Cambs IIIrds Enjoy Norfolk Romp

Cambs IIIrds hosted the youthful Norfolk III at the weekend and were keen to get revenge for their 6-9 loss before Christmas.  With the Ist team opponents Staffs cancelling due to the inclement weather, the teams could use all four courts for the match and the games flowed thick and fast.  Alison Greenhill got the match off to a perfect start by bringing along a delicious pumpkin cake (like carrot cake, but with pumpkin...) and also won quickly at first singles.  Sharon Chandler took one for the team in her least favourite event and despite coming close in the second set, lost in straight sets at second singles.  Several days later Geoff Green and Graham Barr eventually won in 3 sets at first and second singles respectively against sprightly opposition.  3-1 to Cambs.

Geoff teamed up with Paul Martell at first mens and continued his theme of getting his money's worth by beating the Norfolk first pair in 3 sets.  They settled down against the second pair and won quickly in straight sets.  Graham and Tom Zhang (J) at second mens obviously wanted to get to the cake quickly and won both their mens games in straight sets.

Alison and Sharon at first ladies suffered a slight hiccup by losing the second set against the second Norfolk pair, but were otherwise untroubled winning both ladies.  Dan Tan (Tanny) and Liz Salmon (who had answered the call to play late the night before) at second ladies followed suit, winning both in straight sets.

With the win, full points and revenge in the bag, the only thing left to play for was the race to get to the cake first.  Or rather second, since jet lagged captain Tibbutt had very considerately decided to 'test' the cake and make sure it was ok for the team to eat.  It was.  I can't actually remember who won the race to the cake as all 3 mixed pairs won in straight sets, but the match ended with a fantastic 14-1 winning score and slighty runny icing everywhere.

The team:  Geoff Green, Sharon Chandler: Comberton; Graham Barr, Alison Greenhill, Tom Zhang: Ramblers; Liz Salmon, Dan Tan: St Ives; Paul Martell: Hurst

Match report by John Tibbutt.

More information about results of the Cambs III team is available on the Team Page.

Cambridgeshire U19 Junior Restricted Tournament 2013

This years U19 restricted tournament was held at Burwell Sports Centre on 17th March.

All competition was initially played in a round robin format with winners and runners up going through to a knock out format for the final rounds.

Girls Competition

Singles winner - Lily Matthews

Runner up - Gemma McGuire

Doubles Winners - Lily Matthews and Gemma McGuire 

Runners up - Angela Huang and Hannah Divall 

Lily Matthews having lost to Gemma Mcguire in the round robin section of the tournament dug deep and changed her game to win the final 21-18.

In the Girls Doubles final Lily and Gemma put aside their rivalry from the singles and had a convincing win, beating Angela Huang and Hannah Divall 21-9, 21-12.

Boys Competition

Singles Winner - Tom Li

Runner Up - Kaylan Sutton-Ziaian

Doubles Winners - Tom Li and Josh Males

Runners up - Sunny Kong and Tom Zhang 

The Boys Singles Final saw Kaylan Sutton-Ziaian, defender of the title, up against Tom Li. Kaylan had fought through a tough semi against Josh Males (25-23) and this may have taken it’s toll, Tom Li winning 21-19 in a hard fought and entertaining game.

In the Boys Doubles, the round robin format in the early stages of the competition saw some close games, particularly a win for Sunny Kong and Tom Zhang over the defending champions Aidan Foo and Kaylan Sutton-Ziaien of 21-20 (no setting in the round robin). 

This result meant  Aidan and Kaylan met the winners of the other group in the semifinals - Josh Males and Tom Li. The title holders lost this semi (8-21) Tom and Josh proceeding into the final. 

The second semi-final was between Ashley James playing with Ximian Quah, and Sunny with Tom. This was good game but Sunny and Tom were the stronger winning 21-16. 

The final saw Tom and Josh showing their experience and strength winning 21-14 to take the title. 

Cambs IInds 'Flipped' in Northants

It was in arctic conditions that the Cambs IInd team arrived for their second match against Northants Ist team in a week.  There had been a number of squad rotations, and a special season's appearance by Sam Pickup, 'fresh' from his University BUCS weekend.

​Northants were keen to avenge their previous week's defeat, and it was immediately apparent that this was going to be a long and gruelling day - the temperature in the hall was hitting debilitating lows and with only two courts and many games going to three ends, it was very late into the afternoon before a result was reached.

The singles was neck and neck, with Stephen Pickering experiencing a very similar game against Matt Asbrey as Paul Heads had the week before - with the Northants player starting strongly, but Stephen gaining ground to win in three.  Sam Pickup also overcame his exhaustion and nausea to win, while Katie Morton and Laurel Bennet found the Northants ladies too strong and both lost in straight sets.

