Queens triumph in final match of season to finish in fourth place

Queens finished the Yorkshire Premier squash league season in fourth place after a tight 17-10 win at fifth-placed Dunnington in their final match of the campaign.

The momentum swung both ways with wins for Marvin Mortensen-Ramlill and Seif Heikal for the York hosts and Stephen Hearst and James Earles for the visitors from Halifax.

It all came down to Welshman

Owain Taylor against Finnlay Withington, the former British Junior Open champion and it was Withington who took it 11/9 in the fifth after a late-night, season-closing epic.

With Doncaster having wrapped up the title last week, attention switched to the bottom of the table as Woodfield and Pontefract 2 faced off in a straight shootout for survival.

Pontefract 2, who have been in the top flight for 10 years, began the night just above the dreaded dotted line with a five-point advantage as they headed to Balby to meet a hostile reception.

The night began promisingly for the West Yorkshire club as lower order duo Joe Royle and Connor Sheen both sailed to straight-games victories, but the tide turned inexorably in favour of the hosts thereafter.

Woodfield's number three, London-based Caleb Boy, kickstarted the turnaround by resoundingly beating Chester Dockray and the hosts' top two of George Parker and Declan James always looked likely to prove too formidable for Ponte.

Former England international Parker defeated New Zealander Anthony Lepper, who had flown from Prague especially for the encounter, in straight games.

All then rested on the top-string outcome. James, the Commonwealth Games gold medallist, had proved his return to full fitness after a long lay-off by winning last week's Odense Open.

Sure enough, he cruised to victory over Rhys Evans to seal Woodfield's survival - and condemn Pontefract 2 to life in Division One next season.

Pontefract 2 will be replaced in the Premier League by Cleethorpes, who sealed their promotion to the top tier despite defeat to secondplaced Harrogate 2.

Cleethorpes have a threepoint lead and a game remaining, while Harrogate 2 have completed their fixtures.