Big strides were taken towards titles in Divisions 1 and 4 of the Doric Insurance sponsored senior leagues this week, but mathematically 3 of the 4 Divisions are still up for grabs in the final round of fixtures.
Defending champions Lions A are all but home and dry to retain their title after securing a solid 7-3 win over Whistlers B. They lead Whistlers A by 2 points heading into the top of the table clash next time out, however due to their superior games difference, the Whistlers side can only win the league with a 10-0 whitewash.
The 7-3 win came courtesy of a strong team performance that saw 2 singles wins apiece for Joshua Butler, Matthew Stubbington and reserve Dan Collenette. Each player defeated Mark Pipet and Shelby Timms to make sure of the win. The combination of Butler and Stubbington navigated past Pipet and Lawrence Stacey 14-12 in the concluding 4th set of the doubles clash to extend the margin of victory. For the defeated Whistlers side, Stacey continued his strong run of form, dropping just 1 set to Stubbington on his way to a trio of singles wins.
6th placed side Lions D are finishing the season strongly as they picked up their second consecutive win of the season, this time a narrow 6-4 triumph over 4th placed side Lions C. Ryan Bichard was key to this result as he enjoyed a strong evening where he was unbeaten. His best win came against Phil Ogier in 4 sets in a match where every single set could only be decided by 2 points. From the point of parity at 1-1, Bichard edged the following ends by the very fine margins of 17-15, 14-12. His other wins came against Jez Powell and reserve Jonah Ingrouille, each in straight sets. Steve Ozanne and Sam Clark each defeated Ingrouille to put their side on the brink, whilst it was Ozanne who got them over the line thanks to an excellent 4 set win over Powell. For the defeated Lions side, Ogier beat Ozanne and Clark in straight sets, whilst Powell defeated Clark in straight sets. The regular doubles combination of Ogier and Powell were too strong for Ozanne and Clark and won in straight sets.
The final top flight match of the week saw 3rd placed side Lions B remain in the hunt for a runners-up finish due to their tight 6-4 win over a bottom placed Lions E side that went until the final 2 matches to decide. Whilst Whistlers A remain in pole position for a top 2 finish, defeat to Lions A in the final match and a win for Lions B in their final match could see the Lions side emerge as runners-up on games difference. For this to happen, the Lions B side need to hope that Lions A win and themselves better the winning margin in their game, than the margin of loss for the Whistlers side next week. If the result is matched and Whistlers A lose 6-4 and Lions B win 6-4 then both points and games difference ratio will be identical. Their close win this week looked to be a formality when they led 4-1 after the doubles match, but the E side applied good pressure and restored parity at 4-4. In the end the B side got over the line with 2 key victories. Averages leader Ben Foss secured the highest averages accolade with a week to spare and he cannot be caught. He did this courtesy of singles wins over Paul Hainsworth, Andy Gill and Connor Powell, dropping just a single set to Hainsworth in the process. He also combined with Jamie Ferbrache to win the doubles rubber over Gill and Powell in straight sets. Ferbrache was the player involved in the pivotal final game of the night against Powell and he held his nerve to come through in 4 sets. Nye Matthew was responsible for the final win as he overcame Gill in 4 sets. For the beaten side, Hainsworth defeated Ferbrache in 4 sets and Matthew in straight sets, Gill beat Ferbrache strongly in straight sets, whilst Powell played some his best table tennis of the season to comfortably dispatch Matthew in straight sets.
Despite Division 2 being concluded in terms of the league champions and runners-up, the individual averages accolades were still open heading into the penultimate week of the season.
Craig Dunning officially sealed the top averages spot this week due to another unbeaten evening for his title winning Whistlers E side, during their 7-3 win over St Pauls A. The former St Pauls man beat Gary Willcocks, Terry Trustum and Maurice James without dropping a set.
The battle for the runners-up spot in the averages will go to the final week, albeit Kay Chivers is in pole position to clinch this, ahead of Ellis Tomlin. Despite this fact, the pair competed against each other this week in the battle between Tomlin's runners-up Lions F side and Chivers 3rd placed finish Whistlers D side. The Whistlers side came out in top in this fixture 7-3, but it was Tomlin that walked away as the best performer on the night. He beat Chivers and Jayden Tucknott in 4 sets, as well as dispatching Keith Opie in straight sets. Caden Brouard had a tough night which saw him edged out in 5 sets by all Whistlers players, whilst James Crocker also lost all 3 matches, including a 5 set defeat to Tucknott.
The third division is set to get the exciting conclusion that it deserves as the leading 2 sides will battle it out for the title in the final fixture of the season.
Ravenscroft Panthers C and Lions J have been the dominating forces in the Division and are incredibly 17 and 16 points respectively ahead of the side in third place.
Their clash this week has simple connotations in that the Panthers team need to simply avoid defeat to clinch the title. There is however also more at stake in the fixture as 3 of the players can all finish as runners-up in the averages depending on the results in the match. These players are Lions' Aiden Ozanne and Barnaby Groves and Shaun Mosley from Panthers.
Despite their dominance, one thing they have been unable to stop is Steve Potter, who has clinched the highest averages honours this week. He did so in style against the strong Lions J side and was unbeaten. He beat Luke Evans, Aiden Ozanne and Andy Ozanne, for the loss of just a single end to Evans in the process.
Lions O have been the dominant force in the Division and had been top since the first match of the season, however their hefty 9-1 defeat to Ravenscroft Panthers F this week has left the Panthers side in an extremely strong position to clinch the title, with them heading the Division by a single point.
The nature of defeat was surprising, and it has also seen averages leader Lionel Jones removed from top spot.
