SOUTHPORT BADMINTON LEAGUE

HOPES of survival for Churchtown’s second team have ignited after they pulled off a crucial 5-3 away win at Southport to record only their second win of the season in week 14 of the ‘MKM Building Supples’ Southport and District Badminton League.

Winning three of the four mixed doubles encounters was enough of a lead to maintain for the remainder of the contest.

This result now puts Churchtown II two points off safety and also brings their opponents back into the mix.

With their longest spell in the first division now under major threat, Churchtown II knew that matches against their nearest rivals were absolute must-win situations. With the majority of their team for this encounter featuring players with years of first division experience, this team have given themselves the best possible chance of securing some vital points.

A number of early wins including a thrilling three-set victory for mixed doubles pair Ian Hunter and Lynn Edge put Churchtown in prime position at the halfway mark. Victory was secured after a couple of comfortable straight-set wins for men’s doubles pair John Bowker and John Machin as well as women’s doubles pair Faye Skinner and Debbie Rigby.

With another win still required move out of the bottom two, upcoming matches against some of their nearest rivals has put Churchtown II in a position that could see them survive for a seventh straight season in the top division.

As for Southport, that result now has them looking over their shoulder and thoughts of a first ever relegation have come back.

At the top, leaders Woodvale made it fourteen wins out of fourteen after recording a 7-1 home victory over Ormskir’s first team.

Despite the lower ranked side pushing the title contenders in a number of encounters, Woodvale’s strength in deciding set situations were hard to overcome. With their remaining fixtures mainly featuring their fellow title contenders, Woodvale have built themselves the perfect foundations to become league champions for the first time since 2015.

As for second place side Churchtown, they kept the pressure on Woodvale at the top with an impressive 8-0 home win over fourth place Tarleton.

Also coming out winners in the league’s top flight was Crosby. The fifth place side comfortably saw off bottom side Ormskirk II by winning 8-0.

In other league action, hopes of promotion from the fourth division for Formby’s first team were dealt a blow as could only conjure up a 4-4 draw against a Westsands V that is in the middle of a relegation battle.

Despite fielding a strong side for this encounter, it seemed Formby came across a very inspired Westsands side that managed to match their higher ranked opponents throughout the evening. That performance was rewarded with a point that pulls them slightly further away from the bottom two.

Westsands V were on double duty this past week as their rearranged clash with relegation rivals Crosby III also ended 4-4. With Crosby going into a match missing one male player, Westsands were already in the driving seat. But despite the best efforts of Crosby turning the result around, a draw keeps Westsands away from danger.

However with Crosby still having some games in hand to complete, hopes of survival remain realistic for them.

With Formby faltering, this gave Burscough Pioneers II a chance to reclaim second place. They went into their encounter with Woodvale V with confidence. But with their opponents being in good form lately, Burscough were still aware they would have a fight on their hands.

In the end, Burscough managed to past that test as they battled to a well fought

5-3 home win to move back into the promotion places.

A couple of wins by Paul Hawes and Katie Benson were the highlight for Burscough as they recorded their ninth league win of the season. With a couple of games in hand, this could now see Burscough pull away from nearest rivals Formby.

For leaders St. Cuthberts II, it was another dominant victory as they toppled Churchtown’s fifth team 8-0.

In other fourth division action, there were wins for mid-table sides Westsands IV and Southport IV.

In the sixth division, the first division title of the season was confirmed after leaders Churchtown VI narrowly defeat Westsands VI 5-3 to become division champions.

After what has been a pretty dominant season for this side, a bit of resistance by their lower ranked opponents gave us a rare tight encounter featuring the division leaders.

But in the end,

Churchtown’s strength in depth was enough for them to get over the line and record the team’s second division title in their history.

There were also wins for second and third place sides Formby II and Woodvale VII. Narrow wins over

Churcthtown VII and Southport VI respectively, keeps promotion in their sights.

The second division saw a number of teams pull off crucial wins to move away from any relegation trouble. One that was unexpected was Mawdesley’s first team who pulled off a 6-2 away win over Tarleton II. After matching their opponents in the mixed doubles, Mawdesley were looking confident of collecting their sixth of the season. Along with a couple of fortunate walkover wins, they produced a couple of strong performances and swept the men’s and women’s doubles encounters to record a memorable away win.

For Westsands II, they made the most of a Victoria Hall II side that were unable to field a full team. With Westsands already 2-0 up before a shuttle had been bit, they did enough to prevent Victoria Hall from overcoming the odds and claim a 5-3 win.

It was much easier outing for Southport’s second team as they collected a surprisingly commanding 8-0 win over a Tarleton III that remain in the relegation zone and one point off safety.

At the top, Crosby II are now one win away from promotion to the first division. They recorded an 8-0 win over bottom side Westsands III in a game that did not see the division leaders drop a set. That result also puts Westsands’ third team one loss away from relegation back to division three.

