Bolly avenge derby defeat to Prestbury
ON the 10th day of Christmas (3 January), the North West Counties League fixtures-compiler gave to squash clubs in and around our town a very early new-year set of fixtures for their men’s teams.
All 13 local teams were in action, as players took to the courts for the first time, in a competitive sense, since the League’s three-week festive break had begun - and, in certain cases, following periods spent away on holiday, at home in sickbeds, or anywhere on general seasonal indulgence!
Eight of the teams were involved in ‘derbies’ with each other, at either Bollington or Prestbury - and it was the former’s leisure centre that hosted the pick of the evening’s matches, as the two clubs’ First Teams did battle in Division Two East.
Prestbury had claimed the bragging rights in the reverse-fixture at Bollin Grove on the season’s opening night.
But the ninth-placed ‘Bolly Firsts’, on this occasion, made both home advantage and good current form count, as they triumphed by the odd match in five.
Home wins for Christian Ogden and Lyndon Stonier were cancelled out by Prestbury’s Nathan Mayers and Mike Lomas, before 17-year-old James Walton – who, a day previously, had passed his driving test at the first time of asking – completed a successful week for himself and a victorious evening for his team by claiming the decider. Bollington have now lost just once in the last seven matches, but it was a second successive defeat for Prestbury, who drop a place to seventh.
There was less good news for Bollington from the Second Team, who travelled up to West Heaton 1 - only to succumb 4-1, with just a consolation win by Aldo Palazzo to bring home. The ‘Bolly Seconds’, for whom the loss was a fourth running, stay 10th in Division Three Central South.
Prestbury’s ‘ Seconds’, who had lost their last two Third Division South-East matches against fellow promotion-chasers, returned to winning ways, and moved back up one position to third, after hosting and thrashing relegation-haunted Lymm 1. Victories for Chris Dunkerley, junior player Jonny Murray (16), Rick Bower and Graeme English, together with a walkover-win at fifth string, ensured a collective 5-0 rout.
Another ‘derby’, in Division Four Central South, involved two Prestbury sides - and went to form, with the secondplaced ‘Thirds’ defeating the ‘Fourths’, in 12th, 5-0. Mike Brauckmann, Rich Curry, Dave Jones, Paul Wilson and David Hunt all won to give their team an eighth consecutive victory, as well as maintaining a gap of 15 points between them and third-placed Monton 3.
In the Fourth Division South, Macclesfield 1 did their promotion cause a power of good after playing host to Alderley Edge 5 and seeing off the leaders 3-2, thanks to victories by James Douglas, Simon Evans and Joe Green.
The win completed a hat-trick of successes for Macc.
And the town’s leisure centre team is now up a place to third, just eight points behind its visitors.
There was also a hat-trick for Bollington to celebrate - with the club’s Third and Fourth Teams following the lead of its ‘Firsts’ by defeating Prestbury sides.
The ‘Bolly Thirds’ inched up one position to seventh in Division Four South, after receiving ninth-placed Prestbury 5 and prevailing 4-1. Gareth Evans had struck first blood for the visitors with a straight-games win - only for Bollington’s Malcolm Kendrick, junior George Lomas (14), Rob Harland and Eugene Mole all to triumph, and also in straight games, as the hosts finished on top.
Prestbury provided the venue for its winless Sixth Team’s Division Five South contest with the ‘Bolly Fourths’, in sixth, who had lost their three matches leading up to Christmas.
Straight-games victories for Phil Colville, Will Jordan and 14-year-old juniors Jack Walton and Sam Jordan sealed a 4-1 Bollington triumph - with Prestbury’s sole win coming courtesy of a fifth-string walkover.