09/12/2022
DIVISION 1
Hesketh Fleetwood B had a good win against their rivals Kingfisher B by 15-9. The damage was done in the levels where HF won 4 ladies and 5 mens. There was a set win each followed by a split set in the first half of the mixed to maintain HF's lead at 12-6. In set 10 Katie Kinder and Ben Yau edged the first game to win the match. In the penultimate set Kelly Anderson and Mike Aspden won both games to ensure a consolation bonus point for Kingfisher. Ant Cross was POTM as he won 7 for HF but Kelly also had a good night splitting 2 ladies and winning all 4 mixed. 3 valuable points for HF which moves them well clear of the bottom spot.
DIVISION 2
Lightning B had a comprehensive away win against Kirkham Charter B 21-3 which confirms their top of the table status.They only dropped 2 ladies and 1 mixed to secure their 4th consecutive win. Kirkham's best performers were Carol Howarth and Melissa Jones who won 2 each. Nathan Bunting and Andy Heaton won all 8 games.
There was an exciting game to end the week when Hesketh Fleetwood C hosted high flying Kirkham Charter A in a match that went to the wire. It was Kirkham's ladies that gave their team a slight 7-5 lead after the levels. They won 4 whilst the men's ended all square. In the mixed, Kirkham won the first set, the second set was split and HF won the next to trail 10-8. In the next set Linda Adams and Kaz Ahmed won both games for HF to square the match at 10 all. The match swung back in Kirkham's favour when, in the penultimate set, Verity Parker and Ian Chase won a pair for a 12-10 lead. The final set was tense as Lindsay Newton and Ant Cross won the first game against Amelia Parker and Ian Cartmell. It was only in the very last game that Kirkham secured the match with a win on setting! Ian Chase had a great match winning 3 mens and 4 crucial mixed games. Kirkham into second just 1 point behind Lightning but with a much inferior games tally. Special mention to Ant Cross who played in all 3 Divisions this week and not only won 6 games in this match but also won 7 in Division 1 and 8 in the Levels league.
Final match of the year was a good away win for Kirkham Charter B against Stanley B. Kirkham's ladies won all 6 backed up by 3 mens. The first 4 mixed sets proved to be a tight affair as they were all split. With the match already lost, Clare Doherty and Jake Meakin won a pair to salvage a point for Stanley. In the final set Carol Howarth and Jamie Sedgwick won to give Kirkham a 15-9 win and move them well away from the bottom 2 places. Carol had a successful evening winning 4 ladies and 3 mixed whilst all 3 Stanley men, Jake, Steve Whyatt and Ross Adams all won 4 for Stanley.
LEVELS
After losing last week, Hesketh Fleetwood A travelled once again to the Lightning Club, this time to play their B team. After trading the opening 2 sets, HF nudged ahead by winning the 3rd set which was consolidated by a split in set 4 to give them a 5-3 lead. In the second half of the match Lightning's pairing of Jon Jackson and John Wright took set 5 to equalise the match at 5 all. However, in the final 3 sets HF won 5 games to run out 10-6 winners. 4 of Lightning's 6 wins were on settings which helped win them a bonus point. John won most games for Lightning with 5 but Ant Cross was easily the best player on the night as he won all 8 games.
Lids had an easy win over struggling Bloomfield B by 16-0 to move into 3rd but well behind the top 2. Jason Lydon just bettered teammate Jacob Bagshaw for conceding the fewest points.