Speaking of the third division, Hesketh Bank returned to the top of the table with a resounding 7-1 away win at Churchtown IV. With fellow promotion contenders Ormskirk III and Woodvale IV crucial encounter being rearranged to the following week, Hesketh Bank made the most of this opportunity with a comfortable win.

After a slip in form with back-to-back defeats, consecutive wins since then has seen Hesketh Bank back in the mix for not just promotion, but for a division title.

At the opposite end of the table, survival remains a realistic outcome for Woodvale IV as they battled to a wellearned 4-4 draw with fourth place side St. Cuthberts.

Knowing their opponents would be at their strongest in the second half of the contest, winning three of the four allocated mixed doubles matchups was crucial in the end result.

While this result could Woodvale’s fourth team for future matches, it still keeps them in the bottom two as nearest rivals Mawdesley II also claimed a point as their unbeaten run stretches now to six games.

Nothing could separate Mawdesley’s second team and Southport III in a 4-4 contest that saw three quarters of the encounters be decided in three sets.

Sadly for bottom side Tarleton IV, it was another defeat as they fell 6-2 at home against Burscough Pioneers’ first team.

While there were chances of claiming something from the game, Burscough’s experience came through when required.

It has been a frustrating season for Tarleton’s fourth team.

Countless near misses has seen the side still without a win in the league this season and they could be put out of their misery by the end of next week with confirmation of a quick return to the fourth division.

As for Burscough, hopes of a top half finish are still in their hands.

In the fifth division, only one match was recorded this past week. It saw leaders

Mawdesley III go five points clear at the top after a 7-1 win away at fourth place side St. Cuthberts III.

Despite some solid resistance by the home side, the quality of Mawdesley proved too much in the end. That result now puts Mawdesley one win from return to the fourth division after a two year absence.

For all the latest news and league tables, be sure to check out their official website, www. southportbadminton.com. Also, make sure you like the league’s official Facebook page. Division 1

Team P W D L ED Pts Woodvale I 14 14 0 0 +80 42 Churchtown I 13 12 0 1 +78 36 Victoria Hall I 12 9 1 2 +52 28 Tarleton I 14 9 0 5 +22 27 Crosby I 14 6 2 6 +8 20 Ormskirk I 13 3 4 6 -26 13 Southport I 14 3 2 9 -48 11 Westsands I 13 3 1 9 -38 10 Churchtown II 14 2 2 10 -44 8 Ormskirk II 13 0 0 13 -84 0

Division 2 Team

Crosby II Woodvale II Churchtown III Tarleton II Westsands II Mawdesley I Southport II Victoria Hall II Tarleton III Westsands III

Division 3

Team P Hesketh Bank I 14 Ormskirk III 13 Woodvale III 13 St. Cuthberts I 14 Burscough Pioneers I 14 Southport III 14 Churchtown IV 14 Mawdesley II 14 Woodvale IV 14 Tarleton IV 14

Division 4

Team P St. Cuthberts II 14 Burscough Pioneers II 12 Formby I 14 Woodvale V 15 Southport IV 14 Westsands IV 13 Churchtown V 14 Westsands V 14 Crosby III 12 Woodvale VI 14

Division 5

Team

Mawdesley III Formby Methodist Hesketh Bank II

St. Cuthberts III Hesketh Bank III Southport V (R)

Division 6

Team

Churchtown VI (C) Formby II Woodvale VII Westsands VI Churchtown VII Southport VI

P 14 13 13 14 14 14 14 14 14 14

P 12 11 11 12 11 11

P 12 13 12 9 10 10

W 13 12 8 7 6 6 4 3 3 0

W 11 10 9 6 4 4 4 3 3 0

W 12 9 8 8 7 6 3 2 2 0

W 10 8 7 4 3 0

W 12 7 6 4 1 0

D 1 1 2 1 2 0 4 2 1 0

D 0 2 2 3 3 4 3 4 3 4

D 2 1 4 1 3 3 2 3 1 2

D 1 2 0 1 0 0

D 0 2 1 1 1 1

L 0 0 3 6 6 8 6 9 10 14

L 3 1 2 5 6 6 7 7 8 10

L 0 2 2 6 4 4 9 9 9 12

L 1 1 4 7 8 11

L 0 4 5 4 8 9

ED +60 +48 +28 +16 +8 -16 -4 -16 -48 -76

ED +40 +50 +36 +4 -2 -18 -22 -18 -24 -46

ED +68 +32 +20 +20 0 +8 -32 -30 -22 -64

ED +40 +40 +26 -10 -32 -64

ED +70 -2 -2 0 -28 -38

Pts 40 37 26 22 20 18 16 11 10

0

Pts 33 32 29 21 18 16 15 13 12 4

Pts 38 28 28 25 24 21 11 9 7 2

Pts 31 26 21 13 9 0

Pts 36 23 19 13 4 1