DIVISION 1 – 2.3.08.
LEIGH A RETAIN TITLE WHILE BATTLE FOR SECOND SPOT RAGES
Leigh A had already retained their crown at the commencement of the final meeting of Division 1 and attention therefore centred on the runners up spot where Otford A were two points ahead of Medway and two other teams, Teen & 20 A and Leigh B who, whilst close behind Medway, were strangely also fighting for survival. Darenth A could in theory escape relegation but needed heroic action from Mark Heaton and Dave Bishop.
There was a lot riding on the ninth round matches. This was especially true of the Otford A (Nick Larmer/Robert Harrowven) and Darenth A clash where Otford A were looking for a win while Darenth were in desperate need of points to avoid the drop. It began well for Otford with Larmer cruising past Heaton. Bishop levelled the match by defeating Harrowven and Darenth went ahead by taking the doubles. Larmer and Bishop then had a rare tussle with Bishop leading 2-1 but Larmer found a way to get the fourth and then the fifth to redress the balance. Harrowven and Heaton contested the last set where Heaton dropped the first but then recovered to take the next three, albeit the third at 13-11 and fourth at 12-10 to secure victory for Darenth.
It was a similar story with Medway (Dave McAulay/Steve Doughty) and Teen & 20 A (Ming Majoe/Brian Lees) except Teen & 20 took a 2-0 lead, Majoe defeating McAulay in straight games whilst Lees duelled with Doughty, winning 14-12 in the fifth. Medway won the doubles and Doughty then squared the match with a narrow win over Majoe 11-8, 11-9, 12-10. Lees seemed to be firing on all cylinders against McAulay and won 11-8 in the fourth after dropping the third. Teen & 20 were well pleased with these points but somewhat disappointed Darenth had achieved the same score line.
The domestic derby between Leigh B (Micky Kilden/Matt Emery) and Leigh A (Roger Pingram/Roger Harris) brought some cracking play. Kilden had to bring out his very best to defeat Pingram in the opening set. He had led 2-0 but Pingram regrouped to get back to 2 all and it was then a question of whether Kilden's unpredictable forehand would hold up under pressure. It did and he pulled it off 11-8 in the fifth. The remaining sets all went to the A but not without a great deal of hard work.
It was status quote at the top with Leigh A unassailable but the runners up spot was still undecided and the relegation issue was far from clear with three teams involved. With regards to second place, Otford A had, on paper, the easier task in taking on Leigh B, who were, surprisingly, one of the three relegation candidates, whilst Medway tackled Leigh A.
The relegation issue was far from clear with only one team going down. There were many scenarios possible and changed as each set was played. Calculations were complex and the venue supervisors could have done with an abacus. Leigh B, who had a three point lead at the beginning of the session, now had only a single point lead over Teen & 20 and Darenth A who were still level.
Medway (Doughty/McAulay) soon found themselves 0-2 down although McAulay ran Harris close as 11-7, 12-10, 12-10 suggests. Leigh A took the doubles to go 3-0 up. The reverse singles were keenly contested, especially the set between Doughty and Harris which is reflected in the score, Doughty sneaking it in the fifth - 10-12, 11-7, 10-12, 12-10, 12-10. McAulay has a good track record against Pingram but on this occasion he forgot the formula and went down in four, leaving Leigh A 4-1 victors. A rare off day for McAulay.
In theory Otford A needed another three points to be sure of the runners up spot and skipper Larmer was delighted with their confident start against Leigh B where Kilden and Emery were soon wearing worried frowns, given what was happening between Teen & 20 and Darenth. It quickly became clear that Leigh B needed only one point to stay in Division 1 next season. It came in the doubles, a very long set which they won 11-7 in the fifth, much to their relief. Suitably relaxed they went on to take the reverse singles that both went to five and produced some excellent play. This gave Leigh B a 3-2 win and enough points for Otford A to take the runners up spot.
It was make or break time in the bottom of the table clash between Teen & 20 A (Majoe/Lees) and Darenth A (Heaton/Bishop). It was a very tense affair with all keen to do well. Majoe got his tail up against Heaton who wasn't given much chance to get into his stride. Next followed a very long set between Lees and Bishop. There were some rather strange scores here with Bishop going 2-1 up. Lees cut out the errors to take the fourth and finally got over the line 12-10 in the fifth. Teen & 20 assured themselves of a Division 1 spot next season when they won the doubles. By now nothing was going right for the Darenth men and they lost both the reverse singles. A lot of hard work with nothing to show for one's efforts is always tough to take but well done Teen & 20. Both Majoe and Lees played better on the day.
Leigh A thus retained their title but what joy for Larmer and Harrowven to come in as runners up, having struggled initially to survive on promotion to the premier division. Darenth A will go down but be replaced by the new champions of Division 2, Darenth B.