Whistlers A are in a superb position to clinch the Doric Insurance Division 1 table tennis title and now hold a sizeable five point lead, with just four games left in the season.

Their position was significantly strengthened this week as it saw two victories, including a crucial win in a rearranged fixture over their nearest rivals, Whistlers B.

Their scheduled fixture did however see them drop points for the first time since November, with third placed side Lions C holding them to a 5-5 draw.

Joshua Stacey’s form has been key to the success of the league leaders and once more this was evident. He earned strong four set victories over both Ryan Bichard and Dan Collenette, before battling through a surprisingly close five setter against Division 2 reserve James Crocker.

Matthew Casey and Joseph Bourgaize each defeated Crocker in straight sets to secure the point. For the Lions side, Bichard and Collenette each defeated Casey and Bourgaize in singles action, whilst they also combined to defeat Stacey and Casey in five sets in the doubles encounter.

The victory in the re-arranged clash with Whistlers B was achieved 7-3, despite an unbeaten evening of singles action from averages leader Lawrence Stacey. Stacey was in great form and it saw him defeat twin Joshua in four sets, Bourgaize in straight sets and Casey in five sets.

All other rubbers were however clinched by the league leaders over Oskar Cleal and reserve Mark Pipet. The closest of these matches was between Bourgaize and Pipet, with Bourgaize coming through 11-9 in the deciding end of a humdinger. The doubles was won by Josh and Bourgaize over Lawrence and Cleal in four sets.

The Whistlers B side may remain in second, however they have played a match more than third placed side Lions C and are only two points ahead.

The reason for the close nature is because they were defeated 7-3 by sixth placed side Lions A in their scheduled match this week. The result saw Joshua Butler undefeated and this included a first domestic singles defeat for Lawrence Stacey since November, with Butler doing excellently to dispatch him in four sets. His other wins came over Oskar Cleal in five sets and reserve Kennedy Chepkor in straight sets.

Liam Robilliard added a four set win over Chepkor and a straight sets win over Cleal, whilst Sam Clark defeated Chepkor in four sets. The doubles was won by Robilliard and Clark over Stacey and Cleal in five sets. Stacey battled back from 2-1 down to defeat Robilliard 11-9 in the deciding end and also beat Clark in straight sets, whilst Cleal beat Clark in four sets.

Fourth placed side Lions B are just two points behind Lions C in third and they earned a narrow 6-4 win over seventh placed Lions E this week. Despite their victory, it was the E side’s Matthew Stubbington, who is in a rich vein of form, that was the player of the match as he was unbeaten in singles action for the second successive week. He looked sharp during straight sets wins over Jamie Ferbrache, Steve Ozanne and reserve Luke Evans.

The only other victory achieved by the E side however came from reserve James Crocker, who dispatched Evans in straight sets. Ferbrache, Ozanne and Evans won all other matches over Charlotte Casey and Crocker, whilst Ferbrache and Ozanne got the side over the line thanks to a four set doubles win over Stubbington and Casey.

Lions D have the same amount of points as fourth placed side Lions B and they reduced the games ratio difference between the sides after earning a decisive 8-2 win over bottom placed side Ravenscroft Panthers A. Paul Hainsworth and Jez Powell were each unbeaten in the fixture, with singles wins obtained over Barnaby Groves, Nye Matthew and Andy Gill.

They were however both tested by Matthew and each needed decisive fifth sets to come through, each by the score of 11-7. They combined to defeat Groves and Gill in four sets in the doubles rubber. Craig Dunning played well during a straight sets win over Groves, however he was edged in five sets by Gill, in a match where the left-hander battled back from 2-1 down, and he was also defeated by Matthew in four sets.

Division 2

The Division which has the closest race for the title continues to be the 2nd Division, with Lions F maintaining their slender single point advantage from Whistlers D. This week they were strong 8-2 winners over St Pauls A.

Averages leader Caden Brouard and James Crocker were each unbeaten in singles action, with each individual earning wins over Terry Trustum, Maurice James and Trevor Bourgaize. Jonah Ingrouille defeated Trustum and James in four sets, however he was beaten in four sets by Bourgaize in the final match of the night. The doubles was won by Trustum and Bourgaize over Brouard and Ingrouille in four sets.

Division 3

Ravenscroft Panthers D are potentially only a victory away from securing the title very early after their 22nd consecutive win of the season over Whistlers H, 8-2, leaves the side with a 100% winning record, clear by a whopping nine points.

Averages leader Micah Cohen was unbeaten, however he was pushed to five sets Sekao Nwako in the final match of the night. His other wins came over Sabato Folmi and reserve Simon Carter in straight sets. Nwako defeated Steve Martin and reserve Mark Windsor, but these were the sole consolation wins obtained for the Whistlers side, with Cohen and Martin fighting back from 2-1 down in the doubles to edge past Nwako and Carter in five sets.

Division 4

Lions K extended their lead at the top to three points following a surprise dropped point by title rivals Ravenscroft Panthers G.

The Lions side took care of their business over Bribar A via an 8-2 win which saw Val Guilbert unbeaten. She earned singles wins over Fred McLellan, Samuel Sheward and Noah Nicolle. The closest of these was against Nicolle, where she fought back from 2-0 down, winning the final three tight ends 12-10, 12-10, 11-9, in a match where all sets were won by just a two point gap.

Rolands Tracums and Diane Le Page each defeated Sheward and Nicolle to secure the points, however both lost to McLellan, in five and straight sets respectively. Tracums and Le Page teamed well to edge out Sheward and Nicolle in five sets in the doubles clash.

The Panthers side slipped to a surprising 5-5 draw with 5th placed side Bribar B in a fixture where incredibly the Bribar side rallied back from 4-0 down to lead 5-4, with three singles wins being clinched 12-10 in decisive 5th sets.

Daniel Martin was one of the key individuals behind the resurgent comeback as he started off the fightback alongside reserve Jovi Aquino in the doubles, where they earned an impressive straight sets win over Thea Cummins and Olivia Gilbert. He was then straight back on court in a dramatic match against the higher ranked Cummins, where he fought back exceptionally well from 2-0 down to squeeze past 12-10 in the decider. He then followed that up with a four set win over Isla Bretel.

Aquino was also on hand to contribute further due to her five set win over Gilbert, also 12-10 the score in the decisive fifth end. Reserve John Martin had earlier mirrored Aquino’s feat, edging past Gilbert 12-10 in the decider and he had the opportunity to secure the win in the final match of the night. Despite him levelling proceedings at 1-1, a decisive third end was won by Cummins 14-12 and from there she won the 4th end 11-6 to settle the match as a draw.