

For further details call Ray on 07940 541402.