SOUTHPORT BADMINTON LEAGUE

THE wait was worth it for Woodvale V as they claimed a record equalling third West End Cup title as they defeated Formby’s first team 6-2.

A hat-trick of wins within the men’s doubles was the highlight for Woodvale’s fifth team in a competition that sees the club keep a firm hold of being the most successful in the competition’s 41-year history.

With unfortunate circumstances forcing the last of this seasons ‘MKM Building Supplies’ cup finals till the New Year, patience was required for both teams as the opportunity for silverware is not a common occurrence for many teams.

In the end, it was Woodvale that came out of the blocks strong and quickly secured a cup final victory. Despite the best efforts of Formby, it seemed it was their opponents that rose to the occasion with a number of strong and solid performances.

Elsewhere, while the rearranged cup final unexpectedly took centre stage this past week, a number of other teams were busy looking to go one step closer to lifting the Watkinson Trophy as quarter final spots were up for grabs.

After giving themselves the best possible chance of winning their first ever Watkinson Trophy last season, the club of St. Cuthberts are looking to be in that exact situation again this year as both their second and third teams recorded spots into the final eight.

The week began with a 49 points victory for St. Cuthberts III over first division side Crosby.

Last year’s finalists capitalised on a Crosby side that was missing a number of its regular starters. Along with a 290 points handicap awarded to the lower ranked side at the conclusion of the contest, St. Cuthberts overcame a tough test and move a step closer to consecutive Watkinson Trophy finals.

St. Cuthberts’ second team joined them a few days later with a narrow 14 points win over Westsands’ first team. Despite the first division side winning every contest available to them, a number of battling performances by the lower ranked side gave them the hope that they had achieved enough points to progress to the next round.

Their achievement on the court was rewarded off the court with the awarding of a 230 points handicap to be added to their total and a second quarter finals appearance in as many seasons.

With both St. Cuthberts side in the same half of the draw, both teams are now just one win away from repeating their successes from their last campaigns.

Looking to prevent that from happening will be a couple of third division sides in the form of Southport III and Burscough Pioneers who respectively eliminated Woodvale V and Hesketh Bank III.

While the odds suggest a brand new champion may be crowned, the most successful team in the competition’s history is still alive. This is of course referring to Churchtown’s first team who are now aiming for a record breaking fifth win in this prestigious competition.

Their latest outing saw them overcome a 255 handicap disadvantage that was awarded to third division opponents Mawdesley II.

Sadly for them, the points that they achieve on the court was not enough and Churchtown recorded a 400-384 victory. Their quarter final opponents will be second division side Southport II.

Completing the quarter-final line-up was second division side Mawdesley and sixth division leaders Churchtown VI who managed to defeat Formby Methodist and Tarleton II.

For many sides this past week, they began their campaigns in their respective Shield competition. One side that could be creating some impressive history is Hesketh Bank in the League Shield.

If they end up achieving lifting this trophy, they will not only become the most successful team within this competition but also be the first team to win it in three consecutive years.

Along with a +8 handicap advantage, Hesketh Bank managed to overcome a stern test in the form of second division promotion contenders Woodvale II.

After Woodvale moved into a lead that put them on the brink of victory, Hesketh Bank regrouped in the second half of the contest.

Highlighted by a hat-trick of wins in the ladies doubles contest, the turnaround was complete and Hesketh Bank survived what could be a tough path to another final.

Their quarter final will be against another side expecting promotion from the second division in the form of Crosby II, who edged past a Woodvale III side the pushed their opponents to a one-set mixed doubles tie-breaker.

Another comeback that was achieved came from a Tarleton IV side that is still yet to find a win within its league campaign. After Southport III conjured a 5-3 lead, it was the women of Tarleton that produced the majority of this memorable victory including a hat-trick of wins for Cal Whitehead.

They move onto the next round to face Burscough Pioneers. The third division side maintained an early lead to eliminate Mawdesley’s first team.

In the top half of the draw, only one former champion remains in the form of Woodvale IV. The 2019 champions comfortably took care of St. Cuthberts first team 8-4.

They now move on to face a Churchtown IV side that made great use of their +8 handicap advantage to defeat Tarleton’s third team 9-3.

The final two spots were claimed by Mawdesley II and Churchtown III who took out Westsands III and Tarleton II respectively.

In the St. John’s Shield, St. Cuthberts III look to be in a good place to retain their trophy as their 9-3 home win over Woodvale VII sealed their spot in the quarter finals. A near perfect performance sees St. Cuthberts III now have Churchtown VI standing in their way.

The sixth division leaders made the most of a +9 handicap to topple Westsands’ fourth team 8-4.

In the same half of the draw, it was double delight for Churchtown in this competition as the seventh team edged past their fifth team in a thrilling encounter. Despite the higher ranked side moving to a commanding lead and on the verge of victory, the underdogs fought back well and made great use of their

+13 handicap advantage to level the contest at 6-6.

That therefore gave us a one-set tie-break to decide the winners which ultimately was taken the seventh team mixed pair of Jacob Stoker and Scarlett Danher over fellow club members Dave Westby and Maisie Jackson 30-14.

Other teams move onto the quarter finals in the St. John’s Shield were Southport VI, Formby Methodist and Burscough Pioneers II who eliminated Westsands fifth and sixth teams and Woodvale V respectively.

Finally in the Fleetwood Hesketh Shield, only two matches took place to complete the quarter-finals line-up.

Defending champions Victoria Hall continue their unbeaten run in this competition that goes as far back as 2019 with a comfortable 8-4 home win over Crosby. Despite Crosby being awarded a +2 handicap for each set, Victoria Hall’s strength in depth was enough to overcome that disadvantage to book them a place in the final eight against Ormskirk II.

Meanwhile, Westsands secured a 9-3 away win over Ormskirk’s first team.

It has been over 20 years since the club of Westsands was triumphant in this event. However, this result has put them in a good position to at move one step closer with a quarter-final match-up against Southport’s first team.

The league returns next week as we now move to round 11 of the season. So for all the latest news and league tables, be sure to check out their official website, HYPERLINK “http://www.southportbadminton.com” www.southportbadminton.com. Also, make sure you like the league’s official Facebook page.