Just occasionally a match in the Braintree Table Tennis League throws up a result that proves what a curious game it can be.
When Rayne D faced Black Notley E in division two in September, they tumbled to a 7-3 defeat. When they met last week with only one change in the personnel, Rayne triumphed 9-1. And that came after Notley E had had an encouraging run of four matches without defeat.
Kelly Yuenyongpknan and Richard Whiteside, who had won only one in the first encounter, were undefeated while Nick Hasler picked up two.
Whiteside avenged his earlier defeat by Takunda Nerutanga while Yuenyongpknan and Nick Hasler this time got the better of Stewart Ireland, who had beaten both of them first time round.
And this time they did not have to cope with Steve Noble, who had won his three singles first time round.
At the top of the division, Liberal C crept a point ahead of Netts D after a 6-4 win over Notley D while Netts were held to a draw by Notley C.
Sean and Adam Clift made Liberal fight hard by taking two singles each but Garry Fryatt remained unbeaten for the eighth time this season.
Netts D found Dan Anderson too much to handle but Roy Hooper and Patrick Gilbert will be pleased with their wins over Glen Laing, his first defeats of the season, which enabled them to share the points.
A Felsted RBL B team of Ian and Nick Butler and Aled Upson may have expected some change from Nomads, but Kevin Saunders, Lorraine Burgess and Richard Kemp sent them home empty-handed.
In division one Liberal A cut Rayne A’s lead to two points, with a match in hand, after a 9-1 win over a Notley A side that included the formidable Steve Kerns.
Kerns took Notley’s one point with a win over Scott Dowsett but Brandon Crouchman beat him in four games while Simon Webber came back from two games to one and 9-5 down to win in five.
The major event in the division happened on the adjacent table when Notley B scored their first win of the season, a vital one over relegation rivals Rayne C.
Bryan Speller was drafted in for his first match of the season and he, Gordon Fairchild and Dave Parker won two singles each to help their side to a 7-3 victory.
Netts C held their A team to a draw for the second time this season while Liberal B had a second win over Rayne B, 7-3 this time, with Mike Johnston undefeated.
Netts E and Rayne F maintained parity at the top of division three with 9-1 wins.
Netts E surprisingly lost the doubles to their F team while Brian How and Peter Taylor were unbeaten for Rayne F against Notley H.
In a week where the four Notley teams in the division played against the four Rayne teams Notley F lost a bit of ground with an 8-2 win over Rayne H, where Declan Baines was unbeaten, while Notley’s G team beat Rayne I 10-0 and their I team had a 7-3 win over Rayne G.
The latter match meant a first meeting in the Braintree League for Peter Pond and Shirley Carroll, old rivals from various other Essex leagues over the years. Pond won that and his other two sets in straight games.