Seconds recover to conquer Castle
Bridge of Allan Sports Club’s seconds completed their pre-Christmas card with a comprehensive 4-1 mauling of Colinton Castle 3rds that has left them 11 points adrift of East of Scotland Division Two leaders Waverley going into the break.
A hard fought victory in the capital saw the club immediately behind the eight ball when Doug Curtis went down at number five in three torrid sets but, with number two Andy Meldrum and skipper Martin Jack both imperious en route to straight-sets victories, BofA quickly took control of the tie.
That left number three Martin Sanchez to use all his nous to claim a tight four-setter and when James Dougan overcame Sean Robinson 15-12 in the fourth a good night’s work was complete.
Captain Martin Jack said:“We knew it would be tough at Colinton and every match was a battle but we showed how game we are and to take 15 points from the tie is very satisfying.
“We go into the break just 11 points off the leaders but, more importantly, we are 40 points clear of ESC V in fourth so when it comes to our promotion bid we have put ourselves in a very strong position.
“If someone had said to me we would reach the halfway stage having lost just one league game from the nine I would have shaken their hand off.”
The firsts ended the first half on the back of a disappointing 3-2 defeat at Colinton 1sts that left them sixth in the top tier.
Captain Robin Bairner admitted that his side’s third defeat in their last four outings had effectively killed their hopes of a top-three finish but vowed that his boys will bounce back after the break.
He said:“Again inconsistency of selection has cost us and that is really disappointing. The bottom line is that we know if we have a full-strength side to pick from then potentially we are a top three side but for the last month or so that has not been the case.
“Having said that, we are just 13 points off the top half of the table and after the break we have our number two Scott Mosely back in the mix after a groin injury that has sidelined him for the first half.”
Thanks to a gutsy mid-order victory by club presidentWalter McAllister, the thirds took their unbeaten run to nine games after a tight 3-2 victory at Grange in the Fifth Division took them 10 points clear at the top.
Vice-captain Bert Mitchell said:“All credit to the lads and in particular to Walter, who won the decisive singles 3-1 after a rollercoaster affair.
“We have two games left to go before the end of the year with a trip to Kirkcaldy and the visit of ESC 8 and the target is to stay unbeaten. If we do that we go into the break top.”
The club are sponsored by Richardson and Starling.