In the doubles the balance started to tip slightly in Northants' favour, with both Stephen and Sam, and Daniel Bates and James Wilson failing to secure their first games.  Katie and Louise were also defeated, while Laurel and Jessica Sharman ground out a three set win after losing the first end in sets 22-20.  Things improved for the men in the second round, with both pairs turning the form book on its head by winning, while the ladies again found Northants too tough.  Katie and Louise agonisingly lost the third end of their game 23-21.

That left Cambridgeshire trailing 7-5 going into the mixed round.​  However, as muscles continued to stiffen in the ever-freezing conditions, it was too much of a task to overturn the lead.  Although Stephen and Louise won comfortably, James and Katie were dispatched in two ends, meaning the match was lost.  Perennial mixed back runners Daniel and Jessica also lost their nerve and despite winning the first end comfortably, eventually succumbed and lost in three, leaving the result a mirror-image 9-6 of the previous week.

Although this was a reasonable result, and the consolation point secured, there was still an edge of glumness to the team.  The cold had dulled everyone's mood, and also there was a sadness that a better result in the match had not been that far away.​

Congratulations also go to Stephen, who pipped Sam Pickup to the coveted Player of the Match position.​

The team: Daniel Bates (c), Katie Morton: Hurst Badminton Club /  James Wilson, Louise Tarbit: Ely Victoria Badminton Club / Jessica Sharman: Court Badminton Club / Sam Pickup: University / Laurel Bennet, Stephen Pickering.

More information about results of the Cambs II team is available on the Team Page.​

Cambs IInd Pip Northants Ist

After a long break, including a snow postponement, the Cambs senior IInd team returned to action in the first of a double-header against Northants Ist team at CRC on 24th February. Spirits were high, as Skipper Daniel Bates was celebrating a 'significant Birthday', and sporting Birthday Boy badge, he insisted that the team deliver him the present of a win.

Northants had been doing well in the division so far, so it was pleasing that Cambs started well. Despite some extremely spirited resistance, and losing the first end in a thunderous 23-25 clash, Paul Heads took his singles by dominating the second set 21-9 and then edged out opponent Matt Asbrey 21-18 in the third.

In the other men's singles, debutante Abu Kaher fought well in a discipline in which he does not particularly specialise, but was beaten in two tight sets - 20-22, 18-21.

The girls singles also saw Cambridgeshire success.  Molly Carter showed true grit to ground out a three-end result against an athletic Marain Formenko 18-21, 21-18, 21-18, while another debutante, antipodean Alison Greenhill, raced to a 21-11, 21-10 victory.

In the mens doubles, the regular partnership of Paul and James Wilson worked well together, and secured both of their games in straight sets with confident play. The new pairing of Daniel Bates and Abu hit the ground running with a 21-6, 21-4 win, but then ran out of steam in the closing points of their second game, losing by the finest margin 21-14, 13-21, 21-23.

In the ladies doubles Northants staged something of a comeback. The new pairing of Molly and Alison beat their first opponents in a tight three-ender, but then unexpectedly struggled against the second pair and were hunted down in the third end 22-20, 19-21, 15-21. The regular pairing of Katie Morton and Jessica Sharman also struggled to impose themselves on their games, and lost both in straight sets -always getting high scores, but unable to convert pressure into wins.

That left the match still in the balance going into the mixed, with Cambs 7-5 up.  Things got even closer when Paul and Katie lost to a strong pair, despite winning the first end 21-17, followed by 12-21, 16-21.  On the third court though, the new pairing of James and Alison had romped home quickly, and triumphed 21-6, 21-12. In the middle match, Jess initially carried over her disappointment from the ladies games, and she and Daniel were beaten 13-21 with Matt dictating the everything. However, the Cambs pair asserted themselves on the game, and eventually held their nerve and completed the final two ends by winning 21-17, 21-19.

That left Cambs 9-6 winners - satisfied, but having missed out on the bonus point by a single game. The end of the match saw the distribution on a stupendous *quadruple* chocolate Birthday cake in celebration.  We must only hope that the team will have worked off the calorific overload before travelling back to Northants to repeat the match next week!

Congratulations also go to Alison, who was voted Player of the Match by the team, with 67% of the vote - pipping Daniel and Abu to the award.​

The team: Daniel Bates (c), Abu Kaher, Katie Morton: Hurst Badminton Club /  Paul Heads, James Wilson: Ely Victoria Badminton Club / Jessica Sharman: Court Badminton Club / Alison Greenhill: Ramblers Badminton Club ​/ Molly Carter: St Ives Badminton Club.

More information about results of the Cambs II team is available on the Team Page.

