Nomads Bobcats got their season under way in fine style in Division Two of the Clacton & District League with an excellent 8-2 victory over Windsor Buzzards.
Liam Harris confirmed his promise, taking a maximum on debut at this level, with Andrew Cawley and Eric Lemke each contributing a couple.
The Buzzards’ Pete Bloomfield was involved in three hard-fought five-setters, defeating Lemke 11-7 in the decider and Cawley 11-6 in the decider, but going down 11-4 in the fifth to Harris.
John Owen’s hat-trick was the highlight of Brotherhood I’s 8-2 success over Windsor Magpies, beating Dave Martin 11-6 in the fifth in the only match which went the distance. Fred Gallone and Graham Parkes took two each for Brotherhood whilst Martin took both Magpies’ points.
Brotherhood H proved too strong for Brotherhood G, winning 10-0. Frank Burbidge, Tricia Salter and Woody Fitzpatrick all took trebles. Four of the matches went to a fourth set but the only match which went all the way was Burbidge’s 11-8 in the decider win over Mark Beckham.
It was also 10-0 for Brotherhood F against Nomads Jaguars, Barry Allen, Lee Allen and reserve Shaun Beckham all returning home with clean sheets.
In the all-Brotherhood clash in Division Three, trebles for Duncan Dunne and Tony Edmonds were the bedrock of the ‘E’ side’s 8-2 victory over the ‘J’ team. But it was not an easy win, Edmonds beating Harley Wood 11-3 in the decider and Dunne defeating Maci Harvey 11-7 in the decider. For the losers, Morgan Harvey, in his first match on return to the League, had a close 11-9 in the fifth win over Rodney Betts, whilst Wood defeated the same player 3-0 (15-13, 11-9, 11-9).
The Walton D v Nomads Lynx match ended all-square. Rivhu Khan, making an all-too-rare appearance for Walton D, cleaned up with a hat-trick. Doug Green and Norman Jacobs each won a couple for the Lynx.
Dave Wright, Bob Jillins and John Wrigley got Nomads Leopards’ campaign off to a good start with a comfortable 10-0 victory over the Windsor Robins’ newcomers.
It was also 10-0 for Nomads Ocelots against Windsor Falcons, Sue Lee rewarded with a first-ever League treble. Hazel Blanche and Arthur Wells-Garrett also stayed unbeaten. Windsor’s Mark Lamb was involved in two five-setters, losing 11-6 in the decider to Lee and 11-5 in the decider to Blanche.
In Division One, Martin Hogg and Mel Rampton recorded hat-tricks for Windsor Condors in their 9-1 victory over Nomads Tigers. Annabelle Rodriguez won a couple for the Condors, beating John Hockley 11-9 in the decider but going down 11-7 in the decider to Tigers’ skipper John Marshall.
Three for Gary Cattermole and two for Phil Smith earned Windsor Eagles a share of the spoils against Walton B but they may feel aggrieved not to have come away with more. Colin Dearman took two for Walton and Derek Willis one but Paul Meikle had to struggle before edging past Sue Welham 11-9 in the fifth whilst it was an even closer 12-10 in the fifth for Dearman and Willis in the doubles against Cattermole and Smith.
It was similar for Walton C against Windsor Hawks, a match which also ended all-square. Andy Vincent stayed unbeaten for the Hawks, with Felipe Rodriguez and John Barton winning one each. But Vincent was involved in two tight matches, winning 12-10 in the decider against Gavin Price and a nail-biting 3-2 (11-9, 8-11, 11-4, 17-19, 11-9) against Paul Newbould. Price won two for Walton, and Newbould and John Rankin one apiece, with Price and Newbould sharing a doubles success.
Price also played up as a reserve for Walton A in their 9-1 win over Lawford and, like Kevin James, stayed unbeaten. Paul Woolnough’s two for Walton included a 3-2 (4-11, 11-7, 14-12, 10-12, 11-8) win against Richard Spence but he went down 11-9 in the fifth to Lawford’s sole points-scorer, Paul Hewitt.
One late result from the first week saw Walton A go down 7-3 to Brotherhood C. Andy Warner with three, Kevin Gowlett with two and Alan Burgess with one, plus a doubles win in five for Warner and Gowlett, took the points for Brotherhood.
RESULTS
Division 1
Walton C 5 Windsor Hawks 5
Walton A 3 Brotherhood C 7
Windsor Eagles 5 Walton B 5
Lawford 1 Walton A 9
Nomads Tigers 1 Windsor Condors 9
Division 2
Windsor Magpies 2 Brotherhood I 8
Nomads Bobcats 8 Windsor Buzzards 2
Brotherhood F 10 Nomads Jaguars 0
Brotherhood G 0 Brotherhood H 10
Division 3
Windsor Robins 0 Nomads Leopards 10
Brotherhood E 8 Brotherhood J 2
Nomads Ocelots 10 Windsor Falcons 0
Nomads Lynx 5 Walton D 5