Brotherhood D have gradually been drawn into the relegation scrap at the bottom of Division Two of the Clacton & District League and are in need of all the points they can muster.

So, despite losing 7-3 this week to Walton D, they were grateful to former captain Kevin Pryor for staying unbeaten and securing three valuable points. Pryor recorded fine wins over Andy Foster, Clive Allenby and Tony Sharman, his 3-1 (1-11, 11-6, 12-10, 11-4) success over Foster particularly notable.

Foster, Allenby and Sharman all took two for the winners, Sharman involved in one of the closest matches of the season so far, getting past Brotherhood reserve Rodney Betts 3-2 (9-11, 11-9, 10-12, 11-8, 18-16).  

Isabel Barton was the heroine for relegation-threatened Windsor Harriers in their drawn match with Brotherhood C, a draw which lifts her side out of the relegation places. Barton’s treble included an 11-7 in the fifth victory over Mark Beckham and an equally impressive 3-2 (14-16, 5-11, 16-14, 11-7, 11-9) win over Paul Metcalf.

But there was no such good fortune for Windsor Kestrels who went down 10-0 to Brotherhood B’s strongest trio of Mark Salter, Paul Alden and Barry Allen. The result, temporarily at least, moves the Kestrels back to the foot of the table.

In the only other result from the Division, Nomads Jaguars defeated Lawford 6-4, with Chris Parr again unbeaten. Daryl Lott’s two wins for the Jaguars included the tightest match of the encounter, 3-2 (15-17, 5-11, 11-9, 11-2, 12-10) against Charlie Denholm. John Colvin took a couple for the losers.

It was a case of ‘all the threes’ in Division Three where three of the leading teams met three of the lower-placed teams, with all the matches ending in the same, somewhat predictable, 10-0 scoreline.

The experience of Windsor Penguins proved too much for the youth of Brotherhood E, with only two matches extended to a fourth set. The result extends the lead of the Penguins at the top and they are starting to look unstoppable.

Walton E, who still harbour outside hopes of securing the runners-up spot, were equally dominant against Nomads Ocelots, although the doubles scoreline had an unusual look about it, Lynette Sparks and Paul Woolnough defeating Arthur Wells-Garrett and Chris Wilmotte 3-1 (11-2, 3-11, 12-10, 11-2).

The final 10-0 result saw victory for Windsor Magpies over Nomads Lynx. Two of the matches were extended to a fifth set, Malcolm Caley beating Pam Cousins 11-6 in the fifth and, in the doubles, Caley and Dave Sweetland defeating Cousins and Ann Peart 11-8 in the fifth. It was something of a red-letter day for Caley who notched up his first hat-trick since 2016, although admittedly, for all but one of the previous seasons, the Magpies were playing in Division Two.

The only other match in the Division ended 9-1 in favour of Brotherhood F over Nomads Bobcats. Fred Gallone, Joe Sherwin and JJ Barry all stayed unbeaten but the Bobcats had the satisfaction of taking a first doubles win of the season, Norman Jacobs and James Horsler defeating Sherwin and Barry 3-0 (11-4, 11-9, 11-6).

In Division One, a Nomads Panthers’ side fielding a reserve went down 6-4 to Windsor Eagles. There were two wins apiece for Mel Rampton and John Pattrick of the Eagles, Rampton defeating Gill Locke 11-4 in the decider and Pattrick just getting the better of reserve Colin Webber 11-8 in the decider. However, the doubles proved the pivotal match, Rampton and Pattrick edging out Locke and Greg Green 13-11 in the decider. Through all this, Green remained unbeaten in his three singles for the Panthers.

The defeat ended a run of 52 consecutive unbeaten matches for the Panthers stretching back to 2018 – a magnificent record!

Three for Adam Cuthbert, two for Adam Wilkin and one for Jason Lloyd saw Nomads Lions home 7-3 against Brotherhood A for a second time this season. Cuthbert was taken the distance by Kevin Gowlett, 11-5 in the fifth, whilst the doubles win for Cuthbert and Wilkin was 11-6 in the fifth against Russell Hillier and reserve Martin Edwards. For Brotherhood, Gowlett won two and Hillier one.

In a repeat score of their early season encounter, the Windsor Hawks v Walton B match ended all-square. Andy Vincent took his maximum for the Hawks whilst there were two each for Walton’s Gavin Price and John Marshall. Walton won both matches which went the distance, Marshall defeating John Barton 11-7 in the decider and Graham Buxton beating the same player 11-8 in the decider.

* The Handicap Singles Tournament takes place on Saturday 4th February at St James’ Hall, Clacton-on-Sea. The limit of 32 players has nearly been reached so any player who still wants to enter should contact Peter White as soon as possible. Play starts at 10am but players will be notified individually of their checking-in times in advance.

* The Windsor Club’s Quiz Evening is being held on Saturday 28th January at the Brotherhood Hall, starting at 7.30pm. The cost is £3 per person for teams of up to six. For more information or to enter a team, contact Jenny Higgins (Tel: 07790 240566) or Ferdy Rodriguez (Tel: 01255 830951).

RESULTS

Division 1
Windsor Hawks 5 Walton B 5
Nomads Lions 7 Brotherhood A 3
Nomads Panthers 4 Windsor Eagles 6

Division 2
Brotherhood B 10 Windsor Kestrels 0
Lawford 4 Nomads Jaguars 6
Windsor Harriers 5 Brotherhood C 5
Walton D 7 Brotherhood D 3

Division 3
Brotherhood F 9 Nomads Bobcats 1
Brotherhood E 0 Windsor Penguins 10
Walton E 10 Nomads Ocelots 0
Windsor Magpies 10 Nomads Lynx 0