CRC Overcomes Moisture for Silver Success

The Cambridgeshire Senior Silver Badminton Open Tournament was held at Cambridge Regional College (CRC) on Friday and Saturday.  Over the two days, over one hundred top badminton players from all over the country competed for the honours.

Friday night saw the early rounds of the men's singles competition, which largely followed the seeding.  Cambridgeshire's Kaylan Sutton-Ziaian was beaten in the 1st round by James White (Leicestershire) and Thomas Li was overcome in the 2nd round by 1st seed Richard Wrigley (Worcestershire), while Mindaugas Dabasinskas fell in the quarter finals to a powerful performance by Scott Sankey (Buckinghamshire).

Proceedings began on Saturday morning with the men's singles semi-finals and the women's singles.  in the men's, Wrigley continued his imperious performance to retain his title, beating Basil Tallah (Essex) 21-14, 21-19.  This victory meant he had impressively won the competition having won every game in straight sets.

In the women's singles, there was sadly no Cambridgeshire representation this year.  Unseeded Singaporean Tanapat Pisitpong (Essex) upset the expected order by dominating the draw, and defeating the holder Toni Blake (Buckinghamshire) comfortably - 21-7, 21-13 in the final.

In the mixed doubles, a number of Cambridgeshire pairs were in action.  Sam Scharf and Louise Tarbit, and Mindaugas Dabasinskas and Olga Bryant fell in the first round.  A scratch pairing of Thomas Li and Katie Morton won through to the quarter finals before being edged out in three ends.  Elsewhere in the draw saw clashes between Cambridgeshire players: Neil Place and Hannah Sharman winning a place in the quarter finals by defeating team-mate Sara Mason and partner Peter Frobisher (Oxfordshire).  The surprise of the discipline saw Daniel Bates and Jessica Sharman knocking out the 2nd seeds Nick and Rachel Hodgson (Lancashire), which set up an all-Cambs Quarter final with Simon Woodhouse and Natalie Taylor, who had fought hard for their place, having played two three-end games already.  Woodhouse and Taylor's experience and strength proved too much, and they were the only Cambridgeshire pair to emerge into the semi finals, where they were beaten by the 4th seed pairing of Dean George (Sussex) and Claire Millward (Warwickshire).  George and Millward then went on to secure a comfortable 21-9, 21-12 victory in the final against Lee Clapham (Derbyshire) and Lynne Swan (Essex).

The mens doubles was an extremely full draw.  Cambridgeshire's Neil Place and Simon Woodhouse were beaten 21-17, 21-14 in the first round by Lee Clapham and Andrew Frye (Essex), while Daniel Bates and Sam Scharf reached the second round before being defeated by Daniel Capon (Kent) and Lawrence Nemesothy (Kent).  The competition eventually reached an unfortunate end, with Dean George and Daniel Woodhouse (Middlesex) winning the final at 10-3 in the first game, when Nick Hodgson and Scott Sankey were forced to retire due to injury.

Finally, in the women's doubles Cambs' Olga Bryant playing with Jenny Crump (Hampshire) lost a hard-fought quarter final game against 1st seeds Claire Millward and Caroline Westley, 14-21, 21-19, 18-21.  Natalie Taylor and Hannah Sharman were also beaten in a nail-biting first round three-ender, losing in the end 19-21.  Other Cambs' representatives Jenifer Hewit and Louise Tarbit, and Katie Morton playing with Gayle Lloyd (Guernsey) were also beaten in the 1st round,  However, Sara Mason playing with Mary Le Druillenec (Warwickshire) fought all the way through to the final against Millward and Westley.  However, they were drained from a three-end semi final, and the 1st seeds proved too strong and won 21-12, 21-10.

The tournament was nearly blighted by difficulties with the venue.  The day's play had been progressing well, but a combination of high moisture levels and low ambient temperatures had caused the courts to become slippery.  Tournament officials fought tirelessly to move games between courts as they became unplayable, and the competition eventually spilled over into the second - older - sports hall.  In the end, it was to the great credit of all involved that all events were successfully completed and no-one was injured as a result of the conditions.

The full results and draws can be found at Tournament Software.

Playing for Laughs - Masters O50s at Coventry

This year, the Over 50s played their annual Masters ICC weekend on 12th/13th January at Coventry Sports Centre, the same venue as the Over 40s, which made a welcome change as we were able to support each other. 

Our team for this year was Angela Sharman, Di Baker, Xin Cheng, Helen Taylor (making her County Over 50s debut), Martin Smith, Martyn Clark, John Harvey, and John Pickering, and we were pleased to note that there was only one knee support in evidence among us, unlike our younger colleagues who appeared to be sponsored by Neoprene Ltd!

Our first match kicked off at 11.30 against Derbyshire, unfortunately the late start time was the only leisurely aspect of it. Derbyshire won the match 3-1, beating Angela and Di in the ladies doubles, Martin and Martyn in mens doubles, and Helen and John P in the 1st mixed. Well done to Xin and John H, who took a very close 2nd mixed 21-19, 23-21.

Next up were Leicestershire, and we showed remarkable consistency by again winning the 2nd mixed and nothing else, This time the honours went to Di and Martyn, while the losing pairs were Helen/Xin, JP/JH, and Angela/Martin.

We finished Day 1 with our match against Cumbria, this time being on the wrong end of a 4-0 defeat. Despite that scoreline, the individual games were the closest of the day, with our losing game scores being 18, 12, 16, 17, 19, 19, 17 and 20. Pairs were Di/Angela, Martyn/JH, Helen/JP, and Xin/Martin.

And so we retired to the hotel for the evening's dinner and disco. All the tables had a plentiful supply of party poppers, balloons, and pea shooters with polystyrene ball ammunition, so everyone could target whichever opponents (or indeed, team mates) they wanted to. Shot of the night was by Over 40s captain Nick Pratt, who managed to land his long distance shot straight into JP's shirt pocket. After that came the disco, our team showing their younger counterparts the way forward by taking to the dance floor early and staying there for the duration, leaving the 40s to relax in the bar area.

Day 2 got off to a dismal, frosty and foggy start - or so our Over 40s colleagues told us later, our first game of the day being at 12.00 so it was bright and sunny by the time we surfaced. First up was Nottinghamshire, who again consigned us to a 4-0 defeat, our pairings were Helen/Xin, JP/Martin, Martyn/Di, and JH/Angela.

Our final match of the day was against Shropshire, and turned out to be our most enjoyable game of the weekend. Alright, we still lost 3-1, but we had some really competitive close games, so much so that we overran our time slot. Kings of the castle this time were Martin and Di, while the dirty rascals were Angela/Helen, JP/Martyn, and JH/Xin.

So, our final result for the weekend was: Played - 5, Lost - 5, Laughs - well into the 100s, and a brilliant debut by Helen, who fitted straight in like she'd been with us for years and not just 2 days. Player of the weekend, on results achieved, was Di, with 2 victories in Mixed games.

Match report by John Pickering.

Cambs II Repeat 8-7 Leicestershire Win

Cambs IInd team faced the return match against the Leicestershire IIIrd team on Sunday 13th January at CRC, in another tiffin-fuelled nailbiter.

Starting with the singles, the match followed the identical pattern of the away leg, with Paul Heads and Stephen Pickering picking up the mens singles, while Katie Morton and Laurel Bennett struggled to apply pressure against a much-changed Leicestershire side.

Going into the levels, Paul and James Wilson continued to develop the understanding in their partnership, winning in straight sets.  However, it was a shock to see the new pairing of captain Daniel Bates and Stephen Pickering beaten in two ends despite a late rally, victims of poor touch and consistency.  Thankfully, the ladies had more success this time, with Katie and Jessica Sharman combining well to win their game, although Laurel and Louise Tarbit (struggling with a ill-advised netball injury) lost in straight sets.

The second round of doubles followed exactly the same path.  James and Paul kept their heads(!) to win despite losing the first end, Daniel and Stephen failed to capitalise on a mid-game turnaround, Katie and Jessica stayed strong to win another three-end marathon, and Laurel and Louise found the final winning handful of points difficult to grasp.

That left the match absolutely in the balance, 6-6 going into the dramatic final mixed round.  Paul and Katie had established a strong lead in their first game, but half-way through the second the Leicestershire player suffered a debilitating attack of cramp, and eventually had to withdraw.  In second berth, James and Louise struggled to find their consistency, and lost the first end quickly.  Despite ratcheting up their effort levels, they also lost the second end, albeit to 19.

That left the entire hushed hall, watching rapt as Daniel and Jessica went into their third end.  Having lost the first end closely to 19, they had upped their pace in the second and won comfortably to 15.  They established a good lead, and then finally, with Jessica serving in an atmosphere where you could hear a pin drop, they closed out the game, and the match.  

Once again, it had ended 8-7 to Cambridgeshire.  Cue exhausted smiles, and a completion of the remaining tiffin rations.

Voting for Player of the Match (MVP) was completed by early evening - a record - and was awarded to Jessica for her all-round performance and cool head in the final reckoning.

An oddly laid-out fixture list now sees the IInd team face Staffordshire again, before two double-headers against Northants and then Ulster.

The team: Daniel Bates (c), Katie Morton: Hurst Badminton Club /  Paul Heads, Louise Tarbit, James Wilson: Ely Victoria Badminton Club / Jessica Sharman: Court Badminton Club / Stephen Pickering, Laurel Bennett

More information about results of the Cambs II team is available on the Team Page.